11 weeks!

How far along?  11 weeks and 1 day

Total weight gain: 3.5 lbs

Maternity clothes? no

Stretch marks?  yes, from previous pregnancy :)

Sleep: so-so

Best moment this week: It finally got real!  We heard the heart beat and saw our baby moving!

Miss Anything? not really

Movement: no

Food cravings:  oranges

Anything making you queasy or sick: no

Gender Prediction: feeling strongly that it's a boy

Labor Signs: no

Symptoms: no

Belly Button in or out? in

Wedding rings on or off? on

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy!

Looking forward to: My next ultrasound next Thursday!

Celebrating the news and Rocks Big 31!

How I told family...

This time around I was feeling more "under control" with my excitement, so I knew I could wait and make the reveal somewhat special.  The day I found out was luckily a day that my mom was watching Ali, so I was able to tell Joel in a special way.  I made him dinner, as usual, but on the plate I wrote "congratulations, you're going to be a dad again!", while he was eating he saw it and was so excited.  I  was able to set up a hidden camera and got his reaction all on tape.  For our families, I made the usual Christmas calendars for them but on my due date (Aug. 1st), I wrote due with baby #2.  Everyone was super excited and slightly shocked I think :).

7 weeks

Here we go again!

You Are What You Eat

This is a typical lunch. Polenta with cheddar cheese topped with avocado, oranges, steamed broccoli, and a cucumber spear.
I decided to write a blog about the way I feed Ali because it's something that I'm passionate about. I've always thought of the food I give Ali as what "grows her", similar to the way you would grow a plant. You don't grow a plant with soda and juice, the plant would quickly die.
Ali has always been an open eater. She eats most anything I put on her plate (kale, polenta, broccoli, cauliflower, quinoa, beans, ground turkey and of course she loves the pastas, cheeses, and fruits). We try to stay away from the sugars, she eats her daily amounts of fruits so juices aren't necessary, and as far as dairy goes she has begun to tolerate them better but we stick with almond milk.
When Ali was about 6 months old she had a reaction to yogurt that caused her to break out in hives and her mouth to swell, also known as an anaphylatic reaction. We took her to a allergist who performed a skin test to see if she was allergic to the cows milk protein, sure enough she was. We were advised to give her soy milk as a replacement and I continued nursing her well past the recommended 1 year mark because she was not drinking cows milk and I felt she needed the fat my milk contained. Around 17 months of age we start to notice her left breast was enlarging and asked her pediatrician about it. She told us that soy milk contains estrogen's in it, so she recommended that we give her almond milk instead. We've been giving her almond milk for about 3 months now and have noticed that the swelling has decreased. So for these reasons I'm stickler about Ali getting her vegetables as they contain calcium that she doesn't get from drinking a lot of milk. We have also slowly introduced cows milk into her diet with baked goods and cheeses. By incorporating small amounts of cows milk into her system her body has a chance to "get used" to the allergen without causing her to react to it. So far she has not reacted to the small amounts that we give her. However, I have not been brave enough to give her a glass of cows milk yet. When she turns 2 years old we will take her back to the allergist to have the skin test repeated. The main reason why I need to know if she can tolerate cows milk by doing these "tests" isn't because I think she needs the nutrients (she gets those from other sources), it's mainly because soon she will be around other children who like these things. I need to know that if she tries them, she won't have an anaphylatic reaction (which can be deadly).
More than anything I want Ali to have a healthy relationship with food. I want her to make healthy decisions and to nourish her body so that she can grow appropriately. I let her have a treat every once in awhile (cupcake, cookie, etc.), and she loves them. But my hope is that one day she will choose the healthier option on her own...that is the goal at least. :)

Ali is 20 Months

Ali turned 20 months on the 14th of March. She has changed so much in just the last few weeks, it's pretty amazing!

I just bought her pull-up diapers this week as she has been showing big signs of wanting to be toilet trained. She even went poo poo in her own potty this week! It does seem a bit early to start toilet training, but we will see how it goes.

She is also getting very close to quitting nursing. We have gone down to once a day, usually around her nap time. Up to now I will admit it didn't feel right for of us to stop. But I'm starting to feel like it's time. She is also showing less interest in doing it. This will be a big adjustment for us, but I think we are ready for it.