To Be a Teaching Moment

This week I had my 14-week check-up with the doctor. Now, with K, I was good and did the whole rotation of possible Ob-gyns that could have potentially delivered him. This time, I decided that really, it didn't matter. The whole experience is a blur and as long as the doctor delivering my child does a good job, I don't need to know them personally beforehand. Instead, I'd like to stick with one doctor throughout the pregnancy, so that I feel like they are familiar with my situation.

At this appointment, I was asked if it was okay if a resident observed as she was shadowing my doctor. Of course, I obliged. This was a fairly straight-forward appointment, nothing too exciting. So, of course, it was the resident who was going to find the heartbeat. This poor student - she put just a little gel on and barely applied any pressure. I questioned if I should speak up, because I could tell that she wasn't doing it the way that they've been performed on me in the past. But I didn't -- I'm not a doctor, and I didn't want to be a know-it-all without a medical degree. So, then the doctor took over (of course, this meant more gel, since she didn't put enough on the first time) and the doctor found the heartbeat immediately.

Now, I didn't show any panic or anything of that nature, when the resident couldn't find it. But I think the doctor wanted to reassure the resident not to freak out. She explained that it was still that time in the pregnancy when heartbeats can be harder to find. (Even though she found it at 10 weeks which is even harder.) Then I asked if I would be testing for gestational diabetes earlier this time since I did have it during my previous pregnancy. Well, I got a very thorough detailed answer. Seriously, the resident probably learned more during my appointment than most others that day.

I'm glad I could help out a future medical professional. I just hope she applies more pressure on her next patient.

The Find

So, I've been looking for a great antique find for my living room. In the whole manor of Wabi Sabi, I wanted to add something with a little age, history, life to go with my modern Room & Board chairs and Ikea sofas (talk about mixing!) I was geared up for trips to antique stores, and was figuring we'd need to start soon since the summer is practically gone (if it really ever was here for more than one week in June.)

Well ... I didn't have to go very far for my piece of history. Only to my in-laws. D and his friend S were helping them move furniture so that they could put in new flooring. His dad asked me to go downstairs and take a look at something. I always brace myself for these requests, because sometimes it's an old karate uniform of D's, sometimes it's something I don't even understand. So he led all of us into one of their guest rooms ... and then pointed to this huge piece of furniture. Do you guys like it. Yeah, we love it. Do you want it? Really? It belonged to D's great-grandmother, and we don't have room for it anymore. So, in one tiny afternoon, I acquired a gorgeous old wooden ice chest (it does weigh a ton) that is not only a great antique ... but it's a family heirloom.

Of course, I'm thrilled. I don't know exactly how it will fit in my room ... how I'll want to tie in the rest of the decor yet ... but I'm amazed at what I was expecting to be a fun search was not too far away. Of course ... now I just have to determine what else I need that can be a good excuse for antiquing!

The Secret is Out

The cat's out of the bag so to speak ... officially at least. K is going to be a big brother -- and I can finally put on maternity clothes. Seriously, no one warned me that a second child makes it's physically appearance so much faster! I wanted to hold of telling at work, made it to 13 weeks this week and knew that next week I have to break out those comfy belly banded pants. It's just gotten to the point of ridiculousness in the showing department. I know this week if you caught me a certain angle, I already looked pregnant. Yikes!

Of course, all of our parents are super excited. K is excited, but he doesn't really know why. And D and I ... well, we're trying to figure it out. The cost of two children in day care -- $500. A WEEK. A bit crazy if you ask us, so now we're trying to look at all the options and decide what will be the best one for our family. Stay tuned ... the blog will probably have a bit more focus of the course of the next few months until the end of January :)

The Fourth of July

yes, it was over three days ago ... and being away from Internet connections pretty much made updating my blog an impossibility ... but it was a great weekend ... long ... lazy ... and full of family fun. K enjoyed spending time with his grandparents and auntie (so much so, he cried when we left) and I got to sleep a lot. It was good. D was a model spouse and would take K to the playground so I could rest or just catch up with family (and he did this tirelessly for hours.) I couldn't have asked for a better experience this weekend. Well ... I could have stood not to get a sunburned nose, but clearly the twenty gallons of sun block (physical block, too with zinc) was not enough to stop the sun's penetration onto my long skinny nose.

I hope everyone else had a fantastic holiday weekend!

Olive Oil - So Much More than a Cooking Aide

It is June. And with June comes another tasting club event. This month, we dived into the joys and wonders of extra virgin olive oil. Who knew that when it comes down to it, olive oils are like wine and chocolate with various origins, textures tastes. (Okay, in truth we are learning this about every thing that we have as a tasting event!)

The evening had us explore the divine depths of four luxury extra virgin olive oils. And of course, as we've learned with each tasting, there is usually some interesting part of the ritual. Of course for this month, it was that we took a drink of the extra virgin olive oil straight from our little cups ... yeah ... it was strange, but it really did help us see how different they were.

The first treat was a dark, rich oil that had a slight grassy, earthy aroma. The flavor however was a very smooth nutty treat. With a slight peppery finish, this was something you could pour on popcorn and call it heaven. It was no surprise that it hailed from the land of Italy. It was the Lucini olive oil. You can purchase it in a variety of places, but fair warning I noticed that the prices greatly vary (when I was grabbing the image.) I happened to notice that SuperTarget carried it for the very reasonable 8.99 (almost half of what it cost everywhere else.)

The second treat was a lovely Spanish oil called L'estornell. This was a very delicate oil that had a slightly sweet aftertaste, but was almost so subtle that it lacked too much flavor. Again, great for someone who maybe doesn't want a rich extra virgin olive oil or just wants a tiny bit of the luxury. According to the producers web site, this can typically be found at Williams-Sonoma. And I think you're looking at around $20 - 25 for the bottle.

The third oil smelled like herbs with a hint of fruit. You were hit by the strong pepper flavor and as you swallowed it down, the thick liquid made you cough. It was still good, but just so very different than the first. It's no surprise that this one hailed from the Greek Isles. A land known for their care and love of olives. It was definitely a delicious oil for flavoring your bread or cooking with, if you like a stronger taste to your oil. It was the Nassapoulos Family Groves Greek Gourmet Extra Virgin Olive Oil. On their web site, I think you can get a number of different sized bottles for under $10.

The final oil was one for someone who really likes a punch. There was a stronger floral scent to this oil, but the aroma did not prepare you for the unbelievable rich, peppery taste. If you are someone who likes to add a little pepper to your extra virgin olive oil before dipping your bread -- don't with this. It's the perfect blend of pepper and oil already. There's no need to enhance it. The taste is so strong that drinking it straight burned your throat a little like tequila. With bread it was great -- and it would probably be superb for cooking. Of course, this little treat came from the sunny lands of Californa and the McEvoy Ranch. At $20, you definitely may want to try it before you buy it if you are more of a subtle flavor person.

The rest of the food was great, we had mini Caprese salads (which are one of my favorite things!) and delicious little artichoke, olive, tomato pizzas. Next month, we'll venture into the fine world of cured meats. It's like a building antipasti!