Random stuff in my head
I guess you all are pretty well updated, but it's been a really busy couple of days, and tonight I just have an itch to unwind by blogging about stuff. So, if you care to read what is on my mind, here goes.
Last week I had some discouraging times running, for several reasons. For one thing, I've been experiencing sciatica for about three weeks now, and it was particularly bad last week. I'm not sure if running makes this worse or not-- I did experience it with both other pregnancies too towards the end, and it's common in the third trimester-- but still I worried that running was irritating the condition, or even causing it. I also was having increased contractions. It seemed every night after supper, around the girls' bedtime I would have a set of them. I worried that my running might have been causing dehydration that led to these contractions. (Again, increased contractions are a normal third trimester symptom.) When I was running, I was feeling weak and tired rather than energized like I normally do. I had to take walk breaks on many of my runs, which I hadn't had to do up to that point. And even when I wasn't running I felt generally more tired and weak. At my October 25 appointment my OB had told me that I tested slightly anemic and instructed me to start taking an iron supplement, so it confused me further that I was feeling so tired-- I should have been feeling more energy after starting the iron. Given all of these concerns, I decided to take a few days off from running and see if things improved.
Well, the first day off I didn't feel much better. When I started thinking, I realized that I had been eating at least three pieces of candy each day since Halloween (which was around the time I started feeling weak and crappy). I decided to stop eating the candy and see if that helped my energy level. It did. I felt like a completely different person the next day. Granted, a few days off from running probably helped my body rest too... but I was happy to know that running wasn't the only culprit.
So, my sciatica pain is still present, but I don't think it's any worse than it was in the other two pregnancies, so I'm going to try not to worry about it. I'm not having as many contractions (I'm making a conscious effort to stay really hydrated). I returned to running yesterday after three days off. It felt great. I ran again this morning and it felt great again. I felt energized after my run instead of drained. So... as it stands now, all systems are go for continued running. I have an appointment coming up on Friday (I'm starting to see the doc every two weeks now) so we'll see how everything checks out.
I guess I'm writing all this to establish the fact that running may be tapering off soon, and I need to be okay with that. It's hard to let it go, especially since I know I'll need to take at least 4-5 weeks off postpartum, so of course I want to keep running as long as I can before the birth. I also want to keep my weight gain to a minimum so that I can bounce back as quickly as possible postpartum, and running has been helping me a lot with that. But I've also committed to paying attention to my body's signals and doing what is best for baby and me. So if my body tells me to take walk breaks, or to take a few days off, I need to do it. (Thanks for listening while I write this message to myself!)
And now for something completely different... recipes!!
Both M and I love this fall-ish recipe-- and nothing beats making it with farm-fresh apples. I made it the other night with a side of roasted beets from our CSA. I've never been much of a fan of beets, but I think that's because I've always had pickled beets. I loved them roasted in the oven. Very fall-ish indeed.
And did you know you can make mac and cheese in the crockpot? This recipe is so easy, and very tasty. Talk about comfort food!!
Did you know you can make a delicious cup of hot cocoa from scratch, just by mixing 1 cup of hot milk, 2 tablespoons cocoa powder, and 1 tablespoon of sugar? I discovered this two winters ago and we haven't purchased hot cocoa mix ever since. I don't know how it is where you live, but we're starting to have a lot of hot cocoa weather around here. Yay!
Okay, so I get abnormally excited about recipes.
Lastly, I had a keen sense this morning that, as much as my day-to-day life is really exhausting hard work right now, and as much as I probably complain about it... I'm going to miss these days so much when my sweet girls are grown up. And as much as it seems odd to say this right now, I'm probably going to miss the miracle of being pregnant when it's all over. You may not think it... but I really do love what I'm doing right now, and I'm so glad that God has given me these beautiful children and that I have the privilege of serving in motherhood and observing the fascinating process of childhood. It's so hard to keep that on my mind when I'm "in the trenches"... but I've decided to try to be more mindful of that.
And that's the end of my random, poorly organized, poorly written blog post. Congratulations on making it through!
**Addendum to this post after publishing... more random stuff!**
Just for the record... I didn't mention that my total weight gain for the pregnancy was up to 18 pounds at my October 25 appointment-- and that was around 30 weeks. So I gained 4 pounds last month. That's a normal amount for the third trimester, but more than I have been gaining. Perhaps the comfort food and Halloween candy mentioned above have something to do with that. ;-} Or maybe baby's just growing a lot.
I happened upon this blog randomly the other day. (Quick summary: it chronicles the pregnancy of a runner pregnant with twins. Check it out. You'll be amazed.) You may think think she's crazy, but I found it totally inspirational. It just proves what the human body can do.
Last week I had some discouraging times running, for several reasons. For one thing, I've been experiencing sciatica for about three weeks now, and it was particularly bad last week. I'm not sure if running makes this worse or not-- I did experience it with both other pregnancies too towards the end, and it's common in the third trimester-- but still I worried that running was irritating the condition, or even causing it. I also was having increased contractions. It seemed every night after supper, around the girls' bedtime I would have a set of them. I worried that my running might have been causing dehydration that led to these contractions. (Again, increased contractions are a normal third trimester symptom.) When I was running, I was feeling weak and tired rather than energized like I normally do. I had to take walk breaks on many of my runs, which I hadn't had to do up to that point. And even when I wasn't running I felt generally more tired and weak. At my October 25 appointment my OB had told me that I tested slightly anemic and instructed me to start taking an iron supplement, so it confused me further that I was feeling so tired-- I should have been feeling more energy after starting the iron. Given all of these concerns, I decided to take a few days off from running and see if things improved.
Well, the first day off I didn't feel much better. When I started thinking, I realized that I had been eating at least three pieces of candy each day since Halloween (which was around the time I started feeling weak and crappy). I decided to stop eating the candy and see if that helped my energy level. It did. I felt like a completely different person the next day. Granted, a few days off from running probably helped my body rest too... but I was happy to know that running wasn't the only culprit.
So, my sciatica pain is still present, but I don't think it's any worse than it was in the other two pregnancies, so I'm going to try not to worry about it. I'm not having as many contractions (I'm making a conscious effort to stay really hydrated). I returned to running yesterday after three days off. It felt great. I ran again this morning and it felt great again. I felt energized after my run instead of drained. So... as it stands now, all systems are go for continued running. I have an appointment coming up on Friday (I'm starting to see the doc every two weeks now) so we'll see how everything checks out.
I guess I'm writing all this to establish the fact that running may be tapering off soon, and I need to be okay with that. It's hard to let it go, especially since I know I'll need to take at least 4-5 weeks off postpartum, so of course I want to keep running as long as I can before the birth. I also want to keep my weight gain to a minimum so that I can bounce back as quickly as possible postpartum, and running has been helping me a lot with that. But I've also committed to paying attention to my body's signals and doing what is best for baby and me. So if my body tells me to take walk breaks, or to take a few days off, I need to do it. (Thanks for listening while I write this message to myself!)
And now for something completely different... recipes!!
Both M and I love this fall-ish recipe-- and nothing beats making it with farm-fresh apples. I made it the other night with a side of roasted beets from our CSA. I've never been much of a fan of beets, but I think that's because I've always had pickled beets. I loved them roasted in the oven. Very fall-ish indeed.
And did you know you can make mac and cheese in the crockpot? This recipe is so easy, and very tasty. Talk about comfort food!!
Did you know you can make a delicious cup of hot cocoa from scratch, just by mixing 1 cup of hot milk, 2 tablespoons cocoa powder, and 1 tablespoon of sugar? I discovered this two winters ago and we haven't purchased hot cocoa mix ever since. I don't know how it is where you live, but we're starting to have a lot of hot cocoa weather around here. Yay!
Okay, so I get abnormally excited about recipes.
Lastly, I had a keen sense this morning that, as much as my day-to-day life is really exhausting hard work right now, and as much as I probably complain about it... I'm going to miss these days so much when my sweet girls are grown up. And as much as it seems odd to say this right now, I'm probably going to miss the miracle of being pregnant when it's all over. You may not think it... but I really do love what I'm doing right now, and I'm so glad that God has given me these beautiful children and that I have the privilege of serving in motherhood and observing the fascinating process of childhood. It's so hard to keep that on my mind when I'm "in the trenches"... but I've decided to try to be more mindful of that.
And that's the end of my random, poorly organized, poorly written blog post. Congratulations on making it through!
**Addendum to this post after publishing... more random stuff!**
Just for the record... I didn't mention that my total weight gain for the pregnancy was up to 18 pounds at my October 25 appointment-- and that was around 30 weeks. So I gained 4 pounds last month. That's a normal amount for the third trimester, but more than I have been gaining. Perhaps the comfort food and Halloween candy mentioned above have something to do with that. ;-} Or maybe baby's just growing a lot.
I happened upon this blog randomly the other day. (Quick summary: it chronicles the pregnancy of a runner pregnant with twins. Check it out. You'll be amazed.) You may think think she's crazy, but I found it totally inspirational. It just proves what the human body can do.
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