Wednesday 23 May 2012

Sunny Day!

I've been lucky enough to have a days holiday today- wow, sunshine! Lucky for me the weather has been lovely today, and a bit of sunshine is fabulous for brightening everything up.

This is meant to be my last full week at work, but taking 2 days to recover from working one day last week made me rather scared of working 4 days this week.

So, Monday I begged and pleaded (officially far too late to ask for time off this week), and Tuesday afternoon they were sure enough of enough staff, so today I didn't have to rush out the door for work.
Instead the sun was already warm, so the girls and I popped down the garden for half an hour to weed a little patch. The girls disappeared quickly- one was entranced by a tiny snail and another was busy with the scooter, so I was able to attack the creeping buttercup. It still works best if I'm on my knees- standing up digging isn't for me these days, but I got a little patch clear. So sometime soon I hope to get some peas planted.

The plan after that was very fluid, with much indecisiveness, but ended up with me sitting in the shade all day. I was able to read my book in peace (yippee!) and eventually I moved shade patches to chat with friends. Being outside was lovely, seeing friends was fabulous, children busy with other children was great. DH did his thing with providing hammocks for children to play in, toilet escort, etc and I was given crochet inspiration- water bottle cover in progress.It would be fabulous to have photos to illustrate a lovely day- but we were far to busy living it and didn't take a camera. Sitting doing very little has been exhausting though, and I think I might be racing Little One to bed again today- last night it was a very close contest. On the plus side- I haven't actually had a nap today, so I must still be on the mend- that's better than last week.
Tomorrow to work, and Jubilee Day to work- and I think I can do that- phew. Iron tablets, tissue salts, spatone, spirulina- some/all of that is making the difference and I'm really glad to feel halfway human again!

My lovely sister-in-law gave me a sewing machine last week (very generous lady!) so next week I'm looking forward to remembering how to use one, and getting on with some different projects. Exciting times.

Tuesday 15 May 2012

Feeling Brave

Well, all I seem to have to ramble on about at the moment is my health, so I'm going to go on a bit more :-)

I've had 2 good days in a row! And, today has been pretty good as well! Wow! I'm assuming some of the iron I've been taking in a multitude of forms is actually being absorbed, and I have been actually able to do Something. In fact, more than one Something a day without obligatory lie down afterwards/following day in bed! Sorry, its quite a treat for me.

Sunday I felt inspired to do Something, and that something turned out to be  chocolate sauce for ice cream. Nothing tricky, but oh wow, very, very nice- I've not made anything like it for years!

That had followed on from needing to make some mayonnaise- its been on my 'to do' list for a few weeks, and I resent how expensive bought organic mayo is, but its taken me weeks to feel up to it. My preference is definitely using sunflower oil- we've tried avocado oil and olive oil in the recent past, but they just weren't tasty to me.

AND (sorry, this is Three Somethings, not just the one) when I make mayonnaise we have left over egg whites, which in this house means meringues. Big One has been our main meringue maker, but as she was far too busy playing out, Little One got to have a go instead, and did quite well. I was more than a little tetchy by then, but it was OK and tasty meringues were made.

So that little number would normally be a very energetic week for me, but its just been a good day.
I was quite surprised that yesterday didn't have me as an armchair zombie (the usual price I pay for doing Something), but instead I was full of the joys and ready to do something about the house that's been bugging me- dusting and vaccing. I've not vacced this house more than a room a day, but (even though it really did take me all day and several serious rests in the middle) by 7 pm I had not only vacuumed but dusted every single room. Result! I did ask DH to shake a few rugs out for me at the end, but I really hadn't dared hoped I'd actually get half the house done, let alone all of it.

After another sit down rest- and finishing my knitting (but that'll need photos so I'll do a post about that separately), I had the urge to eat a chocolate mousse. But not feeling up to driving to buy one, so I decided to make the recipe I'd spotted the other day....so I even made chocolate mousse last night- yummy! It apparently was enough for 6, though DH and Big One have had a taste, it isn't enough for six if I'm one of them...Though it did do 3 separate servings for me (and I managed not to have it for breakfast!). Next time I'll make it with just the dark chocolate, and as it only has a little added sugar, I'm sure I'll enjoy it without that too. Yum, can't wait. Unfortunately Big One likes it just as it is, so we'll have to make two batches. I think she can manage to make it herself, she's getting on quite well in the kitchen!

Today I felt I was pushing my luck a bit, but flicking through another recipe book I found something I wanted to make, so Big One and I went for a little fresh air walk (in our defence it was hailing- I'm glad we had full waterproofs and wellies on) and then refreshments and shopping at our local supermarket. I think this has been my second trip into the supermarket this year without an accompanying adult, and I even managed queueing at the checkout (standing around is something I'm still finding hard). I got a bit breathless, but having a short sit down before leaving and -get this- I FELT BETTER. Until this week, once I started feeling rough, it just got worse, so having a few minutes sit down and feeling better has just been amazing!

Well, the chicken has been marinading a couple of hours, so its probably time I got it cooking. DH won't know what's hit him- I think I've cooked tea this month already!

Friday 4 May 2012

Growing a Baby

OK, this is officially the hardest one I've had to grow.

I spent from 9-17 weeks puking (and a month off work as I just couldn't do anything) with hyperemesis.
With the other two I had several months of feeling ill all the time, and more tired with No 2, but this really took the biscuit.

I had a few weeks feeling a bit better, then going dizzy and feeling faint. Cue another month off work, and finally feeling better at 28 weeks- and going back to work. WIth Big One I was fainty from about 18 weeks- I remember being off work for a month, and a night in hospital while they tried to figure out what it was (coming up with nothing, just how I was that pregnancy) but at least then I was absolutely fine until I keeled over- this time I've been feeling fairly rough most of the time.

I managed 2 days at work feeling ok- a normal weekend then another day and a half before wham. A new wobbly faint feeling (definately different from before) with added breathlessness and palpitations for good measure. With this being at work, and the daycare unit being just upstairs I felt worried enough to ask for help there. The midwife that day was E, who delivered Big One and is someone I have confidence in. Laying down (with a fan) definately helped, and the young dr who checked me over decided I was just feeling faint.  Now, I'd had some bloods done the week before that showed I'm low in ferritin, but I didn't have any paperwork for that so I had bloods done again, which confirmed that (and my levels had dropped a bit in the 10 days between).

My friendly NHS midwife, and my lovely independant midwives, and my GP all reckon the low ferritin could be why I'm so breathless, so I'm altering what I eat a bit (dried apricot and blackstrap molasses cookies anyone?) but really can't face eating as much meat as I have been trying to. Spatone is going down as well- I'm trying to cover as many bases as I can think of! I don't mind what works, as long as something does.

Anyway, in between times I've had spells, even days feeling quite alright, so managed another separate day at work. I sort of managed a day out (a lie down in the van worked wonders, and I managed to walk around Skipton- wow!) but then spent the weekend  lying down- literally. Then another 2 days at work, with a manager finding another fan for me -which I felt really daft taking, but it really made a huge difference to how I coped. I've still been going breathless, and wobbly and dizzy, but it didn't really last all that long, and didn't affect my work that much (I think?) but Wednesday I just couldn't get enough breath to get dressed,let alone work so went back to the drs yesterday.

So, this week he found a heart murmur- again nothing to worry about but it'd be nicer if it wasn't there.
Its reassuring to be told its just pregnancy, and just low ferritin- so many folk have 'real' issues to deal with in pregnancy and what I have is very minor, but very much inconvenient! I would really like to be at work when I'm expected (unreliability is something that really irritates me, especially when its me being unreliable). I would like to do my share of work around the house, instead of asking DH and the girls to do stuff. I'd even like to be able to do the shopping- but I need to plan where I can park, how far I'd need to walk, might I need to queue- and mostly I can't do it,or daren't. I've been to the cash machine once in the last 4 months, and managed a supermarket shop on my own once (with Big One's help, carefully timed and a short list).

I definately feel my life is going at a different pace at the moment, and I'm oh, so grateful of a sofa, and a chair, and a bed to sit on/lie on and have a different view of 4 walls. I'm really enjoying that the girls CAN play in another room - I seem to feel better when there's less to concentrate on/distract me from what I'm trying to do.

Today I dragged the family out with me so I could go to the library, choose some knitting books, walk along to the yarn shop, choose some yarn and get  home  with company and without falling down. I feel like I've overdone things a bit, but an afternoon in bed is the price of an outing at the moment.

It means I have the equipment so hopefully during the next 2 weeks (latest sicknote) I'll try to learn to knit in the round. I can do it sitting down, and I'll just have to hope I figure it out- it looks really complicated but one thing I have is sitting down time, and I want to find the positives of being sat around. While I was working on the ripple blanket I felt I wasn't wasting time sitting around, and somehow sitting using the computer doesn't feel as constructive (even if it is looking at patterns!). My sister-in-law has obtained a sewing machine for me as well, so when we can collect it I'm hoping that's another 'sitting down' thing I can feel useful doing, and have a bit of fun.

Bump isn't due until July, and after this sick note I'll have just  7 working days left, finishing on the Queen's Jubilee (they're short staffed that day, so I'm taking some holiday before and after, but it's kind of nice knowing I'll be needed to work- just as long as I'm up to it). Fingers crossed all the iron floating around will have me perked up, ready for the last couple of weeks at work, and then I can start thinking about bump landing

I'm definately envious of the women who a) don't know they're pregnant until a few (or many) months have passed b) feel so well,  that continuing with normal life  near to/ right up to due date doesn't require much thought!