Thoughts on Puking

(Dad, you should not read this. Sisters, please do not tell dad I wrote this he will just shake his head and say "Charity" in his knowing, but not believing, disappointed voice).

-monochromatic foods are not very exciting to puke up: for example a hotdog with ketchup, sweet potato fries, orange juice and strawberries don't make for very visually diverse throw up.

-supreme pizza is really unique to throw up-you have a lot of elements in there from the crust to the olives to the pineapple...

-worst thing to throw up: I would probably have to say prenatal vitamins or any type if medicine. Ick! That tastes much worst coming back up than it did going down.

-best thing to throw up: milk with a sugar cookie dipped in it. I have to say if I had to throw up everyday I would choose to throw that up. It is so smooth and comes up pleasantly.

Other notes: I throw up ice cream 100% of the time. Even knowing this, I will sometimes still choose to eat it because I just really like ice cream, but it always makes me think twice.

Orange juice is supposed to help when you are sick, but when you are pregnant and sick I think I would recommend some other way to get vitamin C. I throw this up 87% of the time. (Actual results may vary person to person).

If you go to an urgent care facility look for the very coveted blue throw up rings on the wall. Seriously, those are awesome! When I have a couple they go in the car and church with me, but they never last too long.

People often wonder if, when you have to go to the bathroom and you have to puke, which you should do first. I truly believe in multi-tasking and just plan on bringing my throw up bowl to the bathroom when I need to go.

I prefer my bedside, couch side, toilet side throw up bucket to be the medium size metal Pampered Chef bowl. I don't know why but this bowl is not only the perfect size but the coolness of it has a bit of a calming influence after you throw up. I am currently using my medium sized blue Tupperware bowl, but must say I need to finish off the pasta salad in the fridge so I can have my bowl back.

Tomorrow I will be 25 weeks along in my pregnancy. I sailed through the first 8-10 weeks with mild nauseous but no vomiting. Since then, the story has been much different.

I have become very good at the art of puking. I started with your typical "morning sickness". (Definition: you start feeling sick in the morning and it usually goes and comes throughout the day and hits again with a vengeance mid-afternoon/evening.) I would puke up water, prenatal vitamins, and nothing. I could easily dry heave 20+ times in a setting.

I quickly went from morning sickness to heartburn induced vomiting where tums became my best friend until that no longer worked and now zyntac is ever dear to my heart.

Bronchitis came next with coughing spells that would result in not being able to breath which resulted in, yep, you guessed it, vomiting.

They say I'm carrying the baby really high which doesn't help with breathing, heartburn or nauseous so next they said I had pregnancy induced asthma.

Interestingly enough, I have only thrown up in front of my students once, and even then only one student saw me (but I must say she was deeply traumatized and I don't think she has been able to look at me quite the same since.) I often taught with a paper bag by my chair and used the "turn and talk to your partner about..." teaching strategy while I waited for the urge to pass. I found myself puking at recess and the second the kids walked out the door at the end of the day. But, I have had to pull over on the way to school and in the way home from school more than once to throw up on the side of the road.

Okay, really I could go on and on about this topic. It is just a daily part of my life lately. I realize that reading or thinking about this may lead you to pulling out your medium-sized metal Pampered Chef bowl and slightly apologize if that is the case. I really wanted to include a picture in the post, after all, posts with pictures are so much more exciting, but, alas, for your sake, I will refrain.

(After Mark read this he remembered we had pasta salad in the fridge so I am now that much closer to getting my bowl back!)

From my corner to yours

Dear Corner,
I've been putting off telling you this long enough, but I really think we should part ways, soon. I know you have been there for me this last 5 weeks, and through some yucky times too. You've been there through tears, snot, throw up, spit, and other things I'd rather not discuss. You have held me up when I couldn't hold up my own weight but I think you realized from the start this was a temporary arrangement.

I've been through "just a cough" to bronchitis to pregnancy induced asthma (because I'm carrying the baby really high) to a bruised rib to a dislocated rib to being treated for whooping cough all in a matter of a few weeks and you have been there. Put morning sickness on top of heartburn vomiting on top of difficulty breathing resulting in panic attacks that result in throwing up and we've had quite the times together.

I'm kind of tired of looking at you and I'm sure you could say the same about me. I'm a little less attractive with a broken blood vessel in my eye-first it was one eye, now its the other and the first eye has a bruised eyelid. Oh yeah and I've got a beautiful cold sore on my lip to boot.

They say a pregnant woman has a glow-not sure this is what they meant by that.

Thanks again for everything,
Charity