Nothing big

I really don't have anything of great importance to say. I just figured people might get sick of seeing the picture of Sally after a while. Not as sick as one might get of seeing "Cabin Fever," but that's another story all together...

Jackson has made the kicking a pretty regular thing. In fact, I was reading in bed the other night, and out of nowhere there was a quick "kick, kick, kick," and I just started laughing. Out loud. I was home alone. Other than the cats, but I laugh at them a lot. Anyway, I guess it kind of dawned on me (as it does on a daily basis) that there is a baby in me and it is alive. I know that's kind of obvious and you'd think I would get used to the idea after almost 5 months of pregnancy, but I'm a slow learner.

Speaking of learners, as of tomorrow I have survived the first quarter of my second year as a middle school teacher. Survive is really the wrong word, though. I have a fantastic group of kids this year. I have yet to hand out a single detention, and only 4 of my 105 students are failing. Pretty successful in the world of "Oh, we had to turn that in?"

Speaking of turning things in, I got an e-mail from my thesis advisor at Bethel today and he liked my first chapter! Yay! Apparently the whole "only one space after a period" thing didn't hang me up as much as I thought it did.

That's all for now. Besides the fact that I can't believe it's November 9th. That makes March 15th a mere 4 months away. Holy cow!

A ditz? Seriously?

You are Sally!

Which Peanuts Character are You?


I thought the description was on the right track until I got to the last part. Do you all really think that about me? Come on! I mean, I know I have my blond days, but they are few and far between. Hardly worthy of the actual "ditz" label. :) It's fine, really. I enjoy Sally!

Hard habit to break & Acrobat baby

Habit
I am presently writing chapter 1 of my Master's action research project. I am not a big fan of APA style writing, having first learned MLA. But this paper has to be in APA, so I am doing my best to learn as I go. One of the crazy rules is that there is only one space after a period. Do you have any idea how hard that is when you have been typing with two spaces after periods for YEARS? I keep having to backspace. It's interrupting my flow. And I have pretty good flow for late on a Friday night if you ask me!

Baby
The placenta buffer on the front wall of my uterus (see post from last Friday) has proved to be no obstacle whatsoever for little Jackson today. I started feeling him moving around when I was lying in bed this morning. Whenever I do feel him, it's when I'm lying in bed, very still and quiet. So I figured that was my daily dose. But no! I continued to feel his little flutters all day. It was delightful.

When you feel small...

You've probably heard this, as I had, but someone reminded me of it today and I thought I would pass it on.

When you are feeling insignificant or unimportant, remember:

Amateurs built the ark; professionals built the Titanic.

Let the nerve-wracking begin!

This summer, I made a slew of doctor's appointments at my clinic. The most recent was today--a follow-up for my ultrasound that took place last week. This was just a chance to go over all of the results of the ultrasound, since the technician can only report abnormalities to a physician. The appointment was scheduled for 4:00 today.

I got a message on our answering maching yesterday afternoon when I got home from school. It was my clinic, and they were wondering if I could come in at 2:30 instead of 4:00. Without thinking about it, I called back and said that the earliest I could be there (Minnetonka) was 4:00 because I wasn't able to leave my school in Coon Rapids earlier than 3:15. They said that would be fine.

So I am sitting at my desk this morning while my kids are taking a quiz, and out of nowhere I think, "Holy crap! What if they wanted me to come in early because something is wrong on the ultrasound?" Then I calmed down and heeded the wisdom of my mother, who said that they probably were just trying to fill in cancelled appointment times. Fine, that makes sense. But I still couldn't shake the fear, and I started thinking about how I haven't been feeling him move around as much as the books say I should, I have been having weird pain on the sides of my abdomen when I get out of bed in the morning, and I am STILL SO TIRED everyday.

I got to my clinic with time to spare and sat in the waiting room with a two-week-old Newsweek magazine. Come on, it was that or Golf Digest. In an OB waiting room. Go figure. But I digress. The nurse called my name in record time. I explained my surprise and how I'd had to wait an hour and a half last time I came in. She laughed. She probably thought I was exaggerating. :) She took my weight and blood pressure, and within only a few more minutes my nurse practitioner walked in. She took me through the ultrasound techno-speak and explained that everything was perfectly normal. (Yay!--I mean, I totally knew it would be).

Now--on to my concerns.
1) Not feeling him move around. Granted, I shouldn't listen to all the books and websites so closely, but it seems like people were coming out of the woodwork asking if I was feeling him like crazy. Sure, I had flutters, but they were few and far between. The logical answer? My placenta has made its home against the front wall of my uterus. It is acting like a buffer between me and the baby. Obviously, he'll eventually be big enough to feel, even through the placenta. This is also the reason my doctors always have such a hard time finding his heartbeat. They had to work around a big blob of placenta!
2) Pain on the sides of my abdomen. My doctor is dubbing this the "pain of the month." I forget what it's called, but it's totally normal. Kind of a muscle spasm deal. Anyway, just knowing that it's "normal" eases some of the pain right away.
3) STILL being tired. Yeah, there's no saying goodbye to this. Oh well. Two out of three isn't that bad.

I have three more monthly appointments. In February , my appointments occur every two weeks, and in March they are weekly. It's a little weird. I know that it's going to be here before I know it! It's so exciting.

Oh, Baby!

Well, my parents decided they couldn't wait until Saturday night, so there's no sense in not telling you!

Our ultrasound was this morning and it was so amazing! There is a little human being in my uterus! In the beginning the technician explained that she would take pictures of all of the organs and bones and everything. Then she asked, "If I'm able to see the gender, do you want to know it?" We said, "YES!" So on she went with her little tool on my belly, pointing out everything she was stopping for. "Here's its spine, and here's the bladder, and there's its stomach." It was all very fascinating.

Pretty soon she got to the kidneys and carefully measured both of them. Then out of nowhere she says, "And here are his two testicles and penis." Dan and I looked at each other like, "Holy cow! We're having a boy!"

The woman proceeded with the rest of the exam. Then she printed out a few pictures for us to take with us. There are a couple of good profile shots of his head. Then there is one that clearly shows his "boyhood." The last three are profiles also; one sucking his thumb, one "waving," and one holding both of his fists by his face like he's about to punch something. :) It's so fun to look at them and think, "Hey, little guy. We're going to meet you in a few months!"

So, blogworld, I'm excited to introduce to you our yet-to-be-born son, Jackson Reed Bennett. All 9 ounces of him. (This is where I would insert a scanned picture of one of the ultrasound shots if we had the tools to do so. Sorry that we don't...). :)

So much to say!

Hello, all. I feel very sporadic in blogworld of late. I think school has once again taken over many areas of my life. But, 'tis MEA weekend. The time when teachers rejoice, for they weren't sure how much longer they could last without a day off. So, I will take the time to write. Nothing profound, but something.

I was thinking about pet peeves the other day. It was weird. It felt like so many of my pet peeves were happening in a very short period of time. I will share a few with you. Come on, peeve with me. Nope, that sounds weird.

1) Stupid drivers. This is a very general pet peeve. The thing that happened the other day was just beyond insane. If a driver wishes to turn right onto Weaver Lake Road from East Fish Lake Road, he or she must wait until a green light. There are two or three signs clearly stating "No Turn on Red." I have seen people ignore this rule many times. On one occasion, I even saw one get caught by a lurking police officer. On this particular morning this week, I was the first in line to turn right. I was waiting patiently for the green arrow. The idiot behind me just thought I was out to lunch. He proceeded to honk as if I could go and just wasn't watching. I ended up getting a kick out of watching him fuming behind me.

2) Parents who make excuses for their kids. We had parent/teacher conferences last week and the week before, so we experienced this one more than once. One particular mother heard her son was passing every class except for reading (mine), and proceeded to explain it away with a family history of illiteracy. I wasn't impressed. Besides the fact that her son isn't passing because he has failed to turn in numerous assignments. But whatever. They'll hear what they want to hear. And apparently say whatever the hell they want to say.

3) People who announce how much their clothes cost. Scenario:
Beth: Hey, Heather. Cute shirt!
Heather: Thanks! It was $20.
Beth: Wow, that's a great deal.
Me (safely in my own head): Who cares?
My general rule about announcing prices about what you are wearing: It's only acceptable if you bought something at Tiffany's for less than $20.

Well, enough ranting. Now, onto some more exciting stuff.

Dan and I had dinner at France 44 with the Malettes tonight. Besides the fact that it rocked, we saw Frank Vascellaro (KARE11 news anchor) and his wife Amelia Santaniello (WCCO news anchor) . I only watch KARE11, but I'm not a fan of Frank. He kind of bugs. But still, it was like our own little celebrity sighting. I know, I'm kind of pathetic. When I worked at Brueggers as a high schooler, Tim McNiff (KARE11 sports turned morning anchor) used to come in all the time. I guess I miss it.

Tomorrow's exciting event is my 20-week ultrasound. We are (hopefully) finding out if we are having a boy or a girl. You know, as long as "it" is facing the right way to see "stuff." Or the lack of "stuff," I guess... So that will be fun. I want to name this child. I will tell you all, in blog form, but not until after Saturday night. That's when my parents are finding out!

I have to go now. Through the course of writing this blog, I have somehow gotten into an episode of Martha Stewart Apprentice. I have to go watch the boardroom now. Oh my, who will get fired? Of more concern is why I care. :)

My turn

So, there's this awesome website discovered by Ashley and blogged about by Jan, Jeff, and Christi. When you type the year you graduated into "search," you can see the top 100 songs of "your time."

Well, as Christi is the self-proclaimed granny of the group, I'm going to have to label myself the baby. Sadly enough, some of these songs are still on the radio quite frequently.

Without further ado, a portion of the top 100 songs of 1999:
1. Believe, Cher
2. No Scrubs, TLC
5. ...Baby One More Time, Britney Spears
6. Kiss Me, Sixpence None the Richer
7. Genie in a Bottle, Christina Aguilera
8. Every Morning, Sugar Ray
10. Livin' La Vida Loca, Ricky Martin
13. Slide, Goo Goo Dolls
15. I Want it That Way, Backstreet Boys
17. All Star, Smash Mouth
22. Save Tonight, Eagle-Eye Cherry
32. That Don't Impress Me Much, Shania Twain
33. Wild Wild West, Will Smith
42. Mambo No. 5, Lou Bega

And the list goes on and on and on. It was a big year for Shania Twain, Goo Goo Dolls, Britney Spears, and Sarah McLachlan. Not to mention the fact that boy bands as we now know them were just making their mark on the music world.

Here's one more interesting piece of 1999 music trivia, speaking of boy bands. The number 45 song was "(God Must Have Spent) A Little More Time" performed by N*Sync. The number 100 song is the same title performed by the country group Alabama. Whoa.

So check this out. And if you're like me, you'll be humming a different song every other minute for the rest of the day. Enjoy!

Fun times

There's a chill in the air.
Students are actually concerned about grades.
The book fair has been successfully set up in the foyer.
Ah, yes, it must be conference time.

Our first of three nights of conferences was last night. I saw eleven parents in a span of five hours. It was almost painfully boring. I'm blaming the "Oh my gosh, it's winter" panic that many Minnesotans have the first time in the season the temperature drops below 40. Anyway, I had brought a book from home just in case things were slow.

After grading a number of papers and organizing next week's lessons, I decided to pull out the book. It was "Belly Laughs" by Jenny McCarthy (yes, THAT Jenny McCarthy). This is her very irreverent and somewhat profane, yet extremely hilarious take on pregnancy. I thought I would get a couple chapters read between chatting with my team English teacher. As it turns out, I read this book cover to cover in the time I was just sitting around last night. Sometimes I laughed out loud. Sometimes I was scared out of my mind. I must share some of this treasure with you...

From a chapter on Morning Sickness:
"Strangers gawked at me as they saw me gagging in Aisle 3 holding up some cheese. It's hard having these symptoms in public when you don't look pregnant. If I were nine months along they would look at me like "oh look, poor little pregnant lady doesn't feel so good." Instead they looked at me as if to say, "Don't bulimics puke AFTER they eat?"

Her chapter titles alone, although the most inappropriate part of the book, are worth making the trip to the library.

Title on cravings: "Can I Have a Mustard Sandwich with Pickles, Anchovies, Peanut Butter, and a Little Cottage Cheese?...Oh, and Throw a Few Fish Sticks on There!"

Title on hating skinny people: "Die, Model Bitch, Die."

As you can see, my night wasn't a total waste of time. Now I need to find more material for Monday and Wednesday nights next week. But if I prepare too much, Murphy's Law will punch me in the face and we'll have parents coming in back to back for the entire five hours.

Happy autumn, everyone. Have a beautiful weekend!

The Lover's Hermitage

Love, you are my hermitage,
my dwelling for ever.

Just as a happy bachelor
may aspire to be a hermit,
so as your husband(wife) do I dream
of being more married.

Your body is a path leading
through a golden wood;
your love is a clearing
in the center of the forest.

Here have I built my home,
here in you alone.
With you I know a solitude
deeper than my own.

One table, one rocking chair
by the hearth of you--
and in your face a window
brighter than the sky!

Your words are quieter
than my thoughts.
Gladly shall I spend my life
in the cool still hush of you.

When you smile I'm warmed
like earth in the sun.
Your laugh is the brook
at my doorstep.

Gentler are you than breath,
stranger than death.
Just to touch your hair
is more peaceful than sleep.

Surely all my wandering
finds its end in you.
In your brown eyes
may I safely die.

Love, you are my hermitage,
my dwelling for ever.

Bloggers of the world united

So this morning at church was the great unveiling. Actually, it was the great meeting of fellow bloggers. But after a while, it felt more like an unveiling. Like the face I hide behind the writings on this page has lost its anonymity. I felt exposed.

But I also felt a little bit of community. It was nice to put some faces to a few names.

On another note, a couple fellow bloggers asked how I have been feeling. And it occurred to me that I never really annouced with great rejoicing the end of my "morning" sickness. Which is surprising because it was a rather glorious time! The end of that road came just in time for school to start, in fact. I'm feeling much more normal. Well, as normal as you can feel when you are wearing jeans with a maternity panel in them. (I'm hoping they get more "comfortable" as the baby grows into them...).

Welcome to those who didn't know my name until this morning. And to the "regulars," thanks for being faithful. :)

Surprise!

I rolled out of bed at 5:45. I took my shower and fed the cats. I killed a giant centipede. I got a banana and sat down at the computer, turning on the television. I didn't even look at the screen right away. As I ate my breakfast and navigated to yahoo.com, I overheard Kare 11's Kim and Tim reporting about the devastating effects of last night's storm. I finally turned my eyes to the screen.

What? Schools are closed? Is there some kind of weird weather phenomenon happening that causes all of those small-town schools to shut down? Wait a second. Fridley. Osseo. Robbinsdale. These were metro schools. I waited until the beginning of the alphabet. But even when I saw Anoka-Hennepin, I could hardly believe my eyes. The state's biggest school district doesn't close for anything. I had to watch three cycles of the closings to finally get it. We were closed! A day off! My friend and fellow A-H teacher called to make sure I had heard about the closing. Lucky for her, she got the news before she got in the shower. I had to finish my breakfast and dry my hair before I could return to my still-warm-and-cozy bed.

It was a lovely surprise and a blessing for this stuffed-up, coughing pregnant woman. And we got a beautiful day to boot! Happy autumn!

Getting to Know You

Getting to Know All About You...

Nothing like a little musical theater moment courtesy of The King and I.

So, I'm jumping on the bandwagon with this one. Bloggers everywhere are doing it. And I probably wouldn't have if someone didn't add me to the "people I want to do this next" list. But Julie did. And I thank her for it.

Things I want to do before I die
1. travel to Europe with Dan
2. learn to kayak (dad, that would be your cue)
3. get my doctorate in literacy education
4. be published
5. go back to Haiti (Lisa, that would be your cue)

Things I can do
1. cook
2. sing
3. bear children
4. teach
5. tip a canoe

Things I cannot do
1. take sudafed before bed
2. walk on stilts
3. produce sperm
4. cut my own hair (it didn't stop me from trying in 10th grade)
5. consume alcohol without breaking out in a bright red rash

Things that attract me to my husband
1. his eyes
2. his heart
3. his hugs
4. his passion for kids/youth
5. his thoughfulness

Celebrity crushes
1. Matt Damon
2. Ben Affleck
3. MacGyver (there's a story...)
4. Tyler Florence
5. Richard Gere

People I want to do this next
1. Lisa
2. Dan
3. David
4. Vicki (this would require you getting a blog--I mostly put you on here to connect you somehow with the number 4) :)
5. Jackie (because she hasn't posted in like 2 months)

See? That was fun. Now you know random, useless information about me. Go find a way to use it.

Now, that feels different

For those who read my earlier post and actually did pray for the meeting with my professor, thank you.

As it turns out, I don't have to revise anything! Definitely a God thing. It doesn't mean that she thought my portfolio was flawless, but it was good enough to get by the first time. And from what I hear, most other license applicants have had to rewrite at least a couple of entries. So I felt very proud and lucky and thankful.

And so tired. So I came home, crawled into bed and slept for almost two hours. I remember having a dream about John Heder. Nothing specific, just that he smiled a lot more than Napoleon Dynamite.

Random. Maybe I didn't get quite enough sleep to make up for last night...

Holy long day, Batman

I went to the doctor yesterday afternoon. Just a monthly, routine appointment with my OB. Even though our day "officially" ends at 3:25, I had gotten permission from my principal to leave at 3:15 in order to get to Minnetonka by 4:00. I got there with a few minutes to spare and took my seat in the waiting room.

4:00. 4:15. 4:30.

Finally, I was called in, which didn't mean anything. The nurse took my blood pressure (100/58, thank you very much), recorded my weight (won't be sharing that one, thank you very much), and said the doctor was running a little late but he'd be with me as soon as he could. After reading GQ, Good Housekeeping, and Reader's Digest in the waiting room, I surveyed the magazine selection in the exam room. Child, Parenting, Working Mother, Glamour, More (for woman over 40), and Organic Living. I settled in with Working Mother and my box of kleenex, as I'd been battling allergies all weekend and was getting to the point where I could hardly breathe.

4:45. 5:00. 5:15.

A nurse came in and told me that the doctor was almost finished and he should be right in. Whatever. Let me get back to my reading.

5:20. 5:25.

A new nurse came in and said the doctor was very sorry and he would be with me in five minutes. I forced a smile and blew my nose.

True to the new nurse's word, the doctor showed up at 5:30. An hour and a half after my appointment time. And, of course, I wasn't with him for more than ten minutes. We heard the heartbeat, he checked for swelling in my ankles, and asked if I had any problems or questions. (Why the hell are you running so late?) The one good thing was that before I left, he faxed in a prescription for Nasonex, since I can't take my "go-to" Claritin and Benadryl knocks me out for weeks at a time.

So as I left, I decided to stop at Bruegger's for some chicken spaetzel soup. When I walked in, an hour from closing time, they were ALL out of soup. Very bummed. So I got a sandwich. Not quite the same healing elements, but still dinner.

When I got home, Dan offered to run to Target to pick up my prescription. He called me from the pharmacy saying that they didn't have any record of the prescription being faxed in. After a bit of an ordeal, they called the Park Nicollet urgent care line, pulled up my file, saw that I had been issued the prescription, and were able to fill it. Dan arrived home with Nasonex and sudafed.

Stupidly, I took both and went to bed. When my mom was going through chemo, she got a terrible sinus infection in the middle of everything and ended up having a horrible time with sudafed. In her own words, it was like speed. Not that she knows what that's like, the little hippie that she is. Anyway, she couldn't sleep. And neither could I last night. I slept for a couple hours, then woke up at midnight and was WIDE awake. To the best of my recollection I fell asleep again around 4:00, and dozed off a couple times before my alarm went off at 5:30. I feel like a zombie. I probably should have called in sick, but I'm saving my sick days so I can get paid during my maternity leave!

Well, that was a lot of babbling. If you made it this far, thanks for sticking with me. :)

On another note, I would greatly appreciate your prayers this afternoon. I am meeting with my professor at Bethel to review my portfolio, and find out what I will have to re-do. (See post "Mean People Suck"). I'm not really looking forward to it, but I'll be happy to get the meeting over with.

Thanks, all! Have a nice Tuesday. It sure looks lovely outside!!

Picture painting

I'm a big fan of Sara Groves, and every once in a while I get in a "painting pictures of Egypt" mood. I've been in that mood lately, and I'm not sure why. Where the future seems like a hard place to be, and you make the past seem better than it actually was in an effort to justify going back. Anyway, I'm sharing the lyrics below.

But first, some exciting news. Sara is starting a tour in October with Jars of Clay, Chris Rice, and Donald Miller, amazing author of Blue Like Jazz. You can learn more at saragroves.com.

Painting Pictures of Egypt

I don't want to leave here
I don't want to stay
It feels like pinching to me either way
The places I long for the most
Are the places where I've been
They are calling out to me like a long lost friend

It's not about losing faith
It's not about trust
It's all about comfortable
When you move so much
The place I was wasn't perfect
But I had found a way to live
It wasn't milk or honey
But then neither is this

I've been painting pictures of Egypt
Leaving out what it lacked
The future seems so hard
And I want to go back
But the places that used to fit me
Cannot hold the things I've learned
And those roads were closed off to me
While my back was turned

The past is so tangible
I know it by heart
Familiar things are never easy to discard
I was dying for some freedom
But now I hesitate to go
I am caught between the promise
And the things I know

I've been painting pictures of Egypt
Leaving out what it lacked
The future seems so hard
And I want to go back
But the places that used to fit me
Cannot hold the things I've learned
And those roads were closed off to me
While my back was turned

If it comes too quick
I may not recognize it
Is that the reason behind all this time and sand?
If it comes to quick
I may not appreciate it
Is that the reason behind all this time and sand?

I love "it wasn't milk or honey, but then neither is this." It's like coming to the realization that the past really wasn't good enough to do all over again, but being stuck where the present/future don't seem like a comfortable place to be either.

I'm just thankful that although I don't know what the future holds, I know who holds the future. He hold me too.

A brand new year!

This past Tuesday brought with it a fresh batch of seventh graders. And although I'm glad tomorrow is Friday, it has been a great week.

My schedule is really a dream. I have prep last hour (perfect for those eventual pregnancy doctor's appointments!). My biggest class is 24 kids and it is supported with a para. I teach all five of my classes in the same room. Most teachers have to travel among classrooms because there aren't enough to go around.

A three-month break for the summer is an obvious perk to being a teacher. But the first week back in the swing of things makes me really realize why I do what I do. And I like it!

Ah, Katrina

I guess it was just a matter of time before I figured out what I wanted to say about the devastation in the south. Not that I have much to say now, but little things keep popping into my head.

The name Katrina means "pure." A word synonymous with "clean" and "innocent." When I see pictures and footage and read stories of the disaster, the last words that come to mind are "clean" and "innocent."

What fascinates me is the wide variety of ways people are reacting to everything. From Kanye West making a complete idiot of himself during the relief concert on Friday night to the Minnesota man who is opening his house to a family of hurricane victims rent-free for a year. From the little boy who brought a bag full of quarters to the red cross booth at the state fair because "the kids down there don't have any toys" to John Grisham (a Mississippi resident, by the way) giving $5 million to the relief fund.

We (teachers) went back to school last week. We are planning on kicking of the school year on Tuesday with an announcement to students that we are conducting a "diaper drive." I think it's awesome. I can't even fathom how long some babies have gone without being changed. Oh, the things we take for granted.

It is so easy to be overwhelmed by the vastness of it all. I even caught myself thinking, "What good is my measely $20 going to do when the need is so big?" But something inside me thought about how many people must think that. That the need is just too big and what we give won't be enough. But I think if everyone who entertained that thought actually gave into it, we'd be depriving the relief effort of so much. Every little bit counts.

I am reminded of our theme as a staff this year. It revolves around the Starfish Story. (Please click on the link and read if you aren't familiar with it). The same can be applied with Katrina. It's wonderful to think about a man opening up a house to a family of seven hurricane victims. A house that he had fixed up and was planning to rent out. But when I see the masses of people who are still stranded and without anything, I think, "What difference does it make if he opens his house to that one family? There are still a million families who are hurting." But it does make a world of difference for that one family who was blessed.

Lord, have mercy.

We survived!

Last night marked the last of our six summer weddings. I feel bad that we cheated a little along the way--skipping the reception of the fourth and skipping the fifth all together. But we are done. And it was glorious!

The ceremony was in the cutest, most cozy little church in Minneapolis--Lake of the Isles Lutheran Church. The drive around the lake just to get to the church was outstanding. The houses are enormous. The reception was at the Women's Club of Minneapolis. Very elegant. And I'm ALL about the dessert buffet. Awesome.

So congrats to all who tied the knot through the duration of this lovely summer. They were all beautiful and tons of fun. (Despite my frequent rantings...).

It really doesn't end, though. Our next is October 22nd. :)

Hooray for high pollen counts!

Yes, the pollen level is at 10.5 on a 12-point scale right now. The pollen "forecast" for the next few days is quite high as well.

In case you are curious, the primary pollens at this point in the season are ragweed, nettle, and chenopods. :)

If you are a fellow allergy sufferer, please delight in the fact that you can take whatever the heck you want to relieve the symptoms. All my pregnant self is allowed to take is benadryl. Unfortunately, if I did take benadryl, or any other "safe antihistamine," I wouldn't be coherent until at least Tuesday.

So, this weekend, I sneeze. Anybody with me?!