Jenna's Everything Blog

How far along: 26 weeks, completed 7/3/2012

Weight gain: After my quick weight gain in the last month, I’ve been more aware of what I’m eating and what quantities I’m eating. Not in an obsessive way–but (for example) I had a chance at fries once, and turned it down.

Can I get a HOO-HAH! from anyone out there on this major accomplishment?

Merci beaucoup.

Clothes: I really do need to go to a thrift store and get some more dresses. The hideous heat wave doth continue, leaving me no alternative but to cycle through the 6 dresses I can wear with my pregnant belly, that also don’t require me to wear leggings or camis underneath. The bottom line is that I’m starting to feel like I’m wearing the same dress every single day. Unfortunately the heat also prevents me from washing these dresses at the non-air-conditioned laundromat, where the heat index is probably topping 120 degrees as we speak. So the layers of sweat are accumulating, and soon, when the dresses are good and stinky and completely unfit to be worn, I may just have to hibernate in my bedroom, naked as the good Lord made me, until the fall.

“Where is Jenna?” my boss will wonder after I fail to show up at the office. And the sad answer will be–she ran out of clean, weather-appropriate clothes.

Okay, obviously that’s a horrible plan.

Which brings us to this: shopping seems to be the only real and practical solution. (Feel free to “HOO-HAH!” that one too)

Purchases: Nothing new this week, but Salvation Army/Plato’s Closet beware!

Body: I learned a TON at our 3rd Bradley class about the different stages of labor and what to expect–it was the best class to date, and I feel so much more prepared for this whole shindig. During the class I also learned that I’ve been experiencing Braxton-Hicks contractions for quite some time now! I had mistakenly thought that when I felt that pressure on the lower part of my uterus, Alice was just pushing against me. But no! That’s a practice contraction. Who knew!

And comments from strangers continue. Saturday night, as I was going to and from a dinner party, four different people made comments–four!

One commenter is a 50-something neighborhood staple who hangs out on the sidewalk with his Lincoln Navigator pretty much 24/7. We call him “Condo Man” because when we first moved in 3 years ago he approached us about buying a condo or something–very confusing at the time. Anyway, as I was making my way to the train station and walked by him, he said, “You’re looking fine! I’ve been noticing, you’ve been dressing real nice! Now you know if something happens, you know I’ll take care of you and that baby!”

I was hard pressed to say anything but “Oh! . . . well, um, . . . thanks.” Looks like I have a back-up Baby Daddy if something happens to my husband.

Heh heh.

A little further down the street, a group of guys (possibly Condo Man’s friends) said “Oh, she’s pregnant! How far along are you, sweetie?”

“6 months!” I replied, smiling and continuing to walk on by.

Friendly calls of “You so small, girl!” and “Lookin’ good!” and “You take care of yourself now!” followed me down the sidewalk.

On the El ride home after dinner, a guy offered me his seat (which I turned down–way too hot to sit!), but then got up and made small talk with me. “So!” he said “Are you going natural or getting an epidural?” I can’t believe a random man asked me this, but he was very sweet, so I told him I intended to try for natural. “That’s great, if you can do it that’s great!” he encouraged me, “but that’s what my mama said and once the pain hit she was like–bring me the meds!!”

Then as I walked from the train back to the apartment, a guy walking towards me looked at me appreciatively for a handful of seconds before suddenly exclaiming in surprise, “She’s pregnant!”

I almost laughed out loud at this point.

Anyway, being pregnant in the city is quite the experience so far. Apparently everyone–and not just the womenfolk as I expected–has something to say about it.

And by the way, the freaky disappearing belly act continues!

Here’s everything as it stands naturally:

And, wait for it . . .

Let’s face it–I’m a circus freak.

Sleep: Great! Lovin’ every sweet second of it.

Best moment(s) of the week: I’d have to say the Bradley class. Three hours to talk and think about labor and delivery, with my wonderful husband taking all kinds of notes–it was just really great to have that focused time to learn together and think about what’s coming our way in three short months.

Movement: Alice finally deigned to perform! She always moves for my husband but tends to get inordinately quiet whenever someone else has a hand on my belly. But at my girls’ night dinner party on Saturday, at exactly the right time, she started thumping up a storm so that the entire circle of women could see my belly move. Yay! I love sharing her movements with others.

Food cravings/aversions: I’ve upped my fish intake–that is one recommendation from the nutritionist that I’m excited to undertake. I loooooove a perfectly cooked piece of salmon or tilapia.

Symptoms: Feelin’ hot hot hot . . . It’s hot. I’m sweaty.

I normally hate being hot anyway, but with the increased blood in circulation during pregnancy, I think I’m getting hotter more easily than the non-pregnant population. You can send your Hallmark sympathy cards to my office address*.

*And an accompanying batch of cookies would not be turned away at the door. Most definitely not. Just sayin’.

Emotions: Feeling pretty darn stable–excited, happy, the works.

Hopes and dreams: I’m looking forward to seeing Alice again during my 2nd ultrasound on the 16th.

What I miss: The large variety of summer clothes that used to be at my disposal.

What I’m looking forward to: Potentially having my mom come to help me shop for Alice’s room and set everything up, after our big move mid-August. Getting a room ready for my baby girl, I think, will make this whole thing come even more alive for me (emotionally speaking).

Husband update: He also really enjoyed the Bradley class. I think he feels much more prepared with this arsenal of info–who wouldn’t?

Anyway guys, have a great rest of the week. Stay hydrated and happy and all that good stuff!

Over and out!

For many years, my sisters and I have been searching for the perfect pizza crust. A pizza crust the likes of our childhood pizza escapades to Telepizza (a Spanish pizza chain). Their crust is firm, chewy, and full of delightful holes. Stretchy, not at all floppy, browned, glorious. We have wanted to recreate this crust for so long.

Finally, Erica landed on a crust that, while not in the realms of Telepizza glory, is certainly getting closer than ever before. In fact, it’s the best homemade pizza crust I’ve ever made.

I’ll even add that I’m sticking with this one unless she comes up with something better in the years ahead. I’m committing–ceasing my search. Resting my case. And enjoying the wonder that is the Firm and Chewy Pizza Crust.

And by the way, while you’re at it, you all should check out Erica’s blog–she posted a recipe for zucchini fritter thingies last week that has my mouth watering.

Now let’s make some pizza dough!

Ingredients

(makes 2 medium to large pizzas)

3 cups bread flour + extra for kneading
1 tsp instant yeast
2 tsp salt
1 – 1 1/3 cup lukewarm water

I just have to interject my amazement here–isn’t the simplicity of these ingredients fabulous? After perusing recipes that contain sugar, honey, special flours, mixes of different kinds of special flours, etc., I could hardly believe that this great crust didn’t have any bells and whistles.

Put the bread flour in a large bowl, stirring in the yeast and salt.

Stir in the water until a soft (not sticky) dough forms.

Start with a cup, and add up to 1/3 cup more as needed.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface . . .

. . . and knead for 3 minutes, adding flour if the dough starts sticking to your hands or the surface.

By the end of the 3 minutes, the dough should be very soft. Or, as the French like to say it, très softée.

Sprinkle the bowl with flour, put the lump of dough back in, and sprinkle the top with flour as well.

Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let it sit in a warm place for 2 hours.

An hour before you’re ready to bake, heat the oven to 500 F with a pizza stone inside, on the lowest rack (close to the element). You want the pizza stone to heat up gradually with the oven.

This is also a great time to prep your toppings! For extra delicousness, I browned the mushrooms in a skillet:

I browned the pineapple too for my Hawaiian pizza, and man did that make those pieces of fruit sing a song of celebration!

When the dough is done rising (see how much bigger it is?) . . .

. . . turn it out onto a lightly floured counter and divide it into two pieces. Flatten each piece into a disc and let it rest for 10-15 minutes.

Cut two large pieces of parchment paper, and shape one pizza on each piece of paper, trying to avoid using the rolling pin to extend the dough (which will squash out the desirable air bubbles). If you want a nice thick crust along the edges, leave extra thickness around the perimeter.

Add the toppings you want–tomato sauce, veggies, cheese–leaving the crust area clear so that it will puff up in the oven. We did one Hawaiian which was to my taste . . .

. . . and one laden with pepperoni.

For my pepperoni-crazed husband.

I piled on three different kinds of cheeses–mozzarella, an Italian mix, and a little gouda.

Also, you’ll notice that I folded the crust over at the edges to make it thicker, but that didn’t turn out so well. When I made this recipe again the following week, I simply left a thicker rim around the edge, and it turned out much better. I guess it needed to freedom and space to poof to its fullest potential . . . or something.

Slide the parchment paper with the pizza on top onto the hot baking stone and bake for 10-14 minutes, until the cheese is brown and bubbly.

This is when the period of intense waiting begins.