I’m doing better but I’m soooo tired. And Clark is being a pill today. Veronica’s birthday was yesterday,

and we’re having a big family dinner tonight to celebrate. I’m getting plenty of help with the food, but I need to clean my house.

I still have a 3 inch bruise on my arm from the IV last Tuesday.

I am ready to start the heel on both of my Goldfish Socks.

I’m not feeling very interesting right now, sorry. But I wanted to post something today, since the last thing you heard from me was about being in the hospital.

Thanks for the comments on that BTW. I’m keeping a food log. My heart has actually been behaving since then. I had a mild episode this morning in the grocery store, but nothing horrible.

I don’t know what exactly I really wish. It’s vague. I wish that bodies were easier to figure out. I wish that the medical profession wasn’t so specific, in that you see an OB for OB, and you see a cardiologist for heart stuff, and you see a GP for general stuff…. and they all think differently. I get it’s necessary. I get that the human body is so complicated that there are no easy answers, but I WISH there were universal answers that apply to everyone (x+y=z) and they were easier to come by than they are.

Are you confused?

Don’t be alarmed, but I was in the hospital yesterday with chest and arm pressure and shortness of breath. My heart is fine. I knew my heart was fine, but the doctors didn’t, so they sent me to the hospital. Throughout this entire pregnancy I’ve had daily episodes of chest pressure, racing or pounding heart, accompanied by difficulty breathing. It’s happened in other pregnancies. When I was pregnant with Abby, I had an echocardiogram, EKG, 72 hour heart monitor and everything was fine, my heart was “just beating fast sometimes” and I couldn’t breathe. I really don’t remember it with Liv or Veronica’s pregnancy, and while Clark’s was awful, I don’t remember this specifically, but I certainly had it with Abby 11 years ago.

No pain, just pressure and either super fast or REALLY hard heartbeats, and breathing like I’d just climbed a mountain. I’m not dizzy, but my head feels weird, like I need to shake it to clear it.

Yesterday when I felt the pressure in my arms along with the other symptoms, I decided to call the doctor and they sent me to the ER.

I personally think it’s related to some food issue. I just don’t know WHAT food issue. Is it an allergy? A lack of something I need? Eating seems to make it worse, but not consistently. Yesterday I had a handful of pecans and two pieces of wheat toast with butter for breakfast. By the time I finished my second piece of toast, my heart was going crazy. It usually does with toast. But not with sandwiches that I’ve noticed. Or hot dogs on a bun. So I don’t think it’s an isolated wheat issue.

This morning, I had a bowl of Life cereal with milk. It wasn’t an immediate response, but I felt fine and now I don’t feel so good. Tired, a little pressure in my chest, a little weak. My head feels weird.

As a result, I don’t eat a whole lot and I’m sick of being hungry all the time. I typically skip breakfast because I ALWAYS feel crappy after eating breakfast. I eat lunch, snack on a little bit of junk (a Charleston Chew and a fudgecicle. Yesterday it was Fritos and bean dip) around 3 or 4 and skip dinner.

This is not fun.

SO, I called the doctors (OB and PCP/GP) this morning and left messages asking if I can be tested for food allergy, sensitivity, or if they had any other ideas. I’m not too excited about following up on the heart monitor. Been there, done that, whole bunch of inconvenience for nothing. I’d really like to find out if it’s a food/blood sugar/nutritional deficiency/who knows what else issue.

I’d imagine that whatever the problem is, I live with it all the time, but the pregnancy accentuates the symptoms because I seem incapable of losing weight (more than 15 pounds anyway) even when I try really hard. No doctor has been able to figure that one out, either. They check my thyroid and throw their hands in the air, basically.

And my thyroid, which has been tested yet again is fine thank-you-very-much.

Bah! I’m grumpy. And I feel like someone’s stepping on my chest.

It’s a gorgeous day, and I’m feeling a little depressed for absolutely no reason. Gotta be hormones. And the fact that my husband is always either working or at the girls’ softball games.

I’m trying to think of something fun to do that isn’t cleaning my house, however I know if I buckle down and clean my house, I’ll be in a better mood and more likely to enjoy the weekend.

Here are pictures of my pretty sock. I tried to overexpose, but that doesn’t seem to work on my camera anymore.

It’s actually a little snug. Not too snug, it feels good but I’m a bit concerned about wear. Carol says that as long as it’s snug around the foot and not heel to toe, I’ll be ok. I’m thinking about adding a couple stitches on the bottom as we approach the heel and gusset. (Do toe up socks even have an official gusset? I’ll find out when I get there). I think two more stitches would make the difference.

UPDATE- I’ve cleaned and swept the dining room, then I practiced a little guitar. My mood has definitely improved. >TMI alert< Guitar still makes me sick, so I don't practice very much. Today was going well, 'till I got carried away and started singing... I almost ralphed ON my guitar, but fortunately managed to hold it back and run to the sink. This is so weird.

SO, I’ll probably do a bit more cleaning and then I’m going to Pen Thai for that noodle dish I’ve been craving for days. Mmmmm, fried tofu. I can hardly wait.

So, my orange sock is too big. I started it at 64 stitches, on size 2 needles. The yarn is probably a tad thicker than Koigu but it is very similar. I’d have to drop down to 48 stitches to go any smaller, as it’s an 8 stitch repeat, and an odd number of repeats just doesn’t seem right. I was going to try 48 stitches, despite it seeming like a small number until I realized that’s the same number of stitches I’ve been knitting Clark’s socks with, on the same needles.

That can’t possibly work.

SO, after spending some time this morning crunching numbers and thinking of ways to alter the stitch pattern (which is in the Harmony Guide, vol 2, pg 51), I think I found a solution that will be “good enough.”

If I widen the fishtail by increasing the repeat to 10 stitches from 8 and cut down to 6 repeats, that’ll probably look the best but only bring my stitch count down to 60. I don’t think that’s enough. So I’m changing the stitch pattern to a repeat of 9 stitches (bringing the total down to 54) by adding one stockinette stitch between each fishtail. It detracts from the lacy-ness of the stitch, but I don’t think I have an option, and after a little swatching, I think I’ll still like it.

For those that are curious, going down a needle size will make the fabric too stiff. It’s about perfect right now. I hope it doesn’t loosen up with wearing like my Koigu monkey socks did.

I can’t post pictures because my computer is not acknowledging the fact that we have wireless internet. It’s all sorts of mess. So I’m on the laptop which is having no trouble at all. But there’s no Photoshop on this computer.

I have a bunch to write about today, and I know it’s been a few days, but I’m much more in the mood to knit the groovy pair of socks I’m working on than to spend time writing an exhaustive post.

SO…. you get the digest version 🙂

First, we’re having a boy! We’re very happy.

Second, I finally got those dumb pumpkins in the ground and they’re flowering.

Third, I finished Clark’s third pair of socks, and they’re really cute and he loves them. I have enough yarn to make two more pair just like the last ones. I haven’t decided if I’m going to. However, whether or not I do, it’s going to wait because…

Fourth, I’ve started my first pair of toe-up socks with that pretty orange yarn Carol and I dyed last week.

They’re going to be goldfish socks and I’m finally knitting that fishtail lace stitch that I’ve liked for so long.

I’m feeling much better. I’m still tired, and my low back is starting to act up as my belly gets bigger. My tolerance for dairy has increased but it’s unpredictable.

School’s almost out and I’m getting really excited for summer!

Yesterday afternoon, Clark asked if I would “make a mommy sock?”

“What?”, I said.

“Can you make a mommy sock?” Then he walks over and points to the leftover yarn from his most recent pair sitting on an end table. “A blue and green mommy sock?” and he flashes me a beautiful smile.

Awww. The boy wants mommy to have a pair of socks that match his. How sweet is that?

Well, mommy isn’t getting a blue and green sock, but she’s started another sock for Clark. I can hardly resist. They’re so easy, and fast, and he LOVES them, and I have boy-appropriate yarn that’s been in my stash for I don’t know how long, acquired from I don’t know where. (Sorry if you gifted this to me. I forgot. Feel free to remind me if you’d like).

And when he saw me working on it last night he let out a little gasp and asked, “is that a sock?” Then he climbed onto the couch and laid his foot in my lap to try it on.

Liv had an orchestra concert last night. We sat right in front, so I couldn’t see her at all during the performance, but I got some cute before and after shots.

We’re trying to decide whether or not to continue band and orchestra next year. Our school district is cutting budget like mad, so I’ve heard the price is going to nearly triple for next year. Times that by two students, instrument rentals, lack of practicing on their part, etc., etc., and we just don’t know. I’d like to continue, and they really want to.

So, today’s my birthday. It’s incredibly dark and wet outside. Dreary is a fitting word. I’m going to need to find a way to bring sunshine into the day that doesn’t involve painting my entire house yellow.

I finished Clark’s second pair of socks, and am planning a third. They’re so cute! and he loves them, though he “don’t wanna smile” this morning.

If you possibly can, please ignore my messy bathroom. I’m too pregnant/sick/tired/apathetic to make it photo ready (can’t even move 2 buckets and sweep, how lame is that?) and it’s the only spot in the house with enough light on this dark, wet morning for a picture.

Yesterday, my friend Carol invited me over to dye some of her yummy sock yarn. She showed me how to dye semi-solid in a crockpot and it was tremendous fun! We dyed 15 skeins in 3 colors.

I’m really excited to have the subtle color variations and still have a color solid enough to look good in a patterned sock.

I’m 19 + weeks now and can still wear my jeans, though I’m pushing it. I have a little more energy. My horrible cough is slowly getting better. I’m still really nauseated a lot, like right now, and have a hard time eating much of the time. It looks like I’m going to make it in to Veronica’s class today for the first time in a couple months.

Nate has been wanting me to knit Clark another pair of socks, since the pair I knit him are the only ones he wants to wear. So I started a little sock with some odds and ends last night. It was a little small, so I ripped it out and restarted it this morning. I’m turning the heel right now.

Clark and I are having a quiet morning. His bowels are acting up again (and he was doing so well, I thought we might be over it) so he’s been quietly drawing in a notebook while I knit.

It’s an odd looking sock, but I think it’ll be cute on his foot. He’s very excited, but keeps asking me to pull the needle out, and is anxious as to whether or not I’m going to knit the “nother sock too.”

These are really, really good.