A black US president and now a female prime minister of Australia. This makes me feel good about what kind of world our baby is being born into. I remember 9/11 and wondering if I should have children.
Not especially keen on how Julia Gillard became prime minister but it speaks volumes about the changes in our society about women and leadership.

Tired

Whew... I am going to have to get my act together if I want to do this blog thing. Trouble is I am so so tired. Hoping the glow of second trimester starts soon otherwise I am never going to achieve anything. At the moment, life involves work, coming back home, crawling into bed for a nanna nap and eating, lots of eating. I wasn't at my ideal weight when I conceived and am pretty set on eating high density nutritious foods to make sure I don't gain too much weight. However it seems my hormones have other ideas.
One recipe I am obsessing over right now is Moroccan quinoa and carrot salad. I found it on this website and mmhmmhmm - delicious.
According to whfood.com quinoa is often considered to be a grain but is more closely related to green leafy veggies such as swiss chard and spinach. Quinoa is actually a complete protein in that it contains all nine essential amino acids. Quinoa is "especially well-endowed with the amino acid lysine, which is essential for tissue growth and repair. In addition to protein, quinoa features a host of other health-building nutrients. Because quinoa is a very good source of manganese as well as a good source of magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorus, this "grain" may be especially valuable for persons with migraine headaches, diabetes and atherosclerosis. "
Sounds good to me.
Although the recipe below seems involved, the spice blend makes a good amount which you can use again and it is very simple for such an amazing flavour and textural delight!

Image and recipe from Closet Cooking - a great recipe blog

Ingredients:
4 large carrots (peeled and slices 1/4 inch thick)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon moroccan spice blend
1/2 cup red quinoa
1/2 cup white quinoa
2 cups water (or vegetable broth)
2 teaspoons moroccan spice blend
1 cup chickpeas (drained and rinsed)
1/4 cup red onion (diced)
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup pine nuts (toasted)
1 handful parsley (chopped)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lemon (zest and juice)
1 teaspoon moroccan spice blend
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
1. Toss the carrots in the olive oil along with the spices.
2. Arrange the carrots in a single layer on a baking sheet.
3. Roast in a preheated 400F oven until tender, about 20-30 minutes, turning them once in the middle.
4. Simmer the quinoa in the water along with the spices until the water is absorbed, about 20 minutes.
5. Mix the carrots, quinoa, chickpeas, onion, raisins, pine nuts and parsley in a bowl.
6. Mix the olive oil, lemon juice and zest, moroccan spice blend, salt and pepper in a small bowl and then toss the salad in it.

Moroccan Spice Blend

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
1. Mix Everything.

Because I am 36?

I have a great doctor (general practitioner) that I have seen for many years and respect her. Yesterday I went in to see her after finding out a couple of days earlier that I was pregnant. She asked me if I had an obstetrician in mind but as this is my first, I am rather new to it all and asked for her recommendations. She also said I would probably have to have a c-section because of my age (36). When I indicated I was pretty keen on having a "natural" birth if at all possible, she said most good obstetricians would not "humour me" for the sake of the baby's health. However she then tried to ring obstetricians who would "humour" me (she must have said this at least 3 times!) and get me on their books. No-one was available, they were all fully booked out (mind you, I am only 5 weeks pregnant, how do people find out any earlier?!!). She then had to book me in with an obstetrician that she herself used. She did try to reassure me that because she had previously worked in a maternity hospital and worked with the seriously ill babies, she had a particular view of it all. I understand that with all these pregnancy hormones I am pretty sensitive at the moment however given the number of friends who are my age and have not had to have a caesar, I am a little confused. We didn't want to tell anyone yet but I did ring a friend, asked her who her obstetrician was and have booked in an appointment (yes he had space!). I am just wondering if anyone else has been given this advice by their doctor? She said it was based purely on my age. I'm confused. My doctor said she understood that she understood that I would want the "experience" but in my shock I didn't explain that it was more about I couldn't imagine caring for a new baby having just undergone major surgery. If I need to have a c-section then that would be fine but I can't imagine that this needs to be decided now at 5 weeks or could be based simply on my age.

cool threads

I have loved threadless and their fab t-shirts for a long time but was thrilled to see that they have a kids threadless too. I couldn't resist and bought a selection from their $9 sale range for my brother's beautiful new son. Can't wait to start buying for my little nugget.



images from http://kids.threadless.com/

two tests and a champagne

Started off with a overwhelming tiredness at the end of the day, a feeling that something that wasn't quite right and oh yes, taking my basal body temperature every morning to see if I was ready to rumba with the one shot wonder (my new name for husband). After telling my dear one since our first go that he should treat me in general with more kindness/respect/ servitude , it was a bit of a shock to realise yesterday that I was indeed "with child". We had anticipated months ahead of some good fun and actually our first few goes were late at night, both tired and not particularly romantic.
So in a state of hopeful, thrilled shock, it appears that we are 4 weeks and 5 days pregnant. I have been using a useful site www.fertilityfriend.com and now sister site http://preg.fertilityfriend.com , very helpful for someone who loses track of dates easily.