More Chocolate & Doctor's Visit

Today was my last doctor's visit as she just wanted to do a final check to make sure everything was healing well and nothing unusual was happening. It was fine and nothing out of the ordinary so we are okay to have sex again (yipeee!) and we can start trying in a few months. She wants a few normal cycles to get my uterus nice and healthy and fit again. She also was okay with an early ultrasound (between 6-8 weeks) to ease my mind and to make sure everything is going well. That was the hardest part about this pregnancy -- the long wait to find out anything "official". They normally won't do anything unless something is concerning so I am glad she will let us do an U/S for our peace of mind.

Another suprise today was a package in the mail with some very interesting chocolate! A very dear and thoughtful friend sent them along to me and Scharffen Berger was happy to oblige. I will have to post once I have tried them all but I started with the lowest percentage of cocoa which was 68%. The most I normally can tolerate is around 60% but this was not as bitter as I anticipated. It wasn't as smooth and silky as the Lindt's I have tried but it was still very good. Even Davin who doesn't like much chocolate (probably because of the milk usually in them) stole a few bites from me. It figures he would have expensive tastes just like his mommy!

~Monica~

Chocolate

Ah, the goodness and sweetness that is chocolate. I have been having some serious, hard-core cravings lately and I suspect a lot of it has to do with the hormone changes raging in my body. Things are all settled down now but I think I am suffering from a bit of postpartum depression. There are certainly days that are VERY hard to get out of bed or wake up out of my slumber stupor. Of course, now that I have this nasty little cold it doesn't make things any better BUT chocolate can almost always save the day.

There were some things said in another forum that unfortunately got closed because a certain person couldn't keep their mouth shut. I want to make sure the good things aren't lost and maybe I can track down some of this chocolate that was recommended.

Stuff I have already tried:

• Lindt Petits Desserts: Truffle Cake (really smooth and YUMMY)
• Ghiradelli 60% cocoa with espresso (okay but not overly impressive)
• Nestle truffle bar with 50% cocoa (supposed to be similar to the Lindt but way lower quality)
• Lindt Petits Desserts: Creme Brulee (milk chocolate instead of dark but still really YUMMY)
  

JJ suggested:

Lindt Dark Chocolate Truffles are excellent, and a favorite of mine for years. But, my current favorite is Santander Colombian single origen 70%, or 65%, dark chocolate. The bars are a bit smaller than Lindt, about 2.5 oz., IIRC. I find them at Bello Vino Market, a gourmet food store, for $2, and better yet, for $1.25 at Arbor Farms natural food store. I bet they are available around the US. Both are wonderful, velvety smooth, rich, full-flavored. The 65% bars are fruitier, and just a tad sweeter. Venezuelan chocolate is also excellent. We have a local Deli, that markets online, Zingermans, and they have a lot of gourmet chocolate, way better than Godiva.

Lyta, the Lindt Intense Pear is another current favorite of mine. I know what you mean about some of the higher percentage ones, they can be a bit bitter, and kind of one-note, and not very smooth or rich tasting. But, some are amazingly good. The Santander ones are great, much better than Lindt 70%. If you have a Trader Joes near you, try their pound-plus (.5kg) Belgian bars, in four varieties. Their 70% bar costs just $3.99, amazingly cheap for so much decent chocolate!

~Monica~

My Photo Album

I guess I will start out this blog with my online photo album. It really needs to be updated but it has a lot of good stuff in there too. Here is a recent album with Davin's Halloween photos but there is also a link to the entire collection as well:

Halloween Parties 2006

See the entire photo album:
http://picasaweb.google.com/mhubinette

Next, I will import some of the MySpace blog entries that I have since I don't really want to keep that account much longer. I really hate MySpace!

~Monica~

Stupid Things People Say

I originally posted this on a board I frequent but it seems appropriate for a blog post too.

Ok, since I am in a mood today I am just going to say the stuff that has been bugging me. I know everyone means well and I do appreciate all the posts and thoughts shared but sometimes, they come off wrong to me. Part of it is due to the written word and part of it is just me being overly sensitive but I have to rant about it anyway.

I am tired of people asking "How are you?" or "How are you feeling" -- how am I supposed to answer this?? Am I "ok"? No not really. Am I "fine"? No again. I can pretend that I feel that way and sometimes I think I feel that way but deep down I know differently. Also, the pain lessens and becomes easier to deal with but it really never goes away.

Another question that I get a lot is "What can I do for you?" or "Is there anything I can do?" or "Let me know if I can do anything" -- Yes. Bring the baby back again and give me a healthy, happy pregnancy. I get the well meaning behind it but I am not going to ask for the impossible nor I am going to ask for anything else that might be comforting because then it loses the meaning behind it.

Please do not give me the statistics on how frequent it happens or who in your life it has also happened to. I don't want to hear that you "understand" what I am going through because even if it has happened to you or someone you know -- everyone grieves differently and is affected in different ways. Sharing the stories of what happened and how one dealt with everything is helpful but it is also a very personal conversation.

Like I said -- I am in a mood and I am out of chocolate and need to eat lunch. If you really want to know what you can do, I suggest reading some of these helpful articles:

Miscarriage or Pregnancy Loss Comfort
Coping with Pregnancy Loss
What Not To Say - Miscarriage
Miscarriage - What Not To Say

~Monica~