Catching Up. 11-29-11

I’m home again and trying to get settled in. My laptop is still sick at the hospital with a good prognosis, and I’m plugging away on my PC that may be having some issues of its own L Most of the goodies from my trip are unpacked. I have a nasty tension in my back/neck from the drive home, and I’m looking forward to massage therapy in a few minutes. The house is a wreck. It will wait. Fortunately, the person working on my drywall is making good progress and should be finished on Thursday. Then, the fun begins. I have a helper coming on Thursday, and we will start to do some serious cleaning when the drywall dust settles. I can’t wait to get the crib set up in the nursery!! And then I can unpack all of Boop’s pretty, pretty clothes and wash them in preparation for her arrival. I can also put pictures up on the wall, something that has been strangely missing from the year and a half that I’ve lived here.

The trip back home was a whirlwind. I will try to give each event more attention in its own little blog post. Hopefully, my hard drive will still be intact upon its return, complete with blogs not posted from my trip home; although the computer doctor said that some of its memory may be lost. In the meantime, I thought I would post a little note to let you know that I haven’t dropped off the face of the globe, and Boop is still her chunky, rambunctious self. We still have over a month to go, and Boop seems content enough to wait a little while until she makes her appearance. Winnie is doing just fine, snoring away, and probably missing me on the couch…

Mystery Gift. 11-28-11

Do you recognize me?

Mystery Gift on my doorstep...

My laptop is sick today, and it is holding my blog posts hostage. Hopefully, we'll both be more functional in a couple of days!

A Rainy Shower. 11-21-11

It's nearly 6am, and I'm almost caught up on the events of the weekend. Winnie is laying here on the couch at great aunt M's, and I'm envious of her snoring away. I will definitely need a nap this afternoon! Fortunately, the pain in my hips has subsided, but I've been thinking about breakfast for a few hours now. Frisch's has a drive through, thank goodness. I can load up on protein there. Along with a trip to the grocery, one of my other tasks for today is getting stamps and getting caught up on writing thank you notes. Then there will be the need to track down addresses, but I'll focus on the main tasks at hand.

Yesterday was my (Boop's) first baby shower, with my mom's side of the family. My mom was quite frantic in the morning; there was a fair bit of drama over the cake. Since I've been pregnant, I haven't had much of a taste for sweet, but she was determined that I be able to eat some anyway and let herself get a bit too stressed about it. In the end, it was fine, and in spite of the chaos until the time of the event and the dreary, messy weather, the shower went off without a hitch. We ate. Aunt D got us some good barbecue, which was a hit with Boop and me :) We played games. Mom brought my Susie doll for the clothes pin game, and I was checking out the clothes on the line. I had assumed they were for my cousin, but it turns out, they were all mine (well, for Boop) :) I opened packages. So many neat things and pretty clothes and accessories, things I hadn't seen before. And of course, there was Minnie Mouse. Homemade goodies, Minnie Mouse blankies and ribbons, which we will enjoy. What a lucky little girl my Boop is to be getting so many precious things! Boop's aunties D and M (and grandma--and her other aunties and friends) really went out of their way to make a special day for us :)   

Taking Stock at Week 31. 11-21-11

Here's what's happening at Week 31:

• Almost 8 months pregnant, WOW! And people say that I look like I could go any minute. I'm a BIG momma, and it's really quite disconcerting. I don't really get hungry, but when I eat, everything else seems to fade into the background. Perhaps it's Zen? Really hard to carry on dinner conversations.
• Sleep is getting to be more of a challenge. My hips get really sore from sleeping on one side. And my sinus infection hasn't really gone away. I don't know if it's worth another course of antibiotics. I've had 2 courses of antibiotics since pregnant. With each additional time, I feel like I'm pressing my luck more and more. And I have to go to the bathroom about every 2 hours. If you can't reach me <like just a minute ago>, I was visiting the ladies room ;)
• Mom said that Winnie looks thinner, but she says that every time we see her. When Aunt M said it, I thought I should double check. Unfortunately, they were right. More than a finger between her rib cage and belly. So, I'll give Winnie a week to fatten up a bit, and if she doesn't seem better, she's off to the vet. At least I have a little time to spoil her a bit.

Happy Thanksgiving. 11-24-11

Happy Thanksgiving to you!

May your arguments and frustrations be few,

May your tummy expand to fit the size of your pants (and go no farther),

May you get just the right type of potato to suit you,

May your family be large in love, if not also in size,

May your travel be safe and traffic be light,

May you have just enough turkey leftovers,

And may you leave this Thanksgiving hungry for the next!

Long Time, No See. 11-21-11

I can't say that high school was an ideal time. Everyone goes through their share of transitions and struggles for independence. I think many people look back on high school with a mix of emotions. And for me, there were so many difficult things that happened--my 1st surgery from undiagnosed arthritis along with a few other miserable health problems I couldn't talk too much about, and of course, the loss of my father, the challenges we had coping as a family, the pressure on myself to do well in classes, amongst other things. Maybe I'm stronger because of it? Me, always looking for meaning in mild chaos. And so, it was with much uncertainty that I approached my high school reunion.
Since reconnecting on Facebook, I had seen my friends A and M, and I knew that they were going to be there. I looked forward to seeing them and knew I would be comfortable there. I knew of a few others, too, and I was looking forward to seeing them and chatting with them outside of Facebook. But, I guess I wasn't prepared for the reception I received. Everyone was so nice and solicitous about my little Boop. And they actually asked specifically about "Boop"; some mentioning that they read this little blog--kind of a shocker :) <Mom, there really are more people that read this blog than the 2 of us!> It was a happy time, and I really enjoyed seeing that my friends have seemed to have hit their stride, meeting spouses, learning about the plot twists that had happened over all of these years. In that vein, I was really happy to see my friend S and her husband. I knew things weren't going well for her during high school and that she was having health issues, but she told me what had really been going on. I wish I could have been a better friend to her, providing tangible support during that time, but I guess I had a fair amount on my plate, too. That's the past. Today, we can appreciate the people that we are, and I can be happy for the person she's made of herself, just as I am proud of my other friends who have settled in and found their proper path.

My Little Dumplin'. 11-21-11

Time to get caught up on all of the events of the past few days. It's 4:30am, and I'm starting to get sleepy again. So, let's see. Saturday was action-packed. First, Thanksgiving at my great aunt D's. Mom had taken my lactose-free milk over to my great aunt D's the night before. I had home-made dumplin's and mashed potatoes just like everyone else. I admitted to great aunt D that I had been wanting her dumplin's for so long, and well, sorry to hurt anyone's feelings, but no one else's dumplin's seem to compare! They aren't gummy or cakey-fluffy, no matter how many you eat. Just right ;) So, I was a little spoiled. I think I'm going to have to go up to great aunt D's and just figure out the texture of the biscuit/dumplin' dough; so that I will know when the ingredients are right!
So, there were heaps of folks. I'm guessing close to 50 people again, but not having to rush home, I was able to enjoy folks' company for a while. I know I probably sound like a broken record, but I hope I do so well at 89. She's made of tougher stuff :) But I guess she has so much to live for, so many people that love her and appreciate her. We should all be so lucky to live a life where we can enjoy doing for others, to have our heads clear and our minds focused on the right things. Hopefully, I can impart this to Boop, but it will be challenging with us living so far away. She's certainly been dragged along to the homeless shelter enough, but she doesn't seem to mind too much ;) Thank heavens, we're on the easy end of being at the shelter. And, though we may not be near family, I'm fortunate to have friends that are pretty well grounded, and I know they'll be good influences.

On the Receiving End. 11-15-11

I couldn't believe it. Another package from my friend, M. That's #3! What a lucky little girl my Boop is :) She already has her Halloween costume for 2012. She got the cutest little lady bug outfit. I hope she looks as cute in it as little E! M's little ones are getting so big. It doesn't feel like that long ago that we were talking about M's ultrasound while she was carrying E. I was sitting with H at his swim class, while M was going to the doctor for a check-up. Of course, besides the ladybug outfit, there were all kinds of other cute things in the box too. It will be so fun to see Boop get to use them all. I'm just going to sit and dress my Boop baby doll up in one outfit after the other. Um, okay, maybe not, but she will have so many cute things to wear!

Cute, cute!

And so I got some emails this morning from my Mom. Things were hectic in my prep for class, but I was able to get things sorted. There was an ad on craigslist for someone with a lot of baby stuff, and a nice breast pump caught my mom's eye. I'm going to try to nurse and had just figured I would rent a nice one from the hospital to see how I liked it. Honestly, it seems like the strangest thing to do, but it's generally a good thing for babies, especially for a working mom like myself. As it turns out, buying the pump was cheaper than renting one. And this particular model had good ratings online. Mom had to go a bit out of her way to get it, but she got a pretty good haul. In addition to the pump, she got a stroller, another pack-n-play, and a bunch of other odds-n-ends. So, her car was full. And so, I'm thinking, my car will be full with just that. Then, there are the 2 baby showers, and I need to figure out what I will do with goodies from them. It's a nice problem to have :) My friend at work, G, has offered to take some things back, which will be great!

Taking Stock at Week 30. 11-14-11

Here's what's happening at Week 30:

• Finally, this sinus infection is starting to ease. I woke up this morning and no choking. I got almost 7 hrs of sleep and only woke up about 6 times. It's been pretty quiet, which I really appreciate :) My head is feeling a bit clearer, thankfully.
• Keeping busy trying to get the house sorted out. I have so many more things on my list to get done. I can't wait to start getting to baby stuff and decorating... the fun part :)
• Not much new happening with Boop. According to the websites, more weight, a tad more length, and more brain development. She's moving around a fair amount. I need to get my little video camera set up so that I can record her movement. The only problem is that when I pull up my shirt to see her movement better, she stops. I think she feels a gush of cold air and bit more light and hunkers down.
• I need to call to figure out more about birthing classes. They have 2 types: one each evening for a week or a long weekend session. But the truth is: I really won't need to worry about standard birthing methods. I've decide that I'm so big now that all someone really needs is a pin. Someone will just tap me in the abdomen with a pin, and the baby will come out, like the air coming out of a balloon. If that doesn't work, the midwife can give me a tap in the right place, and my sweetness will come out, just like candy from a pinata. I would prefer the pin option, of course.



Have mercy!

Black Thursday? 11-13-11

I heard Winnie snoring like an old man and looked over at her. She's sleeping with her little paws covering her eyes! I can't tell you how adorable she looks. I just can't bring myself to take a photo of her. She'd wake up before I even got the photo finished anyway. We spent a bit of time at the dog park today. Fortunately, there weren't any big dogs to jump on me. I wish I had more energy to give her more attention, but she did get a lot of good outdoors time with it being warm. I'm wondering what will happen when I go into labor and have to go to the hospital and what those few days and weeks after birth will be like. How am I going to keep baby and dog content? Not very well, initially.

In Bloom: 'Tis the season for the 'Christmas' cactus

I did manage a trip out to both of the sheds. I tried to reach the drywall for my stairs, but it was jammed in there. Although I was able to move some of the pieces of drywall, I couldn't get to the pieces that are the size I needed and will need some help. Also, I was able to get into my other shed to start to think about Christmas stuff. I guess I'll miss out on a lot of family Christmas stuff this year, as I won't be able to make it back home. Travel is getting really tough for me. So, I'll have to get Christmas presents together early, as it will be too much to try to mail. Hopefully, I'll be able to get some shopping done over the Thanksgiving holiday but not on Thanksgiving day itself. Mom and I have enjoyed the crazy day-after-Thanksgiving sales, but I'm not very comfortable with them starting on Thanksgiving day... It takes a lot of the fun out of shopping when you think about people having to miss time with their family on Thanksgiving, just to get a Barbie doll for $3.

Anothah Day. 11-12-11

In research studies, they've looked at the stress of major life events (like death, divorce, and such) vs. having a lot of daily hassles (like traffic, annoying sounds, and such). They find that both can have just as bad an effect on health. I will be glad when this day of many hassles is over. It started out innocently enough, with my typical inability to sleep, starting on the couch, moving to my bed, and then back to my couch. This was complemented by my very large bump making it hard to maneuver. Later this morning, I got a call from the person to mud my drywall, and I was hoping to have this all out of the way soon. So, then one of my helpers came by to finish hanging the drywall that they didn't finish on Thursday. Unfortunately on Thursday, they chose the wrong sized drywall from the shed, and they had already spent quite a bit of time getting it cut to fit the stairs. So today, I was about to help one of my helpers screw in the last piece of drywall only to see that the drywall was too thick <cringe>. I was so upset that I decided it best to send her home. A total waste of time and money. I really wanted to get the drywall dust out of the way before I do serious housecleaning for baby. With all of the things that haven't gone well lately, I feel like I'm hemorhaging money.
And so for dinner, I picked split pea soup because it has a pretty good amount of iron. I thought I could give it a little boost by making fried cornbread in my cast iron skillet. How many times have I made fried cornbread? I can't say, but to say 50 times would be reasonable. Somehow, I put way too much milk in the batter. Basically, I wound up with a mess that took a long time to cook, part of it burned, and the cornbread was gummy :( At 7:30pm, I'm ready to call it a day. Maybe I need to go to bed a few times and wake up with a fresh start tomorrow. "After all, tomorrah is..."

Rude Awakening. 11-16-11

Well, I'm wide awake now. It's 6am, and I have load of clothes in the washer and a load of dishes in the dishwasher. I was going through my mail, and I'm about to give birth to a cow. I'm trying to keep calm because I don't want to also give birth to Boop at 30 weeks... I just got a letter from my county assessor. They were kind enough to send me the appraised value of my house for 2012. Oh my heavens!! More speedbumps. Not literally, of course.
The appraised value of my home went up 140%!! And that means my taxes for my house are going to skyrocket. That means my very modest house has gone up, according to their appraised value, by over $80,000 from the amount that I paid!! I'm in shock. I'd love to see my house get that, but I just don't see it. And my first thought is to lawyer up. This is so unfair. My heavens, I've got daycare to pay for. How am I going to manage this? I was just starting to take a breath because I almost have my car paid off (should be done in January). How do they expect people to live here? I have no idea how this will affect my taxes, but I can only expect it will and increase it by 140%.
To add insult to injury, the notification was sent November 14th, and I have to reply to them by November 30th. At least 1-2 days for mail delivery of the notification in town. Okay, 2 weeks, not a lot of time. That's obnoxious. So, you have 10 business days to respond. AND, they are only available from 9am-4pm... But then, you have to figure that November, big holiday... Thanksgiving. Yep. You know county offices will be closed at least 3 of those business days, leaving 7. Seven days to respond. Pretty poor, pretty poor. If anyone has any advice, I could sure use it!

It's Ba-ack. 11-11-11

I wasn't supposed to go for my next midwife visit until Monday, but I called Thursday. They were able to work me in this morning. Of course, I was late. I'm moving so slow! After nearly a month <I told the midwife it had been a couple of weeks>, I finally got tired of feeling bad and waking up with junk coming out of my nose and mouth. She put me on antibiotics and told me a bunch of other over-the-counter stuff to take.
When the sudafed took effect, I started feeling better. Just in time too, because I had meetings all afternoon. Looking back, I made some dumb choices about food today without thinking. I had a bit of sugar in my oatmeal to take with my meds, I had some candy corn left in my desk that I had for a snack, and then, after lunch, I had a starlight mint. Perhaps this sounds somewhat innocuous, but for someone who just got over thrush from her last round of antibiotics, it was really not a bright idea. I went to the bathroom before leaving work and noticed white on my tongue... That means: more acidophylis pills, lots of yogurt, and very little sugar. Thrush. At least it's not gestational diabetes!

Prolonged Karma. 11-11-11

I was just settling in to my job at the daycare. I was fresh off the truck. At 17, I loved kids and had babysat a few here and there. I was going to be starting with the 2 year olds, but before taking over the room, I was spending time with some of the older kids in the afternoons while I was still in school. My father had passed away a couple of months before, and I needed money for college. I was at the playground with a mix of ages, and a little boy had successfully climbed to the top of the dome of monkey bars <I'm sure it has a name, but I can't think of it.> and was feeling pretty proud of himself. But then, he couldn't figure out how to get down, and he was starting to panic and cry a little bit. So, we were all trying to calm him down and get him to relax enough that he could climb down, to no avail.
I had never climbed monkey bars, let alone gotten on something that high as a kid, but I seemed the most capable at the daycare to accomplish the task due to my size and age. I was going in. And so I managed to climb over to him, got him to calm down, and coached him down. And when he got down, he was one relieved kid, grinning from ear to ear. Of course, I felt pretty good, too, and was starting to feel more confident in my new job. He seemed so grateful. And then about 2 hours later, a woman came from the parking lot, walking toward the playground. She called out a name, and one of my charges started to run toward her. I hadn't seen her before, and I wanted to be sure it was someone he should be leaving with. And with her head of grey hair, I called out across the playground for all to hear, "<Boy's name>, is that your grandma?"
With only a slight wince and a smile, she said, "I'm his mother." I was mortified and effusive with apologies. Yep, I went from feeling pretty darn good about myself, to feeling about an inch tall. And so now, my friends have kids starting college, and a few ARE grandmas. I'm clearly old enough to be a grandma, but I vainly douse my hair with color out of necessity. My original hair color is... an ashy shade of brown, I think?? I guess I'll just switch my color to the same color as Boop's after hers starts to come in. And I'll prepare myself for those people who are innocently trying to make conversation and ask me about my grandchild.

Birthin' Babies. 11-11-11

Grrrr. I lost my post about my visit with the doula on Wednesday. I'm not sure what exactly happened to it. I think it was a casualty of an automatic restart with no back up :( I have no hope of reconstructing it because it's been two days ago!
The doula was the only name that had popped into the midwife's head during my last clinic visit. So I figured it was a good sign. I looked her up on the DONA website and sent her an email asking about her services. In her reply, she suggested that we meet, and so she suggested Panera.
We discussed all of the challenges I anticipate with giving birth: being on my own, most of my good friends being single and/or not having children of their own--making it hard for them to anticipate my needs, my family being far away, concern about my mom trying to come through the mountains in January with unpredictable weather, all of my health conditions including arthritis, and so on. I also wanted to communicate to her that I really wasn't interested in natural childbirth ;) She wasn't so convinced. And I also tested her out on something that my yoga instructor had mentioned, that 'failure to progress' was really in the head of the mother. Good Heavens, with all the difficulty giving birth, I don't want to be blamed if there are complications! And she agreed that in many cases it was more psychological than physical. I wonder how common this belief is among doula folk.
So, we talked more about logistics. She gave a contract of her services. Based on what I was seeing, doula services ranged from from $250-$500. Her rates were at the upper end, and it included an initial assessment, birth, and a visit a few weeks after birth. That gave me pause. In addition, she lives in the next town, but on the positive side, she has 4-wheel drive. However, it will likely take her at least 30 min. to get to me in ideal conditions. Perhaps the greatest concern is that she has another person already on her calendar with a due date 1 day from mine. The other person has first dibs on her services, and she has no back-up. The doula was supposed to be my back-up, and it doesn't look like that is very reliable. So, it doesn't sound like this is the reassurance I was looking for, as much as I would be spending.

Discombobulated. 11-8-11

I was really struggling this morning. I slept in until after 6am and had to get going for class. After having breakfast and trying to get myself up and moving, I figured I'd get a bagel with tofu cream cheese for a mid-morning snack. I popped the bagel in the toaster. I kept smelling something cooking. I took a shower. I got dressed. I kept smelling something cooking. I walked into the kitchen. A VERY done bagel. I tossed it and started another. I was running late. I arrived 8 minutes late to class, and one of my students had left the class to call out the search party. So, we started the class with a very honest assessment of the state of affairs. I'm just hoping I can make it through. The class was good about it and are really hoping I can finish the term. We only have a few more classes, thank goodness! So, we wound up running over on class time, which I really hate. I hate being late--late to start and late to end.
After class, I stayed later to work with a student. I should have left and went directly to the meeting at the homeless shelter, but I HAD to eat. So I stopped by the house to warm up some left over Chinese. The Doctors was on. And out of the corner of my eye... Seriously, is that a pregnant woman Pole Dancing? Why yes, yes it is a very large pregnant woman, bigger than me, Pole Dancing. Well, I guess there are some guys that go for that sort of thing. I was chatting with my friend M about a situation with a family friend who offered his services, and she was telling me that she saw some ads for guys who had a thing for fat, pregnant chicks. The chat just went downhill from there. I didn't think to ask her if they were looking for fat, pregnant women that did pole dancing... And so, as discombobulated as I was, I was late to the meeting at the shelter. Fortunately, I was more on time than most of the others ;)

Taking Stock at Week 29. 11-7-11

Here's what's happening at Week 29:

• Achy all over. My back. My legs. You name it. The relaxin, the muscle relaxing hormone, must have kicked in. I wonder if it's putting extra stress on my tendons. With my arthritis, the tendons get angry so easily. My class ends in mid-December. I just hope I can make it through.
• Well, I apologize in advance to say it, but I just christened my first hemorrhoid this weekend. I guess I'm officially pregnant, now ;) I'd like to thank iron supplements for this moment. I've been chugging Metamucil to celebrate. I've rediscovered Dole orange, pineapple, banana juice, which helps take the edge off.
• Quiet night and quiet morning (thanks to L ;) We'll get it sorted; all in good time.). My head feels much clearer. Maybe I shouldn't have had all the sugar from the pancakes and syrup on Sunday morning.
• I can't say much new about my Boop. Her little body can just shift my entire bump. It's so strange to watch. And my bump feels really firm. One of the pregnancy sites say she should be pretty close to her final length, about 17 inches; most of the others said 15 inches. <I predict Boop will be about 21 inches.> And the estimates for weight were 3-4 lbs.

Talkin' Turkey. 11-6-11

I kind of know how Tom feels. Chock full of hormones, plumping up for the big day, eating everything in sight. Waddling around, pacing in circles, squalking a bit. At least, my fate will be much, much better. And in the end, I'll have a little <?> bundle of joy. I was reading on a pregnancy website about birthing surprises. A few of the women commented about how far off the doctor was for predicting weight. One of the ultrasound estimates was off by 3 lbs!! The mother was commenting that she knew she was having a big baby; although the doctor didn't seem to believe her. I guess he got a bit more than he bargained for at 10 lbs. And so it is with Boop. I know she's a big girl :) I already told the midwife. I know she'll be at least 8 lbs. I haven't had any luck figuring out what Dad weighed, but just judging by his cousins, I'm guessing it was probably about 9 lbs or more.

http://www.greatseal.com/symbols/TheWildTurkey

I'm starting to make plans for Thanksgiving. In Latin American culture, they used to count the year before birth as the first year of life. I'm not sure if they still do this, but I can understand the sentiment. I'll be very thankful for having my Boop with me. And then there will be the showers. I'm hoping that I'll get to see cousins that I haven't seen in a while. I've been thinking about my cousins S and J and how they've been telling me that they want to take me out for Chinese for a few years now. They live in a different part of town than Mom and with my hectic trips back home and with their retirement travel, it's just tricky logistically. Well, there are so many people I want to see. And I will be seen... there's not much missing me these days.
And let's be honest, opening presents is fun. I didn't register, which people think is totally crazy. "But there are so many things you'll need: how will you make sure that you get everything?" "What if you don't get what you want?" "What if you get 2 of something?" Well, I want people to get me what they want to get me, and I'd rather see them than care about a gift. I still remember what my dad said not long before he passed, "Well, at least it's brought us all here together." That's the important thing, and we have a chance to celebrate a good thing happening. And Boop will be part doll baby, part guinea pig--trying on all of her clothes, testing binkies and diapers, and being the source of many experiments with things I've never seen or heard of before that you "must" have for a baby.

Change. 11-5-11

The time changes early tomorrow morning. The leaves on the trees are falling everywhere. It's change, but it's the same sort of change I experience every year. I've lived here for almost 2 years. My neighborhood seems quite familiar now, with the exception of a few people moving in and moving out of the neighborhood. Winnie decided to go blonde today, but this is much the same: she is a magnet for fresh paint, like the cat that tries to run from Pepe LePew. I'm in the midst of my typical remodeling. I pick mostly the same wall colors in every house; I still have the same couch, chair, coffee table, and bedroom suit that I've had since grad school; the same TV that I got in high school.

Notice big globs of crusted paint...

I've had the same friends--some going back to elementary school, and I slowly add to my circle with each new location and situation. Even though we may be far apart and haven't seen each other for a while, we're still very similar to the people we were when we last met. I don't give up on people easily. My musical tastes haven't changed much. I still watch the same old sit-coms, and I can watch them over and over again. My political leanings: still the same since high school. I still have the same anxieties and ailments that have plagued me most of my life, but their predictability has helped me to manage them a bit better, I guess. Maybe I'm a bit more skeptical than I used to be, but that probably happened way back in grad school. I still like my country ham and biscuits, chicken and dumplin's, punctuated by something exotic. I'm just as close to my extended family as ever; although I have to work a bit harder at logistics.
I'm laying here on the couch and Boop is doing flip-flops. There are so many uncertainties; so many new worries. And change. My body has changed. Other things are going to change in a major way, too. Part of my way of dealing is to try not to think about it too much. However, I'm going to have to try to plan for the contingencies that I can. I hope I can manage all the changes that Boop will bring, but I know it won't be easy for me. My only consolation is that I've wanted to be a Mom all of my life and have been continually training for the opportunity.

Sitting. 11-4-11

I crashed about 7:30 or 8pm last night, was up again about midnight, and then got a bit more sleep. I'm feeling a bit better this morning after a chaotic night the night before last. The iron supplements are taking their toll. Lots of unpleasant GI problems, but I'm doing alright. Boop is her usual busy self. I felt her wiggling around at midnight and then a few hours later. Maybe I'm imagining things, but when I started talking to her and rubbing my bump, she seemed to settle right down. Neither alone seemed to settle her. Well, maybe she just has good focus. Of course, ADHD is on my mind, as I have cousins with it, but maybe she will just be active with good concentration.
I went to a session at work on childcare yesterday. So many problems. Sometimes I feel like I've landed on a different planet. I've already lamented about my worries with lack of adequate daycare. The director of the daycare near my house was at the session, too. There's no inside track, unfortunately. She was very frustrated at the delays herself and would love for them to open a couple more of the daycares. A woman at the meeting was 10 wks pregnant and was 67 on the wait list at the daycare by me. I'm probably at 40 or 50 on the waiting list, and I'm 7 months pregnant. The woman and her husband also have a 2 year old. They were so upset about the daycare their daughter was in, and they had a really bad impression of the one that is a fallback option for Boop. They have also had some challenges with work. They are considering a group-share nanny/sitter. So, we exchanged names, and hopefully, we can get a small group together to manage it.

Loosy Goosy. 11-1-11

I got home, and it was 8pm. My massage therapist is a couple of minutes from my house. I left a few minutes before 6pm. Yep, she worked on me for 2 solid hours, but I was only scheduled for one hour. I must have distracted her by talking, and I had some pretty good knots in my back. At one point, I looked at the clock, and it was 7pm. I just figured the clock was wrong. Well, needless to say, my muscles feel pretty relaxed. I'm going to miss this health benefit when they discontinue it this summer... Hopefully, I'll sleep well tonight. I was so exhausted from working hard to prepare for class yesterday. I've been awake since about 4am.
Being stressed takes it toll after a while. In this last trimester, I feel the need to get more rest. Fortunately, I've been fairly productive at work and may have figured out a result this afternoon for a manuscript that's been sitting on my desk for nearly 2 years. Having things out of the way will help me to feel a bit more control in the coming months. I still have many remodeling projects and am slowly making progress. Hopefully, my life will be a bit more settled when Boop makes her debut. And then, there will be a baby to feed and diapers to change that will occupy much time.

Halloween. 10-31-11

I started with a bowl of chili about 5:30pm. I couldn't find my spider rings and pencils to give away with the candy, but at least, I did have a bag with 70 pieces of candy. I tried to find other things in case I ran out of candy. At some point this year, I had bought some little bottles of bubbles and figured I could give them out if I got in a candy pinch. Then, I put Winnie's pumpkin costume on her. At 6pm, I started my second bowl of chili, and each bite was punctuated by trick-or-treaters.

Winnie was loving all of the little ones coming to our kitchen French doors. With no steps, Winnie could walk right out to the ledge and was the same height, if not taller, than some of the trick-or-treaters. The kids, for the most part, loved it too. Her pumpkin outfit was a hit. Best count, I had 65 trick-or-treaters in 1.5 hours. About half of those gave Winnie a little pat. This was a bit slow compared to last year. I figure the cold, dark, and light rain kept a lot of trick-or-treaters home--or at least encouraged them to wrap up a bit earlier. Lots of princesses, fairies, zombies, and action figures. Mom has been working on Boop's outfit for next Halloween for about the last couple of months. I bet she'll have something for Boop come this weekend.

I dressed Boop like a lobster, but perhaps not convincingly. I was dressed in black, and folks may not have realized I was pregnant. Unfortunately, my outdoor stairs aren't finished for my kitchen, which caused a couple of problems. For one, the trick-or-treaters kept going to the other door. For another, it was tricky getting the candy into the bags of some of the little ones. Some of the toddlers didn't understand to lift up or open up their bags; so I was trying to squat down to reach them. Pregnant woman trying to stoop and lean without toppling over. It wasn't pretty. But one good thing: it was nice in that Winnie could go right up to the kids and get lots of attention.

Taking Stock at Week 28. 10-31-11

Here's what's happening at Week 28:

• No gestational diabetes :) That's a huge relief! Well, that was the good news that the midwife started her call with. The bad news: anemia. I can deal. I should be able to manage with 2 iron pills a day. I dread having to go back on colace, but it's WAY better than having to stick myself 4 times a day to monitor glucose. The anemia explains plenty: my perpetual craving for red meat, fatigue, etc.
• Otherwise, not a lot of new stuff. The pregnancy sites mostly say that Boop is gaining weight and getting longer. Her lungs should be able to breathe with a little assistance. Basically, she's got a pretty good shot of making it :) She's certainly a strong kicker, with much endurance!
• Uncomfortable. I have trouble getting situated. And I just want to eat and eat and eat, but then my tummy doesn't feel quite right. I'm tired. I hope I don't have to stay up late to manage class prep and trick-or-treaters. I haven't decided if I'm going dress my bump. Maybe I should have a little nap?
• Slight nose bleeds. I suspect that it's just a bit too dry for me. My skin is always dry. I love having the fireplace going, but I probably should compensate for the dryness in the air. I guess the dryness won't hurt Boop, and I can't really blame it for the anemia.

I Started It. 10-30-11

Of course, I had to go and show my mom what I bought for Boop. She saw the little chubby cheeked cherub who was modeling Boop's red beanie. And then she had a good look at the website. She was ooing and ahhing. I had sent her the link for Zulily long ago when they had some adorable pink cowboy boots, but she said she didn't bother looking at the time. She didn't want to deal with the password issue. In retrospect, that was a good thing. At least craigslist requires a bit more thought and planning. Being able to point and click is dangerous!
So the next morning after I bought goodies for Boop, I got a call from Mom. "Take a look at these clogs, and tell me what you think." I figured it was something for Boop, but it turns out it was for Boop's momma (me). I tried to talk her out of it <okay, so it was a very weak attempt.>, but she explained that Christmas was right around the corner. And, after all, I would get the $15 giftcard for my next purchase. She saw a few things for Boop, too, but they were a bit too old for her yet. We reasoned that in 2 years, some of the things would be a bit out of style.
And so it begins, and I know I started it. Mom had mentioned that she had talked to Aunt D and had showed her the photo on the website. Aunt D was already well aware ;) Apparently, she's been doing a bit of online shopping for our own little Boop herself, and Mom hinted that Aunt D had found a few things... How spoiled our little Boop will be! I cautioned Mom that Boop could turn out to be a tomboy and not care so much about tutus, bows and frilly dresses and that we would have to accept it. She didn't think that was possible.

Snow. 10-29-11

Boop's first snow. I don't know if it will accumulate, but it's pretty to watch falling. It's not even Halloween, yet, and there are still plenty of leaves on the trees. I'm nice and cozy on the couch, watching the news with the big snows in the mountains, the gas fireplace is going steady, and I'm sipping cocoa. They haven't told me I have gestational diabetes; so, I'm just going to assume it's okay. After all, Boop needs the calcium ;) And she sure gets busy when she gets something to eat. The midwife said, "You know, activity in the womb is predictive of activity after their born." Um, yeah. In spite of my arthritis and age, I'll manage. I smiled and said, "Well, I guess it's better than the alternative. I'd be most concerned if she wasn't active. In genetic counseling, that wasn't a good sign." She agreed.
About a half hour from here, they're expecting 6-8 inches. It cracks me up that they refer to the area just east of here as "the mountain counties." Well, what do you call the place where I live? Granted, my lot is one of the flattest in town, but the whole place is in the mountains! I'm certainly nervous about folks coming through the mountains in January for little Boop. Let's just hope the interstates stay in good condition.
For the most part, I'm hoping that I can just relax at home this weekend after my last 2 crazy weekends. On the agenda, a trip to the grocery and Lowe's, a big pot of chili, work on the stairs and drywall, and pumpkin bread-making with friends.

A Bad, Bad Thing. 10-28-11

I did a bad, bad thing. I shopped. For Boop. I bought clothes. I kind of feel like God might strike me down... or something might happen to Boop. You know what happens to people who are too prideful, assuming they can control the future. Well, I'm just working with probabilities. Hopefully, everything will work out. There's another issue with me buying clothes: baby showers. Heaven knows, I've gotten some lovely things already, and it's likely that Boop will get some more adorable clothes in the future. My family has shown amazing self-restraint so far. I got a little pink beanie from my aunt D, and my mom got a Grandma onesie from my cousins when they 1st heard I was pregnant.
I had been so good with Zulily. I would look and not buy. But today, I saw an adorable black and white sleeper that I couldn't resist.

If only I had stopped at that. I had to get myself the shirt to match. And then there were the beanies. Boop had to have the beanie to match. As much as Mom was worried by my lack of hair as an infant, I will be able to save her the concern by keeping Boop's head covered and assuring her there is hair underneath :) And then I decided, that yes, beanies were a very good idea, and they had one with an adorable red flower.

Of course, I had to have one of those, too. And then there was an outfit with a pink puffer jacket and a matching pink tutu. And I'm hoping that Boop will be able to wear them and imagining what she may look like in my mind. I got a pretty good look at her in the ultrasound a few weeks ago. But I have no idea about the status of her hair.

Cold Days. 10-28-11

I finally got a chance to send my friend M a quick email yesterday. Another package!! :) Bless her heart. I've missed my friend, M, and I'm so glad that we're back in touch <and not just for all of the great baby stuff.> She sent the crib 'aquarium' that plays music that I sent to little H when he was a baby. Her daughter, E, got some use out of it, too, I think :) I'm glad they enjoyed it. I think Boop will too.
M and I must be on the same wave length... keeping Boop warm. It was 38F this morning when I got up. And they are expecting 1-4 inches of snow tonight. Little Boop will experience a mountain winter very early in her life, being expected in January. Hopefully, it will help her to cope a bit better with weather extremes; although our winters aren't too bad. And so the box from M was full of nice sweaters and cozy things. There was an adorable crocheted sweater and also a Bundle Me, which she explained was good for travel in a car seat. Of course, it's pink ;) Boop will be so warm and cuddly!

There was also a little bathing suit. Perhaps I'll dress her in the bathing suit and the sweater. That way she could look like something out of Jersey Shore, or such. Um, no. Assuming Boop is plugging along as she should, she will have plenty of time to enjoy her attire in the appropriate season. And we'll enjoy all of our goodies from M!