What it's all about

Check out this kid I found on You Tube!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-uZN6LxIm8

I felt like looking at happy babies, so I headed over to You Tube to do some browsing. I came across this video of a seven-day-old, and thought it well worth sharing. What a cute baby! There's so much to look forward to.

Aargh! My BAAAACK!!!!

I go to the chiropractor once every other week and they help a lot, but my back is still killing me. I got my 2007 flex spending debit card in the mail yesterday, though, and let me tell you, I'm heading to the spa for a prenatal massage as soon as I get it cleared with my OB! My ribs have stretched out to the point that they're starting to ache on the sides, not just where they meet my spine. My shoulder blades are lifted off my back by knotted muscles, my hips are aching, and if it weren't for the fact that I'm having a great time being pregnant, I might give in to the urge to complain about it all.

Just hanging out.

Not much to report these days. This weekend I caught up on laundry over at my parents' place. I read a book. I'm reading another. We're waiting for the pizza delivery guy to get here.

Pining for the Craftmatic

OK, this looks a bit too propped up:



You know the commercial for the craftmatic adjustable bed, where the top and bottom fold up and back so quickly that you get pains just watching it? There are times when one of those beds actually starts to look like a good idea. I've had so much trouble with heartburn and acid lately that once every couple days I'll be woken up by a coughing fit resulting from hiccuping something toxic in my sleep. Only two things seem to help: lots of Rolaids, and propping myself up on lots of pillows so that my head, knees and right side are all elevated. I sleep like that for a few hours, but then it all gets pulled apart when I want to roll onto my right side for a while, and I'm back where I started. On the plus side, I can rationalize that I probably had to wake up to use the bathroom, anyway, so it's no big deal to make the nest again while I'm up.

Advice from Mom

As a mother of four, my mom has been an incredible resource for me during my pregnancy. She's going to be at the delivery as our "doula" to support Mombi and me. As a woman who gave birth naturally four times and descibes it as "fascinating," she's exactly the sort of person I want to have around.

Yesteday I mentioned to her that I'll have my glucose test this afternoon. Her response? "Don't drink a chocolate shake on the way there; they'll make you come back later." She didn't say which of us she did that with, but I thought it was cool that she mentioned it just in case. She's been there, done that, and is ready to save me the extra trip. Thanks, mom!

A Good Day

Today was a good day. Not for any particular event or occasion, but just because it felt good. Sometimes it's nice to be reminded that all of the amazing things that are happening inside me are just that... amazing. Griffin spent most of the day popping popcorn (or something that feels just like that) in my lower belly. He played during my meetings, he played while I was working at the computer. He's bouncing around right now. He's so cool.

Randomness

It's been a while since I had a totally random and disjointed post, so I suppose I'm due for one.

My belly is starting to get sore. It just plain aches. Even when Griffin isn't kickboxing, it just feels like it's heavier than it was, even though it doesn't seem to be getting much bigger lately. My back is keeping my belly company in its discomfort. When I got to the second trimester and started feeling so much better, I focussed on how it was supposed to be the most comfortable trimester, but I overlooked the fact that that meant the third trimester would probably be significantly less comfortable. I'm grunting and groaning even more than previously. Mombi actually brought out a walking stick to help me pry myself off the couch whenever I need to get up.

OK, enough with the complaining for a while. There's so much fun stuff going on, and I'd much rather think about that! People are starting to ask where we're registered and when I plan to stop working. People grin at me (us) wherever we go. I've probably found every reflective vertical surface around my office, and I can't help scoping out my belly in each of them as I pass by. Friends are offering their old baby gear, and it's actually close enough to time that we can accept.

Best of all, it's only 3 months from now that I'll be able to see Mombi holding Griffin. Have I ever told you how amazing she is with kids? Ever since I can remember, I've been awed and teary-eyed whenever I've had the chance to see her interact with kids. She just has a way with them. They gravitate to her. She is going to be such an amazing mom! Not only is she lots of fun, but she manages to include learning in all the games she makes up when playing with them. It's going to be incredible watching them together. Heck, it's already fun! When she plays with him and talks to him in my belly, I can't help but giggle and grin. Griffin likes it, too!

The Shiatsu Kid (edited for clarity)

I think Griffin might actually be one of these...



It's one of those "kneeding fingers" neck massagers. I swear there's one in my abdomen trying to get out!

27 Weeks Down! One Trimester to Go!

Wow, here we are already. Looking pregnant, feeling pregnant... Griffin moves around so often that he already seems like a fully grown baby that's just hanging out and staying cozy. Although, of course, I suppose he can't be that cozy if he keeps trying to expand his living room out in each direction.

There hasn't been much to report on lately. I've been feeling a little bit of woozy in the mornings again, but I've discovered that the cranberry apple tea at work that used to be so ridiculously tart is now perfect with just the tiniest bit of sugar, and it seems to put the woozies to rest by 9 each morning. I'm finally wearing full belly maternity jeans, and they feel SOOOO good! Unfortunately I only have one pair that fits, but luckily I have a LOT of different shirts to wear with them.

Mombi remains incredible. I've been having a big sob fest once every week or two, usually when I run out of energy too early in the day and come home grumpy from work. She rubs my back and holds me and lets me get snot all over her, and eventually we are laughing together again. I ask you: If that isn't the definition of a great marriage, what is?

We're still fiddling around a bit with our registry on Target (Shame on BabyCenter for taking theirs away right when I wanted it!) although I think the important stuff is all on there now. We still need more diapers, of course, and the basic feeding and maintenance stuff, but the big one for us is this:

We love that the bassinet comes out and sits on its own stand (which can be either stationary or rocking). It's perfect for moving around the house with us, and we're not planning to have a separate changing table other than the one that is part of this play yard. And, of course, it's darned cute!

Snow! Somewhere else!

Everyone had such pretty snow pictures to post today, but we had no snow here, and it's dark out now. Still, I hate to miss the opportunity for a theme post, so here's a photo of the current view from our porch:


That's a four second exposure so you could see something other than a black rectangle. The blur is from the wind. It's COLD out there!

Sometimes a Gal's Got to Sculpt

I've been on a creativity kick the past week or so, and thought I'd share what I've been up to. First, I decided that I wanted a meditation focus for during labor. I have a small metal goddess figure that Mombi bought me a year or so ago that I've been carrying around with me, and I'll definitely have that with me at the hospital, but I also wanted something made especially for the occasion. So, I made myself a happy budda baby. I'm hoping that holding the baby gently during labor will help me to relax and release Griffin into the world. I still need to clean it up a bit, and carve in the toenails, etc. I may also decide to add some sort of pattern or texture on his clothes, I'm not sure yet.

Once I had the little budda ready to go, I decided to make Griffin some belly puppets. The duckies were cute, but just not very personal. So I thought about what a 6 month old fetus might like to play with, and decided that I'd make representations of the family that's waiting for him on the outside. So here we are! The cat is Basil, and the dog's name is Orange (full name Orange Nehi). Mombi's the one with the backwards cap (it's a black leather Harley biker cap,) and I'm the one with the blue shirt and short hair. I'm really bad at doing cartoon-ish people, and I definitely can't do realistic animals, so that's why we ended up without faces. Mombi says we look like pez dispensers. As soon as I figure out the best way to attach their bases to a belly band, I'll post some footage of Griffin playing wth them.

Time

When time can simultaneously pass so quickly yet so slowly, it's difficult to believe that it is a constant thing that can be monitored by something as simple as a clock.

Imagining how the next three months will pass is even more of a stretch.

Online friends I remember as TTC are now having their babies... time passes so fast!

I'm only 2/3 of the way through my pregnancy... time passes so slowly.

I only have three months to go... time passes so quickly!

Dreaming with Deadlines

"Realistic" dreams while pregnant crack me up. There I'll be chatting to someone or other, and my dream self will feel the need to tell them that I'm X weeks pregnant. Then I'll gesture down to my belly, which is flawlessly sized exactly as my physical one is currently. Or, someone will try to plan to do something with me for late April. "Sorry," I'll say in my dream, "but Griffin's due on the 19th so I'd be surprised if I am able to make it to that."

Lest you determine that I have a very literal mind, the same subconscious produces dreams in which I try to fit a cloth diaper on a little Griffin the size of a peanut.

100 posts. 100 days to go!

This is post #101 on our blog, and we have 100 days to go until Griffin's EDD. Wow!

It really is amazing. What is? Heck, all of it! The whole crazy concept. Conception, fetal development, labor, birth, raising a child. All the options and choices that are part of preparation for a new baby. And somehow it all manages to seem totally normal most of the time.

Today my ticker says "brain waves will start in the next few days." Holy cow! Our kid will have his very own brain waves! How does this happen? What triggers it to start? Does that mean that he'll now start deciding where/when/whether to kick/punch/head butt/barrel roll? My own feeble brain waves are stunned by the contemplation of all that's happening in our kid's world right now.

Random illness at work

Well, I guess it had to happen eventually. I got to use my trash can for something other than office trash.

I don't know what happened. I felt fine when I got to work, but a couple minutes after I sat down I suddenly felt queasy, then all hot and flushed. It got so bad that I was actually down on the floor on my elbows and knees to help my circulation, because I couldn't bend over enough to get my head between my knees while sitting. I eventually recovered enough to make it down the hall to the break room to get some ice, which helped a lot. I sipped on some organic pear juice when I got back to my desk, and chalked it all up to a random drop in blood pressure. Maybe Griffin was hanging around on my vena cava. Who knows?

15 minutes later I was feeling much better, and decided to try some food. I'd brought some Coconut Ginger Thai noodles and some Zatarains red beans and rice. (Yeah, I know, random. But since I have two small lunches instead of one big one, why not mix it up?) Anyway, I chose the Zatarains. 1/3 of the way through, I suddenly felt full-blown nausea. Luckily, my trash can was handy and had a fresh liner in it.

I still don't know what happened. Maybe it was blood pressure, or maybe the tiny bit of fruit cake I decided to try this morning before I left for work reacted with the Rolaids I took when I got to my desk. Or maybe it was just a random hormone thing. If it happens again, I'll call the doctor. Otherwise, I'll just chalk it up to one more strange pregnancy phehomenon.

Grocery Shopping While Pregnant

Have you ever had the experience of being in line at a grocery store, and looking at the purchases of the person ahead of you in line, and thinking "Huh, I had no idea you could buy that here." I'd guess that the average person only really sees 1/4 to 1/2 of the items in the store. We skip entire sections, and don't even glance at the stuff that doesn't look familiar.

When you're pregnant and grocery shopping, and even more so when you're hungry at the time, you end up buying someone else's cart of food. Things end up in there that you never would have seen or thought to buy otherwise. An example: Last night for dinner I had apple gorgonzola pizza. No kidding. And where did I find such a crazy thing? In the frozen pizza section of the local Kroger. For those of you out west, that's King Sooper. It was even the store brand, "Private Selections." I was supposed to get frozen pizza for dinner. Of all the options, the only one that looked really good was apple gorgonzola.

Mombi elected to have something else.

25 Week Appointment

I had my monthly appointment with the OB this morning, and everything is looking good. My bloodpressure is great, and my uterus is growing right on target. Griffin's heartrate is 143bpm, and once again he entertained us by kicking the doplar.

I also had a fun conversation with the RN about cloth diapers. She had no idea that they still existed, and was very intrigued when I was telling her about how far they've come. She told me about how much she loved using cloth for her two boys (who are now in their late 30's) and how much healthier she thinks they are for babies. I've decided to bring one of my bumGenius diapers to my next appointment to show her.

The only news I wasn't thrilled with was that I managed to gain another 10 lbs this month. I'm not surprised, since I haven't been making any effort to curb my intake, but it was still disconcerting to see the scale read over 200 lbs for the first time in my life. Dr. P said that as long as I don't gain more than another 20 or so, she'll be satisfied. Which is cool with me, since I had no intentions to try to hold my weight down during this pregnancy, anyway.

So what's next? Well, I have a glucose test in three weeks, and my next OB appointment in four. After that I'm guessing that we'll be switching to a two week schedule for check-ups. Fun fun!

I love being pregnant.

Today I'm 25 weeks pregnant.

OK, so it can be uncomfortable and sometimes I'm a total wreck, but overall it's a fabulous experience being in Month 6.

The parts I could most do without:
1. Comments on what I'm eating. Yes, it's cold pizza for breakfast. So?
2. Comments on my expanding hips/thighs/nose/cheeks/etc. Yes, I've noticed it too.
3. Karate chops to the bladder. No less painful than a fierce bellybutton poke from the outside, an with much worse consequences.
4. Crushed digestive system. There's a reason it's the size and shape that it usually is, not mashed as it is now. And it's only going to get tighter in there.
5. Cycle back to #1 on this list, and you now have an answer to that question.

The parts I like the best:
1. The closeness and joy it brings to Mombi and me.
2. The little flutters that remind me that we're about to finally have a baby.
3. Catching people checking out my belly.
4. Being able to pick out a fabulous outfit for $10, even if it's WAY too small for me.

Griffin says Happy Holidays!

Here's a video of griffin playing with the duckies he got for Christmas!

Griffin's first puppet show.