Last week we had our monthly group appointment. Lego's heartbeat sounded good and I'm measuring right on track, as usual! During the group part we watched a video of a woman labor and give birth without receiving anything for pain. The nurse-midwives wanted us to see a birth as it really looks; labor lasting many hours with only a few people around and most of it appearing pretty dull to the casual observer. The media portrays labor and birth as a quick, intense event that begins with the water breaking and after an action packed rush to the hospital a squalling infant appears amidst an excited crowd of hospital staff and main characters.
The last time I had seen an uncensored recording of a real birth was in high school health class. The birthing video was infamous around school for showing everything, and most of my peers were vocal about finding it unpleasant. At the time the video was pretty effective birth control, and I have to admit that I averted my eyes when the baby began to crown. My teenage self was far too much of a prude to want to see that!
Last week, my reaction was quite different. I found myself tearing up as the baby was born and placed on his mother's chest. As the lights flicked on and we looked around, it became clear that every single pregnant woman in the room was wiping her eyes. One of the nurse-midwives made a joke about never having seen a woman cry during that video before (obviously, pregnant women cry all the time when shown the video), and we moved on with our discussion. I all but forgot about it, but later it became clear that at least some of the men had been utterly baffled by the ladies' tears. Dan just couldn't wrap his head around it, and asked me what had evoked my emotional response. He emphasized the fact that "every single pregnant woman cried". He has certainly noticed my increased capacity for waterworks during the last several months, and told me he thought it was the crazy cocktail of pregnancy hormones. He might have been right, but I warned him he better watch himself talking like that around a pregnant woman!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Belly shots!
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| 11 Weeks |
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| 18 Weeks |
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| 24 Weeks |
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| 26 Weeks |
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| 28 Weeks- 3rd Trimester! |
In other news, my belly button is still an innie!
Friday, March 23, 2012
Name Game Part 2, 28 weeks 4 days
After we found out that baby Lego is a girl, we got slightly more serious about picking a name for her. I say slightly, because we would start by discussing names we actually like (well, names one or the other of us likes) and devolve into a contest for coming up with the worst names. Sometimes the conversation would start out that way from the beginning; we would pretend to insist on a name we knew the other would hate only to be countered with another terrible name. You can understand how we manage to not make any real headway on the name front.
We did manage eventually to narrow down the choices to two top contenders. We both like either choice but, of course, disagree on which name is best. After being stuck at an impasse for a few weeks we decided to put the final decision on hold for a while. I thought that maybe if he was given time to digest without pressure from me, he would quickly realize that I am right. I didn't expect that his name of choice would grow on me, too! When we brought up the topic again, we were both less certain than we had been before about which name we favored. We both still like both names!
The final decision remains to be made about baby Lego's name. At this rate, it won't be made until after she is born.
Actually, the final decision is pretty likely to be made after she is born. Maybe she will have an opinion on what her name should be, and since she will be the one signing it all her life it seems only fair that she gets to weigh in. Maybe after meeting her it will be obvious that one name over the other is the best fit for her. Also, Dan and I have agreed not to worry about it anymore. The birth certificate won't have to be signed for several months yet, so we have time. Until then, calling her "Lego" does the job just fine as far as we are concerned.
We did manage eventually to narrow down the choices to two top contenders. We both like either choice but, of course, disagree on which name is best. After being stuck at an impasse for a few weeks we decided to put the final decision on hold for a while. I thought that maybe if he was given time to digest without pressure from me, he would quickly realize that I am right. I didn't expect that his name of choice would grow on me, too! When we brought up the topic again, we were both less certain than we had been before about which name we favored. We both still like both names!
The final decision remains to be made about baby Lego's name. At this rate, it won't be made until after she is born.
Actually, the final decision is pretty likely to be made after she is born. Maybe she will have an opinion on what her name should be, and since she will be the one signing it all her life it seems only fair that she gets to weigh in. Maybe after meeting her it will be obvious that one name over the other is the best fit for her. Also, Dan and I have agreed not to worry about it anymore. The birth certificate won't have to be signed for several months yet, so we have time. Until then, calling her "Lego" does the job just fine as far as we are concerned.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
The pee stick, October 16 2011
I want to record the story of how I found out I was pregnant, maybe more for me than for you reading this.
Now, I'm not a date-oriented person. So much so that I have always been terrible at remembering my own anniversaries. Dan and I never had an official dating anniversary, because neither of us could remember the date. We knew it was in spring, within a few weeks of my birthday. So, how do I know the exact date I found out I am pregnant? Normally, I wouldn't, but it just so happened to be Dan's birthday. That would be his real birthday, not his pretend birthday on October 9th. I don't know why he thinks he needs two birthdays, but oh well.
I had been feeling off and sickish for a while, but even though my period was late I really didn't think I was pregnant. My period is often late and I figured it would show up when it wanted, just like always. I was a little concerned though, and wanted to make a doctor appointment to make sure I was okay. It was pretty likely that they would test for pregnancy at the doctor so I decided to go ahead and take a test on my own just to rule out the possibility before making an appointment.
I watched in shock as the plus sign appeared immediately. I stared at it for a few seconds, then quickly put it down and left the room. A few minutes later I crept back in and gingerly picked up the test. Still positive. I shook it, and looked again. The opening scene in the movie Juno came to mind, where Juno is reminded by Rainn Wilson's character that a pregnancy test is not an etch-a-sketch, and I felt a little silly. I peered doubtfully at the result window. The plus sign was still there, darker than the control line that shows up to let you know the test is not defective. I put it down and left again.
I picked Dan up at work that evening. I had sneaked in and out of the bathroom a few more times, rechecking that the test hadn't mysteriously changed it's mind. I hadn't given any thought as to how I would tell Dan, and I knew I wouldn't be able to keep it secret long enough to devise a sweet and creative way to break the news. So, as soon as he had his seat belt buckled I handed him the test. Nice way to say hello, right? Don't worry, I cleaned the stick before tucking it in my pocket. Anyway, Dan kind of stared at it in silence for a few seconds. I assumed he had very limited familiarity with the devices and was figuring out the results. Then he grinned. "This is the best birthday present ever"!
Now, I'm not a date-oriented person. So much so that I have always been terrible at remembering my own anniversaries. Dan and I never had an official dating anniversary, because neither of us could remember the date. We knew it was in spring, within a few weeks of my birthday. So, how do I know the exact date I found out I am pregnant? Normally, I wouldn't, but it just so happened to be Dan's birthday. That would be his real birthday, not his pretend birthday on October 9th. I don't know why he thinks he needs two birthdays, but oh well.
I had been feeling off and sickish for a while, but even though my period was late I really didn't think I was pregnant. My period is often late and I figured it would show up when it wanted, just like always. I was a little concerned though, and wanted to make a doctor appointment to make sure I was okay. It was pretty likely that they would test for pregnancy at the doctor so I decided to go ahead and take a test on my own just to rule out the possibility before making an appointment.
I watched in shock as the plus sign appeared immediately. I stared at it for a few seconds, then quickly put it down and left the room. A few minutes later I crept back in and gingerly picked up the test. Still positive. I shook it, and looked again. The opening scene in the movie Juno came to mind, where Juno is reminded by Rainn Wilson's character that a pregnancy test is not an etch-a-sketch, and I felt a little silly. I peered doubtfully at the result window. The plus sign was still there, darker than the control line that shows up to let you know the test is not defective. I put it down and left again.
I picked Dan up at work that evening. I had sneaked in and out of the bathroom a few more times, rechecking that the test hadn't mysteriously changed it's mind. I hadn't given any thought as to how I would tell Dan, and I knew I wouldn't be able to keep it secret long enough to devise a sweet and creative way to break the news. So, as soon as he had his seat belt buckled I handed him the test. Nice way to say hello, right? Don't worry, I cleaned the stick before tucking it in my pocket. Anyway, Dan kind of stared at it in silence for a few seconds. I assumed he had very limited familiarity with the devices and was figuring out the results. Then he grinned. "This is the best birthday present ever"!
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
A Tiny Person! 26 weeks, 1 day
We brought home the car seat the other day! I'm thrilled we now have a place to put the baby, so if we don't get a crib she can sleep in the car. Kidding!
As I was watching Dan look over the car seat and play with the straps and latches and all that, a sudden image popped into my head. I pictured him gently laying a tiny person into the seat and buckling her in. The overwhelming reality struck me in a way that it hasn't before. There is going to be a brand new itty bitty PERSON here soon! A whole other person who will demand seriously unreasonable amounts of our time and energy and love, and give us poopy diapers and pukey shirts in return. We have like, 3 months. 3 1/2 tops. That's like, practically nothing! We still have so much to do to prepare!
As I was watching Dan look over the car seat and play with the straps and latches and all that, a sudden image popped into my head. I pictured him gently laying a tiny person into the seat and buckling her in. The overwhelming reality struck me in a way that it hasn't before. There is going to be a brand new itty bitty PERSON here soon! A whole other person who will demand seriously unreasonable amounts of our time and energy and love, and give us poopy diapers and pukey shirts in return. We have like, 3 months. 3 1/2 tops. That's like, practically nothing! We still have so much to do to prepare!
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Making it work, 25 weeks 5 days
Throughout my pregnancy we have been planning to move to a bigger place before the baby comes. We decided it would be best to have a second bedroom which I imagined would be a combination guest room and baby room. Both sets of grandparents will be visiting in the weeks after the birth and I really wanted a room for them to be a bit more comfortable in. The baby will be in our room early on regardless of the status of occupancy of the guest room, but eventually the plan was to set up the crib or pack and play in there and let Lego have her own closet space and everything else.
After giving notice of our intention to vacate our current one bedroom place and spending the better part of a month touring apartments in various neighborhoods, worrying over the financial aspects of moving (application fees, first and last month's rent plus pet deposit, moving van rental, and regular bills and saving up for Lego's arrival, all before getting any of our old security deposit back), furnishing another whole room and the logistics of moving on a budget when I'm 6+ months pregnant, stressing about which apartment we didn't exactly love to choose, and getting nervous about when we would be able to move in, we finally decided to throw the whole idea out the window. We withdrew our notice of vacancy and luckily our new landlords (who just bought the building we have lived in for the past 2 years) don't seem to mind a bit.
Just as things were coming to a head- we had a week to figure everything out and had just gotten word that both places we had applied for had been rented to other people- I shared with Dan three stories of families making small spaces work for them. We have come to the conclusion that if they can do it, so can we. An 800 square foot apartment is plenty of space for three (or two and half) people compared to what many people have!
One of my elderly clients has grandchildren who live in a 250 square foot yert in Alaska, off the grid. They have two small children (my client's great grandchildren) who were born into life in a yert off the gird. The couch is a futon that doubles as the parent's bed and the kids have a loft bed above them. The kitchen table is a trunk in which the mother keeps her clothes and other storage, and each family member has a drawer in the single dresser. They carry their water up from the stream every day and purify all of it before drinking. When it freezes, they use ice and snow. When the kids were babies, their cloth diapers were washed in the stream until it froze- then they reluctantly switched to seventh generation disposables. Compared to that, Dan and I have it super easy, and more than enough space!
Our challenge will be mainly organization. We will need to reorganize and get rid of some things in order to fit baby stuff and generally make this space more open and comfortable, and then we will have to be strict with ourselves to keep it neat and put away! Neither of us are very good at being organized and tidy, but we agree we would like to develop better habits before baby Lego gets here. We will keep the amount of baby furnishings (swing, bouncer, changing table, etc.) to a minimum to help maximize space, and instead of getting her her own dresser I will start with clearing out one or more of my dresser drawers. New babies don't need much stuff, all that is mostly for parents anyway. We have a few other ideas as well, but anyone who has input on making small spaces work by all means leave a comment! Please!
I do regret not being able to provide our parents and in-laws with the privacy and comfort a second bedroom could offer, but the weight that lifted off our shoulders when we decided to stay put for now makes that sacrifice more than worth it. Yeah, my parents' comfort was definitely worth giving up in favor of my own peace of mind!
Now, away with me. I'm off to develop better habits!
After giving notice of our intention to vacate our current one bedroom place and spending the better part of a month touring apartments in various neighborhoods, worrying over the financial aspects of moving (application fees, first and last month's rent plus pet deposit, moving van rental, and regular bills and saving up for Lego's arrival, all before getting any of our old security deposit back), furnishing another whole room and the logistics of moving on a budget when I'm 6+ months pregnant, stressing about which apartment we didn't exactly love to choose, and getting nervous about when we would be able to move in, we finally decided to throw the whole idea out the window. We withdrew our notice of vacancy and luckily our new landlords (who just bought the building we have lived in for the past 2 years) don't seem to mind a bit.
Just as things were coming to a head- we had a week to figure everything out and had just gotten word that both places we had applied for had been rented to other people- I shared with Dan three stories of families making small spaces work for them. We have come to the conclusion that if they can do it, so can we. An 800 square foot apartment is plenty of space for three (or two and half) people compared to what many people have!
One of my elderly clients has grandchildren who live in a 250 square foot yert in Alaska, off the grid. They have two small children (my client's great grandchildren) who were born into life in a yert off the gird. The couch is a futon that doubles as the parent's bed and the kids have a loft bed above them. The kitchen table is a trunk in which the mother keeps her clothes and other storage, and each family member has a drawer in the single dresser. They carry their water up from the stream every day and purify all of it before drinking. When it freezes, they use ice and snow. When the kids were babies, their cloth diapers were washed in the stream until it froze- then they reluctantly switched to seventh generation disposables. Compared to that, Dan and I have it super easy, and more than enough space!
Our challenge will be mainly organization. We will need to reorganize and get rid of some things in order to fit baby stuff and generally make this space more open and comfortable, and then we will have to be strict with ourselves to keep it neat and put away! Neither of us are very good at being organized and tidy, but we agree we would like to develop better habits before baby Lego gets here. We will keep the amount of baby furnishings (swing, bouncer, changing table, etc.) to a minimum to help maximize space, and instead of getting her her own dresser I will start with clearing out one or more of my dresser drawers. New babies don't need much stuff, all that is mostly for parents anyway. We have a few other ideas as well, but anyone who has input on making small spaces work by all means leave a comment! Please!
I do regret not being able to provide our parents and in-laws with the privacy and comfort a second bedroom could offer, but the weight that lifted off our shoulders when we decided to stay put for now makes that sacrifice more than worth it. Yeah, my parents' comfort was definitely worth giving up in favor of my own peace of mind!
Now, away with me. I'm off to develop better habits!
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