To everything....turn, turn, turn
There is a season...turn, turn, turn
And a time for every purpose under Heaven
(Sung by The Byrds - 1965...adapted from the bible)
WELL - THE KID FLIPPED!
Who knows if it's the swimming that did it...but I find it an odd coincidence that I went swimming - and woke up with all that pain and movement early the next morning. Doc says that's most likely when it happened, if that's the most pain I've felt recently.
So I'm sending praise to the treehuggers because they sure know what they're doing!
I'm relieved...I know I still could end up having a c-section - and I can't predict at ALL how labor will be, but I was kinda bummed at the thought of facing a c-section so early on....and I desperately wanted the kid to be in the right position at least. So WHEW!
I'm almost 35 weeks - and veeeery uncomfortable - but happy that the critter is cooperating. Cook away little critter! Time to fatten up, I love me some chubby babies.
I decided to go swimming again on Wednesday, mainly because it felt so good just to be in the water...no somersaults this time though :)
Anyway - I walked into the pool, and a different instructor for water aerobics was there and she saw me and said "oh my gosh! Are you the pregnant lady who was doing flips in the pool????"
and I laughed and said "yup..that's me...and hey...it WORKED!"
She couldn't believe it. She said I looked like I was going to have this baby any second - so I'm taking this to mean that in my maternity suit, I must look like I'm about 15 months pregnant...hahaha.
My shower is tomorrow - which I'm a wee bit anxious about. I never do very well being the center of attention at things like that...so I've convinced hubs to be there and hang out with all "the ladies" just so I don't feel SO MUCH like it's all about me. Course, I know it's more all about the baby - but the baby's not here yet...so it's me by association. I feel really honored by all the people who are coming, and I feel LOVED that's for sure. I'm just a bit nervous at the same time. I'm sure it'll go away once I see all my friends and loved ones and realize that I'm just crazy in the head and I can relax and have a good time.
I'm still swamped at work - so I just wanted to pop on and let you all know the good news!
Have a great weekend everyone :)
Friday, February 29, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Party Animals
****Warning...up ahead there are pictures of a very white and very massive belly...if you do not think you can handle these pictures - or are worried that these pictures will be forever burned into your retinas, then please...don't look*** 
What is UP with the clown nose weirdness happening with my belly button anyway? It's all stretched out and narrow. I wonder if it'll ever turn into an outie?
Yes, yes we're party animals - what did YOU do with your Saturday night?
Okay - so...let's say it's Saturday night. You've spent the day running errands and doing little tasks around the house. You are now snuggled in your comfy pajamas on the sofa, it's raining and windy, there is a fire in the fireplace, there is a movie playing on your tv - and then you get a wild hair and bust out the washable markers and let hubs "get creative" on the giant white canvas that has become your belly.
Behold - our last name is revealed:
What is UP with the clown nose weirdness happening with my belly button anyway? It's all stretched out and narrow. I wonder if it'll ever turn into an outie?
Yes, yes we're party animals - what did YOU do with your Saturday night?
Thursday, February 21, 2008
shwimmin
So I met Alison at the pool last night and after shocking all the water aerobics ladies with my ginormous belly ("Oh my gosh! Are you having TWINS? uhhhh - nope....") I climbed into that warm water and lemme tell you - it was HEAVEN. Floating around and feeling weightless was the best feeling ever. *SIGH* I wanna go back!
For once, I didn't feel like I have a 30 pound backpack strapped to the front of me, and it was lovely. I could have bobbed around on a pool noodle forever, but Alison was very good about keeping me on task and trying out all the different things I was supposed to do:
#1 - Walking on my hands....so yeah - I've got the sideways thing down, but for some reason I can't get this body of mine to go forward underwater, very strange.
#2 - Somersaults...I think I'm too old for this because I did one and got hella dizzy. I tried another one and decided I should stop to avoid puking in the pool. Didn't like this one at all.
#3 - Diving to the bottom several times....this was fine and the easiest one to do.
I kept putting my hands on my lower belly and trying to nudge the kid out of my pelvis. I think our critter must have been zoning out in there because I didn't feel much movement at all the entire time I was in the pool.
We did get the excitement of swimming with a nutty guy who immediately reminded me of the Numa Numa kid. I swear, the minute he jumped into the pool with his OWN kickboard, flippers and goggles...I had that song running through my head. Mayiyaaaaheeeee!! Mayiyaaaahoooooo!
Seriously, we got some good giggles out of watching this guy because not only did he have all his gear, but he was talking to himself pretty much the whole time. Being an indoor pool, everything echoes, so it was very plain and clear that this kid was having conversations with his imaginary friend or something. At times we would look over and see two tree trunk legs sticking out of the water. Not sure if he was also trying to turn a baby or what - but I guess he decided that handstands were fun?
We proceeded to just swim laps back and forth with kickboards and it was very relaxing, but also a good workout because when I got out of the pool, not only was I starving - but after going home and showering, I was R-E-L-A-X-E-D.
Now, everyone tells me that I'll KNOW when this baby turns because it's supposed to hurt like hell. Which sucks, but bring it on - cause I'd really like this kid to turn around.
So nothing really happened last night, but I woke up at about 2:15am with a very sharp and severe pain in my belly and the kid was moving and groovin in there, I swear it felt like a giant squid pushing it's giant tenticles around in my belly. I kept getting sharp pains for about 5 minutes and then all was quiet on the southern front...so I went back to sleep. I honestly have NO IDEA if the kid turned though - I really can't tell - it's quite possible that it was just moving around and I've got wishful thinking. But hey, visualization right? I guess I'll find out for sure next week at my appointment.
I'd really like to keep going swimming because it felt so darn good - and can only be beneficial for me towards the end of this pregnancy when everything feels so incredibly heavy.
and NO - there will be no maternity swimsuit pictures because you would all run around in circles screaming "my eyes! my eyes!". Poor Alison was shocked when she saw me and claimed my belly pictures don't do ANY justice whatsoever to the actual size in person. It scares me to think that the kid is probably going to double in size at this point....I think during those last few weeks, I'll be seriously tempted to go buy a muumuu and spend the rest of this pregnancy on the couch eating cheese danish and watching Celebrity Rehab.
For once, I didn't feel like I have a 30 pound backpack strapped to the front of me, and it was lovely. I could have bobbed around on a pool noodle forever, but Alison was very good about keeping me on task and trying out all the different things I was supposed to do:
#1 - Walking on my hands....so yeah - I've got the sideways thing down, but for some reason I can't get this body of mine to go forward underwater, very strange.
#2 - Somersaults...I think I'm too old for this because I did one and got hella dizzy. I tried another one and decided I should stop to avoid puking in the pool. Didn't like this one at all.
#3 - Diving to the bottom several times....this was fine and the easiest one to do.
I kept putting my hands on my lower belly and trying to nudge the kid out of my pelvis. I think our critter must have been zoning out in there because I didn't feel much movement at all the entire time I was in the pool.
We did get the excitement of swimming with a nutty guy who immediately reminded me of the Numa Numa kid. I swear, the minute he jumped into the pool with his OWN kickboard, flippers and goggles...I had that song running through my head. Mayiyaaaaheeeee!! Mayiyaaaahoooooo!
Seriously, we got some good giggles out of watching this guy because not only did he have all his gear, but he was talking to himself pretty much the whole time. Being an indoor pool, everything echoes, so it was very plain and clear that this kid was having conversations with his imaginary friend or something. At times we would look over and see two tree trunk legs sticking out of the water. Not sure if he was also trying to turn a baby or what - but I guess he decided that handstands were fun?
We proceeded to just swim laps back and forth with kickboards and it was very relaxing, but also a good workout because when I got out of the pool, not only was I starving - but after going home and showering, I was R-E-L-A-X-E-D.
Now, everyone tells me that I'll KNOW when this baby turns because it's supposed to hurt like hell. Which sucks, but bring it on - cause I'd really like this kid to turn around.
So nothing really happened last night, but I woke up at about 2:15am with a very sharp and severe pain in my belly and the kid was moving and groovin in there, I swear it felt like a giant squid pushing it's giant tenticles around in my belly. I kept getting sharp pains for about 5 minutes and then all was quiet on the southern front...so I went back to sleep. I honestly have NO IDEA if the kid turned though - I really can't tell - it's quite possible that it was just moving around and I've got wishful thinking. But hey, visualization right? I guess I'll find out for sure next week at my appointment.
I'd really like to keep going swimming because it felt so darn good - and can only be beneficial for me towards the end of this pregnancy when everything feels so incredibly heavy.
and NO - there will be no maternity swimsuit pictures because you would all run around in circles screaming "my eyes! my eyes!". Poor Alison was shocked when she saw me and claimed my belly pictures don't do ANY justice whatsoever to the actual size in person. It scares me to think that the kid is probably going to double in size at this point....I think during those last few weeks, I'll be seriously tempted to go buy a muumuu and spend the rest of this pregnancy on the couch eating cheese danish and watching Celebrity Rehab.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Finally it's Friday...
Soooo - KELLY seems to think we're having a boy! Anyone else? Thoughts? Opinions? Wagers?
People seem to think that I should have some sort of "sixth sense" about what I'm having, but I honestly have no idea. I'd say more often than not, I think it's a boy - but that could just be wishful thinking because we've got so many girls in our family already. There are times when I would swear it's a boy...and other times when I just know it's gonna be a girl. I truly have no idea. I have to say, even as difficult as it makes the whole shopping experience and nursery decorating thing - I'm kinda liking the fact that we don't know. It's like I have my own little surprise in there.
So yesterday was Valentines day...an occasion I am not big on. The plan was to just get a Klondike pizza (best EVER) and settle in on the couch with a good movie and a cat or two. Hubs came home with some Lily's for me which was very sweet and unexpected, and told me he wants to treat my mom and I to manicures and bonding time before the critter comes. I may just be trading that in for a pedicure because reaching the feet these days is NOT happening, and I'd love to have fancy toes for the hospital.
We eagerly put in the movie we had...Heartbreak Kid with Ben Stiller...and dug into our yummy pizza and ended up with Tiny snuggled between us and Georgia doing the big sad brown eyes thing so we'd give her little bits of pizza, and after about 30 minutes, we realized how much that movie was sucking hard. We did watch the whole thing - but honestly? I want my hour and a half back. What wingnut on Netflix gave that movie 4 stars??? It was terrible. Not even the gag reel at the end was funny.
So movie night was kind of a bust - thank goodness the pizza was still the best ever.
and that was our Valentines - all in all, it was nice to snuggle on the sofa with hubs because I drank SO MUCH WATER yesterday you guys. I made myself miserable - but the kid was moving around like cuh-razy, much more than normal, so maybe it's working and I'm creating more space in there.
I was doing dishes yesterday when I got home and I had the radio on a cheesy 80's station. I was thinking about some of the things I've been reading online about turning a breech baby and one of the things is visualization. I'm supposed to really think about and envision this baby turning around and getting into position. So I'm doing my thing and scrubbing the dishes, and singing along to the radio - when suddenly it struck me what I was singing. I stopped dead in my tracks because it was totally meant to be my mantra for the next 7 weeks! Anyone who's seen the Wedding Singer should know this song....check it out...
And I, I've got to have my way now, baby
All I know is that to me
You look like you're having fun
Open up your loving arms
Watch,out here I come
You spin me right round, baby right round
like a record, baby
Right round round round
You spin me right round, baby right round
like a record, baby
Right round round round
I got to be your friend now, baby
And I would like to move in a little bit closer
All I know is that to me
You look like you're lots of fun
Open up your loving arms
Watch out, here I come
Hahahaha, I was cracking myself up yesterday singing this song - now I just need to play it down low on my belly and see if I can get the kid to try to follow the music.
Speaking of which, some of the suggestions on midwife message boards and from Amanda's mom who is a Doula - have been veeery interesting:
-Drinking tons of water of course
-Laying on a slantboard or propping my hips up with pillows so my head is 40 degrees lower than my feet
-Playing soft music way down low on my belly
-Playing loud annoying music way up high on my belly
-Shining a flashlight at the top of my belly and continuously moving it down low
-Squatting nekid over a flashlight, or sleeping with a flashlight aimed low...hahaha!
-Having hubs talk in loud, but soothing tones way down low telling the baby to "turn around" (or you're grounded)
-a type of acupunture called Moxibustion...I actually called someone about doing this, but it's $125 for the first session - so I decided to give all the easier stuff a shot first.
-A chiropractic technique called "the Webster technique"..I have yet to find anyone local who knows how to do this
-Plaster pictures of "head down" babies all over my house
-Swimming
-Doing somersaults in the water
-Diving towards the bottom of the pool several times
-Walking on my hands in a swimming pool
-Putting an icepack at the top of my belly..since apparantly babies in utero don't like to be cold
-Elephant walking...which means walking on all fours like Mowgli from the Jungle Book - apparantly this helps get the baby out of the pelvis. I'm not sure if this position is even possible for me since I can hardly even tie my own shoes, but I have a feeling hubs would like to be around when I give this one a try...haha
Most of the above sound pretty easy (although I doubt I'll be squatting nekkid over a flashlight, that's not GOOD nekkid) - and honestly, I can't WAIT to get into a pool of water and feel weightless. It's not going to be pretty squeezing this body of mine into a maternity suit - but floating in the water sounds like heaven right about now. I'm having one of those days where everything just feels tight and uncomfortable and huge, and I'm bumping into things and lumbering around like a Sasquatch.
It was cooold this morning, but I still didn't have the energy to put on actual SHOES, so I've got my sad little bare feet in sandals aimed at a space heater in my office. ha! I should count my blessings though that I didn't have to experience summertime in this condition or I'd be bitching up a storm.
I'll leave you all today with evidence of Tiny and Jackson snuggling...seriously, are these guys brothers or WHAT?
People seem to think that I should have some sort of "sixth sense" about what I'm having, but I honestly have no idea. I'd say more often than not, I think it's a boy - but that could just be wishful thinking because we've got so many girls in our family already. There are times when I would swear it's a boy...and other times when I just know it's gonna be a girl. I truly have no idea. I have to say, even as difficult as it makes the whole shopping experience and nursery decorating thing - I'm kinda liking the fact that we don't know. It's like I have my own little surprise in there.
So yesterday was Valentines day...an occasion I am not big on. The plan was to just get a Klondike pizza (best EVER) and settle in on the couch with a good movie and a cat or two. Hubs came home with some Lily's for me which was very sweet and unexpected, and told me he wants to treat my mom and I to manicures and bonding time before the critter comes. I may just be trading that in for a pedicure because reaching the feet these days is NOT happening, and I'd love to have fancy toes for the hospital.
We eagerly put in the movie we had...Heartbreak Kid with Ben Stiller...and dug into our yummy pizza and ended up with Tiny snuggled between us and Georgia doing the big sad brown eyes thing so we'd give her little bits of pizza, and after about 30 minutes, we realized how much that movie was sucking hard. We did watch the whole thing - but honestly? I want my hour and a half back. What wingnut on Netflix gave that movie 4 stars??? It was terrible. Not even the gag reel at the end was funny.
So movie night was kind of a bust - thank goodness the pizza was still the best ever.
and that was our Valentines - all in all, it was nice to snuggle on the sofa with hubs because I drank SO MUCH WATER yesterday you guys. I made myself miserable - but the kid was moving around like cuh-razy, much more than normal, so maybe it's working and I'm creating more space in there.
I was doing dishes yesterday when I got home and I had the radio on a cheesy 80's station. I was thinking about some of the things I've been reading online about turning a breech baby and one of the things is visualization. I'm supposed to really think about and envision this baby turning around and getting into position. So I'm doing my thing and scrubbing the dishes, and singing along to the radio - when suddenly it struck me what I was singing. I stopped dead in my tracks because it was totally meant to be my mantra for the next 7 weeks! Anyone who's seen the Wedding Singer should know this song....check it out...
And I, I've got to have my way now, baby
All I know is that to me
You look like you're having fun
Open up your loving arms
Watch,out here I come
You spin me right round, baby right round
like a record, baby
Right round round round
You spin me right round, baby right round
like a record, baby
Right round round round
I got to be your friend now, baby
And I would like to move in a little bit closer
All I know is that to me
You look like you're lots of fun
Open up your loving arms
Watch out, here I come
Hahahaha, I was cracking myself up yesterday singing this song - now I just need to play it down low on my belly and see if I can get the kid to try to follow the music.
Speaking of which, some of the suggestions on midwife message boards and from Amanda's mom who is a Doula - have been veeery interesting:
-Drinking tons of water of course
-Laying on a slantboard or propping my hips up with pillows so my head is 40 degrees lower than my feet
-Playing soft music way down low on my belly
-Playing loud annoying music way up high on my belly
-Shining a flashlight at the top of my belly and continuously moving it down low
-Squatting nekid over a flashlight, or sleeping with a flashlight aimed low...hahaha!
-Having hubs talk in loud, but soothing tones way down low telling the baby to "turn around" (or you're grounded)
-a type of acupunture called Moxibustion...I actually called someone about doing this, but it's $125 for the first session - so I decided to give all the easier stuff a shot first.
-A chiropractic technique called "the Webster technique"..I have yet to find anyone local who knows how to do this
-Plaster pictures of "head down" babies all over my house
-Swimming
-Doing somersaults in the water
-Diving towards the bottom of the pool several times
-Walking on my hands in a swimming pool
-Putting an icepack at the top of my belly..since apparantly babies in utero don't like to be cold
-Elephant walking...which means walking on all fours like Mowgli from the Jungle Book - apparantly this helps get the baby out of the pelvis. I'm not sure if this position is even possible for me since I can hardly even tie my own shoes, but I have a feeling hubs would like to be around when I give this one a try...haha
Most of the above sound pretty easy (although I doubt I'll be squatting nekkid over a flashlight, that's not GOOD nekkid) - and honestly, I can't WAIT to get into a pool of water and feel weightless. It's not going to be pretty squeezing this body of mine into a maternity suit - but floating in the water sounds like heaven right about now. I'm having one of those days where everything just feels tight and uncomfortable and huge, and I'm bumping into things and lumbering around like a Sasquatch.
It was cooold this morning, but I still didn't have the energy to put on actual SHOES, so I've got my sad little bare feet in sandals aimed at a space heater in my office. ha! I should count my blessings though that I didn't have to experience summertime in this condition or I'd be bitching up a storm.
I'll leave you all today with evidence of Tiny and Jackson snuggling...seriously, are these guys brothers or WHAT?
Happy Friday everyone!
**By the way - for Joanna...You should be able to click on Samantha's name for her blog - but it's here you go: http://backtome.typepad.com/my_weblog/
I confess I have no idea who Ali Edwards is...
***updated to add - oddly enough, I just went and clicked on Ali Edwards blog...and she mentions the Serenity Now part from Seinfeld (hence the title of my blog) - too funny!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
And the hilarity ensues...
Lately, my every day aches and pains have become stronger and more intense...especially when the kid is pushing on a delicate area.
Last night, hubs and I were in bed on our sides facing each other and snuggling with our dog who was sprawled out between us and fast asleep (we always give her 15-20 minutes of cuddles before she has to go to her own bed). Suddenly I got a sharp pain way down low on my left side and I went "oooooohhhh" and my face contorted into my ugly-that-hurts face.
Hubs goes "what's wrong? is it the baby? or do you have to fart?"
which made me laugh out loud mid-moan and wake up the dog. "The hell? Did you just ask if I had to FART?" hahaha
and he goes "well! the pain face is very similiar to the I've-gotta-fart face"
Now that I know that, it's gonna be real easy to fake a baby kick pain and cropdust him as I leave the room...hee!
Last night, hubs and I were in bed on our sides facing each other and snuggling with our dog who was sprawled out between us and fast asleep (we always give her 15-20 minutes of cuddles before she has to go to her own bed). Suddenly I got a sharp pain way down low on my left side and I went "oooooohhhh" and my face contorted into my ugly-that-hurts face.
Hubs goes "what's wrong? is it the baby? or do you have to fart?"
which made me laugh out loud mid-moan and wake up the dog. "The hell? Did you just ask if I had to FART?" hahaha
and he goes "well! the pain face is very similiar to the I've-gotta-fart face"
Now that I know that, it's gonna be real easy to fake a baby kick pain and cropdust him as I leave the room...hee!
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Birthing Class Stories - Episode 2
Allrighty - so it took me some time to absorb the last class we attended. Let's just say that when I walked out of there, and climbed into my car - I drove the entire way home with my hands clenched on the steering wheel and tears in my eyes because DUUUUDE, my fears are NOT being calmed by what I saw that night.
Upon entering the class, we sat down and the instructor handed us blocks of blue ice and a couple of clothespins. She then told us that these items would be used to mimic pain, and we'd be experimenting with different ways for us to divert our attention from the pain. We started with simple breathing for one minute, then the husbands or coaches were supposed to massage us to help us relax. Hubs was standing behind me rubbing my shoulders and then moved onto my cheeks (no not those cheeks), at one point I opened my eyes and glared at him because it was giving me the chubby face thing, and not relaxing at all. After the minute was up - our instructor went around the room and asked everyone how the massage was and I made a snarky comment about hubby's technique which brought on a round of "awwww, poor hubby's" from the class. The thing is - he KNOWS my lower back is where it's at, so during the next round, he got it right and I was able to close my eyes and breath myself into another place to avoid thinking about the pain of holding that damn block of ice. She added music at one point...and a focal movie of some sort, but I seem to do better when I have my eyes closed and I can just go elsewhere in my own head.
She had us try different positions to see what was more comfortable, and by the time the first half of the class was over - I was super relaxed, albeit with a nearly frostbitten hand. Kinda cool to learn tools to help through that kind of stuff right?
So during the second half of class - she talked all about the different stages of labor and then put in a movie. The first part of the movie was fine - just a bunch of women laboring at different stages and you'd see a boob or two, but nothing real up close and personal...in fact it seemed as if they were going out of their way to keep certain areas out of the camera's way. That is until WHAM - we were suddenly hit with an up close and personal view of a very hairy baby head being pushed out of a very hairy area. DUDE - I flinched and hubs was like whooooaa - I mean come on...how about a little warning people??? It freaked me right the hell out....and it just continued, shot after shot of different people pushing out these massive baby heads. I've never SEEN so many vaginas all at once...much less in the "state" they were in, you know?
Here's the thing I don't get - I'M not going to be 2 inches away from my own self while I'm giving birth...and hubs sure as hell isn't going to want to get that close - so why oh why do we have to see such a thing THAT CLOSE on a big screen? why? I don't get it! There's a difference between seeing a woman in labor pushing out a baby - and seeing just a big giant VAJ right up there all stretched out....like a slobbery saint bernard trying to squeeze itself through a doggie door.
And THEN - if that wasn't enough to freak us out - they get up close and personal with the placenta and all that fun afterbirth stuff too. Seriously, there were parts I just couldn't watch...
The instructor turned all the bright lights back on and everyone in the room was pretty pale and subdued trying to actually absorb what we all just saw. Hubs looked at me and said "my God, I'm so sorry I did this to you...are you okay? how are you feeling right now?"
I looked at him and said "hmmm, well - you remember how relaxed I was during the first part of class?"
and he said "yeah"
and I said "well I'm kinda wished we'd done that AFTER the video because right now? I'm pretty f*&%ing TENSE!"
It was time to leave immediately after the video and we walked out of there in a daze...wishing for yanked off baby heads, blue socks and fake pelvises instead of the major dose of reality that we'd just experienced.
Please GAWD tell me we won't have to watch a c-section video??? please????
We missed last night's class because hubs was under the weather (and to be completely honest, I think we both weren't ready to face a new video yet) - but I did call the instructor to find out what we'd be covering. Unfortunately, we missed the epidural video...which is like the ONE THING I actually want to see! hahaha - but she's going to loan it to me, so we can get caught up.
Our instructor certainly is wacky - but I kinda like her...she's all over the place and unorganized and she cusses when she's flustered...which cracks me up. I think I'll email her and ask if she's got any oddball advice for this whole breech situation.
In the meantime, I'm knee-deep in midwife message boards, to see what sort of ideas I can find for trying to turn this baby on my own. One of the first things I read was that I should seriously bone up on my water intake because the more fluid in me the better...it gives the baby more space to move. I didn't even think about the fact that I could be dehydrated - but it definately is a possibility because I certainly feel like I'm drinking more than I'm peeing. It makes sense though - medically speaking, so I'm guzzling H20 like a champ over here to see if that helps any.
I have to make a list of all the different suggestions because I'm sure you all will get a kick out of some of the stuff I've read!
Upon entering the class, we sat down and the instructor handed us blocks of blue ice and a couple of clothespins. She then told us that these items would be used to mimic pain, and we'd be experimenting with different ways for us to divert our attention from the pain. We started with simple breathing for one minute, then the husbands or coaches were supposed to massage us to help us relax. Hubs was standing behind me rubbing my shoulders and then moved onto my cheeks (no not those cheeks), at one point I opened my eyes and glared at him because it was giving me the chubby face thing, and not relaxing at all. After the minute was up - our instructor went around the room and asked everyone how the massage was and I made a snarky comment about hubby's technique which brought on a round of "awwww, poor hubby's" from the class. The thing is - he KNOWS my lower back is where it's at, so during the next round, he got it right and I was able to close my eyes and breath myself into another place to avoid thinking about the pain of holding that damn block of ice. She added music at one point...and a focal movie of some sort, but I seem to do better when I have my eyes closed and I can just go elsewhere in my own head.
She had us try different positions to see what was more comfortable, and by the time the first half of the class was over - I was super relaxed, albeit with a nearly frostbitten hand. Kinda cool to learn tools to help through that kind of stuff right?
So during the second half of class - she talked all about the different stages of labor and then put in a movie. The first part of the movie was fine - just a bunch of women laboring at different stages and you'd see a boob or two, but nothing real up close and personal...in fact it seemed as if they were going out of their way to keep certain areas out of the camera's way. That is until WHAM - we were suddenly hit with an up close and personal view of a very hairy baby head being pushed out of a very hairy area. DUDE - I flinched and hubs was like whooooaa - I mean come on...how about a little warning people??? It freaked me right the hell out....and it just continued, shot after shot of different people pushing out these massive baby heads. I've never SEEN so many vaginas all at once...much less in the "state" they were in, you know?
Here's the thing I don't get - I'M not going to be 2 inches away from my own self while I'm giving birth...and hubs sure as hell isn't going to want to get that close - so why oh why do we have to see such a thing THAT CLOSE on a big screen? why? I don't get it! There's a difference between seeing a woman in labor pushing out a baby - and seeing just a big giant VAJ right up there all stretched out....like a slobbery saint bernard trying to squeeze itself through a doggie door.
And THEN - if that wasn't enough to freak us out - they get up close and personal with the placenta and all that fun afterbirth stuff too. Seriously, there were parts I just couldn't watch...
The instructor turned all the bright lights back on and everyone in the room was pretty pale and subdued trying to actually absorb what we all just saw. Hubs looked at me and said "my God, I'm so sorry I did this to you...are you okay? how are you feeling right now?"
I looked at him and said "hmmm, well - you remember how relaxed I was during the first part of class?"
and he said "yeah"
and I said "well I'm kinda wished we'd done that AFTER the video because right now? I'm pretty f*&%ing TENSE!"
It was time to leave immediately after the video and we walked out of there in a daze...wishing for yanked off baby heads, blue socks and fake pelvises instead of the major dose of reality that we'd just experienced.
Please GAWD tell me we won't have to watch a c-section video??? please????
We missed last night's class because hubs was under the weather (and to be completely honest, I think we both weren't ready to face a new video yet) - but I did call the instructor to find out what we'd be covering. Unfortunately, we missed the epidural video...which is like the ONE THING I actually want to see! hahaha - but she's going to loan it to me, so we can get caught up.
Our instructor certainly is wacky - but I kinda like her...she's all over the place and unorganized and she cusses when she's flustered...which cracks me up. I think I'll email her and ask if she's got any oddball advice for this whole breech situation.
In the meantime, I'm knee-deep in midwife message boards, to see what sort of ideas I can find for trying to turn this baby on my own. One of the first things I read was that I should seriously bone up on my water intake because the more fluid in me the better...it gives the baby more space to move. I didn't even think about the fact that I could be dehydrated - but it definately is a possibility because I certainly feel like I'm drinking more than I'm peeing. It makes sense though - medically speaking, so I'm guzzling H20 like a champ over here to see if that helps any.
I have to make a list of all the different suggestions because I'm sure you all will get a kick out of some of the stuff I've read!
Quick recap...
Okay - so I've discovered that if you take the internet away from me for a few days...I not only feel completely cut off from the world, but I also get backlogged on things to blog about and then I don't know WHERE to start, so I neglect and ignore and put off until I have to write a freaking novel to fill in what I've been doing in the meantime.
So let's see, I suppose I should begin by letting everyone know that Samantha is indeed back at home after a 2nd trip to the hospital. She's doing okay...trying to show her uterus who's boss, but also battling a cold, and bedrest - so it kinda sucks to be her right now, but thank GOD baby boy is still in utero and doing well :) I feel a kinship with her since we're the same weeks pregnant, and lemme tell you - she is a TROOPER because I would have freaked the hell out if it were me, and she's taking everything in stride.
***
I should also explain that we had some DSL issues at work - and at home everything was disconnected because hubs and I spent last weekend moving stuff around in our home office to be more accomodating for me once I'm working from home. We went on a search for a new desk as the one we had was from IKEA and super small. I need something with plenty of desk space, but also enough room for a multifunction copier/printer/fax...and of course drawers - but also something that wouldn't take up too much space since that room is somewhat small. Behold my new desk:
I'll have to take a better picture once we get the wires all organized and everything in it's place - but for now, I love it, and it fits perfectly. We got this leather couch free from a coworker of hubs (score!) and with the desk and the couch...it kinda takes this room from a cluttered home office/library feel to an office/therapy session feel:
hee! Perhaps if we ever need extra income...I can rent out some couch space and an ear for listening :) We moved our bookshelves to another wall, and I really like the end result...the room feels bigger somehow. We put all our books back nicely, but we still have alot of baskets and boxes of miscellaneous crap to deal with. What IS it with the miscellaneous crap anyway? Where does that stuff come from?
***
I also need to write episode 2 of birthing class stories...(we missed last night's class because hubs was sick) it's probably good I've had a week to process things in my head though - otherwise my entire post about that class would just be one long terrified scream. I'll try to write about it tonight for tomorrow's posting.
***
Hubs taught Georgia how to shake...and while some people would think seeing two grown adults jump around and giggle themselves silly over something like that is completely lame - we can't help ourselves. If we get this excited over a pawshake...imagine the party we'll be throwing when our kid takes a crap on the toilet for the first time!
***
We didn't get either house we put an offer in on...and we found another one in AG that we looooooved - the house itself was EH - but oh how perfect the location and lot size were. We submitted an offer first thing the next morning and didn't get that one either. Then, the Grover Beach house we'd submitted an offer on came back up for grabs - so we resubmitted a higher offer and still didn't get it. So now we're 0 for 6 as far as offers go...and back to square one. I made hubs promise me that we'd take it easy on the house hunting until after this kid comes though - because between trying to get loose ends tied up at work, and preparing for a baby at home, not to mention the actual COOKING of the baby, I can't handle anymore paperwork/house buying stress right now. It's a frustrating and emotional experience...and I like where we are currently, so I feel like we don't need to be in a rush. That's not to say we're not keeping our eyes peeled for a good deal - but hubs can be a wee bit overzealous when he gets an idea into his head (I call him "instant-gratification man") so I sometimes have to put the brakes on and remind him to think about things practically and not spend every hour on the computer looking at real estate.
***
Pregnancy wise I am just over 32 weeks along now, and I had a doctor's appointment this morning. Everything is fine with me - but our little McNuggett in there is being seriously STUBBORN. Doc says the baby is still in a breech position...actually what's called a "frank breech" position. Basically, the butt is nestled where the head should be and the legs are smooshed up kinda like if it were doing a cannon ball into a swimming pool. Apparantly, more often then not - whatever position the baby is in at 32 weeks, it's most likely to stay there....but I'm still hanging on to hope that this kid will turn. If it doesn't, I have two options:
So let's see, I suppose I should begin by letting everyone know that Samantha is indeed back at home after a 2nd trip to the hospital. She's doing okay...trying to show her uterus who's boss, but also battling a cold, and bedrest - so it kinda sucks to be her right now, but thank GOD baby boy is still in utero and doing well :) I feel a kinship with her since we're the same weeks pregnant, and lemme tell you - she is a TROOPER because I would have freaked the hell out if it were me, and she's taking everything in stride.
***
I should also explain that we had some DSL issues at work - and at home everything was disconnected because hubs and I spent last weekend moving stuff around in our home office to be more accomodating for me once I'm working from home. We went on a search for a new desk as the one we had was from IKEA and super small. I need something with plenty of desk space, but also enough room for a multifunction copier/printer/fax...and of course drawers - but also something that wouldn't take up too much space since that room is somewhat small. Behold my new desk:
I'll have to take a better picture once we get the wires all organized and everything in it's place - but for now, I love it, and it fits perfectly. We got this leather couch free from a coworker of hubs (score!) and with the desk and the couch...it kinda takes this room from a cluttered home office/library feel to an office/therapy session feel:hee! Perhaps if we ever need extra income...I can rent out some couch space and an ear for listening :) We moved our bookshelves to another wall, and I really like the end result...the room feels bigger somehow. We put all our books back nicely, but we still have alot of baskets and boxes of miscellaneous crap to deal with. What IS it with the miscellaneous crap anyway? Where does that stuff come from?
***
I also need to write episode 2 of birthing class stories...(we missed last night's class because hubs was sick) it's probably good I've had a week to process things in my head though - otherwise my entire post about that class would just be one long terrified scream. I'll try to write about it tonight for tomorrow's posting.
***
Hubs taught Georgia how to shake...and while some people would think seeing two grown adults jump around and giggle themselves silly over something like that is completely lame - we can't help ourselves. If we get this excited over a pawshake...imagine the party we'll be throwing when our kid takes a crap on the toilet for the first time!
***
We didn't get either house we put an offer in on...and we found another one in AG that we looooooved - the house itself was EH - but oh how perfect the location and lot size were. We submitted an offer first thing the next morning and didn't get that one either. Then, the Grover Beach house we'd submitted an offer on came back up for grabs - so we resubmitted a higher offer and still didn't get it. So now we're 0 for 6 as far as offers go...and back to square one. I made hubs promise me that we'd take it easy on the house hunting until after this kid comes though - because between trying to get loose ends tied up at work, and preparing for a baby at home, not to mention the actual COOKING of the baby, I can't handle anymore paperwork/house buying stress right now. It's a frustrating and emotional experience...and I like where we are currently, so I feel like we don't need to be in a rush. That's not to say we're not keeping our eyes peeled for a good deal - but hubs can be a wee bit overzealous when he gets an idea into his head (I call him "instant-gratification man") so I sometimes have to put the brakes on and remind him to think about things practically and not spend every hour on the computer looking at real estate.
***
Pregnancy wise I am just over 32 weeks along now, and I had a doctor's appointment this morning. Everything is fine with me - but our little McNuggett in there is being seriously STUBBORN. Doc says the baby is still in a breech position...actually what's called a "frank breech" position. Basically, the butt is nestled where the head should be and the legs are smooshed up kinda like if it were doing a cannon ball into a swimming pool. Apparantly, more often then not - whatever position the baby is in at 32 weeks, it's most likely to stay there....but I'm still hanging on to hope that this kid will turn. If it doesn't, I have two options:
Option 1 - C-section...which isn't the worst thing - I just hate the idea of having to be in the hospital longer than 24 hours (not a fan of the hospitals...nope), and the recovery time being longer just sucks. BUT - my baby is healthy and whatever I have to do to get this kid out safely, I will do.
Option 2 - A procedure called a "version"...which basically means I go to the hospital, they give me drugs to relax all my girly parts - and they manipulate the baby by hand. It involves alot of poking and prodding and nudging and is apparantly very uncomfortable and not always successful. Plus, it carries a risk of bringing on pre-term labor, or rupturing membranes...and of course the kid could always go right back to it's favored position. Neither of these options appeal to me - but I honestly think I would rather leave well enough alone and end up with a c-section than go through that procedure.
In the meantime - the kid has been officially put into a "time-out" for not cooperating, hehe.I'm also going to go look up every hippie/granola/midwifey way of getting a baby to turn on it's own because I'd love to avoid a c-section if at all possible. Think hanging upside down like a bat would help??
Oh yes, and as requested - here is a Belly Pic - 32 weeks:
Monday, February 04, 2008
Catch up time
Well wasn't I surprised this morning to find out that Samantha is in the hospital with contractions. Please send good thoughts and prayers her way - we are exactly the same weeks pregnant and that baby boy needs to stay put for a little while longer!
Seriously, it's things like this that kinda freak me out. I hear about other people who go into labor early (like right around where I am now) and all I can think is "I'm not ready...I don't even have any clothes washed - the dresser's not finished!! it's too soon!! the baby's not done cooking yet!!". I know, I know...everything will happen as it's supposed to, but I'm feeling that need to be prepared and have everything ready. Guess I better get crackin just in case. Hubs is ready for me to have a bag packed and everything...I think the size of my belly is freaking him out and he's not sure how long this kid is going to stay put. ha!
We went and registered this weekend which wasn't as horrible of an experience as I'd imagined. Hubs loosened up his dancing skills before entering the store and I swore to myself that I would not cry or get overly frustrated...it's just STUFF. Luckily, since I'd pre-registered online (can't remember who suggested that, but THANK YOU lifesaver!) it was pretty painless to get started. Our first order of business was to check out strollers and car seats, since we figured that would be the most time consuming decision. I had my sister in law's voice in my head telling me all the things to look for in a good stroller, and since I really want one that comes with the car seat that attaches, we took all the ones we liked off the shelf and wheeled em around and took them apart and folded them up and did a thorough dry run with each one. We settled on OF COURSE what I think was probably the most expensive one there...but definately our favorite out of all of them. I think it was $249 or something like that, so all in all, not too bad considering it comes with everything we need for both carseat and stroller.
Hubs wanted to register for a jogging stroller too just for kicks and we found a Jeep one with a front wheel that turns which is nice because I hate how those jogging strollers don't turn for crap.
Anyway - once we got those biggies out of the way, and settled on a pack and play that was simple enough for us, everything else was just details. Hubs was beep-beep-beeping his way throughout the store, so I had to get online once we got home and approve or delete a bunch of stuff...hahaha. We really didn't register for any clothes because they had like one rack of neutral items and everything else was gender specific. The place was pretty packed with people, so we moved pretty quickly and hightailed it out of there before I had an anxiety attack. The lady at the register desk gave me a hard time and said most people's registries are much longer...but oh well. I already have a bunch of stuff, and I prefer to keep things simple. They also gave us a gift box with a bottle, a pacifier and a diaper inside....dude, the diaper was TINY!!!! I couldn't believe it, I guess my neices were only that small for such a short period of time that I forgot how little those newborn diapers are. Hubs's family gave us some outfits and onsies at Christmas that I've decided I will be keeping in the package until the critter arrives because they are for 5-8lbs. and I have a distinct feeling that our kid could easily be almost or above 8 pounds if I go full term.
Anyway, after registering, we headed to Red Robin's for dinner (hello garlic parmesan fries...I missed you) and then walked over to Sears to check out lawn mowers. We found one on clearance that was perfect, so we snatched it up and felt like we had a very productive Saturday.
Yesterday, I slept in late...and then we eventually headed up to my parents house for lunch and to meet with family friends from out of town. They had their dog Molly with them (which coincidentally is the name we've chosen if we have a girl) and we had brought Georgia with us, so she got a good run in the muddy countryside.
Then it was home to watch the Superbowl. I realized at around 2pm yesterday that I hadn't felt the baby move all day. I started paying more attention and trying not to freak out...and then at around 4:30pm I drank a Dr. Pepper to see if that would get things moving and finally around 5pm I felt some thumps and bumps and RELIEF. I swear, we pregnant women can freak ourselves out so easily.
Everything was fine and dandy until 4am this morning when I woke up from some MAD kicking going on in there...something was going on, a disco party maybe? Anyway - I laid there wide awake hoping the kid was going to stay contained because it sure felt like it could claws it's way right out, and my brain was buzzing with all the things we still have to do to get ready for this adventure. I finally got up at 6:30am and hopped into a long hot shower which is when the critter promptly fell asleep. hahaha!
Nobody warned me that sleep deprivation starts BEFORE the arrival of the actual baby.
Our kid must be quite the partier because as I type, we've got another dance marathon going on. I've had alot of people tell me that I should pay attention to when the baby is awake because it'll probably be on the same schedule once it's out. Very interesting. Anyone feel like chatting at 4am? hehee
In other news...last weekend we put an offer in on two houses - one in Nipomo and one in Grover Beach. Lost both of them, which we kinda figured we would. But yesterday a new listing popped up in an older neighborhood of Arroyo Grande, so I'm super excited to go see that one tonight. The house doesn't look like much, but it has a massive yard...so plenty of room to expand. Mainly we just need to make sure the house itself is liveable before putting in an offer. There's alot of things I can live with, but some things I definately can't - so I'm trying to stay open minded and not be too picky. Especially when it comes to a house in a neighborhood that we like.
Are we positively insane to still be looking for a house to buy with this kid on it's way?? Sometimes I think we are...*sigh*...it's all or nuthin with us it seems.
Seriously, it's things like this that kinda freak me out. I hear about other people who go into labor early (like right around where I am now) and all I can think is "I'm not ready...I don't even have any clothes washed - the dresser's not finished!! it's too soon!! the baby's not done cooking yet!!". I know, I know...everything will happen as it's supposed to, but I'm feeling that need to be prepared and have everything ready. Guess I better get crackin just in case. Hubs is ready for me to have a bag packed and everything...I think the size of my belly is freaking him out and he's not sure how long this kid is going to stay put. ha!
We went and registered this weekend which wasn't as horrible of an experience as I'd imagined. Hubs loosened up his dancing skills before entering the store and I swore to myself that I would not cry or get overly frustrated...it's just STUFF. Luckily, since I'd pre-registered online (can't remember who suggested that, but THANK YOU lifesaver!) it was pretty painless to get started. Our first order of business was to check out strollers and car seats, since we figured that would be the most time consuming decision. I had my sister in law's voice in my head telling me all the things to look for in a good stroller, and since I really want one that comes with the car seat that attaches, we took all the ones we liked off the shelf and wheeled em around and took them apart and folded them up and did a thorough dry run with each one. We settled on OF COURSE what I think was probably the most expensive one there...but definately our favorite out of all of them. I think it was $249 or something like that, so all in all, not too bad considering it comes with everything we need for both carseat and stroller.
Hubs wanted to register for a jogging stroller too just for kicks and we found a Jeep one with a front wheel that turns which is nice because I hate how those jogging strollers don't turn for crap.
Anyway - once we got those biggies out of the way, and settled on a pack and play that was simple enough for us, everything else was just details. Hubs was beep-beep-beeping his way throughout the store, so I had to get online once we got home and approve or delete a bunch of stuff...hahaha. We really didn't register for any clothes because they had like one rack of neutral items and everything else was gender specific. The place was pretty packed with people, so we moved pretty quickly and hightailed it out of there before I had an anxiety attack. The lady at the register desk gave me a hard time and said most people's registries are much longer...but oh well. I already have a bunch of stuff, and I prefer to keep things simple. They also gave us a gift box with a bottle, a pacifier and a diaper inside....dude, the diaper was TINY!!!! I couldn't believe it, I guess my neices were only that small for such a short period of time that I forgot how little those newborn diapers are. Hubs's family gave us some outfits and onsies at Christmas that I've decided I will be keeping in the package until the critter arrives because they are for 5-8lbs. and I have a distinct feeling that our kid could easily be almost or above 8 pounds if I go full term.
Anyway, after registering, we headed to Red Robin's for dinner (hello garlic parmesan fries...I missed you) and then walked over to Sears to check out lawn mowers. We found one on clearance that was perfect, so we snatched it up and felt like we had a very productive Saturday.
Yesterday, I slept in late...and then we eventually headed up to my parents house for lunch and to meet with family friends from out of town. They had their dog Molly with them (which coincidentally is the name we've chosen if we have a girl) and we had brought Georgia with us, so she got a good run in the muddy countryside.
Then it was home to watch the Superbowl. I realized at around 2pm yesterday that I hadn't felt the baby move all day. I started paying more attention and trying not to freak out...and then at around 4:30pm I drank a Dr. Pepper to see if that would get things moving and finally around 5pm I felt some thumps and bumps and RELIEF. I swear, we pregnant women can freak ourselves out so easily.
Everything was fine and dandy until 4am this morning when I woke up from some MAD kicking going on in there...something was going on, a disco party maybe? Anyway - I laid there wide awake hoping the kid was going to stay contained because it sure felt like it could claws it's way right out, and my brain was buzzing with all the things we still have to do to get ready for this adventure. I finally got up at 6:30am and hopped into a long hot shower which is when the critter promptly fell asleep. hahaha!
Nobody warned me that sleep deprivation starts BEFORE the arrival of the actual baby.
Our kid must be quite the partier because as I type, we've got another dance marathon going on. I've had alot of people tell me that I should pay attention to when the baby is awake because it'll probably be on the same schedule once it's out. Very interesting. Anyone feel like chatting at 4am? hehee
In other news...last weekend we put an offer in on two houses - one in Nipomo and one in Grover Beach. Lost both of them, which we kinda figured we would. But yesterday a new listing popped up in an older neighborhood of Arroyo Grande, so I'm super excited to go see that one tonight. The house doesn't look like much, but it has a massive yard...so plenty of room to expand. Mainly we just need to make sure the house itself is liveable before putting in an offer. There's alot of things I can live with, but some things I definately can't - so I'm trying to stay open minded and not be too picky. Especially when it comes to a house in a neighborhood that we like.
Are we positively insane to still be looking for a house to buy with this kid on it's way?? Sometimes I think we are...*sigh*...it's all or nuthin with us it seems.
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