Confessions of Pregnant Driver

Ok, so I must start this post by saying that 1) I have always prided myself on being a GOOD example of a woman driver and 2) I have always opposed any medicalization of pregnancy that treats the pregnant woman as if she has some sort of ailment or disease. That said, pregnancy has made me a BAD driver. REALLY BAD. When I first noticed that the part of my brain that controls driving skills to mush, I was horrified. I did something stupid in traffic and actually rolled down my window and waved and hollered "oops". It was aful, an out of body experience where I was watching myself be that stupid woman everyone shakes their head and scowls at.

That said, something in my pregnant temper (more on that later) has switched over this week and I've somehow learned to embrace my pregnant driving. Today I cut someone off on purpose. And I LIKED it! When she pulled up next to me to yell, I yelled right back, flipped the bird and drove away laughing like the wicked witch of the west. Maybe it's because I know that I'll be driving like a granny with a baby in the back pretty soon, but it felt good.

So the moral of the story is, if you see a giant blue car piloted by someone who looks like they have no business being on the road, GET OUT OF MY WAY! Because I'm going to enjoy driving for the next few months...

Alone Time & The Pregnant Glow

Brooks was in Denver on business last night, so I had the house to myself. I don't think you ever grow out of that initial rush you get when you realize you are going to have the whole house to yourself for a whole night - then again, maybe it's still a thing for me since my parents would have missed a meeting with the Pope if it meant I'd have the house to myself for a night. So after that inital rush, it always sets in that going to bed alone sucks. I think I slept maybe an hour or two at most. Keeping my eyes open at work today has been quite taxing. But as I was watching TV and trying to soothe myself to sleep (yes that IS Ron Perlman as the Lawsayer in The Island of Dr. Moreaux) and Piglet was a wiggly worm in my belly, I realized that this could very well be the last time I have the whole house to myself overnight - ever. It was a very very odd feeling.

And if one more person tells me I'm glowing, I'm going to take my greasy face and rub it against theirs and point out that now they're "glowing" too! That's right folks, nasty, greasy skin is NOT glowing! You don't tell someone who just finished a marathon that they're glowing. No you say that they're sweaty. So let's get it right. If you'd like to comment on my skin, you're more than welcome to complement how I really am looking "oily" with this pregnancy. And while I'm at it, why do people have such a hard time seeing the nutritional value of the milkshake. It's milk people! Calcium, Dairy, Good Protein, Dammit!!

Who is that fat lady in the middle??

Here are some pictures of me and the boys before the rehearsal dinner this past weekend. Mom is behind the camera - see it's genetic! I swear I don't feel so big until I see myself in pictures

...sigh

Underwear? & More Swelling

Oh sad sad day. As I was getting dressed this morning, Brooks commented that I had on cute undies. Amazed that anything as large as my panties could be considered "cute", I had to look and see what I was wearing (the pregnant memory is quite short) and realized....I couldn't SEE THEM! That's right, my belly has taken over and I can no longer see what underwear I have on unless I take them off or look in a mirror. And yes, I tried to look around the side, and that didn't work either. Sigh.

So we're back from the DC wedding - and my feet are still so swollen they look like tiny Michelin men. We took the red eye in to DC and I slept for maybe 20 mins. When I woke up, I was amazed that the size of my feet and right hand had tripled! (It is worth noting that somehow my left hand avoided this fate, just how I'm still not sure) I had to wake Brooks up to be sure I wasn't hallucinating from lack of sleep. Nope. I spent the rest of the flight pacing and trying to get them to look more normal. They did lose some of their swell, but they're still not looking right today. Thank God that was my last pregnant flight!

I'll post pictures of the wedding when I get them developed.

Oh BOY!

Ok, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hoping for a boy. I always wanted my first child to be a boy. And I had a feeling that this one was - I was right! So was my grandmother (Gi Gi) and the folks at the Subway downstairs where I eat lunch every day :)

So we had our big ultrasound yesterday - pics below - an as soon as we left Brooks remarked that he should have asked the tech to measure his unit. Sigh. He weighs a half-a-pound, which immediately translates in the pregnant mind to two-McDonalds-quarter-pounders. Everything looked well and Brooks and I are giggly with excitement. All parents are excited too, although I think both moms were secretly hoping for a girl. Ok, so maybe it wasn't so much a secret with my mom (sorry mom, Lola will have to wait her turn!).

Ok, so without further ado, meet our son. Wow that sounds weird...

Swelling and Kicking

So I noticed about a week ago that my rings were starting to feel tight. Then, this weekend, I had to take my right hand ring off it was bothering me so much. And today, my wedding band had to go. My engagement ring is barely fitting so I doubt that will last till the weekend. Of course, with nerves of jelly, this was enough to make me cry. I love those rings and the thought of going months without being able to wear them makes me so so sad. Ugh, this stinks. My mother had the same problem so at least I know it's normal. I'm going to have to go to Target or something to get a larger band just for the next few months so I don't look like an unwed mother-to-be.

Little Piglet has been twirling and kicking up a storm lately. It comes so out of nowhere and so hard that I seem to always exclaim 'Ow, F*&$er!' While I'm sure that this greatly amuses all onlookers that I would be so aggressive in my response to something they couldn't see, Brooks pointed out last night that this child is going to think it's name is F*&$er :) I'll be stopping that now. Brooks was laying with his head on my belly last night talking to the baby when - THWACK - right in the face! He looked at me aghast and said 'did you do that?!?!'. I could have rolled off the bed laughing.

Monday - Two More Days!

Happy Monday! And only two more days until the big Ultrasound! And yes, it has occurred to me that we may not find out the gender. But I was told that candy makes for a very mobile baby and better chances of getting that money shot, so I'll be dosing myself well.

Brooks and I had hair appointments this weekend so we look decent for our trip home to DC. I decided I needed a change, and that I wanted a big one this time. So I was toying with cutting my hair really short when my neighbor remarked that my very long hair was going to be a blast untangling from tiny baby hands. Wow, hadn't even thought of that and it would have been a nightmare! So I went for it and had it cut to my chin. I also went significantly lighter with color too. It's going to take some getting used to, but there are already apparent advantages - I don't have to tangle with it while I sleep which was getting to be a pain and it takes way less time to make presentable. Brooks likes it which is the most important so it's all good.

We spent Sunday watching Ravi - who it must be said is an exceptionally well behaved and bright 4 year old. He has a dinosaur named 'Yo Toy' and is working on his own book chronicling the adventures of 'Yo Toy'. This will, of course, require photographic documentation so he has custody of his parents digital camera. This kind of trust and responsibility was amazing to me since it took Brooks a year to let me use our digital camera unattended. So we stayed busy, lunching at the mall, going to the pool, watching a movie and constructing a serious train set-up from the three buckets of parts his parents hauled over. Ravi left around 8 and we were pooped. Brooks made the assessment that you must work up to the energy level of a four year old in increments and that being thrown into it like we were just makes you more tired. I have to say that Brooks did a great job and that my worries that he would choose this day for his pregnancy freak out were all for naught. It's still coming though...

Happy Friday

Why is it that the short weeks always seem to drag on longer than normal ones? Thank God it's Friday! Not much on tap for this weekend other than cleaning house. Brooks and I get haircuts on Saturday so we look nice to go home to DC next week. And we're child-sitting for Gregg and Vivian's son Ravi on Sunday. I've told Brooks it's his job since it will be good practice. I should have something interesting to share on Monday!

So Brooks and I are going to my cousins wedding next weekend and I was having an impossible time finding a dress. I thought I could fit into some of the looser stuff in my closet, but I didn't take into account the boob-growth factor. Oops. So then I bought a dress from Nordstroms Maternity online...let's for a moment discuss that they don't ever actually use pregnant models, just regular models with fake bellies. So, unless you are 6 feet tall and have toothpick legs, you just end up looking obease. And add to that the fact that all these dresses are designed for people who are 9 mos. pregnant and have that big nice firm "definitely pregnant" belly. What about those of us who are, oh I don't know, under 5 foot and just at 5 months with that "could just be fat" belly? So I got the dress and was so excited...it was awful! It may be the first time that Brooks has ever told me that something was just bad on me. So I took it back. I was just about at the end of my rope when I decided that since I knew exactly what I wanted, I would see what it cost to have a dress made.

So I contacted a local dressmaker and met with her in her store armed with inspiration pictures. (Note to reader: if you are ever in SoCal and need a dress, get Euginia's number from me!) She's one of those people who know what you want before you do and she helped me find the perfect dress that only needed a few changes to be amazing. It's getting all it's alterations done now, but I'll post pictures if I remember after the big event.

Ok, I'm going to go to the pool so I can get a swim in before my soaps start :)

18 Week Update

I'm coming up on 18 weeks, which is pretty close to 20 weeks, which is the halfway point. Yay! I have a feeling that the second half of this pregnancy is going to go by much slower than the first half, despite the fact that I feel alot better these days. The morning sickness is gone, the congestion is worlds better and I not only have energy, I have TOO much energy! I went to bed last night at midnight and was wide awake at 4 am. Nothing helped to get me back to sleep so I ended up jotting down ideas for the nursery and staring at the ceiling. I'm also finally starting to feel little piglet move around. It's like living in the movie Alien. When I get up or roll over, I have the sensation that my belly is a bottle of water with a sailboat swishing around in there, it's beyond odd. So far the movements aren't strong enough (or the piglet not big enough) for Brooks to feel from the outside, so hopefully that will be soon.

I have yet to make it back to Yoga, but I'm swimming every day. I've never been a water person (I only put a baithing suit on once on our honeymoon), but there's something about this pregnancy that makes me want to swim in a sunny pool all day. I actually went to two different pools yesterday - swam in our neighborhood pool in the early afternoon and then went to the gym before dinner and did some more laps. I would like to strangle anyone who makes maternity swimsuits. I don't know a SINGLE person who's boobs haven't taken over with pregnancy - so why is it impossible to find a maternity suit with any support?!?! And most of them are halters too, which means I am basically holding up cement bricks with my head. Ugh. I gave up and went to Marshalls in search of big fat lady suits. I bought one (which makes Brooks giggle) and then also bought a bikini for diversity. At this swimming rate, I'll have to go back another one soon too. I really think that when you get pregnant, your house should comply by growing another room and your wardrobe should amazingly just grow with you.

We decided to hire a doula. She's also teaching our labor classes and Brooks and I were both totally comfortable with her from the start. She also recommended that we choose Holy Cross Hospital in Mission Hills, so I guess that's where the big birth will be. Not too much else to report - we find out the baby's gender next wednesday - can't WAIT!

The Nursery - A First Look

Here's a first look at the new nursery. This room used to be my office and was painted brown. We did a cool striped paint job (yes, we used a laser leveler and it took FOREVER but it's perfect). I wanted to do something for the windows other than your typical baby-room valance, so we decided to frame in the windows with rosettes and molding. I think it turned out pretty nicely. I dumped a ton of stuff in the crib to get it off the ground, so no, it won't always have a bunch of crap in it/hanging on it. And the bedding pictured (with the moons and stars) I'm not sure I'll stay with, I bought it mainly as a backup in case I didn't find something I liked better. Next, I need to get the rest of the furniture and if time permits, hopefully get some crown molding up!