Week 34: Sunshine, Rainbows and Shooting Pains

Week 34 arrives with some potentially terrifying news, not for me or the baby, but for my Sunshine girl. I mentioned before that she had been throwing up at night during the weekend so first thing Monday morning I called her doctor and asked for some advice. The doc asked us to come in because she was concerned about strep, which she had seen a few cases which had presented with no symptoms aside from vomiting. So we got Sunshine dressed and headed to the office.

Once there, we discovered that she had lost 2 pounds since November when she was last seen. On you or me, this would not be such a big deal however Sunshine only weighed 32 pounds to start with and her BMI was something like 14. She has not had any significant diet changes or behavior changes so we left the doctors office with a lab req for 8 different blood tests and terms like celiac disease, hyperthyroidism and failure to thrive spinning through my head.

She was a trooper and after taking her for a cheeseburger at JITB she had 4 vials of blood drawn. . She cried when they drew her blood but she sat still and didn't try to pull away from the lab tech. I tried to be a comforting and strong mommy for her. I kept telling her how good she was doing and that I was proud of her, and then, after we got back in the car I turned on her music and then I cried where she couldn't see it.
Rough times.
We needed a few things from the store so we went to Walmart and I bought her a Strawberry Shortcake movie because she had been such a good girl. She said she was cold so I gave her my sweater and she almost feel asleep in the cart while we were limping through the store, but then as soon as we got home she was fine, asked to have biscuits for dinner and wanted to watch her new movie. We may know something by the end of this week but the beginning of next is more realistic. I'll keep everyone updated.

About 3 months ago, Sunshine started asking to see a rainbow when we say our evening prayers. She always seems to miss them when we see them while out and about. So I started working on a special project for my little girl. I have about 12 rows of red left to do and then a border before her very own rainbow is finished.

Whenever we talk about rainbows, I talk about how the rainbow is a symbol of the covenant between God and his poeple. We talk about Noah and the Ark and the animals, and Sunshine just loves the story. it makes me happy that she will have the blanket and the memory of us talking about this particular bible story to carry with her as she grows up. She will be snuggling with and sleeping under something made with love by her Mommy and symbolizing God's love for his people. I may be just a little too emotional about it, but for me it's profound.

As far as me and the continued squirt production process all goes according to schedule. He's almost 5 pounds this week, about 18 inches long and, if the well placed kicks and jabs are any indication, he's going to a martian with giant elbows (Eddie Izzard Reference) Just kidding. 

I never really did fully get to feeling better after my fall. I called the OB today to ask about the shooting pain in my nether regions and the continued sore, painful, throbbing pain where my legs connect with my torso and it's apparently normal and un-fixable. (wonderful, 5 more weeks of this and I'm gonna lose it) More of that ligament stretching to make way for his emergence.

All of the online literature says that littles born around this time with no other significant health issues are generally fine and only have to be watched slightly more closely. I'm getting antsy for him to be here, I can't wait to see his face and learn his personality.

Oh, here is my rocking chair with the new seat covers. I need to add some straps to the back of the pillow to tie the top cushion in place but it's nearly done and so comfy.

Preview: Maternity Photos

Going to print this in black and white.

When did I get so fancy lookin?

The blocks kept falling off my belly, so I had to hold them up.

Whew, What a Weekend

Friday after work we went to church for a trivia night. I'm not really "good" at trivia but it's fun to do and we always have yummy food. Plus the church's youth group provided free childcare, score! Anyway the game involved guessing jelly belly flavors and correctly naming cereals as well as one really awful round dealing with sport equipment weights and measures (who gives a crap?) Any way, we won! It was so neat to be the winning team and now we get to be the "reigning champs" for next year.

Then we headed home and after getting ready for bed our little Sunshine girl got very sick. She threw up a few times, ending around 4 am. She never developed a fever and seemed fine the next day, so we thought it was a food thing and that it was over.

Saturday I got up and went to the first of my two maternity photo sessions. This one was just me, and I felt so silly. I always thought it would be so glamorous to have a professional photo shoot, but I kept giggling like a fool. Luckily the photographer was really cool and she tried her best to put me at ease, and she laughed along with me quite a lot. Then I came home and got the munches ready to go to our second outing of the day. A birthday party for a cousin at Chuck E Cheese, which as you can well imagine is a MAD HOUSE on Saturdays. We stayed for a few hours before the noise got to me and we headed home to get ready for the third thing.

Date night (ba-bum-bum) yeah at this point we had asked our sitter to come out and watch the girls not expecting to have been up all night and that Jeeves would be fighting a cold. We went out for food and then to a nearby mall where we had cinnabun and wandered around for a bit, but we were tired so we headed home early and got to bed.

Sunday we got up and went to church and Sunday school then came home to clean house for Jeeves' dude fest complete with WWE wrestling and Hooters Wings, yeah he's a lucky guy. But during the party, Sunshine who had been eating fine and behaving like a normal kid starting throwing up again. What fun. I have trouble handling vomit on a normal (not "ready-to-burst" pregnant) day, this was more than I could handle. I nearly tossed my own cookies and poor Jeeves had to ignore his guests to clean the mess while I bathed the baby, hoping it would help her feel better.

It's been a rough weekend and the schedule I have to maintain this week at work is going to make it an even rougher week. I may not post much this week, but I'll try to keep up and I'll share a few photos as soon as I get them from the photographer. Happy Monday All!

Friday Belly Pics

I cut and highlighted my hair last night, so today I fixed myself up before heading out to work and had Jeeves take a photo. Without further ado.

Preggo-Ninja

Gotta fix that whole "creepy smile" thing

Dude, just take the picture!

One of these days I'm going to find a basics of digital photography class for Jeeves. I'm standing still and smiling and he still has a hard time taking in focus pictures.

Upon further examination I don't like the sweater with the t-shirt, too many different shades of purple happening there, shesh, oh well. Live and learn...and look like Grimace, apparently.

Am I gonna make it doc?

I went to the OB today and she says everything is going well, and that the baby is measuring a tiny bit big, which means he may come earlier (Ha! I knew I was right about that) I have not gained any weight in the last three weeks, which is pretty cool and also surprising. Squirts heart rate was 136, and my BP was 122/72.

She also mentioned that at my next appointment she will start checking me for dilation. To the non-moms out there and as a means of freaking out my first time pregnant friends. This means that for the next 5-7 weeks I get to have a person who I'm not married to sticking a hand in my lady business once a week to see if my cervix is opening at all in preparation for Baby Exit Day. Some history: I never dilated with the munches. I stayed at less than 1, up until the day before I naturally went into labor. Nothing ever irritated me as much as nosy strangers asking about the state of my cervix (Oh, It's fine, how are your bowel movements? jerk wad) and then being all, "oh, you're not dilated yet, you've got a ways to go."

lies, from the lying liars who tell them.

Anyway, It's a gloomy day in Missouri and I'm going to eat some Red Lobster leftovers for lunch. I went out with Mutti, Jeeves, the Munches, Felix, Brit, Liv and Beets last night and added to the fact that we have wonderful yummy food, all of the children (4 of them) were well behaved and actually ate their meals. It was a birthday miracle! Felix and I have birthdays that are 8 days apart, so we celebrated together as a family, and it was really, really nice. I ordered some shrimp and scallop pasta and the serving they brought was enough for 6 people, so I have lunches for the rest of the week. yum!

Week 33: Limping Along

Interesting Observation: When you have sciatica on the right side and a pulled adductor tendon on the left side, you can't figure out which side to limp on. Yesterday my sciatica wasn't causing me any problems, but today since I spent yesterday favoring the right (torn adductor) leg the sciatica is flaring up. It wouldn't be so bad, however, the pulled tendon is more painful today than yesterday because I was up and about all day. So I'm walking really, really slow, looking a bit like a malfunctioning robot, and getting tons of sympathetic looks from the people who pass me in the hall at work.

Jeeves is irritated with me for not taking it easier, (get ready, this is pretty huge) and I'm going to admit something here, He has taught me something important. Big Announcement: I'm not a sympathetic person when it comes to pain and injuries. I think it stems from my own inability to recognize and respect limitations when I hurt myself. I don't stop going so I expect others will simply push through the pain the way I do. When someone asks me to do something that I know I would just do for myself, I get all uptight and stupid about it. I believe God is showing me a place where I need to do some growth.  I'm a little Judgy McJudgerson about it and it occurs to me, as Jeeves is waiting on me, taking care of the munches and working midnight shifts, I am wrong.  I should respond with compassion when someone needs my help, no matter the situation. I'm gonna work on that.

So, week 33; it's another pretty dull week. More growing, he's about 4 pounds and 17 inches long at this point. He's moving a lot and has found my bladder a few times with a well placed kick that sends me speed-waddling to the ladies room. I'm feeling very slow and cumbersome, wishing for a good run, missing zumba and funny enough, not hungry at all. I have been using slim-fast and special K drinks to help me get my calorie intake as drinking seems to be easier than eating these days. That and sugar free pudding, I can't seem to get enough of that stuff and it goes down pretty easy.

I know that technically I have 7 weeks left, 49 days, but I'm still pretty sure he's going to be a little early, so I've started thinking about it in terms of only having 6 weeks left. That way I'll be sure things get done, unless he shows up even earlier. Just my luck that he'd be a leap year baby and due at the beginning of March, lets all hold our breath and squeeze our knees the whole day of the 29th of February, mmmkay?

50 Days Folks...

Quick Update Post.

Friday: was my Birthday. Mutti took the munches out of town to visit my grandparents and Jeeves and I went out for dinner and then headed back home as the weather got bad and we didn't want to be out in the icy craziness. I was in bed by 10pm (bliss)

Saturday: I woke up at 9 am, fell down my front stairs doing a graceful and unintentional side split and injuring my adductor tendon.(the one that connects the adductor muscles from your leg to your torso.) It didn't hurt right away so we went out to lunch at Fast Eddie's which was about 45 mintues away in the car. When we arrived it hurt to the point of tears to walk. So after a long and lovely lunch with lots of friends and talk about babies, we headed home. More crying and limping in the parking lot. Then we had plans to go to a concert, however that didn't happen; we got into our jammies, ordered pizza, took some tylenol, applied a cold pack to the injury (Whoa, that is Fri-gid) and watched tv until 9:30 and went to bed (more bliss)

Sunday: Got up early, turns out I can actually catch up on sleep, go figure. I worked on baby crafts all day while sitting with the cold pack on my inner thigh, (more chilly lady bits, brrrr) and watching more TV. Then the girls came home and Mutti took me grocery shopping so we wouldn't starve for the next few days.

All in all it was a good weekend, I got to spend lots of time with my husband, without my kids, which is rare and was lovely. I'll have more tomorrow, I'm really busy today.

Hope everyone else had a good weekend.

Smore Lists

Afternoon folks. I've been rocking and rolling on my list and the "have to" list is basically either done or planned. It seemed a bit much to pack a bag for the hospital, 7 weeks before the kid is due, so that particular task has been scheduled for the middle of February. With that in mind however here comes a little more unsolicited advice.

When packing your bag for the hospital stay, be aware of the following things.

You will not need reading materials. Most of the lists out there say to bring a magazine or book for when you are bored. I have done this twice and I gotta say, bored doesn't really happen during childbirth. Both times I had a book tucked into the bag that was a total waste of space. Before the baby comes, there's a good chance that you will be occupied by extreme pain and books will not be something you are thinking about.

You should really have two bags. One bag will go in to the hospital with you when you arrive and the other will be unnecessary until after the baby comes out. The first bag can be a large purse and things I'd recommend packing into it include:
*ID, Insurance card, and hospital registration if you have not already done it.
*phone
*camera
*baby book (for foot prints and documenting labor stuff)
*music (if it relaxes you and you plan on listening during labor.) 
*focus object (I use a stuffed animal that I can focus on squeezing, but that's just me.)
*pillow, probably not going to fit in the bag, but having something that smells like home is usually comforting.

Seriously that's about it. You are going to be focusing on pushing the kid out and probably not going to care about keeping track of the boppy, coming home outfits and unnecessary diaper bags on the mad dash through the bottom floors of the hospital. Send your dude or helper out for them after you have the kid.

In the second bag:
-jammies - people are going to be coming to see you, you want to look better than hospital gown chic
-camisole top and loose sports bra (if you are going breastfeed) Now this is my third and I have a lot of practice so I'm pretty sure I'd be able to feed my kid in a regular top and bra, however my advice is to have these on hand. You pull the cami down and the pajama top up and the sports bra allows for boob access without the discomfort of a real bra. It's a good combo because it covers your belly while you nurse. It is also pretty comfy to sleep in and the first few days of nursing are a bit uncomfortable to be sleeping with no support for the milk production factory.
-hair care stuff -especially if you are going to breastfeed, you want your hair out of your way, bring a brush, some barrettes, a few elastics, whatever you need to tame the beast while you figure out how to feed the kid. 
-un-fancy, very comfortable undies - when you go home they'll send you with some mesh things that creep me out, I prefer to bring some regular briefs, with full coverage that I don't mind throwing away later
-coming home outfit for the kid - I usually bring one outfit and they have their pictures done in it too.
-comfy go home clothes for yourself, remember shoes and socks.- remember you are going to be tired and flabby, no low rise jeans or tube tops. I find that workout clothes work well for this.
-phone charger - cause you'll be one the phone a lot and now with smart phones you'll be posting pictures on face book and draining your battery no fewer then 12 times.
-baby wipes - for some reason hospitals can figure out which diapers to give you, but you are stuck trying to pry the meconium off your babe's tush with moistened paper towels. it's irritating. bring some wipes.
-baby blanket - I like to have something for the baby that smells and feels like home and also I ask that the nurses spread it under the baby for the photos, because it makes the pictures distinct and in both of my girls cases, they still have those blankets, it's a good memory thing.

DO NOT BRING A DIAPER BAG: unless you plan on traveling to figi or something between being released from the hospital and arriving home, you will not need a diaper bag. The hospital will probably send you home with one or two at least and enough papers to build a giant origami stork for your front yard. Diaper bags are not necessary.

Week 32: "The List"

It's week 32, 8 weeks to go if we make it to the due date. I still feel like he's going to come a little earlier which makes it closer to 7 weeks and if you've ever done this before you know the momentum with which it feels like everything is accelerating right now. I'm getting anxious that I won't be able to finish everything. Squirt technically has everything he needs to survive on the outside, but babies are best well baked so we'll hope he stays in there a while longer.

What's the list? My fellow moms know. It's the very ambitious, anxiety producing, probably undo-able, ultimately unimportant TO-DO LIST before the tiny squirmy terrorist shows up. Stuff that needs to get done while he's still on the inside, or it won't get done until the fall, which is unacceptable. To make things more deal-able I have actually created two lists. the "have to" list and the "want to" list. If we can finish the items on the "have to" list before Squirt comes I'll be okay, but if I get them done and still have some time for the other things, stuff on the "want to" list, I'll be pretty happy.

On the Have-to list:
-Get the bassinet from Mom's house
-Recover the cushions on the rocking chair
-Move the Christmas stuff out to the shed.
-Pack the hospital bag
-Get work stuff ready for maternity leave
-Nursery Shopping: Lamp, bed skirt, clothing storage and heater
-get baby clothes organized and put away.
-take the munches shopping for a gift for their new brother
-get gifts for the munches, from the baby brother.


On the Want-to list:
-finish Squirt's christening outfit.
-make nursing shirts.
-stock freezer with ready to heat/eat meals.
-make Munches Easter dresses.
-do another office organization, last one Jeeves, I promise.
-make Robot rag quilt.
-make nursery decorations
-make hats and misc stuff for newborn photos. (pinterest is the devil)

In news that makes me smile I found some cute clothes at Kohls this weekend, and it will all work for both before the baby and after, with a few alterations. I'm still in large maternity clothes, it's all belly, so I'm feeling a little better about the weight gain. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be able to keep it under 210 for the remainder of my sentence, so after Squirt comes out and my body has a few weeks to get rid of the extra blood volume, fluids and other stuff I'll be well on my way back to 173, which was my lowest before pregnancy. Anybody can lose 25 pounds in a year right, especially a mother of three who works full time, likes to be at the gym and is breastfeeding. Halloween 2012 Baby, I'm gonna be the skinny-est yard gnome you've ever seen. (did I mention that I plan for Halloween  months ahead of time, cause it's my guilty pleasure, lists, planning, more lists, more planning. We are going to have a windmill for the back of the van for Trunk or Treat, and a tiny bearded yard gnome. I want it to be tomorrow, I'm so excited)

Alright, I need to get some stuff done, have a great day ya'll.

So, so very much stupid

I have been dealing with some work stuff for the last two days and unable to post or think much. I have entirely too much attitude these days to be responsible for helping others to check theirs. My internal dialogue for the last two days has been something along these lines "stow it, and do your damn job, fools!" (rinse, repeat)

Anybody hear me?

I thought so.

I miss beer...

Hello Winter

After Missouri's balmy temps for the last week it's about to get really, really freaking cold. I'm not upset about this. I enjoy cold weather. I like to bundle up under blankets (yes, Erin, I know I do that in the summer too, lol) I like to cook big pots of chili and chicken and dumplings and drink hot chocolate. Basically the summer months are like torture for me and the only reason I put up with Missouri summers, (which are like living in a bowl of chicken soup for half of the year) is that I love my family and this is home. If it were up to me I'd have lots of money and transplant the whole family to Washington or Oregon, or Alaska...maybe not Alaska, 4 dollars a gallon is enough for milk thank you.

So anyway the cold is coming and I'm actually pretty happy about it. I don't know why but when it is unseasonable I start thinking it's the end of days or something. I get a little wiggy when things aren't like they are supposed to be. Cold in the summer, warn in the winter, OM MY GOD WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!! that sort of thing.

I have decided that I am not waiting until after little mister shows up to get back on my plan. I can spend the next 8 weeks bitching about being fat, or I can return to the habits that helped me lose it all to begin with. This starts today. I'm going back to breakfasts and lunches that are easy and predictable. I'm going to have to add to my intake to accommodate for the increased calorie demands of the baby but he'll be alright getting an extra 300 of skim milk and fruit; rather than fudge and perogies, am I right? I think I'm right.

I went grocery shopping last night and got some slim fast, fruit and egg whites. I'm almost over the cold/flu/plague that I've been battling and this is going to be a good week. Hey, and I'm pretty excited about this, tomorrow will be my blog's 2 year anniversary. 2 years of writing, wow maybe I oughtta try doing this professionally, ha!

Week 31: Sleepy, Sneezy, Grumpy

I could stage a one woman show of the dwarf monologues. (pause for me to stop laughing cause that just tickled me a lot)

Seriously though, I'm so tired that yesterday I woke up at 10:30am (yep, got to sleep in) and was bone tired, ready for bed by 3:00pm. What the what? And I'm apparently now suffering from a bizarre lack of snot, yeah after all the goo that has been running out of my head for the last week, now my sinuses are so dry they are cracking and bleeding. feast or famine eh?

I'm going in early to work this morning and then going home early too. As soon as I arrive home, I am finding my warmest most snuggly pajamas and laying on the couch for no less than three hours. Then I'm going to get up and take the munches to the Play Place so they can climb and run for an hour or two, burn off some of that insane energy I wish I could steal from them. Poor girls are so stir crazy from pregnant mommy and sleep daddy, I'm surprised they haven't melted down by this point. 

It's week 31 of pregnancy, I have 9 weeks or 63 days to go. Weeks to go are now in the single digits, whoo-hoo! Nothing new this week, just getting fatter and moving all over the place. He gets especially active when I eat or relax with my arms across my belly. I was out to lunch with Aimes who is pregnant for the first time and she was watching my belly dance and bounce while I was eating. She got excited and pointed it out to Nessa and it made me laugh so hard that they couldn't see him moving anymore.

In good, thanks be to the highest news, my back pain is lessening thanks to the wonders of the maternity pillow. Most days I get through with minimal limping and I'm able to walk more and further than before. It's been such a relief. I've still got the waddle and occasional twinge of pain, but all in all it's much more deal-able than before when I actually cried a time or two because it hurt so much.

I'm up to 205 now, which makes me cry a little. I know, because I'm not an idiot, that I had to gain weight to have a healthy baby. But I feel I've gained too much. It's disheartening and I wanted so badly to stay under 200 with this pregnancy. I feel like a wight loss failure and like all my hard work was for nothing. Sorry for the pity party, I wish I was handling this better than I am.

I Can Taste!!!

I spent the majority of the weekend with a clogged ear and unable to taste anything. A very funny friend once described eating with a cold as trying to find taste satisfaction from licking the back of your hand, not gonna work. The ear is still clogged and it might even be an infection. If it doesn't ease up I'll end up at the ENT this week, more doctors, yay...

Well, at least the crud is receding and I can taste again which resulted in downing about 6 cookies and a plate of fried perogies with sour cream before bed last night. I'm working from home today, trying to get work done while dealing with very demanding and confused munches. They can't figure out what I'm doing home and why I keep asking them to let me work, obviously I'm here to snuggle with them on the couch right?

uh, not today, girlies.

I hope every one had a lovely and relaxing weekend, mine was both as I got spend a lot of time relaxing at home with my girls and Jeeves as well as having super yummy Vietnamese cuisine for lunch on Saturday. I love Papaya salad but it's a bit intensive to make so having it at this new place is a yummy and inexpensive option. Also, and I'm going to revel some "Ninja's a big jerk" here, every person who served us was easy to understand. It made ordering easy and that made the whole experience better for me. I get a little irritated when I have a hard time communicating with people.  

I spent last evening at the viewing for my great aunt. She had lots of visitors and her family was surrounded by support and love. This is going to be a good week, I'm going to get to bed before midnight each night, try to cook dinner at least 3 nights and relax as much as possible. Intentional sloth is my mode of operation for the next few weeks. I figure if I can do some light cleaning to stay on top of the disaster and get some food cooking at the same time, I'll be able to kick my feet up and enjoy week 31 of this baby journey. I have no deadlines, projects or plans for this week and I'm going to do whatever I can to keep it that way.

Up All Night

I'm in the middle of a pretty miserable cold/sinus bug, which has me leaking and coughing like no tomorrow. (note: it's hard enough to have normal sneezes when you are pregnant but this is uncalled for) It's remarkable that one head can produce this much snot, I must be losing brain matter at this point.

I helped Mutti with some grocery shopping last night and they had a new flavor of energy drink at the store, which I "just had to try" and that was a mistake. I had been avoiding caffeine after lunch time to help my body get ready for sleep and that habit change has apparently really worked. I used to be able to chug Mountain Dew and then sleep like a baby, but it's clear now that my body has enjoyed the stimulant vacation. I'll sleep well tonight for sure.

Jeeves and I were laying in bed together this morning and Squirt was doing some form of Martial Arts in there, (he is a baby ninja after all) so Jeeves got to feel lots of baby movement. We are both getting really excited about the next couple months (only 67 days to go!), getting the last things ready for little man and preparing to welcome him home. Sunshine told my Grandma last night that "we" are having a baby. She already thinks of him as a sibling! It's so wonderful.

She also talked about how babies cry because they can't talk yet and that's so the Mommy knows that they need help, she's such a smart little girl and so excited to finally be a big sister. We also had a long talk about how Pumpkin can do things because she's bigger and when the baby comes Sunshine will be able to do things that the baby won't, Sunshine is super pumped about that.  

We've had some sad news in the family today. My Grandmother's sister (my great aunt) died this morning. She was a kind and funny lady and will be missed by everyone who knew her. We are praying for my grandma, uncle Don, aunt Sue's daughters, her grandchildren and the extended family, that they will find peace and be comforted. Rejoice in new life aunt Sue.

What Do Your Children See?

I have become a life lesson book junkie. One of my recent finds is called "the Power of a Positive Mom" It's written by a christian lady who includes bible versus to make her point. It's been very instrumental in my change of attitude during the last week. One thing that struck me is a chapter called "the Power of a Smile" The author asks what your children see in their heads when they hear the word "mother" It occurred to me that more often than not mine were seeing a tired, haggard looking angry lady.

What the what? I love my girls, they are funny, and sweet, and fun to be with, and light up my world. Why shouldn't they see that in my face when I am with them? It's amazing how I open this book at all the right times, and it gives me bits of wisdom that are timely and very much needed. So more smiles, less complaining and love and logic. Hopefully this combo will result in happy well adjusted young ladies who may not always agree with their Mom, but know she loves them.

That's all for today, I'm headed back to the doctor tomorrow, so I'll have news the next time I write. The three hour blood glucose test came back just fine, I don't have gestational diabetes! Bring on the fudge!!!

Oh! Belly Pic. (Sorry I cut off my own head, but I am having an ugly face day.)

30 Week Belly Pic, isn't it lovely?

Week 30: OMG I'M HAVING A BABY!!!!

Squirt weighs about 3 pounds this week and apart from putting on fat he's developing keener eyesight this week, although when he's born it will still be impossible for him to focus on things more than a few inches from his face.

Most of the changes happening this week have to do with me. My ligaments are stretching in preparation for birthing little dude, so my hips have started to feel a little disjointed when I walk. The waddle is here to stay at least for the next little while. My balance is a bit off, which is also normal and I have to stand up slowly or else I get light headed and have to flop back down. (fun)

I did the three hour blood glucose test on saturday and for the first two hours I felt like I was dying from sugar overload. My diet has gone out the window with regard to carbs and fat, but I still don't take in much sugar, so drinking that glucola fluid and not eating anything for almost 4 hours afterward caused a headache, shakes, dizziness and nausea. I ended up weeping like a fool in the waiting room and then almost falling asleep in front of a room full of people before the third blood draw. I started feeling slightly better during the last hour, only the dizzy-ness and headache stuck around for that last leg of the journey. But I was distracted from the discomfort because about 45 minutes before my last draw a man and a woman walked into the lab.

The conversation went like this.
Woman: I have standing lab orders
Tech 1: unfortunately our system says that the orders have expired.
Woman: That's imposible, they are orders written for a year!
Tech 1: That may be, but after 6 months, our system has to have new orders entered otherwise they expire.
Woman: The current order was written less than 2 months ago!
Tech 1: All I can tell you is what the computer says, but...
Woman: I have more trouble with this damned lab than any other location, why is it that you people can never get anything right, I take tranplant meds and have to have my blood drawn every month, I always do it on the last day of the month, how do you not have my order, what the hell is wrong with you people (she starts crying)
Tech 1: Ma'm if you would just give me a moment, let me call...
Man: We have an order, in our hands written less than 2 months ago, this has happened before...
Tech 1 (on the phone with her supervisor): Hey, I'm at the ____ location and I have an irate patient here....
Timeout: If she wasn't irate before, calling someone irate usually does little to improve their attitude, FYI. 
Woman: I AM NOT IRATE!!!! HOW DARE YOU!!! YOU ARE THE MOST INGORANT yaddayaddayaddayaddayaddayaddaydda (I don't really know what else was said, but there was lots of screaming and crying)
Man: (who had just told me he would smack the tech with his cane)I want the number to your corporate office, is anyone there today (it's saturday) no, then give me the number for someone I can talk to today and I want your names, I am going to report you again because this is just ignorant and I can't believe you would call her irate on the phone like that, this is just plain unprofessional. (more stuff came out but, again, I can't remember it all)

Tech 1 walks away, Tech 2 begins dealing with the issue, talks the woman down, fixes the order and takes the ladies blood. The whole time this is happening it's like watching a chick fight in the lunchroom. My thoughts were like, "where do I look, what do I do, I wish I had popcorn, pretend you aren't listening, play with your phone, crochet really fast, don't make eye contact" It was both embarrassing and riveting. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from having crazy tension laughter come bubbling out of me, which would have been completely inappropriate. Out. Of. Bounds.

It seems odd that it could smack me in the face like a blast of cold air but in 8-10 weeks I will be bringing home a newborn person. Yet another little bit of Jeeves and I that we have to mold into something other than a serial killer or worse. I'm both excited and terrified. and I can't sit still. Even though walking is sometimes painful and (I expect) often hilarious to watch, I seem to want to organize and clean and sort and de-clutter everything, all at once. The Munches are getting more excited and since we are now able to show them on the calendar we have started crossing off the days until the baby comes, it's a bedtime routine now, crossing of the days until "Baby Daniel" get here. (Sunshine keeps saying, "Yeah, but Grannie is going to call him Danny," and her tone is so hilarious, it's like, "how dare she call him the wrong name???")

This weekend I worked on my closet and the laundry, which is now thankfully all done.YAY! and my bedroom smells lovely because I put all our pillows in the dryer with tennis balls and dryer sheets. It fluffed the pillows and now they smell awesome too. It was really nice outside for a few days this weekend so I opened the windows and let some air in, which also adds to the freshness of the house, it's been a productive and relaxing weekend.

Tonight I'm going to get the office cleaned back up after my mad whirlwind of holiday crafting, and I'm going to make some new curtains for both the Munches bedroom and my new nursery. Hopefully I can get both of those things done tonight. We'll see.