House

We moved into our house three years ago, and we've been working on it non stop ever since. The upcoming baby has been a great excuse to get even more done, and the house is coming along great!

A dear friend's parents decided to get rid of their piano, and it was offered to us. Sure neither of us play piano, but we've always wanted one so we could learn, and here it is! We're still trying to figure out where to put it, and my husband has almost perfected "Heart and Soul."

For three years we've been eating in our den on the floor at the coffee table, and that makes having family dinner's difficult. We don't want our boy raised on TV dinners, so we decided it's finally time to get a table and chairs for our breakfast nook. BAM! Done!

We also spent our entire Sunday cleaning out and organizing our garage. Now we can actually walk through it without risking our lives, and we won't have to worry about it for a very long time.

On top of cleaning the garage, I also cleaned up the laundry area and moved our old crappy chairless dining room table near it as a folding station. I kinda love it, and it now I can have laundry folded and less wrinkled right out of the drier. 

We also looked into getting dining room chairs for our formal dining room table.  We found ones that we like, but since we need eight of them, we're putting that off just a little longer till we have extra cash. 

And there you have it! Progress in it's finest! This week I'm putting together my hospital bag, getting started with filing for disability, and getting started washing Zach's clothes and blankets. 

There's so much to do and very little time!

Roles

We went to the second half of our Baby Express class the other day, and it wasn't very great. It was a new instructor, and all she did was read to us out of a book. But there was one thing she said that really struck a nerve with me. She was showing us a way to hold the baby to calm him down and she told the dads to pay special attention because, "You may walk in the door after a long day at work and see your wife holding the baby who's been crying all day. You'll want to take the baby from her and give her a break so she can have some free time to get in the kitchen and make dinner. Don't you want a home cooked meal?" My jaw dropped open.

Now I'm all about jokes about a woman's place being in the kitchen, but this woman was dead serious, and it really pissed me off. The thing that works best in my marriage is that we're equals, and we share the work that goes into the house. Yes I do the majority of the cooking, but if I don't feel like cooking, it's no big deal, and if I were to ask for help, my husband would be there. He also does all the dishes which is an added bonus. We're a team, and if anyone was to suggest otherwise, they may get a swift kick in the face.

As of now, I'm a stay at home mom, but that may not be the long term plan. I still keep my eyes out for work and I get so much support from my husband. He wants me to be happy, and he's willing to back me up with whatever I decide. In short, I'm lucky, and if I'm stuck at home with a crying baby all day, the last place you'll find me is in the kitchen cooking dinner, but if you look for my husband, you'll probably find him in the drive through at Alberto's.

Soon

We're down to the wire here... one more month to go. Baby is BIG and kicking harder than ever. I can finally feel his hiccups when he has them, and I can feel him kicking my hip bone and hanging on to my ribcage at the same time. Nothing painful, just surprising, and always strange.

We've picked our pediatrician, who happens to be about a mile from our house, and we've filled out the paperwork for baby's birth certificate. The only problem is, we're giving our son two middle names, and we're having a hell of a time agreeing on whether or not to hyphenate the names. I say no, but the husband says yes. In the end it'll probably come down to whatever the person at the hospital suggests... or whatever the hell I want because I'm the one pushing the kid out.

Realizing that we have one month left, we're realized that's just four weekends of total freedom with no responsibility. We've decided to make the most of it, and every Saturday will consist of a date night at non child friendly places. Our favorite fancy restaurants, movie theaters, or even days where we sit in bed doing nothing but eating pizza and watching movies. Our days are numbered, but in a good way.

From now on I see the doctor every friday, I've still got one more baby shower to look forward to, and then it's baby time! I think he'll be here early, or at least I hope he'll be here early. My family made a baby pool and they're all placing bets on when he'll be here, what time, how big he'll be, and how long I'll be in labor. They crack me up, and I've really been leaning on them for a good laugh to get me through these last few weeks.

I can't wait to not be pregnant anymore!!!!

Swollen

I've been very proud over the fact that I haven't swelled up, but I should have kept my mouth shut. I hung out with my brother the other day, and after watching a movie, I looked down at my numb feet to discover that my ankles were gone.

The recent heatwave has not been kind, and I can officially say goodbye to shorts for the next month. I'm bummed, and really embarrassed, but I guess it comes with the territory. I had to go out and buy a full length maternity dress to hide under for the next special occasion, and I'll probably invest in some compression socks. Putting my feet up does help bring down the swelling, but the minute I stand up again, they puff. I had to go out any buy sandals because my feet wont fit into shoes anymore, and the worst part is, I had to buy a size nine flip flop... I'm usually a seven.

I've got a little over a month to go until I'm back to normal....

Classes

To be as well prepared for the baby as we can be, we've been attending lots of classes to soak in every bit of information we can get. I cannot stress enough how amazing these classes have been.

The most recent class we took is a two parter called Baby Express, and it's all about what to do with the baby now that you've given birth and brought him home. We've already done day one which was all about car seats and breastfeeding. We learned SO MUCH. I never knew there was so much to learn about car seats, and it turns out that 80% of people who use car seats use them incorrectly. That's just crazy.

The second part of the class was all about breastfeeding. Now I've blogged about this before, so you may already know my opinion, but I felt better after the class. All the ladies had their concerns, and as much as the instructor tried to stick to the script, she was honest about everything, and calmed a lot of nerves. The hospital where I'm delivering STRONGLY discourages pacifiers and bottles and pumping, but this is real life, and our teacher was sympathetic about our worries.

On a side note, meet my handsome pretend baby. He's been my partner in a couple of the classes, and later this week I'll be learning how to clip his nails, swaddle him, and change his diaper.

I named him Tyquan, and I love him. 

Gigantic

That's how I feel right now... gigantic. I'm slow when I walk, it's a struggle to get out of the car, and you can forget about bending over to pick something up off the ground. The worst part of all... my first stretch marks showed up on my hip today. Zach's kicks are getting stronger each minute, and the other day when I was having breakfast with some friends, he kicked so hard that I dropped my fork and grabbed my stomach. His foot was poking out and he pushed so hard that I bruised. Breathing is difficult, sitting is uncomfortable, and hiding my stomach is now impossible which means that more people are touching me. I HATE having my stomach rubbed. HATE IT.

On a positive note, I still don't have it as bad as other pregnant women. No legs cramps, no back pain, no swollen ankles, no black line down my stomach, and no false labor contractions. At least not yet...

We had our very last ultrasound a couple days ago, and it was bittersweet. It was sweet because we got to see our little guy in the womb for the very last time, but bitter because when the doctor was checking out his heart she said, "And here's the chambers... 1, 2, 3, 4.....5?" Then there was silence. We looked over at her and she and the tech stared at the computer screen in utter confusion, then they typed in a few things and moved on to look at his spine. We never did figure out what that was all about, but I assume it was nothing.

Baby is healthy... but maybe a little too healthy. He's a week ahead of himself in weight weighing in at 4.5 pounds. Yikes. But then, my mom had all three of my siblings two weeks early, so maybe the same is in store for me. I sure freaking hope so. I can't imagine getting any bigger and any more unattractive than I feel right now. I'm a beached whale, and I'm ready for this baby to vacate.

Paula

This weekend my husband and I attended our very first baby class at the hospital... Childbirth Preparation. We had the option of taking the class over a span of three days, or doing a very long one day class, but the one day class came with a free DVD, so we opted for that. In a previous blog post I discussed the DVD and frighteningly real it made all of this, but at the same time, it helped settle my nerves. When it comes to having my body exposed, I don't want any surprises, and the more I have time to think about it, the better. By the time I'm laying naked on a table full of tubes and wires being poked and prodded, I'll be numb to the whole idea of it, and better off.

We arrived at the hospital for the childbirth class to discover that we were one of four couples in attendance, and the instructor was the same woman from the video we watched. I instantly tensed up, because a smaller group means more individual attention, and audience participation. I HATE audience participation. But right away the instructor put us at ease with jokes and stories, and it was a positive experience throughout the three hours we were there... until Paula came alone.

After we went through labor positions and breathing exercises (hee hee hee hoooooo), we turned our chairs to the TV to watch a video (yes, an actual VHS video) about childbirth. That's when we met Paula, a middle aged woman with giant glasses, and a very unfortunate haircut. Paula was in labor, and was going to have her baby au-natural. No IV, no hospital, and no censorship. We watched her moan and groan with her husband at her side, we watched her shower to relieve the pain, and we watched her sit on a toilet moaning and groaning. I took a moment to glance at the other people in the room watching the video with me. All the husbands were ghost white with blank faces, and all the girls had horrified looks on their faces. Then it was time for Paula to push.

Paula got up on a table and squatted, and with encouragement from her midwife, started to push. (Insert collective horrified gasp from all of us watching here.) When that didn't work, Paula laid down on her side and threw her leg up in the air the way a dog would to pee on a fire hydrant. (Another horrified gasp from the audience.) Paula was moaning and groaning and pushing, and then we saw the head crowning. I looked away as the midwife encouraged Paula to reach down and touch her baby's head that was poking out of her body and everyone else watching had hands over their faces in shock and horror. Why Paula?!?! WHYYYY?!?!

When I finally had the courage to look again, Paula was on her back, completely naked and watching herself give birth with a big mirror down by her crotch. I looked back at the other couples and all the girls were squeezing the life out of their husband's hands and hiding their faces, the husbands looked like they just witnessed a murder, I was dry heaving, and my husband was utterly freaked out. The instructor turned off the video and asked what we all thought. The silence was deafening. What was seen cannot be unseen.

Our instructor then had all the men sit on the ground with their backs to the wall, and we sat in their laps leaning up against them, and with dim lights and soft music, we did a ten minute relaxation exercise that really helped cleanse our minds and our retinas, and helped us unwind.

With the exception of Paula, I really enjoyed the class, and I would recommend it for all expecting mothers. It helped ease my mind about what's going to happen to me in just eight more weeks, and it really made me realize that I'm not alone. If Michelle Duggar can give birth nineteen times, then I can surely do it once, and I'll be sure to have a better haircut than Paula.

Shower

 I had my first baby shower last weekend, and it was a BLAST. My amazing sister in law threw it at my house, and it was cowboy themed. Let me tell you... she pulled out all the stops and really hosted an awesome party. Here are some party highlights!

My mom made us a diaper cake of epic proportions. Denim printed diapers, bandanas, horse figurines, cactuses, and little baby trinkets stuffed inside like washcloths, bottle brushes, spoons, and lotions. SUPER cute.

There were all kinds of cowboy decorations around the house, and instead of paper plates, everyone ate out of pie tins. So fun!

We had some fun games like a nursery rhyme word scramble, trivia about me and my husband, and everyone got bingo cards to play along with gift opening. (The bingo squares had different baby registry items on them.) When someone got a prize, they got to choose from a tray of brown paper bags with custom drawings on them that my sister in law did. 

And no baby shower is complete without the Don't Say Baby Game. Everyone gets a necklace, and if you say baby, someone takes the necklace from you. At the end of the games, whoever has the most necklaces wins. 

 And then there's the dessert. There were tons of cakes, bars,  jelly beans and handmade chocolates, that were all cowboy themed. Delicious.

At the end of the day my face hurt so bad from smiling and laughing, and my feet were done. I can't thank my sister in law enough for everything she did, and I'll never forget that day.

Oh, and in case you're wondering, all these great shots were taken by my awesome sister Lesley. She's a FANTASTIC photographer, and you can check out all her work at www.lesleylukensphotography.com.