They say animals can sense when a change is coming. The weather, a big move, things like that. After observing Thor's behavior the past several weeks, I'm inclined to agree. He's always been my special little guy, letting me squeeze him, bathe him and clip his claws with no trouble at all. But lately, he's been having mood swings. Either he's affectionate to the point of annoying (trust me, it takes a lot for me to get sick of kitty cuddles), or he's downright mean. Last night, he hopped into bed with me and curled up on my pillow, baring his soft white belly for scratches, furiously purring until Ross kicked him out of the bedroom. This morning, he followed me into the kitchen and, out of nowhere, bit my calf so hard he drew blood.
I tell you, this furry dude is not looking forward to being the second favorite "son" in the house. And he doesn't have much time left to get used to the idea, either! I'm currently cruising through week 30 of my pregnancy, and the reality of it is starting to hit me hard. In ten weeks or less - hopefully not less! - we're going to meet our son. The idea is terrifying, thrilling, and about every emotion in between. I'm torn between being totally over being pregnant and being willing to do it for another year in order to avoid the anxiety that will surely come with being a brand-new mommy.
The good news is that I recently passed my glucose test, despite my embarrassingly terrible eating habits the past few months. Admittedly, I'm not proud of it, but I used to rail on my husband for the amount of sugar he consumes in a day (it's a lot - much like the typical America diet, I'm thinking)...but these past few weeks I swear that ice cream, peanut butter and Sarris chocolate have been pretty much my meat and potatoes. The chocolate especially. I have always loved Sarris candy, but I truly EMBRACE it now! At least two of my other daily staples have been skim milk and whole-wheat English muffins, but of course that doesn't negate all the crummy stuff. I've gained about 30 pounds so far, and while that is well within the normal range, it's still a little hard to swallow that fact - no pun intended. I'm looking forward to returning to my regular walks as soon as I can after the baby is born. I miss them more that I expected to, but the shortness of breath that is practically standard for pregnant women has been extra hellish for this chunky little asthmatic, so exercise has been low on the priority list this time around.
The doc has increased my prenatal visits to twice monthly, which is standard once a patient enters the third trimester. He's also keeping en eye on my pre-existing high blood pressure which, thankfully, is completely under control at this point. It still frustrates me that I did everything in my power to counteract it naturally (regular cardiovascular exercise, weight loss, restricted sodium diet, etc.), but now isn't the time for me to be petty about taking medicine I don't want, especially because it's working.
He also wants me to start working on a birth plan. My current birth plan includes these two items: (1) Get baby out of my body quickly; and (2) Let me sleep.
Okay, I'm joking. A little bit. I've had people assume that I'm going for a non-medicated birth, assume that I'm not breastfeeding, assume a lot of things already. Truth is, I'm surprising myself with how flexible I'm willing to be. We elected not to attend any birth classes, other than the hospital tour. I've talked to friends who didn't feel classes really benefitted them, and I've also been told that the same information can be gathered fro YouTube videos. Which is probably true. I'm still exploring my options as far as pain management and labor go. Although my blood pressure is great now, I'm not going with any "traditional" options for birth (home birth, water birth, etc.) I want my baby as close as possible to medical assistance in the event something should go wrong. That's my own choice, as will be my decision to breastfeed (or not), return to work (or not), circumcise (or not), film a birth video (or not), or any of the other hundred million things I'll have to think about in the hours before, during, and after my son's birth. Which is why a birth plan, even a very loose one, is a good idea. Because I probably won't be thinking about details once I'm in the middle of labor. I'm also sharing the plan with my husband and step-mommy, who will be in the delivery room with me.
I'm not in the nesting phase yet (which explains the state of my housekeeping efforts - nil), but I am in the "read all about it" stage. I've been given some wonderful books and it's nice to read about options regarding child-rearing that I hadn't considered. I'm also in the self-conscious stage. My belly is pretty darn prominent now. I can still dress the bump (keep your eyes open for an upcoming "Beauty and the Bump" post about maternity fashion!) but it's starting to get hard to handle. I feel huge most days, even though the swelling of my hands and feet has been minimal. My husband was a big baby - nine pounds or so - as were his sisters. My sister and I, on the other hand, were on the petite side. I was just over six pounds. So we'll see how big our little love bug gets - but I'm willing to bet he won't be tiny. In my head he's already topped six pounds and that is why I feel enormous and can't breathe. Never mind the two and a half months he still has to keep baking in my oven!
Thanks for reading - and a very humble and sincere thank you to those of you who have been cheering us on and praying for us as we barrel into parenthood! This experience hasn't been easy, but we count every day a miracle.
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