Diary of a First Time Mom

Archive for the ‘General’ Category

So we are officially at the 40 week mark this week!

And how do we celebrate…?

By SHOPPING of course!

As we are winding down the last few weeks, it seems like there is more and more that needs to be done, and less energy to do it.  This was a problem when I was not sleeping so well and awake every 90 minutes.  Apparently sleeping on one side for more than an hour when you are seven months pregnant causes some discomfort.  Luckily I have two sides!  Unfortunately it seems to take me an hour to flip over…  Oh well.

What has really helped is walking.  I was concerned about walking because the Dude is getting so heavy that all the ligaments and stuff are pulling and causing some strain.  But from what I can tell, walking strengthens all these muscles and I really do feel better afterwards.  Milhouse likes it too!

Add in these new breathing techniques / meditations that I am doing and I actually am finding that I can sleep for about 4 uninterrupted hours!  I have been reading Calm Birth by Robert Newman.  It is interesting because I don’t really even remember buying the book, but there it was on my shelf.  Calm Birth goes into the history of women healers and really emphasizes the innate wisdom we have within ourselves and that by tapping into this wisdom, we have all the solutions for any problem.  It talks about separating the ideas of pain and fear.  And how fear of pain can be much worse than pain itself.  Pain lives in the present moment.  Fear depends on your projection into the future of what “might be” to survive.  All this I find fascinating, and look forward to putting into practice in a few weeks.

I also am surprised to be reading a birthing book written by a man.  But I guess Lamaze and Bradley were men too.  So why not?

The book recommends buying the companion audio cd.  You don’t have to as the book contains the guided meditations in written form, but I prefer to sit and listen, plus it is accompanied by nice music.  There are three meditations on the cd and the purpose is varied.  So far we have listened to the first one that works on relaxing the body and connecting with the Dude.  Pretty neat stuff, only we keep falling sleep half way through!  But still, it must be working…  I am however reminded of Chandler’s ‘quit-smoking’ tapes he played while sleeping, in one Friends episode.  ”You are a strong and beautiful woman…”  Still makes me chuckle.

The combination of listening to the cd and having walked seems to be the perfect ingredients to a good night’s sleep!  Let’s hope this continues!

Well, it must be getting pretty crowded in there.  ’There’ being the womb.  Every day now is a brand new experience and I think I can actually feel the difference in his size, certainly week to week, if not every other day.  I wonder if my paranoias are the same for other first-time moms.  Like when I bend to tie my shoelaces (ok, so when I bend to slip them on – Scott has to tighten them for me) I totally worry that his little body is being crushed or folded in half.  But I have to remember that this is the kid we watched, on the 4D ultrasound, repeatedly kick himself in the head.  Or near his head, as I prefer to remember it.  That is one bendy kid!  So I know as long as I can feel him wiggle around that he’s ok.

And wiggle he does!  In fact, my few minutes of inaction are now over.  It’s like just by writing about him makes him active.  I know for certain when I sit and focus on him and breathe into that area of my stomach that he responds.  His usual aversion to movement when I place my hand on my stomach has been replaced with patterns of kicks.  Two – one – one – two.  I try playing my stomach like a Bop-It and repeat the pattern back and see what happens.  Usually I just get hungry…

It has been interesting to see how I use this blog now too.  The focus has been shifted from how I feel, to preparing for his arrival.  I no longer obsess over every little sensation, as strange and unusual sensations have become the ‘norm’ now.  It will certainly be strange to have my body back to myself in January…  Flying solo!

I feel like the hormonal craziness is more under control, with only the occasional (weekly) outburst.  But maybe you should ask Scott about that as I think I may be a lot more balanced than I actually am…

The room is coming along nicely.  We are organizing the house, and looking into pediatricians.  Pre-reg for the hospital is taken care of.  And I even wrote a list of stuff to pack for the hospital.  All I really need to do now is carpet clean Wyatt’s room, and wash all his little clothes.  Awww…   Little clothes….

Actually, perspective is a strange thing.  A friend of mine recently gave birth to a beautiful little girl.  8 lbs 12 oz.  And when I looked at her photos on Facebook, my first thought was that babies look really small.  UNTIL you consider WHERE they come from.  Hmmm, not so small after all.  I was over 9 lbs when I was born.  But we don’t need to go there yet.

Looks like it is almost 10pm.  Way past my bedtime.  Time to bank some sleep!

Today I was called ‘the cutest pregnant woman I have ever seen’ by a complete stranger in a coffeeshop. Thanks, random stranger! I was feeling especially round and tired today, and that hit the spot!

When in random conversation with people, the question has shifted from “What do you do?” to “When are you due?”

Being pregnant is like suddenly being a new member in a long-standing secret-society. Other pregnant women and especially moms with kids give you the nod while shopping or walking in the parking lot.

The other day, I was especially moody (because I had not planned well and had no food at home and so had to SHOP for food before being able to eat). I got my groceries and then stopped at the library on the way home. The librarian asked me if I was having a baby and I said yes. She knows both Scott and I and so was very excited. I am normally quite excited but on this day I was kind of in a mood. When her enthusiasm was not met, she asked if we were excited and I said yes. The she asked how I was feeling.

Note to readers: When asking a pregnant woman how she feels, be prepared to get the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. There is no “Fine, thanks. How are you?” in our vocabulary anymore.

My response. “Today I am grumpy.” Another woman checking books out next to me with two small children snorted lightly and sent me a little smile and a knowing glance. The librarian said “Don’t worry. Months four, five and six are great.” My response was “So I hear.” Then she said “But in the last three you will be grumpy again.” So I hear…

While browsing the two or three racks of maternity clothes at Target, I got to listen to two pregnant women’s conversation. I have long known that women’s bathrooms are a great source of entertainment when it comes to eavesdropping, especially in drinking establishments, however I think I have found a new source.

The women were on the other side of the racks from me. One woman was taking the other through the clothes and telling her all the good and bad attributes. “Now this one…” she started before the other woman said that it looked very see-through. “It IS completely see-through. Wear something underneath.” I chuckled as I had considered that shirt too. She went on to describe each top as too short, too tight, or whatever. She said that the maternity section was mixed in with the plus sizes to which the other woman responded that “that’s not nice at all!”.

Yup, I felt part of the crowd. But then I went around the other side of the rack to see that the alpha-mom was HUGE! She must have been 8+ months and quite big. I suddenly had a strange feeling of inferiority come over me, and my little belly bump is only starting to protrude. I felt like I had not yet graduated to full-blown pregnancy yet. And as I examined my feelings, I found it quite interesting that the size of a woman’s pregnant belly seemed to lend authority to her. I wondered then, if that’s how men feel in the locker room…

I just realized that I am literally bare-foot and pregnant…  in the kitchen.

I cannot see the underside of my belly when I look down.