Movie Star

We took this video on day 2 or 3. I'm long overdue for an update, so I was hoping this would tide you over in the meantime.

With love from these new parents,
J&K

10-10-10

Sunday has come yet again.  This one the most significant to us emotionally since we started this blog.  Today is Baby's official due date.  Although the date is only a guideline, I am sure many women could agree that there is something difficult about letting a date you'd been hold onto so tightly for the past none months come and go.  I didn't actually expect Baby to be delivered today, but it is hard to let the sun set on this date and still not feel any closer to an impending labor than I did two weeks ago.

Such is life.  And I very much realize that.  In the meantime I'm busy staying at peace with all of this, despite the physical challenges of being nine months pregnant.

This week Joe and I are ever-more grateful we switched doctors about 3 months into the pregnancy.  The first doctor, who came highly recommended, provided us with far too many red flags--one of which was determining the due date by ultrasound and then insisting that if I was a week overdue we'd likely induce labor to avoid "a dead baby." (a direct quote...Bedside manners anyone?).  Without consulting the fertility charts we'd meticulously kept, the ultrasound showed the due date as October 3rd.  Which means we would have induced by now.  Scary stuff, and obviously unnecessary. 

I will be working from home the next few days, likely until I run out of things to do.  I contemplated stopping altogether, but realized that if the birth is still more than a week away I would be twiddling my thumbs and doing far too much online shopping for my own good.  On the upside, cutting out a two-hour commute from my day from now until sometime in February is quite appealing. 

And looking back on it, I'm glad I pushed through working up until this point.  It certainly had its challenges, but it is reassuring knowing that I will have another week at home WITH a baby at the end of all of this.  Plus, this past week was a darn important one.  We opened an exhibit that had been in the works for a number of months.  Thursday evening was the opening reception and it was such a huge deal for me to be a part of something I'd put so much effort into.

The exhibit features letters from our archives and worked to show how significant correspondence is in both mundane and highly significant events.  I had used a number of letters from a collection I'd finished processing a few months ago and invited the donor of the collection.  The letters we featured were from her great-grandfather, from her father to her mother, and one she had written to her mother some 50 years ago.  It sounds strange to say, but I was so honored to meet a member of the family in flesh and blood.  I'd spent nearly a year reading, sorting, cleaning, and making sense of her family history and it was so exciting to talk to someone about the individuals I'd gotten to know so closely through their writings. 

Or maybe this just makes me sound a bit too attached to my job.  What can I say?

Welcome, fall!

Sunday was successful yet again. We spent a lot of time last week cleaning up and alleviating my amounting levels of stress. The best part of all of this is that the apartment is now clean and de-cluttered (thanks to Joe and my mom) and we were able to spend this weekend much more leisurely. In fact, after our usual Saturday doctor's visit it felt very strange to just go home afterward. We didn't need to buy anything or accomplish any tasks (I take that back, a nap was accomplished.)  Saturdays had previously been our prime shopping time.

With more free time, I spent Sunday I trudging through our basil forest.

 
Our four plants were extremely healthy all summer but, alas, they severely needed a trim and fall might take its cold-weather tole on them.

So we made something worthwhile.  I'll give you a hint:

 

So now we're just waiting.  Staying quite busy, but also prepared for our lives to, within a matter of a few hours, change completely.  Just not sure when that change will come...

How far along? 40 weeks

How big is baby? Who knows.  I hear he or she has gotta come out eventually.

Total weight gain: 50.5 pounds.  

 

Maternity Clothes? Oh, you mean Joe's t-shirts?

Stretch marks? More this week.  That is what I get for giving up on caring.  But again, I can't see them right now anyway.

Sleep:  I can't wait until there are more positions to sleep in than 2: right side or left side.  Better get cozy because I'll be in one of those for most of the night.

Movement: Often most active around 9 at night.  Braxton-hicks continue to increase in number and intensity. 

Food cravings: Lemonade has been another one throughout the pregnancy.  I don't feel too badly buying the expensive stuff because I'm not spending money on other adult beverages for myself.

What I miss: Coats that fit.  No use buying one because it hasn't been chilly all that long, but I do feel silly with a button-up sweater buttoned at the top and my belly hanging out.  Luckily my belly stays warm on its own.

One thing I never anticipated was the exhaustion.  Everyone said I'd be tired, but I often feel as if I'd run 8-10 miles each morning and the tiredness, achyness, and general slowness take over the rest of the day.  Not just tired, but weak and sore. 

I miss shoes that fit.

What I am looking forward to:  Actually starting this next point in my life.  My mind is there...my baby is not yet here.

Milestones: Joe and I still made it a point to dance at a wedding this past weekend.  I'd like to consider that a win.

The feeling has come back in my left hand for the most part,and my right tingles more than usual.  I think it is on its way to regaining feeling too.

Say What?:

A neighbor told me I didn't look like I'd dropped at all.  I restrained myself from slapping her (at least in real life).  It was meant as a compliment of course, but this far along I don't want to feel like I'm regressing.

I sent a text to my mom on my way to work asking if she was also working that day.  I was curious to know if she had time to talk while I was driving.  She responded right away, and then called, "are you in labor?!?"  Um, no?  Calm down, mom!