Classes begin tomorrow.

Things are really starting to pick up the pace now. We've got less than 8 weeks until our little bundle of blueberry joy joins us (assuming I don't go early). Which means that we need to start really preparing....preparing the house and preparing for birth. YIKES!

At this point in time I am deathly terrified of the thought of giving birth. This is even more complicated by my fear of epidurals and my desire to have a natural birth. I'm not a big fan of pain. Couple that with the fact that I don't really know what I'm doing or what to expect, and you've got my constant state of anxiety. I'm an anxious person anyway, so this isn't helping.

I'm hoping that the birthing classes we start tomorrow night will help. The class is 8 weeks long. (for those of you mathematically challenged, yes, the last class is 5 days before my due date. We like to live on the edge). We are supposed to learn all about the labor and birth process, pain management techniques, breast feeding and infant care. I know I'm going to be so nervous that I'm going to need to take notes, otherwise I'll forget. Picture this....me in the hospital looking at my legal pad of notes trying to figure out what the hell to do to make the pain go away. Always the lawyer, I guess. Thank goodness Justin has a MUCH better memory than I do.

For those of you who want a little giggle.....one of the first things we do in the class is watch a series of videos on births in different cultures. Justin has never seen a birthing video, let alone a video of a woman giving birth in the Red Sea (yep, we'll get to see that. Can't wait!) This is going to blow his mind. He's already practiced covering his eyes.

Vegas Baby! or Baby on Board in Vegas.

Well, we have returned safe and sound from Vegas with the Blueberry still firmly entrenched where she should be, i.e., the womb.

One of the highlights of the trip was feeling Jess' stomach, as right now the baby is making what I can only describe as Aliens-esque movements on a nightly basis. I think it was actually tap dancing, complete with Jazz Hands at one point. At least that would explain most of it. I'm still trying to figure out if a top hat and cane were involved.

More details to follow.

Vegas Here We Come!!!

Went to the doctor today and got the all clear. Wooo Hooo!!! It's supposed to be 80 and sunny all weekend. I can hardly concentrate I'm so excited!!!

I look (and feel) injured....

This past weekend, Jim (my little brother) and his girlfriend Shelly came up to celebrate St. Pat's in Chicago. We, of course, put him to work first. We needed to clear out the guest room in order to make room for baby stuff, which meant rearranging 3 rooms worth of furniture. It was like a giant game of tetris in our tiny apartment. All ended up well in the end thanks to Jim's genius design plan. It pays to use a professional (or at least a professional in training). We will only have to put a bed and a desk into storage. Everything else fit!

Then came the weekend.....

I was naive and thought that I wouldn't have any problem hanging two days in a row. For those of you unfamiliar with Chicago and St. Pat's, it's quite a spectacle. Everyone is Irish. Everyone wears silly outfits. And everyone starts drinking at 9:00 a.m. I thought, heck, I may be old, but I won't be drinking. It's the marathon drinking that usually kills me, right?. I was wrong.

As I'm sure Justin will tell whomever will listen, I've had a hard time getting used to the limits placed upon my body by pregnancy. I still think I can lift, work out, stay up, etc. like I used to. He tries desperately to get me to relax and take it easy. I don't listen. I'm not smart. Let's just say that 12 hours of being at the bars on Saturday (even though I was sober), and then going to the South Side Parade on Sunday, kicked my ass. My ankles are so swollen I look like I've been injured. My back is killing me. My hands are so swollen I can't even make a fist, let alone wear a wedding ring. And...I'm pretty sure that standing as long as I did, did not help my plantar facitis. The problem is that I didn't really feel the effects of all of this until it was too late.

Hopefully I will learn my lesson for Vegas. (Don't count on it).

Happy thought of the day....

Work has really sucked lately...more than usual. It turns out my understanding bosses aren't so understanding. Just what I need...more stress...bill bill bill...hours hours hours....UGH!!! In times like this, I like to try to think of happy thoughts about Blueberry to carry me through the day and make me realize that a job is just a job and that I will be away from this god forsaken place for at least 8 weeks this summer.

The happy thought for today is:

Meeting Justin at the Southport El stop on a beautiful June evening with Blueberry and walking home together as a family.

Hiccups

So, I felt hiccups for the first time maybe two weeks ago. Its a strange sensation. It basically feels like a heartbeat. I've only felt it a few times since then...that is...until today. I think they baby has had the hiccups all day today. He/she had them when I woke up and still had them after I showered for work. Justin got to feel them and told the baby to stand on its head and/or drink a glass of amniotic fluid upside down. Note to self...don't let Justin near a hiccuping baby!

He/she has had them 2 other times throughout the day. I keep feeling the "heartbeat" in random parts of my anatomy. Very very strange. Hopefully this is not a sign of a baby with digestion problems!

Wow I feel HUGE today...

This morning I put on a tight maternity shirt. (We're going out straight from work and I felt like looking relatively cute in public on a Friday night.) The shirt is only tight in that it actually clings to my belly at the bottom. Most of the one's I have are like tents....the baby doll style....empire waste and then material that just hangs down. They tend to hide the size of my belly. Well there's no hiding it in this one. After I put it on, I looked at myself for a long time in mirror. I literally look like I put a basketball under my shirt. It's hilarious. I look like I'm trying to be fake pregnant. If I can make my flighty pregnant brain remember, I'll have Justin take a picture of me tonight to post on the blog tomorrow. Its worth seeing.

Until about two weeks ago, I've been able to get by wearing some of my "regular" shirts by just putting cami's underneath them and going for the layered look. Alas, this has had to stop. I put on a sweater to wear to work two weeks ago and my stomach had gotten so big that the shirt stopped at my belly button. I was sporting more cami than sweater. Not a good look. So...I've packed up 90% of my "regular" shirts and put them into storage. It's all maternity all the time now!

A special and HUGE thank you to my friend Christine for sending me a box full of work appropriate maternity shirts just in the nick of time. She's saved me hundreds of dollars and an arrest from the fashion police. In fact, I've worn 2 of her shirts to work this week and have gotten a ton of complements on both of them. No one ever compliments my clothes. Apparently I should have Christine pick out everything I wear.

Oh the Places You'll Go (When Pregnant)

Since we found out I was pregnant, we've been trying to get pictures of all of the places we've gone (and therefore The Blueberry has gone). We haven't been as sucessful as we'd hoped. A camera didn't always make it into the suitcase. Sorry Blueberry. But most places are represented and the list keeps growing....

p.s. I wasn't technosavy enough to figure out how to add picutres below text, only above text. Hence, two posts. Someday I'll figure this out. It will probably be Blueberry who teaches me.

The Places...

(1) Indianapolis, Indiana...3 times. (September and December 2008, February 2009) We've only got pictures from December when we made it to a Colts game. Blueberry's first professional sporting event.


(2) Lees Summit, Missouri...1 time (December 2008) Blueberry was helping me grate cheese for pizza.

(3) Baltimore, Maryland...1 time (January 2009). Look. Blueberry got his/her picture taken with the 44th President....and Babe Ruth....

(4) Washington DC...1 time (Inaugaration baby!!)

(5) Evanston, Illinois...1 time (February 2009) While Evantson is only a few minutes away from home, it counts as traveling...sort of. Go IU!

NOT PICTURED:

(6) Saugatuck, Michigan...1 time (October 2008). No pictures because I was too busy throwing up. (See previous posts)

NOT YET PICTURED:

(7) Vegas baby!! We're headed there in just two weeks for our Babymoon....which just happens to be the first weekend of the NCAA Tourney. Can't wait!