Bean's Room

So here are a couple pics of Bean's room as it is right now. We just need curtains and another picture for the wall above the change table, but other than that it's done! I love the moon light with the leaves. We've had them all for so long so it's nice to see them up in a room. Finally, they have a home! =D

Four days to go. Of course, that's if Bean is on time. Both Vanessa and I were punctual, but Nathan and Gillian were both 2 weeks late. Maybe we'll average out at a week late. We'll see I guess. But we're ready on our end. Bean just needs to find the escape route...

And yes, I know the room is blue. And no, we don't know anything everyone else doesn't. Blue is just my favourite colour is all... I couldn't even think of another colour that I'd like as much as this one. In case you're wondering, it's Benjamin Moore "True Blue". We used their no VOC paint and it really is odorless. I had to stick my nose within an inch or so of the wet paint in order to smell anything. We can highly recommend it if you can't stand that wet paint smell.

One Week!

So now we're officially down to the wire I guess! One week to go. Unless Bean's late of course. Nathan's hoping it will be typically Danish and be punctual. =D

We finally got the last piece of furniture for Bean's room, so once we get everything sorted out and things on the walls, I'll take pictures and post them for all to see. I think it looks really cute. Hopefully Bean likes it.

Still doing okay, I guess. I'm pretty much done with being pregnant though. Done with all the aches and pains and awkwardness and inflexibility and exhaustion. Everyone says to me "Oh it just gets worse from here on in" and "Just wait until you have the baby". Umm... Well, I can certainly see that things aren't going to be a walk in the park after I have Bean, but somehow I think having my own body back and knowing my own physical limitations again will make it easier for me to cope with all the new stuff. It's just exceedingly frustrating to see things that need to be done (or that I WANT to get done) and to not be able to do them because I can't bend that way or I need to have a nap.

In other news, Gillian came over last week and took some preggie photos of me, Nathan and Ghost, so I should be able to post some of those soon. It's weird. Since becoming pregnant, I'm not at all self conscious about my body. I could care less really. I'm happy to sit around in my shorts and bikini top with my big ol' belly hanging out, and don't really care who happens to see me. I'm sure I'll go back to being way to critical of myself once this is over, but hopefully I can remember what it's like to not care and hang onto that feeling. It's really quite liberating.

I also bought myself a sewing machine. It's the shit! =D I got a little Brother CE-5000. It's just the right mix of new fancy-dancy technology and old school mechanical. I've hemmed some curtains with it and it's great. I still can't sew in a straight line to save my life, but I'm sure I'll get better with practice. And for less than $200, really, I can't go wrong. I'm especially pumped about the invisible seam stitch, since I usually have to end up hemming pants for work. I can't wait to see how it works, though I suppose I don't really need to buy new work clothes for a while yet.

Anyways, I guess that's all for now. Cross your fingers for a punctual Danish Bean!

T-minus 3 weeks...

Okay, so I know I've been on maternity leave for almost a month now and you'd think I would have posted SOMETHING, but believe it or not I've been busy. Busy with napping and reading and going for outings with Mom and Dad and Rowena and Geoff. Okay, so it's not corporate busy or anything, but it still fills a day...

Anywho....

Bean will be officially "full term" tomorrow, which means it could be born anytime. Yesterday at our appointment the midwife said I wasn't having a baby in the next week. That's good. Mom and Dad would be so upset if they were still in Switzerland when Bean is born.

Things are still going okay. I'm getting more sore in, ahem, lower areas and I find I have to concentrate really hard on how I move so I don't end up hurting myself more. Rolling over in bed is a huge task. I end up using my face as a pivot point at one stage. Definitely not enjoyable, especially since I have to do it about a dozen times a night. Oh joy. Bean's happy in my belly and quite content to wiggle around, stretch and do other such baby things. It's amazing to think that there's a whole person in there. And it required little effort from me to grow! It's not like I had to consciously think "Okay, today I need to grow kidneys". It just does it. Weird.

I'm ready to be not pregnant though. Watching Nathan sleep on his belly and roll over with ease fill me with insane longing and jealousy. I want to be able to walk Ghost at a good speed, not waddle her around the block and arrive home completely exhausted. I want to be able to lift my leg in the shower to wash my feet. I want to be able to clip my toenails. It's really amazing how much you appreciate all those little things that you don't even think of ordinarily. I mean really, who thinks about the privilege of clipping their toenails? I also get tired so fast these days. I can barely handle a morning of actual activity. Heaven forbid I do a whole day of something. I'm usually a weepy, exhausted basket case by the end and then it takes me at least a day to recover. I'm trying to limit my outings though so I don't over do it. It's getting to the point where I have to consciously try and remember to stay rested, since labour could start anytime. And everyone says the last thing you want to do is start labour already exhausted. So I will endeavour to nap lots, get a tiny bit of exercise and just try and stay relaxed and rested.

The weather is getting to me though. I'm sick of dreary, cloudy, rainy days. Ghost too. She especially doesn't like the thunder. If she hears one little roll, she starts trembling from head to toe and hides in whatever small corner she can find. Poor pup. I don't think she especially enjoys walking in the rain either. She always looks a little irritated by it. I've been trying to find things to do with her inside to keep her entertained. We play fetch and I went online and found some easy dog tricks to teach her. We're working on "sit pretty", "which one?" and "roll over". Roll over seems to be the most difficult right now. We also used Nathan as a hurdle one night and practiced her jumping. She did very well with that, until Daddy's bridge collapsed in exhaustion. =D

Anyway, I must research nursing bras, breast pumps, and a decorating idea for the stairwell. Ahh.... the joys of not having to go to work. Work? What's work? What did I do? Don't remember, don't really care....

Random thoughts and Bean updates

Do tennis players die a slow, horrible death when they see a dog playing with, chewing on or destroying a tennis ball? Would Belal's efficient shredding and shaving of tennis balls horrify them? Do their own dogs have different balls to play with? And how can they just stand there when said balls are hurtling at them at more than 200 km/hour?


Can you tell I've been watching tennis lately? =D


So Bean is now 3/4 cooked! It's jumping and wiggling quite a bit now. Or maybe I can just feel it more since there's less space in there the bigger Bean gets....

I've got 2.5 more weeks of work left before I start mat leave and let me tell you, they can't pass fast enough! I'm endeavouring to keep my stress level low, but the nature of the job kind of sabotages that effort. I can make it through a week of work still, but I'm usually a weepy, exhausted mess by Friday. I do okay on the weekends since I can go at my own pace and nap/rest when I need to, but the work week is a killer. But soon. Soon.

I had my follow up appointment with the homeopath at the beginning of the month and everything is tickity boo. I was coming down with a cold again and whatever it was that she gave me spared me the worst of it I think. If it was the same cold that so many others got and are STILL dealing with, then I definitely got off lightly. But my sciatic nerve problems are all gone, I'm doing okay with the weepy (not perfect of course, but definitely better), I can sleep pretty decently, and I'm not nearly so worried about everything in the world.

Ghost and I are almost done the 2nd agility class. I've missed a couple since I've been too tired to run around after her, but it has still been quite enjoyable. She's still not so sure about the teeter totter, but she's starting to get the weave poles and the dog walk (bridge thingy) is not a problem for her. I will definitely be continuing with her in the fall. She loves it so much and I think it's doing her a lot of good to learn to be around so many other dogs.

We've painted Bean's room and purchased the furniture for it. We got the changing station home, but had to special order the dresser and the conversion kits for the crib. The crib itself we got a raincheck for since it was already on order, but as far as I know it hasn't arrived yet. At least, they haven't called us to pick it up... The room looks really good. We still have to hang things on the wall and get a new curtain, but I already really like the way it looks. I will post pictures once we get it all set up and decorated.

I washed the clothes that we have already acquired for Bean this weekend. It was so exciting to see little clothes mixed in with ours! I'm starting to get to the point where I just can't wait to meet Bean, cuddle it, hold it, take it places. Mentally, I know it's better if it stays where it is for a while longer, but emotionally I WANT IT NOW!!! But the summer is shaping up to be pretty busy, so the rest of the time should pass quickly. I hope.

For the moment though, I will focus all my energies on finishing everything I need to finish at work before the 10th, getting enough rest to make it through those 2.5 weeks of work, and still find time/energy to do things I want to do like decorate Bean's room, walk Ghost and putter about in my garden. Tall order, I know, but a person's got to have goals right?

Agile Ghost!

So as promised, here is the video from the last day of the first Beginners' agility class. Being the little noodle that she is, Ghost started refusing to go in the tunnel for some weird reason on the last 2 classes, but she's improved again now. We've started Beginners II, which will run to the end of June. In this one she'll learn the dog walk (bridge thingy), the teeter totter, the weave poles, and the tire.

Watching this just makes me laugh. She's so silly.... and definitely loves the A-frame!

Enjoy!

Bean Updates!

Time for more updates! And this will be long... sorry... =D

So at our last midwife appointment we were told that they had “sort of” revised our due date to a week earlier – August 28th. This is mostly because at our ultrasound Bean was measuring about a week bigger than it should have been. Of course, we could just be having a big baby. No way to tell really. So let’s just say Bean will be born sometime around the end of August or beginning of September. Heck, no one tells them what the due date is anyway; they come when they want to.

Also, when I had my cold I was talking to Sivan, one of the midwives, and she really urged me to go and see the homeopath that they recommend. I really hadn’t slept well since about February, and the lack of sleep and pregnancy hormones were sending my emotions all over the map. I felt completely overwhelmed at pretty much anything, which made it hard to find motivation for anything. I knew I wasn’t depressed, but I was certainly not Sunshine-y Sheila. So I made the appointment and went 2 weeks ago.

The homeopath is my new best friend!!!

But I should explain. The initial appointment was an hour and a half long. There was a questionnaire to fill out before hand with my “main complaint”. I had four: my sciatic nerve, my lack of/inability to sleep, the emotional roller coaster, and my blood pressure. The BP I wasn’t too worried about, but the midwives wanted me to mention it anyways. So, we chatted for a while about all these different things, going off on tangents if I said something that piqued her interest. After about an hour, she said “I know what I’m going to give you.” Just like that. She flipped through a couple of her reference books, just to make sure, reading out some of the descriptions. Like “for fatigue from lack of sleep during pregnancy” and “managing the emotional ups and downs of pregnancy”. I was like “Ooh! Ooh! Me, me! I need that!”. So she gave me 3 little pellets of pulsetilla (in the crocus family) and then mixed me up a vial of flower essence water that had St. John’s Wort, Red Chestnut, Chamomile, Pink Yarrow and Olive in it. The 3 little pellets should last me for at least a month and I take 4 drops of the flower water 4 times a day and every 15 minutes at night if I can’t sleep.

Let me tell you, I have never felt so much better so fast! I had taken some of the flower drops when we got home and later that night when I was sitting in my chair, I almost fell asleep. And not just dozing, I was falling ASLEEP asleep. I slept better that night than I had in months. I woke up the next day feeling almost giddy with energy. I wanted to run about and do things and work on stuff. Work wasn’t a struggle like it had been. It was the most bizarre thing. So I thought, “Okay, maybe that was a fluke, maybe it doesn’t work that well”. But it’s been a couple weeks and things are still going good. I sleep better and feel a bit more in control of myself than I have. The nerve calmed down after about a week and isn’t painful at all now. I’m certainly not at a pre-pregnancy state, which would be impossible really, but I’m definitely better able to deal with it all and make sure I get enough rest.

So yeah, the homeopath is my new best friend. Everyone should go and see one. I especially like the fact that I take ONE thing, not a bazillion different pills at different times of day. I’m so glad that I went. I can’t imagine getting bigger and more uncomfortable and sleeping LESS than I already was. I don’t think I could have done it.

Bean is jumping about and kicking quite regularly now. Nathan can feel it too, which is pretty cool. There’s definitely starting to be a pattern to the movements though. Bean is usually a bit squirmy on the bus ride to work, then it’s quiet for a bit. Around 11am there’s more movement, then quiet. Then it starts again around 2pm, then quiet. Then some wiggles for the bus ride home, then quiet. Then there’s some movement after dinner and then again just as we’re getting into bed. And of course, once in the middle of the night. It’s kind of fun to recognize it though. I’m hoping this means that Bean will only wake up once in the night to feed…. I’m sure that’s wishful thinking, but I can hope.

We’ve taken to reading Bean stories before bed. We pick a children’s book from our collection and either Nathan or I reads aloud to the belly. Ghost likes story time too – when she’s actually upstairs anyway. She’ll snuffle and snort and sigh contentedly throughout the story. Bean’s usually pretty still through out the reading, but kicks quite a bit at the end, doing a little dance. Then we play the music box we got in Paris – La Vie En Rose – to the belly and then it’s lights out. Bean’s pretty good about quieting down at this point, so this also gives me hope for painless bedtimes – so long as there’s a story and a music box!

We’ve got all the book shelves and books shifted over to the new office. My priority for next week (Nathan and I are taking a week off together to hang out at home) is to finish sorting through the miscellaneous things that are left and then get Bean’s room more in order with painting and wall decorations etc. We’ve kind of zeroed in on a crib and change table that we like and that are able to be converted and used for pretty much the life of our child. It’s a bit more expensive, but solid wood construction and you do get more bang for your buck since the bed converts up to a double and the change table can be a dresser. Not sure if we’ll buy them next week – we may try and wait for a sale…

We’ve been attending prenatal classes too for the past few weeks, with the class ending on June 2nd. It’s been pretty interesting without being scary, and I think we’ve both gotten some good information about different things to try during labour. I think I need to spend some time seriously thinking about my “labour bag”. What I want in it (music, distractions, massage implements, etc.), how I want to progress through labour. I mean, really, I won’t know until I get there, but it’s good to be prepared for different scenarios. We realized that Ghost will also need a “labour bag”. We’ll probably be sending her to either my parents’ or Nathan’s parents’ once I start labour. I don’t want to worry or upset her, and I’m sure she’ll be a distraction for Nathan and me during the parts when we’re still at home. She’ll need a couple meals worth of food, poop bags, treats, a good ol’ toy and maybe a new one. Anyway, it’s all starting to be a bit more real, but I’m not dreading or worrying about it. I’m confident in my own abilities, which helps a lot I’m sure, and I know I’ll be able to deal with it somehow. I just hope Nathan doesn’t get the worry wrinkle in his head. That just kills me….

I’m still having trouble with “slowing down”. It bugs the bejeezus out of me that I can’t walk as fast as Ghost wants to, or go to work AND come home and do stuff, or help Nathan in the yard or basement. It makes me feel lazy and that I’m ordering people to do things for me. I just want to DO things, but I’m still having a hard time realizing that maybe what I need to DO at any particular point in time is have a nap or sit and rest. It’s hard to let go. I’m starting to recognize when I get to that point where if I do more, I’ll pay for it, so at least I’m making some progress. That’s why I’m so tickled to work on Bean’s room next week. Most of it is sitting and sorting and decision making, with just a tiny bit of physical work. So I should be able to do quite a bit, without being blindsided by the Snoozlemonsters. Anyway, I’m not really surprised that I’m having this problem. I am my father's daughter. =D

Anyway, that’s about it for Bean updates for now. I’ve got a video of Ghost doing agility in the making, so hopefully that’ll get posted soon for your viewing enjoyment. We’ve finished the first class and are starting the second one on Monday. She loves it so much and I think it’s really helping her social skills with other dogs.

Ta for now!

Biometric Security Devices

Occasionally on jobs we run across a client that has WAY too much money and wants to explore the possibilities for installing biometric scanners to restrict access to their server room (or other secure places). This is your typical Mission Impossible stuff: fingerprint scanners, retinal scanners, etc. Now this is mostly an electrical engineering thing, so usually I just nod and smile as the electrical guy winces and grits his teeth. Not that they’re overly difficult or anything. They’re just uber-expensive and generally a pain in the ass to connect to security systems that haven’t been designed to support such things.

Anyway, the following is an amusing tale I was told by an electrical colleague a few weeks ago. We were at a design meeting (with no client reps present) and mockingly discussing said client’s request for biometric information. After we have a good chuckle about how they’re not going to be able to afford this stuff, even though they’re a very high profile law firm, the electrical engineer, let’s call him Bob, tells us this story from a job he had worked on previously.

I don’t remember if it was an oil company or another law firm, but suffice it to say, they certainly had the money to spend on biometrics. Bob dutifully puts together a presentation on the pros and cons for each type of biometric device, costs, and security comparisons to more traditionally devices. This presentation is to the complete design team, as well as a half dozen of the big wigs for the client. It’s a meeting room full of high powered individuals. He’s just gone through fingerprint scanners and is about to move on to retinal scanners.

“So another option you can consider is rectal scanners.”

Stunned silence and blank stares. Bob realizes what he’s said. He has suggested to these people that have way more money and influence and prestige than he’ll ever have that they scan their butts to gain access to their server room. Oops. Eventually there’s laughter as everyone realizes the verbal slip up, but there was a long, painful moment when no one was sure if he was serious or not.

We’re all laughing uproariously at this point, at Bob’s expense. And then he throws in this quip defensively:

“Well, no two rectums are alike.”

I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so hard at a design meeting before. Doesn’t it just fill your mind with all sorts of goofy images of tech guys dropping their pants and ponying up to the wall to have their rectums scanned to get into their server room?

AND, I have been told that rectal scanners make an appearance in the Dreamworks movie "Monsters vs. Aliens", so my electrical friend must not have been the first to slip up this way...

So now, forever, I will always snicker to myself when a client requests information for biometric security devices.

Ghost's Tummy and the Horrible Evening at the Vet

Ghost’s has had an upset tummy again. This makes the fourth bout of diarrhea since we got her in the middle of December. The first was giardia, the second was some other parasite, the third we don’t know because we just treated her at home, and now, the fourth happened a couple weeks ago.

She was a little anxious the Thursday morning before Easter and her poop was quite runny when Nathan walked her before work. We came home that night to a mess upstairs, but she seemed okay, so we fed her dinner. BIG mistake. She woke us up repeatedly that night to go out and poop. Good thing Friday was a holiday, otherwise Nathan and I would have been toast. So we didn’t feed her Friday morning and then that night she had some beef broth with her kibble and some pieces of roast pork. Saturday it was more beef broth and kibble for both her meals. By this time, her poops we’re improving, so we thought “great”. I fed her dry kibble Sunday morning and evening. And she woke us up repeatedly that night to go out. Good thing we both had Easter Monday off too. So I decided to try plain white rice and boiled chicken. Did that Monday night and Tuesday. She still wasn’t getting any better. Poops were still runny and she had no energy at all. I mean, she was still happy to go for walks and to agility class, but as soon as we get home, she’d just collapse on the floor exhausted.

So Wednesday I called the vet and they booked us in to their “emergency” slot that night at 6:20 pm. Since Nathan was fencing, I had to take her in myself. Raced home after work, wolfed down a bowl of cereal and then took her down to the vet, about a 30 minute walk away.

I opened the door and was greeted by the sound of a woman WAILING. She was sobbing and wailing and kicking things and yelling at her relatives. From the bits and pieces I overheard and was told, her dog had died quite suddenly. Apparently she had one of those ones with the snub nose and her parents (she was probably mid-twenties) had fed the dog something and it choked and died. I guess it’s actually a fairly common thing for those smushed faced dogs to choke on things. I’m sure she blamed them for her dog dying. It was pretty horrible. And THEN I looked around some more.

There are 4 treatment rooms at our vet. Ghost and I were in one, the sobbing lady and her family in another. Across the way in one of the other two, I saw a man come out with an empty cat carrier and a nurse go into the back with a bundle of blankets that were holding a very still cat. In the other room there was an elderly couple who didn’t have any pet with them at all that I could see. They were just sitting there. And then I heard them ask if they could have their blanket back.

Ick. Ghost was the only pet that was alive in that place. It was horrible. I felt so awful for everyone there, like I was parading my dog that ONLY had diarrhea before their grief. And then I started to get paranoid about Ghost. What if it was something WORSE? What if she wasn’t really fine?

But, the visit with the vet went fine. He thinks they probably just didn’t get all of the parasite/bacteria/whatever from the second time, rather than she’s been unlucky to infect herself AGAIN. So we got some soft food and the powder to put on top and a prescription for some antibiotic-type pills. At the same time we got her giardia vaccination, so that’s good. She was a good girl, just a bit squirmy, but didn’t yelp or anything at the needle.

Of course at this point I just wanted to get the hell out of there with my live pet, but I didn’t know how I was going to get the prescription. I’m sure Shoppers wouldn’t have liked me bringing Ghost inside. So I called Mom. Nathan said afterwards to me “Couldn’t you have left her at the vet’s while you ran over to get the pills?” Well, probably. But did I WANT to leave her? Not on god’s green earth. So Mom came and sat with Ghost in the car while I got her pills and then drove us home. I was so completely exhausted and drained by this point that I just collapsed into my chair and sat for an hour before I dragged myself up to bed.

Now she's almost done her meds and she's definitely back to her usual goofy self. Of course, now I'm sick. I caught the office plague. And being pregnant and sick at the same time SUCKS! I was off Thursday, Friday last week and Monday. I went to work Tuesday morning, cried 3 times in the first hour and then went home at lunch. I've declared I'm taking the rest of the week off work too. I can't get any sleep, I get exhausted showering or going up the stairs, and I just feel icky. Cold wise, I think it's getting better, but still not great. I talked to the midwives today and they said that because my immune system is messed up from being pregnant it could take 2 or 3 weeks longer to recover from a common cold. Oh joy. So in the meantime I'll nap if I can, sit in my chair, read, watch trashy daytime television and hope everything eventually gets better.

Ghost and the Bathtub

So we’ve discovered that Ghost is afraid of the bathtub. And not just a little bit.

I was having a nice relaxing oatmeal bath the other day (my skin’s been really itchy lately) and she came into the bathroom to see what I was doing. Now, Ghost’s been in the bathroom before, but she’s not been that interested in it. She’s cautiously approached the empty tub with the curtain drawn across it and then beats a hasty retreat.

So now I’m in the tub. In water. She was curious about what I was doing, and quite happy to lick the oatmealy water off my fingers, but then I shifted. The water in the tub sloshed about a bit and she RAN out of the bathroom like something terrifying was chasing her. She ran to get Nathan and then was whining and pacing and generally fretting. Nathan came into the bathroom to show her that I was okay, but she would have none of it. She started to stare at him accusingly, like HE had put me in there and MADE me stay there. She was very anxious for the rest of my bath and not happy till I was out and all the water was gone.

So now the question is, how the heck are we going to bathe her?? It’s a good thing she’s not a naturally smelly dog that needs to be bathed frequently. I don’t know what we’d do then. I think she’s probably afraid of it from when she was at the shelter. I think when she first came in, they bathed her and clippered her quite severely, so she probably associates all of it together as a bad experience.

People have suggested the dog wash, but I don’t know if that would be just as bad as the shelter, since it would probably look and smell similar. I think we may just end up getting a kiddie pool and bathing her in that in the yard. I think that might be the best (and easiest!) option. Time will tell I guess. Once it’s warmer, we’ll have to find out if she enjoys standing in or swimming in water. Then we’ll be able to figure out whether it’s the water or the environment that she doesn’t like.

In the meantime, thank heaven’s for non-smelly dogs!

Bean Updates

Okay, so now I've accumulated 7 (SEVEN!!!) different things to post about, so I'd better get going. Since I'm sure most of you are interested to know how the pregnancy is going, I'll start there.

Things are going good.

Okay, I’ll elaborate.

The homeopathic remedy that the midwives recommended has done wonders for my sciatic nerve. I have little episodes of pain, but not enough to knock my knee out from under me or make me cry. It really is quite amazing. I just take a little pellet whenever I feel like I need it. I find the aches and pains are worse by the end of the week, when I’ve been sitting still for 5 days. I try and remember to get up and move around lots, but it’s kind of a hard thing to do when your job is mostly sitting in front of a computer.

I’m still more tired than usual and it takes everything in me to make it through a whole week of work. Day by day, I’m usually coherent till around 2:00 pm and then that’s pretty much it, I’m done. I end up staring at the wall or something equally as non-productive for the rest of the day. But I keep the bosses updated on how I’m feeling and they cut me some slack, so things work out okay. I really think that having nice, open communication with them about everything works to my advantage. Then they’re not in the dark if I miss a couple days of work or leave at 4:00 pm instead of 5:00 pm.

We had our 18 week ultrasound on March 30th. It was pretty incredible. AND I got to pee out all the 2 litres of water I drank after about 5 minutes, so that was even better. It was so amazing to see our little Bean moving about and kicking and stretching and drinking amniotic fluid. It kept hiding under my belly button though. Must be shy. =D It was quite keen to show off it’s legs and feet, but kept hiding when we wanted to see its little face. But I will save most of my reflections on the ultrasound for one of my seven posts. In the meantime, you can go to Nathan’s blog and see some of the pics and read his thoughts on the event.

Baby brain has set in with a vengeance. I was going to hand wash our place mats in the sink. I went downstairs for the detergent. I had to make that trip THREE times before I actually remembered to bring it back up with me. One afternoon at work, I did the same thing wrong THREE times in a row. And wrong differently every time. This was after 2:00 pm. I went home early. And then there’s the usual, like forgetting pretty much everything, asking the same questions over and over, and just general DUH moments.

Just in the past few days my belly has POPPED. Like, seriously. I’m sure it’s much bigger today than it was on Friday. I’m starting to actually look pregnant, instead of just maybe-pregnant-maybe-fat. It’s kind of cute. I’ve got some nice outfits that accentuate it too, so that’s fun.

I’m having a bit of a hard time finding a comfortable position to sleep in. Ordinarily, I’m a belly sleeper, which doesn’t quite work so well anymore. My hips get sore from sleeping on my side, even with a pillow between my knees and one under my belly. The yoga-ish position that Gillian showed me works most of the time, but I do find myself tossing and turning quite a bit. I really, really hope I’m not keeping Nathan awake. In other sleep news, I’ve decided that 5:00 am is a ridiculous time to wake up. I’ve reset my alarm for 5:30 am and I can still catch the last express bus and make it to work for 8:00 am. It’s amazing how much difference a half hour can make.

We’ve started moving bookcases and books from the office into the other spare room. The office is bigger, so we decided we’d be nice and give Bean the bigger room. =D And we’re finally merging our book collections! No more Nathan’s children’s books and Sheila’s children’s books. It’s all smushed together. Yay us!

I think I may be starting to feel Bean move. I’ve had a couple days now where I can feel things that kind of feel like gas bubbles in your stomach. It could just be my usually digestive acrobatics, but I swear they were lower than any stomach bits should be. We’ll see I guess. But maybe???

I’ve gained 7.5 lbs since Christmas, and 3 of that has been in the last 2 or 3 weeks. I give all the credit to Ghost. I’m sure I’m losing weight walking her and then gaining back whatever Bean needs. I don’t mind. It means I’m in better shape than I was before we got Ghost, so I should be able to get in even better shape faster, after Bean is born. But 7.5 lbs in 20 weeks is pretty darn good I think! Yay Ghost! And me, for not stuffing my face with everything available. =D Though Easter was exceptionally hard….

The only other thing on the Bean radar (that I can remember anyway…) is that I have to keep an eye on my blood pressure. Mine is high normal, and pretty much always has been. I guess though, high BP in pregnancy can cause some serious complications both for me and Bean, and I could end up on bed rest for months or Bean could be delivered prematurely. So far there’s been no change in the readings. Actually this past week, it was a bit lower than usual. I’m not overly worried since high normal is normal for me. The midwives have given me supplements to take, teas to drink, exercises to do, etc. all in an effort to keep my BP manageable. I’m not to get stressed out or worked up about things and make sure that I get rest when I feel like I need it. This is hard for me. It’s so hard to stop doing things and rest when I think that I should be able to do more. It’s getting easier to let go, but it just goes against my nature to sit in a chair and ask people to do things for me because I need to rest. I’m doing my best at that though and I’m sure by the time Bean is born I will be an expert at delegating. =D

And there’s the Bean update for now! Look for 6 more blog posts coming soon!

It's been medically confirmed...

I am a pain in the ass. What many of you have suspected for years has finally been confirmed.

Baby/uterus/pelvic bone is squashing my sciatic nerve and giving my left leg horrible pain and making my left knee give out unexpectedly, repeatedly throughout the course of a day. And let me tell you, not having experience child birth yet, this is the worst pain I have ever, EVER had. I was crying as I was crawling up the stairs last night to go to bed.

It all started out as a cramp in my left butt cheek a couple weeks ago. My rear had always given me troubles with cramped muscles, so I didn't think anything of it. Then yesterday, I got up from my desk in the afternoon and started walking towards the plotter room and then WHAM! An excruciating pain shot down my butt, into my left thigh and down to around my knee, which promptly gave out. It was awful. I didn't think much of it though. Thought maybe it was the shoes I was wearing or I'd just been sitting too long or something.

But it did it multiple times when Nathan and I were walking Ghost last night. After we got home, I sat and did our taxes and when I got up the shots in the butt were coming fast and furious. I started walking up the stairs for bed and made it about halfway before I had to put my hands on the steps to help myself up. By the time I reached the top I was crying from the pain. Not sobbing, but just my eyes leaking tears because it hurt so much.

I managed to sleep okay though, with only a couple episodes when I was rolling over. I'm trying to keep myself moving today, getting up every hour to walk around the office. I'm not doing too badly, but I've had a couple, umm, moments.

The good news is that our midwife appointment this morning went really well. I got some good advice about the sciatica and supplements and prenatal classes. My blood pressure was lower than it was last time, but still the "normal" range for me, which is high normal. We determined that their scale is wonky because my weight changed by at least 2 or 3 pounds every time we tried putting the scale in a different place on the floor. And I got to hear Bean's heartbeat again. Well, mostly I heard it kicking very insistently at the Doppler, like it was pissed that we were invading its space. Not just one kick, but multiple ones in a row. Apparently, Bean is nestled quite nicely in the middle of my uterus (which is also poking out nicely) and having a whale of a time. Nadine said that by the next appointment (middle of April) I will be able to feel the kicks. I think I'm going to be in for a very kicky, punchy pregnancy.... Hopefully yoga and homeopathic remedies will get the sciatica under control so I don't have to hobble about AND be kicked in the gut repeatedly. =D

Updates!

So the more observant of you will have notice 2 things:

1. Strawberries!!! I decided I needed something fresh and springy to chase away the blahs, so we're going back to Strawberry Blue Viking. And I found this awesome template with beautiful pictures of my favourite fruit. Really, it was a no brainer.

2. If you direct your gaze to the left side of the blog you'll notice a new widget. Can you guess?

Yup, that's right, Nathan and I are expecting our first baby. Most of you will already know this (everyone knows I can't keep secrets worth a darn), but I thought it was time to post about it. Our due date is September 4th, but the midwives tell me that might be wrong. Apparently I'm weird.

To start from the beginning, Nathan and I started officially trying to conceive this past September. Our grand plan was to get pregnant around the fall equinox and have the baby around the summer solstice. Well, of course that didn't work. =D Life events got in the way of our success (travel, colds, funerals, etc.). In December I was certain that nothing was going to happen because of the aforementioned circumstances, but I was okay with that because we had finally decided to get a dog. Yay for Ghost (more on her later)! We picked her up December 16th. December 23rd, Nathan suggested I go pee on a stick, just in case, so we'd know if I was okay to drink wine, port, rum, etc. over the Christmas holiday. Well, wouldn't you know it! I was completely shocked. I kept having to go back into the bathroom to look at the test. Like it would change or I read it wrong or something. The next day, I did another test, just to check because I still didn't believe it. Still preggers. So that ended up being a pretty nice Christmas gift to give our parents.

We've decided to go with midwife care for the pregnancy and managed to get in with the same people who deliver Heather and Brad's first baby a year and a half ago. It's a bit pricey, but more the style of care that we were after. As a bonus, as of April 1st midwifery services will be covered by the province. No one's sure quite how much or how it will work, but we won't end up having to pay the whole amount which is kind of nice. We're planning on having the baby at the midwives' birth centre that's on 16th Ave (west of North Hill Mall). We didn't really want to do a hospital and a home birth didn't really appeal either. This should be a happy medium.

I'm feeling pretty good, all told. I'm 15 weeks tomorrow, so I'm finally good and into the second trimester. I never had morning sickness. I was a bit queasy sometimes in the evening, but a licorice cigar cured that, and there was also a week or so where I couldn't eat meat, but other than that not much going on. I've had a couple of hormone dumps which have sent me off the deep end, but I'm pretty aware when they happen so I usually just end up laughing at myself while I'm sobbing and then I take a nap. I was really exhausted for my first trimester and there were a couple days where it was physically impossible to get out of bed. I've still only gained about 3.5 lbs so I'm right on track with what the midwives say I should be gaining.

In the past few days, I've really started to feel more like myself. I can focus on things, accomplish things at work without being convinced that I'm doing it wrong, and I don't feel nearly as tired. I also think I was a tad depressed in my first trimester, but just this past Monday I felt happy all over and like I could smile without forcing it. Must be second trimester bliss or something.

I still don't know if the hugeness of this has completely set in for me yet. Honestly, it's felt more like a university term project than a pregnancy. Fill out forms, get tests done, pay for things, eat this, don't eat that, take these pills, exercise this much and on and on. It's seemed very task oriented so far and I haven't had much time to sit and reflect. Even when we heard the heartbeat of the baby in February, it still didn't hit me. I think as things become more of a routine then I can start to put aside the term project aspect and focus more on the wonder of it all.

Anyway, that's the baby update. I'll probably post more often now with weird little pregnancy experiences or anecdotes or rants.

As for Ghost, she's the best dog EVER! She's doing very well in puppy class and we're working on her recall on an extend-a-leash so we can eventually take her off leash. She's doing pretty good and we carry the squeaker from one of her destroyed toys just in case she's reluctant to come when we call. It works great! She's definitely getting more comfortable with us and with other dogs. I think she's almost realized that she doesn't have to defend herself against every single dog that crosses her path. She's even ALMOST played! We'll get there. It's probably also due to the fact that she trusts us more and if we're not worried, she's not worried. She's definitely a teenager though (the shelter's guess was that she'd be 2 this spring). She challenges us sometimes and can be a bit bossy and stubborn, but overall is very willing to please and affectionate. We've been leaving her at home during the day and she does fine on her own for those 9 or 10 hours. We try to make sure to play with her and walk her a lot in the evenings, but it's been kind of hard with the weather being so cold and icky. It's not her that minds though, it's us! I swear she could care less if it was -30 or -3, but it makes a big difference to us! Now that it's lighter out at night and getting warmer, hopefully we can spend more time outside with her. I think she's starting to blow her coat already... lots of fur at our place, that's for sure!! I'll post a fun picture of her eating icicles when I'm on my own computer.

So there's the update! Now you know what's been up for the past few months...