Eluned G. Sharron Bethea » December 2007 Journal Entries » AboutMyBaby - online baby scrapbooks, photo albums, videos, birth and pregnancy announcements

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Sun, Dec 30, 2007 4:00 PM
I'm one of the lucky ones. The tail end of my pregnancy has become a period of sleep and rest. I'm actually sleeping better and longer than I was even a couple of weeks ago.

For most of this pregnancy hunger has woken me up by 8 or so, often earlier, and then I wake Will up to make me breakfast. As things progressed, of course, I started getting up more and more often at night. And I've had more than a few nights when I had eat again in the middle of the night, or when I was just wide awake for no reason.

But for a little over a week now, I've been able to sleep in again, and I don't wake up starving, so I let Will sleep in too. (For which he is very thankful.) I'm not waking up as often at night. During the day, I'm getting a lot of rest, and I even take naps. (And I never used to nap in the daytime.)

Will and I are enjoying this new phase, as we are well aware we're about to begin an experiment in sleep deprivation.

I'd also been wondering if and when this "nesting" thing was going to kick in. I've had no urge to, say, clean my baseboards with a toothbrush. (As a dear friend of mine did, and despite the fact that they kinda need it.) Come to find out yesterday that this extra energy and general well-being I'm feeling IS "nesting" -- we have a cultural idea of women channeling it into cleaning and baby prep. But we're as ready for the baby as we can reasonably get, and I'm simply not going to get my house to the state I'd like before she gets here. So I'm just enjoying feeling better.

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Fri, Dec 28, 2007 9:00 AM
I am on leave as of today. It's really weird. I've left jobs before, but I've never left temporarily. And I've never had a break that's so open-ended.

I spent months getting everyone ready, transitioning projects and the day-to-day stuff. I divvied my responsibilities up between a number of people, and for the most part everyone was really supportive and enthusiastic about taking on a piece while I'm out. So I feel really good about all of that; I have full confidence in the people who are taking care of things for me.

But for the last few days, I've been cleaning out my desk and arranging things (out of office messages, etc.), and that's been strange. When I leave for good, I can just throw everything in a box and deal with it later. This kind of leaving means preparing everything for the way I want to come back to it in April -- deciding what to toss, what to take home, what to leave, and where.

Then there's me: I'm the type who's almost always busy with something. If I had 3 months off just to myself, I could already tell you how I'd spend it (clean my garage, take up knitting again, read these books, etc.). It has taken a concerted effort to NOT come up with a to-do list for this leave.

Now that it looks like the baby may come sooner rather than later -- which is all good -- I can't even make plans more than a day or two out. So far my agenda includes tending my plants and finishing packing for the hospital. And that's it.

It's just all very strange and different for me.

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Wed, Dec 26, 2007 9:00 PM
Ok, now I'm excited. Without going into detail*, I took a conclusive step today towards having this baby.

Coincidentally, I had an appointment this morning with Dr. Sikking's doctor (who is filling in during Dr. Sikking's vacation), and she said she expects me to have the baby within the week.

I feel good -- really, really good -- better than I have in a few weeks now. I feel alive and energized, and ready to do this.

* After all, the details of labor and childbirth are icky, discomfiting, or both.

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Sun, Dec 23, 2007 6:00 PM
There's an older gentleman who goes out for a walk on my street almost every day, right around the time I usually leave for work. He's quite friendly, so we started exchanging pleasantries as we passed in the morning.

When I got pregnant, the fatigue and then nausea made me start leaving a little later. When I did see him, he'd tease me for being late. So I told him I was pregnant.

Turns out, he's a retired Ob/Gyn. Since then, he's taken a real interest in the baby, and asks me how she's doing every time I see him.

This has also given me a peek at obstetric care before we had ultrasounds and all the tests that are available now. For one thing, my friend invariably refers to my doctor as "he." One time he asked me if my doctor had restricted my diet yet, to low-sodium and to cut out simple carbs.

He's concerned that I'm still driving. Actually, I don't think that's old-fashioned. My commute is getting harder and harder on me. And of course, I get closer to the steering wheel by the week. So I think he has a point about the driving.

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Sat, Dec 22, 2007 8:00 PM
The website's having technical difficulties again; don't tell Dr. Sikking.

I broke my pound-a-week record two visits ago. At the visit before last, I'd only gained half a pound -- and at this last visit I'd lost it again! I'm not supposed to be losing weight! (Am I?) However, at the most recent visit, I had to peer around my own belly to read the scale. That was the first time that I've been so big I couldn't see the scale. As long as she's growing, I don't mind a bit if I'm losing a little weight already. And Dr. Sikking tells me she is, that we're right on track.

Also, my GBS test was negative. So I won't need antibiotics.

Comments:
Nana: Seems to me that every pregnancy is unique and weight gain/loss is part of that. As you noted, what's important is that she is growing and that the doctor is satisfied.

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Thu, Dec 20, 2007 10:00 PM
I have been working waaay too freakin' hard for someone who starts maternity leave in a week and a half. I did a pretty good job of parceling out most of my responsibilities. But I'm trying to hire a new developer before I go, and then on Tues. the website had "technical difficulties;" we're still dealing with the aftermath.

Dr. Sikking says there are to be no more technical difficulties with the website. Doctor's orders. I wish.

The upshot of all this is, last night I started having contractions. Real, strong, regular contractions. They did go away, sometime during the night. But I either need to ease up, or pack a bag for the hospital. Both, I guess.

So today I slept in, went in late, and then ended my day with a prenatal massage at the company spa. If I'd known a prenatal massage would make me feel this much better, I'd have started them months ago.

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Sun, Dec 16, 2007 9:00 PM
This weekend I finally got to be one of the pregnant ladies at Ikea. I love Ikea, probably a little too much, but for the last few years I've had some challenging moments there as I watched happy pregnant couples shop for cribs and whatnot. Well, this weekend was our turn.

Ikea has great stuff for kids, and at very reasonable prices, but we went for a dresser. I picked out this dresser months ago, but I've had a terrible time getting it. We finally drove past two separate Ikeas nearby to a third one in a different county, where they had it in stock. We also picked up a nice baby bathtub at a ridiculously good price, a padded, wipe-clean changing pad, and a set of stacking cups. And Will found a rug he just loves (also at a great price), so we bought that and tucked it away for the next phase of our daughter's space.

Anyway, another place where I saw, sometimes, too many pregnant women was our old farmer's market. We haven't found a new farmer's market since we've been in our new house. But back at my family baby shower, I went with my parents to theirs. And once again, I finally got to be the pregnant lady at the farmer's market.

I had a very different experience shopping for some necessities at Big Lots, Target and Babies'R'Us. I've posted the pictures of my new haircut. Well, we went shopping in a different neighborhood than we would usually frequent (but it had all the stores we wanted together). No one said anything, but I caught on pretty quickly that I was getting some very strange looks. Apparently some folks didn't quite know what to make of me.

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Sat, Dec 15, 2007 11:00 AM
Wow. All y'all owe my parents a big "thank you." Our Christmas present -- which they insisted we open early -- is a camcorder. So next year when we post video clips of the baby, you can thank my parents.

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Thu, Dec 13, 2007 9:00 PM
It took her 9 months, but she finally reached my ribs today. With her foot.

I'm about done. I have a few more things I need to do at home, and a few more things at work. But I'm tired all the time. I'm having trouble breathing, moving, sleeping ... I'm about ready to do this.

She's still quite active, which is reassuring. She doesn't quite have the freedom to move around that she once did, but there's a lot of squirming and hiccuping. And every once in a while, she gets in a couple of really good jabs, like a kickboxer.

I asked in our Childbirth Preparation class about her fondness for playing hide-and-go-seek with the Doppler monitor (which, apparently, runs in the family). The instructor said that if they can't get a reliable heartbeat during labor, they'll use internal monitoring. Not my first choice, but I think I can work with that. And maybe she'll cooperate.

She clearly favors my left side. She'll just park herself over there and hang out. No one but me could ever tell, but my belly is actually ever so slightly lopsided -- bigger on the left -- and my belly button is off-center.

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Nana: Nature has its way of getting you ready to

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Tue, Dec 11, 2007 9:00 PM
So, don't tell my husband this ...

See, nearly every morning since my first trimester, Will has gotten up early with me and made me a nice, healthy breakfast. Even on weekends, hunger wakes me up -- I don't think I've slept past 8 more than a handful of times this whole pregnancy -- and I wake Will up to make me food.

And I'm getting bored. Heartburn (and a few other factors) is steadily shrinking the list of foods I can eat, and I'm starting to get really tired of the foods that are left.

So one morning recently, Will made me my usual nutritious, heartburn-safe breakfast of herbal tea and a multi-grain roll with peanut butter, to take in to work with me.

And I just couldn't do it again. I stopped at Starbuck's on the way in to work for a (decaf) coffee and a breakfast pastry. I tossed the multi-grain roll and poured the tea out on the grass.

Do you think the hospital will let me have a Guinness and/or a pot of real coffee after delivery?

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Sun, Dec 9, 2007 6:00 PM
Our final class was Infant Safety & CPR. We took this one at the hospital we liked near our house, too, but this time the instructors were from a local baby-proofing company, not hospital employees. They had plenty of business cards, and they made sure to get everyone's contact info -- so they can remind us to take Child CPR next year, of course.

The instructors were really funny. They opened the class by telling us it used to be called "Infant Safety & CPR," but is now known as the "Britney Safety" class. Ok, maybe you had to be there, but it was funny at the time.

I didn't realize when we signed up, but Infant Safety was a big part of the class. They started with a whole presentation on baby-proofing and general safety issues. The slide show pointed out some areas that I'd never thought of: how wide is safe to open our windows, and all the electrical cords that just dangle around our house right now. So that was really useful; I just hope I remember enough of it when we start baby-proofing next year.

One instructor also touched on pets and kids. He said the last thing he'd want to be is a pet in a home with small children. He told an anecdotal story about his own beloved dog and his son, which ended with, "So if something happens, it wasn't the animal's fault. It was your own rotten child."

The middle part of the class was Infant CPR. They had a video for this, which walked us through all of the steps. But this is where the instructors were really helpful. They told us not to get hung up on 5 of this, 30 of that ... They stressed that what we were really doing was blowing fresh air into the lungs and then compressing the heart to move oxygen to the brain. "Pump and blow," they said repeatedly.

The final part of the class dealt with choking. The steps are nearly identical to regular CPR (except that we check the airway before blowing), so this segment doubled as extra CPR practice.

Quite a few of the students were grandparents-to-be, taking the class with their grown children.

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Sat, Dec 8, 2007 5:00 PM
Yesterday was our 36-week appointment. Dr. Sikking tested me for Group B strep (if I test positive, they'll give me antibotics during labor) and did an ultrasound to check the baby's progress. Will joined me for this appointment.

Dr. Sikking estimates the baby is now 5 pounds 8 ounces. Apparently this is a little on the small side, but I think she's the perfect size. At this point, babies gain an average of 8 ounces a week. So if I have the baby near my due date (which seems likely), she's on track to be right around 7 pounds 8 ounces -- big enough to be nice and healthy, but still small enough that I don't have to worry.

Equally important, the baby is now head down.

Today we went to Target and Babies'R'Us and got a whole bunch of little things we still needed: towels, receiving blankets, diapers, baby Tylenol, a new digital thermometer, saline drops, etc. Will seemed pretty charmed by Boudreaux's Butt Paste, so we'll start with that brand of diaper cream.

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Wed, Dec 5, 2007 1:00 PM
9 months pregnant is ... wishing they'd put benches at the corners underneath stoplights so I could sit down while waiting for the signal to cross.

9 months pregnant is ... getting up in the morning, taking a shower and getting ready for work, and then needing to sit down again, maybe take a short nap before I actually leave.

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Mon, Dec 3, 2007 8:00 PM
My boss/mentor, Valerie, along with our newest developer, Sara, and the rest of my department, threw me another baby shower. (A few weeks ago; I'm behind again.)

It was really nice. We took over the biggest conference room, and Valerie and Sara decorated it with all kinds of balloons and confetti. And (good idea; anyone planning a baby shower, take note) instead of regular table decorations, Valerie put a beautiful basket on each table with a few little useful items in each (baby shampoo, baby oil, etc.).

Valerie brought in lunch for everyone, and Sara found just the most beautiful cake: it was decorated with white chocolate and fresh flowers.

Besides the IT department, Valerie invited my business partners, the Web Marketing team, and HR. Everyone was very generous, and Will and I really appreciate all the gifts. The IT department got us the complete car seat and stroller set up that we wanted. Web Marketing got us our playpen and bouncy chair. And HR got us our diaper pail.

We spoiled the guys a little. They mostly hung out and played poker while we talked. I think we've ruined them for future baby showers.

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Melissa: I miss all the good stuff! I am so glad that everyone came together to celebrate for you! I am just sorry I wasn't there!

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