Week 27 - I've Been A Busy Bee

I remember the days during this pregnancy when it felt like the morning sickness would never go away, the first trimester would never end, I would never make it to 24 weeks...  Now it feels like the third trimester kinda crept up on me.  Before too much longer I'll be graduating from "blognant" to the "mog-mom with a blog" section of this page.  It's truly amazing how quickly time is passing.  But then again, I've read about and seen on message boards where ladies are just wanting the baby to get here already because those last few weeks are miserable and taking forever.  So, we'll see how things change for me as the stretch continues.

What I've Been Up To

I have been incredibly busy this past week.  I finally finished the baby shower invites and got them all mailed out.  I have one more to hand deliver and the rest are up to my mom and sister to get out to their guests.  They turned out really cute.  I know I have a lot of pictures to get up for you guys.  I want to put up pictures of the invites, belly pics, pics of the nursery as it progresses and some book/product reviews too.  This just wasn't the week to do any of that.  I took care of the chores I do less often (steam clean the rugs, get my car serviced, the bug guy came, bleach out the sinks and disinfect and scrub all the toilets etc.) in addition to my regular load.  I've also had to stay on top of getting things ready for my in-laws to visit in a couple weeks.  I installed a Pur water filter on my sink, got a great breastfeeding book from the library and scheduled a 4D ultrasound as well. 

Somewhere within that whole mix, a girl I haven't seen since high school myspace messaged me that, if I was interested, she had a bunch of baby girl stuff she was getting rid of.  She already has 2 girls and is pregnant with a boy.  Whatever she couldn't give away she was just going to donate to charity.  So, we made a date and I went over expecting a bag or 2 of baby clothing.  Instead I found 2 huge totes of nearly new or new baby girl clothing along with blankets, towels, burp cloths etc.  I left with about a tote and a half's worth and an extra bouncy seat she had.  I couldn't believe her generosity.  Especially since we hadn't seen each other in almost 10 years now.  It was pretty amazing.

So it's been go go go for me.

How I'm Feeling Physically

The backaches are still there at night, especially if I've worked hard during the day.  My hands and feet swell at night as well.  They are slightly puffy during the day now, but you can really see a difference at night.  I was a little embarrassed because I don't get to see my feet very often any more and the other day I regretted not making more of an effort to take a close look.  I had officially started to grow what Napoleon Dynamite might refer to as "talons!"  It was quite a chore, but I took care of that pretty fast.  I just kept thinking about how it's been so hot lately and how my swollen feet make my shoes feel tight.  S0, I usually slip on some flip flops when I'm running quick errands.  I wonder how many people noticed the claws.  If I ever see a pregnant lady with not so cute toenails I can now feel her pain.  I think I'm actually going to schedule a pedicure with my little sister the month before my due date.  I know my toes will probably be at the bottom of my list of priorities once the baby gets here.  Plus I've had this gift card burning a hole in my pocket for a nice salon/spa since around Christmas.

The stretch mark fairy came this week.  Evil pixie that he is.  It's gotta be a guy.  I was examining my belly and noticed my first stretch mark.  I went to my husband just to be sure because he can get a lot closer to the under side of my belly than I can.  I asked him if it was really a stretch mark or just a dark vein.  He confirmed my suspicion; stretch mark.  I noticed the cream I was using before on my body contained parabens.  So, I've started using the stretch mark oil and lotion from erbabviva.  I bought this little sample kit of their pregnancy products a while back.  I don't really expect the stuff to prevent stretch marks or get rid of them.  I do totally believe it's mostly genetics that causes them.  But it feels good to be moisturized and paraben-free.  Once I run out of the little samples I'll probably buy some Burt's Bees baby lotion to use.  It'll give my dogs a chance to get use to the smells that'll most likely be around once the baby gets here.  Either that or I'll check out the Belli or Glowology maternity products I've been reading about in magazines.   

How I'm Feeling Mentally

I was feeling a bit crappy because my eating this week took a drastic turn downward.  I had fast food and frozen yogurt 2 days in a row and made some yummy chocolate cookies to top it off.  I feel better about it now though because after reading about the Blue Ribbon Baby pregnancy diet on a message board I decided to give it a try.  It looks like a pretty well-rounded diet.  No calorie counting or anything like that.  It's only been a couple days for me so far, but I'm finding it incredibly easy to follow.  At the end of the day I feel good knowing that, if all my little boxes are checked, I've given my baby the best possible nutrition I can.  I took the list of foods required daily and weekly and made little tables for each day of the week in Microsoft Word.  Then I printed out 13 copies; for the 13 weeks I have left.  I guess my only gripe is that I do really crave chocolate now.  Unfortunately Dr. Brewer didn't include a little box on his diet for a daily chocolate serving.  Oh well.  I figure I can just have chocolate milk for a milk serving if I want and maybe be naughty and do chocolate frozen yogurt for one every once in a while.   Once I'm on it a little longer and have more feedback, I'll put up a post with links to sample daily meals and the little check lists I made for myself. 

I'm excited about a couple of other things.  The baby shower for one.  I perused through my baby registry one last time before mailing out the invites.  I feel a little guilty about leaving the Cariboo Earth Bassinet on my Giggle.com registry, but it's the only all wood, 100% cotton, no-formaldehyde emission bassinet I can find.  It's just so pricey.  So are the Dwell baby products I put on the same registry.  I really like the prints on them though.  I figure most people will probably get us stuff from Baby's R Us anyways.  Giggle.com just has a lot of cute stuff I like.  So, I registered there too.  On of my sister-in-laws is coming to town for the occasion.  A friend I haven't seen in a couple years is coming with her girls.  My best girlfriend is also coming along with the girl who gave me all the baby girl stuff.  So, that's mostly why I'm excited; just to celebrate with old friends.  I'm happy that they are making such an effort to be there for me.

I get pretty down sometimes because, although I know they love me and are excited about my pregnancy, the ones I depend on the most for companionship and advice really haven't been here for me this whole time.  They either are busy with their own lives or are the ones scaring me to death or depressing me with worries I shouldn't have to carry right now.  So, I've had to rely more on my little online communities and women I don't usually reach out to, but whose opinions I truly value and whose advice I know I can trust; like my sister-in-law and my old friends.  It bothers me because I know I'm going to feel resentful when the people who I wish had been there for me during my pregnancy are all of a sudden trying to break down the door to see the baby.  I'm going to be dealing with those feelings as well as all the new mommy stuff.  I just keep thinking that this is a very special time for me (I'll only be pregnant with my first baby once), and the people I thought would be there for me through it are missing out.  It's unfortunate.  But on the other hand, at least I've found a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with friends that had kind of fallen along the wayside of my life.  I've also found a great online community of women/mothers who are just as thirsty for knowledge as I am and just as willing to share their experiences/recommendations/advice with me as I am with you.  

Overall, this has been a week of getting things done.  I feel good about the chores I've done and dietary changes I've made.  I'm also so greatful for the new relationships I've been able to build with old friends and online friends.  I'm excited to continue my journey through pregnancy and into mommyhood.