So basically, you know, like Winnie the Pooh. I even have a tummy like him.
37 weeks pregnant
These past two weeks have been crazy busy, with two nights of parent/guardian-teacher conferences, the writing graduation demonstration exam (which is a three day test), the reading graduation demonstration exam (which ALL my students took and I had to get ready for), IEP and district meetings, homecoming, finishing up baby classes, meeting with my long term sub for maternity leave and everything else.
The end of first quarter is next Friday, and then it’s fall break, after which I start my maternity leave. So needless to say I’m getting antsy, because once I’m done with next Friday I basically have seven weeks off for maternity leave. This will literally be the first time I’ve had off from any sort of work or school since…you know, I honestly don’t know. I’ve had at least one job of some sort ever since my senior year of high school, so that means the last time I haven’t had at least a job and/or class was when I was 16—the summer before my Junior year of high school. That’s weird. The other day I went and got a book to read while I’m on leave: The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver. I’ve wanted to read it since it came out because it’s about Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo—and Frida is one of my favorite artists. I also really enjoy Kingsolver’s work, ever since I read The Poisonwood Bible however many years ago.
I finally got around to making some playlists for the hospital/labor. I ended up making three different ones because I of course don’t really know what mood I’m going to be in. All the baby books and such suggest having calm music to play while you’re in labor, so I made a playlist for that.
Fall in a River—Badly Drawn Boy
Fast as I Can—Erin McKeowen
Landing Gear—Ani DiFranco
Whiter Shade of Pale—Annie Lennox
Shadowboxer—Fiona Apple
Hold on Love—Azure Ray
Nothing I Can Do—Ben Taylor
Come On, Come Out—A Fine Frenzy
Anticipation—Carly Simon
However, I think that in some ways calm music (combined with the fact that I’m in a hospital) might give me the feeling that I’m sick, which isn’t really the mindset I want to be in. If anything, I’d think I’d want to feel strong and pumped up, like I do when I’m running (not that I’ve done any running in quite a while) so I made a “Work It Out Style” playlist as well.
(a sampling from) Having a Baby—Work it Out Style
B.O.B.—Outkast
Mercy—Duffy
Clumsy—Fergie
Beyonce, just, lots of Beyonce
Sari—Nellie McKay
Paper Planes—MIA
Stronger—Kanye West
Hip Hop is Dead—Nas
And then some more Beyonce.
Finally, I also made a playlist called “And Baby Makes Three”. This is a list of songs that I imagine listening to with Aaron and Michael as we hang out together that first day or so in the hospital and the first week at home with each other.
(a sampling from) And Baby Makes Three
What is Life—George Harrison
Tangled Up in Blue—Bob Dylan
Splendid Isolation—Pete Yorn
The Stoop—Little Jackie
Mushaboom—Fiest
American Land—Bruce Springsteen
Three is a Magic Number—Blind Melon
Here for You—Neil Young
Beautiful Boy—John Lennon
Again, all three of these are a very small sample as each playlist is at least 50 songs long.
Today I had an appointment with my midwife, and everything is still going well. My blood pressure is good, and this time she also checked my hemoglobin level, which she said was also where it should be. I also got tested for strep b today, and I’ll find out the results of that next week. Basically if it ends up I do have it I just have to take some antibiotics. Apparently it’s something that doesn’t really cause problems in adults and most people never even know they have it, but it can be dangerous if passed on to the baby. So we’ll find out about that next week. Oh and in weight gain I’m up to 43 pounds. Oh. My. God.
Michael has moved down lower (which I can tell), so he’s getting in position for popping his little head into the world, but right now he’s facing out instead of facing my back, which is the easier position for delivery, so I’m supposed to try a couple different things to get him to turn around. Otherwise he’s being a very good little boy. In another new development, he gets the hiccups almost every day. In fact, he has them right now as I’m typing this, haha.
In other news, this past Sunday was Aaron and I’s first wedding anniversary, and our fifth anniversary of being together. We went out to diner and ate the top layer of our wedding cake (which still tasted surprisingly good).
This has been quite a surprising first year of marriage, but in a good way of course. I am glad that Peanut stayed in long enough for us to celebrate our first anniversary sans baby though. Much as I love him I did want at least one anniversary to be just the two of us.
Five years ago when Aaron and I first started dating I honestly wouldn’t have been too shocked if someone had told me that we were going to end up married with kids (though I would have been surprised to learn how soon we would have our first baby). Aaron and I went on our first pseudo-blind date to a movie in September of 2005 and we’ve basically been together ever since that first time meeting each other. For someone who was so terrified of commitment and being tied to someone (especially a man) that I would pretty much intentionally sabotage any sort of relationship I got into, that fear certainly (and quickly) disappeared with Aaron. He really is the best friend and partner in crime I could ever have, and I'm so excited to have another little member of our family to love.
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