"Week 32: Squirming, Pushing, Growing

This week your baby weighs almost four pounds and could be up to 19 inches long. And though that's a head-to-toe length, your baby is actually back to a curled-up position (you try standing up in those cramped quarters!). You're likely feeling tapping and squirming instead of your baby's signature rocking and rolling. That's because, while comfy, your baby is a bit tight for exercise space right now."

That's the news for this week. I feel like Finny is taking up all 19 inches from the very bottom of my left hip bone (sometimes it feels like he's in my leg) to the very top right of my uterus, just above the bottom of my freefloating ribs. If he's in a ball, he's already too long for his newborn onesies... holy cow. Either that or there's two in there... I still haven't ruled that out, especially as my formerly forward belly begins to widen.

Meanwhile we're in a cleaning frenzy. I should say Mark is in a cleaning frenzy and I'm just trying to stay out of his way, running errands to buy storage tubs, and stuff like that. He is really making good progress. I also signed up for my breastfeeding workshop next weekend (poor Mark - so many classes for us this month!). Of course, as I've been told by dozens of friends, learn as much as you can ahead of time.

I'm getting excited to have Finny in my arms and to start to get my body back. Especially now that we have NHL Center Ice package, watching hockey just gets more and more irritating. I saw some Leafs do some great movies tonight that we practiced a lot at West LA College, and while I could never do them in a game, seeing them done by pros is inspiring (and reminds me of Igor, my favorite coach).

Hospital's a Go!

Mark and I had a tour of the hospital this weekend. Someone from my yoga classes was also there with her husband, and a lot of other people of various ages (mostly over or near 30 I'd guess) and races, mixed couples, etc.

The hospital is very modern, clean, and interesting. The delivery rooms are large (two have labor tubs) and private, though the post-partum / recovery rooms are much smaller. I don't know where they're going to put Mark's cot, but they're very good about allowing the husband or second caregiver to stay with the mother.

The baby stays in the room with the mother at all times unless there is a medical need to take him to the nursery. There are two large operating rooms for emergency c-sections. They allow up to four people in the delivery room (father, grandmother, acupuncturist, and first cousin, for example) but I'm sure my doctor will have some say about it and it would be quite tight with four. Also they have DVD players and stuff in the delivery room so I can try to kick back while surrendering to my body.

In yoga class on Saturday a sub instructor told us all about her labor (she had brought her 5-mo-old to class, what a happy little cutie!) and breathing and reaffirmed 1. you don't need drugs, 2. you don't even need to be in a hospital (hers was more or less an accidental home birth, as she had planned to go to the hospital to deliver), and 3. it's going to be hard work so don't bother cleaning the house during labor - get rest while you can!

Now I'm actually becoming more worried about what happens when the baby comes - like, how to nurse, and how to get sleep, and oh no I need nursing pajamas and nursing clothes, and probably some new underwear since I've destroyed most of mine by cutting the top elastic. I feel pretty good about having what I need for the baby, but I have no idea what I need for myself! Who thinks of oneself when one is expecting a little person to pop out soon?

The walrus, kookookachoo

Man I feel perpetually bloated. Here in week 30 I believe I haven't had a moment's break from the constant pressure. This is more or less what I expected pregnancy to feel like - a pushing from within, and a little stretching from without.

Gummi is pretty darn active. A lady today (who has three daughters) told me that a nurse told her that when the baby moves it's sleeping, and when it's awake it's still, listening and observing all around it. I'm not so sure. Gummi was doing some sushi rolls last night on the sofa, and I don't think "turning over in your sleep" describes it adequately.

There are times when it's a repetitious flutter, like his little bicycle kicks, and I can see that being a little REM activity - especially when accompanied by the trombone playing on the other side of my stomach. If there's a rhythm to it, it could be sleep-induced, I suppose. But there are times when using my bladder as a trampoline or his umbilical cord as a jump rope are just impossible to think of as an activity possible during unconsciousness.

Of course, I can only imagine what is going on in there. That perpetually sleepy eating machine that is going to come out seems like a far cry from the clearly intelligent, conscious, deliberate person I envision in there. It's like the caterpillar, conscious and alive in his own way and every bit an independent organism, and after "passing through" the birth stage he becomes a butterfly, a totally different and equally independent organism entirely unlike his former self.

Okay, funny pictures!

The famiglia... "Omi", Auntie Kathy, Me, Mark
at Nun's to eat lunch & pick up the cake & meatsicles.
Thanks, Scott!!! La-la is taking the picture.
Why am I the funniest looking in the pic???

Santa's Helpers... Samantha "Mini-Goon" on the right,
and "You bet you pronounce Fintan L-A-U-R-A"
(whose b-day is also our due-date)
* Home-made Leafs blanket courtesy of Sunshine Annie *
I chose this picture because it covers my fatness.

Our loyal fans: Sunshine Annie picking her nose,
Suey aka Pig looking like she's about to keel over,
Shane & Becca in the back, trying to look inconspicuous,
Brian "Boyote" and Jenny "Binky" up front,
carrying Finny's future girlfriend, Aisling...
and Opa blowing out Kathy's flash :)

Co-ed Showers are Really Fun!
Look what good sports the boyz were being!
Gorgeous pool & use of bar & house courtesy of
the Rosquis (not pictured): Pam, Yohn, Tommy, & Sammi

Mark was especially a riot!
"Just give me the cup!" (he cheated at every game)
Sarah and Bob baked us some no-sugar cakes, too!

Our beautiful cake! And boy was it TASTY!!!
So rich even I could barely eat it.
Dark chocolate cake with a tangy fruit & caramel layer.
MMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!
(Don't tell Dr. Porter)

...more pics to come...

April Showers Bring May Flowers

Okay, no flowers. Balloons!

Here are some photos from the shower yesterday. It was pretty fun - or at least pretty funny. Mark got a bit inebriated, saw Becca whom I haven't seen since high school, lots of our good friends there, much love to go around. Cake was so rich even I had trouble eating a lot of it. Plenty of food and booze. Lala did great with the games; the decorations were perfect; prizes to the winners; a great team effort. But of course, that's what it should be in my life, it's all about team!

Thanks to everyone who came, wanted to come, tried to come a day early (haha), and so on - I love you all! Here's a loot list for those who are wondering:

Diaper Genie
Breast pump
Vibrating bouncy chair thingy
Lots of amazingly cute clothes
Washcloths, onesies, hoodie towels
A hockey blanket (Maple Leaf on the other side)
Papoose carrier thing
Backpack diaper bag
My brest friend breastfeeding pillow
Snoopy diaper & bottle bags
Lots of darling little baby toys, chew rings, etc.

MAN I CAN'T WAIT!!! :)

Okay pictures in next post.

The Forecast: Rain

After a week of arriving at work at 6:30 a.m. every day (amazingly enough, I can actually wake up and be alive at that time now), and having set off the company alarm once, and having a 6:45 a.m. total hard drive failure at work with no IT help due in for 2 hours, and launching a $1.1 million web site next week, and having put my other baby and snuggle buddy (Roscoe) to sleep ............ I am really looking forward to my shower.

I feel kind of excited, like bridging into a new world. Lots of Mark's friends will be there, which is good, because I don't want him to think this is just a girl thing. We're in it together. So he'll have to suffer a little bit, get drunk, listen to real dad advice (RDA), and put up with being one of the centers of attention for a while. I hope this puts a little reality check into both of us (no hockey pun intended).

As for me, I'm excited to be having a party of any kind. I never have birthday parties, or Christmas parties, or any kind of parties. Okay once I did have that Lord of the Rings party before the third movie, and that was fun, but it was kind of mellow watching 7 hours of movies on a 46" TV.

I'll let you know how it goes - should be fun - and if you aren't coming, we'll just party like it's 1999.