Shaving......The Final Frontier

Never have I thought that something as simple as shaving could become such a complex undertaking. Now that my legs have seemed to permanently come to resemble those of an elephant, I have found that shaving requires a careful balance between careful precision and sheer dumb luck.

Why dumb luck? Because even though I think I have gone over a spot (usually the back of my ankles) for what has to be at least 10 times, I am still utterly baffled by the fact that I MISSED an entire 2 by 2 -inch patch. And we're not talking "oh, I have a little stubble, I'll get it next time", we're talking about what seems to be WEEKS worth of growth.

HOW CAN THAT BE?????????

I know that bending at the waist has been close to impossible lately. I'm lucky I can shave my knees, let alone anything below them. But I have been so careful to feel my way around, making sure the razor doesn't catch in any of the lovely folds of skin that cover my ankles. It doesn't feel like I've missed anything, but then when I happen to glance down after I've gotten out of the shower and am half dressed there it is - the hairy monster.

So what's a girl to do? Waxing? Not an option. Nair? Never could use it before I was pregnant, so no point now. I guess the only thing that's left is to suck it up and deal and hope that by the time I get to take a shower after Munchkin is born, my legs will be somewhat back to normal, bending at the waist isn't too uncomfortable, and I can finally pulverize the nasty hairy monster.

One can only hope.

3rd Trimester fun

Photo taken on Easter Sunday, March 23, 2008
28 wks, 4 days

So, I am definitely in my 3rd trimester. This experience has definitely gone a lot quicker than I had ever imagined. Back when all this started, this point in my pregnancy seemed so far away, just a speck on the calendar.

I a little over 10 weeks or so, I will be a mother.

A daunting task. So many questions. Will I do things right? Will I be too overprotective? Will I choose the right pediatrician? Have I done something that would affect his development drastically?

Then the other not-so-harmful questions:
Will he have my eyes?
Jay's nose?
My patience?
Jay's obsession with sports?
My teeth?
Jay's smile?

I like to think about those questions better. From what I've seen, parenthood is a constant, eternal learning process. I'm going to make mistakes, make some good choices, second-guess every decision. I can only hope that my son will grow to be a happy, healthy, intelligent, kind-hearted person.

Here's goes nothin'.

In Memorium....

Today, I sadly must admit one cruel fact about pregnancy: I am swollen. I knew it was coming - my feet have not been able to fit into a pair of shoes in over a month - but I never thought the most horrible of things would happen.

I can no longer wear my wedding rings.

Tragic, but true. As of a week ago, this is the best I could do:

I have high hopes that it won't be long after Munchkin makes his appearance that I will be able to wear them again. But, still, I try each morning to see if they will go any farther past my knuckle. Vain attempts, I know. But I can only wish.

** On Tuesday, March 4, 2008, Jay and I decided on the name for our son. It will be announced to the world upon his arrival in June. Yay!

The prediction says....

OK, so I had been hearing about this Madame Zaritzka thing on the web. You answer a few questions, you get a prediction of how your birth experience will be. Here is my prediction:

Madame Zaritska's reading

Madame Zaritska, our resident clairvoyant, wants to help you prepare for the arrival of your child. Here she does her best to predict certain aspects of your labor and birth experience.
What she senses for you:

The day you deliver, outside will be cloudy. Your baby will arrive in wee hours of the morning .

After a labor lasting approximately 3 hours, your child, a boy, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 5 pounds, 7 ounces, and will be 19 inches long. This child will have dark brown eyes and a little patch of brown hair.

But there is more. It is perfectly healthy and normal to want to look good, even during these interesting months! I sense you feel a little reluctant. Well, you're not being silly or shallow -- you're taking care of yourself. And I am happy that you are. Here is some fashionable advice for you to peruse at this special time.

Well, not too thrilled with the baby's weight, but I can handle the 3 hours of labor. Guess we'll know in 14 weeks!

It's a....

BOY!!!

I admit, for a while I was kind of hoping for a girl, but for some reason I always had this feeling that we were having a boy.

There was no denying it - although he was playing hide and seek for a while, he finally let it all hang out.

I had fun calling my family and close friends to tell them the news, but wow, was I exhausted when I was done!

Now on to the best part - REGISTERING!!!! Although just like when we registered for our wedding, I'm going to have to break Jay in gently. I have the feeling he'll be tired before I am. Poor boy.

And I have finally caved and had a picture taken of me. It was taken today at 21 weeks, 1 day. Ugh. I am not a pretty pregnant lady. Granted, I didn't exactly primp first, but still, I ain't pretty.

Dear Munchkin,

You and I have been together now for almost 2o weeks. In that time, I never thought I could experience as many emotions as I have.

First of all, I was extremely happy and relieved to see you bouncing all over the place last week at our scary ultrasound. When the doctor said there was nothing abnormal, I felt a little bit of hope. Although I couldn't see as much that day as your daddy did, it warmed my heart to see you do that little baby dance. Already I know you are too cute for your own good!

Frustration. Never have I felt so much frustration. Never I have I wanted to meet someone so much in my life. It drives me crazy knowing that I still have to wait another 20 weeks.

Do you know that you hurt? And that you already know how to hit a nerve? Granted, I know those swipes you take at me are random, but do you think you could make it a little more random so that I'm not completely sore and walking with a limp at the end of every day?

Most of all, I have never thought I could love someone as much as I love you. Yes, I love your daddy with every part of me, but I know there will be a place in my heart that will always belong to you. You have become more precious to me in these few short weeks than I could ever imagine.

And yes, even when you're 40 and have kids of your own, I'll still call you Munchkin. You're stuck with it. Call it a mother's prerogative.

P.S. Do you think you could open your legs nice and wide for me and daddy next week so we can see what you are? Let's say it will help you with the whole 'Munchkin' thing.

The good, the bad, and the scary

OK. I realize that it has been a very long time since I've written anything. I'd like to say that things have gone without a hitch, but I'm finding out that the hysterics of parenthood start long before the munchkin makes his or her first appearance into the world.

First off, let's talk about the good. I have, for the most part, felt very good. I sailed through the "bad period" without so much as a thought of nausea. Other than an incident with food poisoning, and a weird indigestion thing, I have been able to keep everything going in its normal direction. My nose continues to be a completely different beast. Although, congestion has improved greatly since starting my new job (which has been going quite well, thank you), I still get bouts of stuffiness (like right at this particular minute - my nose has now become something of a barometer. We're getting more snow = complete nasal blockage).

So, that's good.

Now, the bad. I have found that I hate clothes shopping. With great intensity. If I could just wave a magic wand and have all of my pre-pregnancy clothes suddenly grow an elastic waste band, I would. I don't know what goes through the minds of maternity clothes manufacturers. They all (OK, maybe not all, but definitely those that are moderately priced) seem to think that as soon as you conceive, all sense of good taste goes right out the window. They must think that since you are pregnant, you will suddenly want to go from your usual low-key, understatedly elegant style, to the overwhelming urge to wear garish pastels and poofy sleeves. And don't get me started on actually trying everything on...

And unfortunately, I have to talk about the scary. I got the phone call that I never thought I'd get. I had my quad screen the day after Christmas. Didn't think much of it. Had my 16-week appointment - everything seemed great. Doctor was happy with the heart rate (160), and that I wasn't experiencing any cramping or bleeding. Then 3 days later, I get the call. The screening results were back - a 1 in 29 chance that my baby might have Downs. After hearing that word, it seemed as though my mind shut down and started racing at the same time. I've been through enough statistics classes to know that 1 in 29 is only pretty when you're playing the lottery, and even then, your chances aren't great. Needless to say, Jay and I were plunged into a state of fear and foreboding that we never expected. I spent the rest of the evening bursting into tears at random moments (thankfully my scrapbooking friends are extremely supportive and understanding, and I am deeply appreciative that Jay shoved me out the door to be with them). Jay spent much of the night on the internet trying to get as much information as he could to try to understand what was happening.

In a nutshell, we are very hopeful that we will be part of the 98% false-positive rate. Even with all the hopeful information we've received from internet reports in addition to all of the positive outcomes we learned of from people we know, we are still very much on edge.

So now, we just have to wait for the Level II ultrasound appointment on Tuesday. Two more days. We had come to a somewhat fabricated sense of normalcy between Monday and now - I say that because I know the situation is still at the forefront of both of our minds. But now that we have an appointment, the next two days will seem like an eternity.

Here's hoping that there really is power in positive thought.