22 May
I owe you all a birth story. The tentative title is, One Hell of a Bloody Show: A Birth Story. Yeah, I have your attention now, don’t I?
The past 8 days have been hectic, as expected.
Elena is perfect. She is such good baby and I feel so, so lucky.
Jim is so in love with her. Seeing this new side of him has been amazing.
And yes, I am sugarcoating the insanity of the first week of new motherhood. Don’t worry, I will refrain from doing the same when it comes to the birth story.
11 May
Check out my latest post with Your Tango’s Love Mom Blog!
I’m Not Nervous About Birth and Parenthood…But My Husband Is
My husband is more nervous about labor, delivery and parenting itself than I am.
8 May
*i know the title is missing an apostrophe. it’s ridiculous.
Today is a day that people honor the special moms in their life. This is my blog so I’m going to talk about my dogs : )
I have been receiving lots of Mother’s Day wishes because I will become a mother to a human baby any day now. However, I’m already a Momma to these two:
I don’t put silly clothes on them, place them in car seats or buy them gourmet doggie cupcakes. I know that they are dogs and I’m not completely insane. But, they’re my kids. I mother them. They are my world. And while many experienced fur-baby-moms-turned-human-moms like to tell me “once the baby is born, they become just dogs,” I refuse to believe that. How in the world could I forgot all of the joy JJ has brought me in the past 3 years? In just 9 months, Lu has made me laugh no less than 4 million times. She saved me from my summer of sadness and I still believe that it’s because of her arrival that I became pregnant again. I knew once we got a new puppy, we’d get another baby. That’s just how the world seems to work.
A few weeks ago Jim and I had them in the vet’s office. The tech asked if the baby we are expecting is our first. I replied “Yes.” Then, in unison, we said “Well, third.” It was ridiculously adorable, if I don’t say so myself.
Anyway, this Mother’s Day, while I look forward to my DREAM come true (aka, my baby), I celebrate the babies I already have. Because frankly, they’re the cutest.
3 May
We are full term! I had a bit of a scare last week when one of the midwives told me I was 2.75 cm dilated and very, very ripe! 80% effaced! She literally told me to hold her in one more week. And while I know now she was just speaking casually, it fa-reaked me out! I do not want a pre-term baby!
Now that we are 37 weeks today, I feel much better. Of course, I know that I can remain this way past 40 weeks, but I feel confident that I will not. Remember that today most women get a due date based on their ultrasounds, we are still going off of May 23rd, which is my last menstrual period date. My 1st u/s at 8 weeks put me at the 18th and my 2nd u/s at 19 weeks puts me at May 15th. So any day now really is a possibility!
If this were an acceptance speech, I’d have to thank myself for getting the education every woman should have when it comes to the most important thing she will ever do in her life. Read, read, read. If you don’t know what to read (please do not read What to Expect When You’re Expecting), check out Brittany’s Birth Reference page. Even if you know you want to birth in a hospital and get an epidural, know what happens, know your options, read about natural birth BEFORE you make that decision. Second, I would have to thank excellent care from my midwives. Lastly, I have to thank regular prenatal yoga. You shouldn’t be pregnant without yoga. When talking to my midwife today, she said she sees such a difference in laboring mothers when they practice yoga. The ability to let go is remarkable. And please, if you read back a few years, it is easy to see that this was NOT the Me I used to be.
I still get crazy and irrational, but when it comes to any aches and pains and worries about the baby, I can literally (yoga) breathe them away. The past few nights I have been experiencing a little practice contractions, not like Braxton Hicks, but more menstrual-like pains. I get on my left side, take deep, deep yogic breaths, and within minutes I am asleep. As crazy as it may sound, I do see myself being one of those moms who gets little sleep breaks during labor.
People who know me probably cannot imagine that I won’t be screaming my head off, but I take this baby business very, very seriously and I know it will be treated like nothing else in my life has been before.
So, there’s my update. How are all of you doing today? What are you looking forward in May?
*please note when we started taking pictures, I wanted to be in a white tank. Now none of them fit me. So just know that I don’t go out looking like a trailer park momma-to-be…it’s just for the photos! I do have one white maternity tank, but it’s MIA.
2 May
My latest post with Your Tango’s Love Mom blog is up. I’m talking openly (as in with a larger audience and not the 6 of you) about my miscarriage and how it affected my marriage. Deep.
How My Miscarriage Brought Us Closer Together
As the one year anniversary of the day we found out we were expecting our first child approaches, I can’t help but reflect upon my short pregnancy, miscarriage, and the painful summer that followed. Even as I sit here, five weeks away from my due date with the baby that was meant to be, the events of last year play over and over again in my mind…continue reading
29 Apr
because how could this not make you smile? a stunningly beautiful royal couple and the perpetually pissed off flower girl!
have a charming weekend, my princes & princesses.
25 Apr
My latest post with My Life Scoop is up and running! I’m so honored to be writing alongside some pretty amazing bloggers. I mean, my bio is on the same webpage as a bio of Dooce. Dooce!
7 Great Sites & Apps for Coffee Junkies
There are coffee lovers, and then there are connected coffee lovers. Which one are you? By the time you finish reading this, you should fall into the latter category. Connected coffee junkies go beyond a morning cup of joe or daily trip to Starbucks. They own the latest home brew gadgets, read the best coffee blogs, and have smart phones that are loaded with java related apps. Want to get there? Come along with me… just make sure you have a fresh cup nearby…continue reading
24 Apr
These photos were taken one year ago today. It’s safe to say that April 24, 2010 was the most joyous day of our life together. Sure, we were quite glee on our wedding day, but the day we found out we were finally expecting our first child – we were high as kites.
I was very impatient (no, me?) and tested 2 days before my missed period. Jim was taking a Praxis exam and he literally had minutes between coming home and heading back out to perform a show for an Earth Day Festival. He was coming to pick me up, so I text him to tell him that he had to come inside. I grabbed my camera and handed him the test.
Clearly, he was happy.
As for the rest of the 8 weeks that we knew we were pregnant, well, you know how that went. And then on a warm day in mid June, it was over.
But as type this, our little girl seems to be trying to escape from my uterus by way of my abdomen (You’re not coming out that way young lady), and I’m filled with gratitude. I will be 36 weeks pregnant tomorrow.
The happiness and excitement of April 24th could not compare to the emotions felt when we got our next positive test on September 12th. But so, so soon, we’ll have a new “most joyous day of our life” to speak of.
