L&D

So I've been having the normal Braxton Hicks/prelabor things going on lately, but Thursday was kind of wild. I had "practice" contractions Wednesday night and into Thursday morning, and by Thursday afternoon they were coming fast with some slight, ignorable pain. What concerned me was that I thought that false labor contractions were not supposed to have a measurable pattern, and these definitely did. Perhaps it was the fact that I hadn't had much sleep for three nights or that I had been eating terribly unhealthy foods for a couple of days, but the light pain coupled with 5-minutes-apart contractions was enough to make me call the OB's office. They told me to go to labor and delivery, so my friend Amber took me since I was still at work. Now that's a true friend! By the time I got there and got in the bed and all hooked up to monitors, the contractions had slowed considerably and I only had 1 or 2 during the hour I was there. The nurse who checked me said "the baby is happy in there and we want to keep her in there for another couple of weeks." That sounded good to me, considering I hadn't graded the midterms or finished preparing for my sub yet and Andrew needs a good break. The whole event was slightly embarrassing, but apparently it happens all the time. I won't make that mistake again. It will probably be a different mistake next time. Pregnancy is more complicated than I could ever have imagined.

Fascinating

At Monday's appointment I found out that I am 2.5 cm dialated, the baby is very low, and the cervix is thinning. While this information is interesting, it apparently doesn't mean much. Babby could be here tomorrow or, more likely, in three weeks as scheduled. Braxton Hicks contractions are a regular event and are kind of fun for now. I know the real ones won't be as fun!

Major progress

Yesterday we did some major work on the baby's room. Andrew and his dad removed all the exercise equipment and cleaned out the closet. I washed all the clothes and linens and put them in place, Andrew's mom did some major work in getting things generally clean, and we went shopping for all the things we needed for the projects like new curtains, mini-blinds, crib repair, lightbulb changing, and mobile setup. I even exchanged some duplicate gifts for a totally awesome gym mat. But how did I spend over $100 on laundry baskets, hardware, curtains, and batteries?

Lena the sphynx is not sure what's happening. The baby's room was her room when we first got her, before we let her have the run of the house. She hasn't been allowed in there for a couple of years now, so I'm not sure she remembers it, but she has been acting agitated with all the comings and goings around here, running all over the house, getting into things (like eating Rainbow Bright's hair), and generally demanding attention. I let her come in and explore while I was putting away laundry, which turned out to be a bad idea. She somehow squeezed into the drawer under the crib, where I had put all the freshly-washed blankets, and wouldn't come out until I pulled the drawer out and poked her with a hanger. This wouldn't be so bad, except that she gets a bath every Saturday and this happened on Friday night. I'm still not sure how she'll react to a baby moving in. I think they'll have loads of fun when Babby is older and can chase her around, which is Lena's favorite game, but who knows? For now, she will have to stay out of Babby's room because she loves to snuggle people and a little warm baby could be too great of a temptation. Perhaps we will get a screen door or a squirt gun for Babby's room.

As for pregnancy itself, I am so over it. Babby, you have a little less than a month. Get ready!

40 Days

That's a very, um, biblical amount of time. 40 days to go (and then some, probably)! I am so excited, but a little freaked out about how things are about to change forever.

Names: Right now, at this very moment, Andrew and I agree on our top three first names and our top two middle names. This may change, but I'm glad to have it sort of narrowed down so we have a short list to choose from when we see her.

Business arrangements: I still haven't interviewed doulas or pediatricians. It's on my list, but somehow I never get to it.

House: Apparently I have been nesting this weekend. There is still so much to do, but things are feeling a lot better around here.

Work: I stayed at work until LATE Friday making lesson plans for the long-term sub. I will probably do that every Friday from now until Babby arrives. Now about that grading...

So tired, so hungry, and so huge

I went to the doctor's office today, and apparently I've gained 6 pounds in 2 weeks. That's got to be some kind of record. I'm measuring at 34.5 weeks when I'm actually 33.5, which the CNM (Certified Nurse Midwife) says is fine. I am going to be embarassed if I have gained more than 2 pounds at the next appointment, though. My eating and exercise habits have not been good lately. There is no energy and there are Girl Scout cookies. Now I understand why people get depressed about their weight and just eat more.

Sheer exhaustion is preventing me from doing much. Yes, I know that if I exercise I will have more energy. Time to stop whining and get my butt on the treadmill.