Does this shirt make me look pregnant???

Learning from Bradley

Eric and I had our first childbirth preparation class last night. We're doing The Bradley Method. It was recommended by the homebirthing midwife. After doing a little research (http://www.bradleybirth.com/), I started trying to find a class in our area which turned out to be harder than you'd expect considering we live in a pretty big city. Of course, I shouldn't be surprised considering I also couldn't find a birthing center anywhere except Annapolis. Unfortunately, this is a 12 week course and by the time I started looking into it, I had barely 12 weeks and no classes were starting immediately. I found three teachers (only one in Baltimore City) and all had classes that had already started, and all started a new session about mid-way through July which is way too late for us. SO, we forked over an extra $100 for private lessons. I'm almost glad it worked like that because she comes to our house and we get individualized attention which means that we aren't being slowed down by any other couples who are below the learning curve or who just like to hear the sound of their own voices (every college class had that one student who just never shut up). Plus she works with our schedule with is really crucial considering Eric still lives in Virginia Beach for a couple more weeks.

There are a couple of reasons we opted for Bradley classes. The big one of course is that the focus is on preparing the parents for a natural childbirth (I am not interested in a course touting the benefits of an epidural). The other big thing is that in addition to helping the mama-to-be to get prepared for childbirth, the classes also focus on how the papa-to-be can be helpful. Our instructor used a fun term last night--she said Eric has to be the "houseband" (instead of husband, which I don't totally get, but Eric liked it) meaning that he really needed to be able to speak for me and make sure those crazy nurses don't start pumping me full of drugs before I can figure out what's going on. He likes the role of protector and appreciates being coached on how he can best protect me and Hannah.

Another thing we like about this class is that it's very comprehensive. It covers everything from nutrition to breast feeding to stress management to infant care. That last one (infant care) is another one that Eric really wanted. He's never changed a diaper or been around many wee ones so he wanted some formal instruction on that. On that note, we learned another odd tidbit last night. Apparently, some girl babies have a bit of a cycle that first week they're born. A lot of parents freak out when they find tinges of blood in the diaper (who wouldn't??), but apparently this is normal. Who knew???

We have a very comprehensive workbook and homework to do before our next class (which isn't for 2 weeks since we are out of town next weekend for my family reunion). And I have to start keeping a food chart, which I've been meaning to do anyway.

Alright, time to work on my registry!! I've gotta get that crossed off the "to do" list so I can move on to the next thing (looking for a pediatrician).

Deep Breaths

I'm just coming down from another internet withdrawal....ugh. Those are terrible. This time we are blaming the router (last time it was the satellite). I can't complain too much since I've been sponging off my neighbor's internet since I moved back to bemore, but I can say that I'm looking forward to our moving truck on July 6 which will unload our internet gear and make it possible for us to get some good ol' non-satellite internet. There was a ton I wanted to update on this week, and I was hoping to do it tapas style with a variety of small tasty treats as opposed to the gorge that this will be.

The photo above is today's special appetizer. Amy was in town this past week (from Africa) for some amazingly important and impressive meetings in DC and despite being super swamped, exhausted, and a little sick, she made time to have dinner with me. I owe many of the thanks to her parents and sister who drove in one big triangle from Hagerstown to DC to pick her up, then to Baltimore to have dinner with me, then back to DC to drop her off, and finally back home in Hagerstown. The fact that they were willing share their QT with Amy in addition to driving all over creation was much appreciated! We commemorated the event with a photo. Of course, since we're both wearing black, my 30-week belly blends into her dress, but if you look close enough, you can still see the outline of my size. Don't look too close at the boob area though or it will be obvious that I am wearing a nude bra and not a black one...a huge fashion faux pas that I would have avoided had I thought about it.

Now for the main course: I spent the afternoon before that (Tuesday) in the hospital. (I'm starting the paragraph this way because I like the drama, but for those of you who are easily worried, rest assure that nothing is wrong.) My breathing has grown steadily worse since setting foot on Baltimore soil (or lack thereof). I noticed it worsening as the humidity increased...and then it never went back to normal. The past week or so has been bad enough to make me call me call my family doctor. When I have to spend 90% of my time focusing on trying to breath deeply, there's an issue. Unfortunately, my family doctor does not treat pregnant people--apparently that's typical of non-OBGYN docs to be afraid to treat a pregnant person--so she told me to call the midwife. Well, my midwife obviously doesn't deal with asthma so she suggested I go into the hospital and check in through labor and delivery....I asked if she couldn't just recommend a doctor for me to make an appointment with, but she wanted me to have more immediate assistance.

So I got a little dress rehearsal for what's going to go down when I go into labor. After taking the elevator to the 16th floor, I will check in through the computer system (hopefully all my information is saved so I don't have to go through it all again), then they'll take me to the triage rooms and hook me up to a monitor for 20 minutes to make sure the baby's heart rate, etc. is normal. They'll check my blood pressure and all that good stuff too. Then on to the delivery room I presume!

Of course, I didn't make it to the delivery room this time; I just sat in triage for 2 hours...After explaining why I was there to 3 different nurses, the midwife on duty, and a doctor, I was left alone long enough to pass out completely. I woke up about 45 minutes later feeling well rested, hungry, in need of a potty break, and concerned that I'd been forgotten so I unhooked the monitors, put on my clothes, made a pit stop, then headed to the nurse station to ask if I could go home. That made them get a move on. They were waiting on the pharmacy to send up an albuterol inhaler...Their plan was for me to blow into the flow meter thingy, take 2 puffs of albuterol, wait 20 minutes, then reblow. The goal was for my second blow to be much higher thus proving the benefit of the inhaler. In the meantime the head OBGYN doctor came in and with good humor (though a bit patronizing) explained the importance of me taking my medicine (I had expressed concern over these things crossing into the placenta and harming the baby). You know how docs are--medicine solves all problems! They don't take kindly to people who don't subscribe to that same belief.

So I did their little albuterol test and blew a 400 both before and after the albuterol....hmmmm...Despite seeing no improvement in my blow after the medicine, they seemed pleased and wrote me a prescription for a higher dose of Advair (my daily medication), signed my discharge papers, and sent me home. I walked out of the hospital into an insane thunderstorm and immediately found myself struggling to breathe again. Other than the nap, this was a colossal waste of my afternoon. I didn't fill the prescription, but I did call my mom's asthma doctor in Hagerstown and took the soonest appointment I could get which is on June 24 at 9:30 a.m. Yes, I'm driving all the way to Hagerstown on a Wednesday to see a doctor despite living within close proximity to a zillion hospitals and doctors in Baltimore.

In baby news, I'm 30 weeks now which is 3/4 of the way!! Only 10 more weeks to go. Hannah is about 3 pounds and is 10 3/4 inches from top to bottom (butt bottom, not feet bottom). According to the book, her toenails just might be visible, and it's likely that she's got a good of hair. The average mama weight gain is 25 to 35 pounds...I'm guessing I haven't gained 6 pounds in the last 2 weeks, but who knows. The scale that's been stashed under my bath tub doesn't seem to work so we'll have to wait until my next midwife appointment (also June 24) to figure that out.

I'm feeling pretty good aside from the breathing. My only other complaint is the aches and pains that have started developing in pelvic/netherlands area...Libby summed it up well when I asked if it was normal. She said something along the lines of, 'yeah, I used to think my whole body was falling apart starting with my vagina.' That's pretty much how I feel. It's a strange feeling...for a while I thought it was because I was going to spinning classes again and the bike seat maybe was bruising me, but it hasn't gone away, so it must be that I'm falling apart...

Alright! Time to head back down to Hon Fest for some more yummy festival food.

How to Pee in a Cup

The thing that stood out about this most recent midwife appointment was my difficulty with the whole peeing in a cup process. Sometime in the last few weeks I have lost the ability to see my netherlands, and with that went the ability to aim while peeing in a cup (for those of you who don't know, you have to pee in a cup at every single visit to test your protein levels). I took a few minutes to think about the problem in an efffort to come up with a rational solution, but the only option I came up with was to hope for the best and wash up afterward. Ahhhh, the joys of pregnancy!! I'll have to add peeing on my hand to the Big Belly Blues list.

In less embarrassing news, my results from the glucose test came back normal despite my refusal to adhere to the basic rules while eating breakfast that morning (I was told to eat protein rather than carbs or sugar which could "throw" the test--I ate cereal with strawberries). So no gestational diabetes for me.

I weighed in at 159 pounds which is a total weight gain of 19 pounds (according to the book, average weight gain at 29 weeks is 19-25 pounds). My stomach measured 32 inches (last time I went it was 27).

Then the midwife and the student poked and prodded my belly to determine where Hannah's head, butt, and back were. At one point this very hard little knob surfaced and I asked what that was because it happens a lot. Apparently it's her butt. That is one hard little heiny.

I was also asked if I've felt any contractions which apparently I should start feeling around 20 weeks...hmmm...not that I know of but how would I know? She tried to explain what it would feel like...something about my placenta hardening (and she showed me how to tell where my placenta was at a given moment). She said it felt like I was having one at that moment. Well, I didn't feel anything. I'm supposed to call if I have more than five in a hour. I doubt my abilities to tell so I'm just going to keep assuming everything is fine.

According to the book, the baby at 29 weeks weighs about 2 3/4 pounds and is 10 1/2 inches from crown to rump. Her brain can detect rhythmic breathing and control her body temperature now. Also, her eyes are moving around in their sockets...I hope she's enjoying the scenery.

Fun fact of the week: breastfeeding burns between 500-650 calories a day!!! Whaaaaat! That would explain why my friends who breastfeed turn into skeletor.

Mom is coming down later today to help me register...the goal for this weekend is to get registered. I hate shopping so wish me luck.

Internet Deprived!!!

I just went an entire weekend without internet!!! It was terrible. I don't know why it's working today, or for how long it will work, so I'm going to make this quick in the hopes that it lasts long enough for me to push the "publish post" button.

Eric took this pic of me on Saturday after I got back from my Body Pump class. It's getting pretty obvious that there's a bun in this oven, eh??

Lots of people at work ask me how I'm feeling when they pass me in the hallway; the question caught me off guard at first but now I expect it as a typical pregnant person question, so, in case any of you are wondering how I'm feeling, the answer is groovy! I mean, I'm still tuckered out way more easily than before, but for the most part, I'm comfortable and functioning and no big problems. Little problems include puke burps...I believe the medical term is indigestion? Or maybe acid reflux?? No clue. I bought some chewable papaya tablets from the Whole Foods and they seem to help. Another thing that helps is not hanging upside down after eating. Note to self.

I'm also a bit achier in the hip/pelvic/netherlands region. And I wake up stiff and hunched over and feeling old...I shake it out though so it's cool.

Hannah is moving A LOT these days. It's pretty fun. On Sunday we were tired so Eric and I laid on the couch for a bit and watched my stomach move. So weird!

Another major accomplishment: we've got the date and location of the baby shower planned! Wahoooo! It was a little rough because I wanted something outdoors but all the stuff in Baltimore is super duper expensive (pavillions start at $200 and just keep going up!). So we decided on Cunningham Falls which is one of my favorite childhood spots! My dad used to take me and my brother there when we were young. We'd pull off the side of the road and park on the tree line then walk through the woods to sneak into the lake without having to pay. My dad is quite clever. I didn't even realize there was a main entrance (and entrance fee) until I was in high school and heading up there after school with friends.

Our second hangup was that our ideal date (Saturday, July 18) was booked...since Eric's mom already has her flight booked, I couldn't switch weekends so we opted for Friday, July 17. I realize that'll inconvenience a few, and I'm bummed about that, but there just wasn't a lot else we could do. I'm planning on taking the day off work and heading down early to hike around and relax by the water. I think my dad and mom and Laura are doing the same...Hopefully that's what lots of people will do because that will be so fun!! I can't wait!!!!

Gotta run! It's time for Body Pump! I have another appointment with the midwife on Thursday so if the internet is working, I'll provide a little update then.