8ish months

It must mean that I am getting close, because my doctor started mentioning how giving birth now would still be safe. Of course he advocated waiting until closer to the due date (did you hear that Mini Coop?!), but the fact that he was talking about giving birth makes me think that I am getting pretty close.

There are a few things that have marked a new period of pregnancy. I can't complain too much, I still feel very good, just a little more tired than usual.

First, I have hit the stage where if I am standing up and looking down at my feet, I cannot see them. They are no longer in view. That must mean I am getting pretty big.

Second, we have a carseat. It is currently installed in our car because we wanted to try it out, and honestly we don't have that much room in our apartment.

Third, I eat continuously. It's like this baby is gobbling up all of the food before my body gets to use any of it.

Fourth, sleep will be forever elusive in the extended sense. I can't complain. I sleep at night, but I haven't slept for the entire night. I guess, as I have heard many times before, it is a good preparation for motherhood.

I took both of these pictures on the same day. I look remarkably bigger without the fleece on.

Pasta making!

I tried for the first time, making pasta. It something I have always wanted to try. My Grandpa Schillemat used to make it a lot, and just this last Christmas he made it as an addition to our Grinder night. It inspired me to try it for myself.

So yesterday Jimmy and I were planning meals for the week (yes, we were a little behind) and I thought it would be fun to make some pasta and fill it with some left over ricotta cheese.

Today, I looked up a simple recipe for whole wheat pasta, and ricotta-spinach filling. Pasta is ultimately pretty easy, but making sure it is thin is hard. I don't have a pasta roller, nor do I plan to invest in one anytime soon. It is turned out pretty well. Again, a little bit thick, but edible.

It is always nice to make a meal from start to finish.

In other news, we looked at car seats about a week ago, and had to ordered one because they didn't have the color we wanted in the store. To get a discount, it was ordered and shipped to the store. It is now in the store and waiting for us. It makes me giddy really, knowing that our little baby girl will have a transportation vessel when we take her home from the hospital.

I also began putting together a hospital bag. Yes, I know it might be a little bit early. However in the next month or so, Jimmy and I will be packing/moving and I wanted to make sure that we didn't forget about making sure we were ready to go the hospital. By the way, I will be 32 weeks (8 months) pregnant on Monday. Times flies...

Changing my mind....

I know, I change my blog outline A LOT! Truth be told, I never really like how it looks, so I experiment and find something that leaves me content for at least a month or so. Oh well....

Jimmy is BACK! He was in MA for the weekend getting ready for two interviews that he had yesterday. He said they both went well. Let's hope we hear from them soon. I am getting a little anxious about not knowing exactly where we are going to have this baby. Sending another "oh well!" out there. We will have to be patient I guess.

I haven't really talked about my classes this semester. They are going fine. Last week I went to the regional science fair with 4 of my students. It was quite an impressive site. My students did a great job! One of them even received a special award for her work in the physiology of yogic breathing. I also had the unique opportunity to judge some of the team physical science projects. I talked to students who made a customizable ankle guard, studied hypermiling, and even grew mold to model the Virginian Amtrack train system. Pretty cool stuff!

preparations

I have spent the last few days doing some research. I am very interested in how this childbirth thing is going to happen, and so I have been reading, "googling", and even watching some birth stories. When Jimmy and I leave our childbirth class I feel pretty good about the whole thing. I can sit on a birthing ball, I can swing my hips from side to side, and I can definitely handle back rubs. I say, "sign me up!" I am ready. But then I read the books and I watch the videos and I think, geez, those women sure are screaming and crying a lot.

I only vaguely remember Geoffrey being born. My mom thought it would be a good experience. And it was. I was 11 years old at the time. I watched the heart rate monitors with a very extreme excitement and I cut the embilical cord. Generally, I don't think I really understood the pain my mother endured, and this was her sixth delivery.

Now I am contemplating my ability to endure pain. It seems to be the most recurrant consequence of labor. I told Jimmy last night that I was a little nervous because I don't think I have ever had an experience where I have tested my pain limitations. I have run, and been exhausted, but even then my body was trained for that experience. I have never really broken a bone or had a terrifically horid sickness. All in all I have been pretty healthy, and that makes me nervous. Does that make the whole giving birth thing more difficult because I have never really had to go through anything like it before?

I am going to try natural childbirth, but not to the detriment of my child or myself. I realize if something is wrong and the child or I is unsafe I shouldn't resist medication or interventions just because I am determined to do it all by myself. I think making a finite resolve in that direction could be foolish and downright dangerous. That being said, I do want to experience the triumph of giving birth naturally if that is what I am intended to do. Knowing my decision, I am trying to figure out how I am going to be strong enough for the process. Labor positions, breathing techniques, support system, etc... Let's just hope that Mini Coop agrees to be healthy and small!

North Carolina

This weekend, to end our Spring Break we made our way down to a nice town outside of Rayleigh NC, called Apex. I have an aunt, uncle and cousins that live minutes from the Temple. We decided to make a weekend out of it. We left Friday late morning, arrived to their house around 3pm, went to the Temple that evening, and spent the rest of the weekend playing games, and playing at a park with their family. It was a great break from the norm. Plus, this whole week Lexington's weather has kind of been depressing. When we got to NC it is a 60 degrees and slightly breezy. It was perfect weather. I got a few pictures of the weekend's festivities, including our walk at a park. There were a few good animal life sitings (turtles and swans!). It always so nice to get away and be with family!

Lars, Mara and Carmel

Rayleigh Temple

Swan (A.K.A the ugly duckling)

Spring Break - taking a break!

What does one do for spring break, when you have a pregnant, sleepy wife? You stay in town and relax. It has been fabulous! We have gone on walks every day, gone to the booming metropolis of Roanoke to look at baby gear and attend a childbirth class, slept and slept, ate lots of smoothies, and just been plain lazy. I really like having Jimmy around. He is very helpful, especially because he makes sure I don't overly exert myself. He is such a good husband.

I have started having more back pains. It doesn't help that my back has always been a little crooked. But we bought a snazzy body pillow which has proved to be a little more comfortable for sleeping and even sitting. The positive of this back pain is that I know it is caused by a little girl inside me, who will be part of our family in just over 2 months. Yeah, 2 months.....pure craziness!

Happy Birthday

To Jimmy!

Today my husband is 26. Yes, I had to remind him of his new age this morning.

If you know anything about Jimmy that means we are eating bbq ribs tonight for dinner. Gosh he loves ribs. And I love him.

Today he is sporting one of his Life is Good shirts (thanks Cooprider parents!) and trying to figure out how he is going to use his banjo ukulele. Yes, that is what I got him. He is always talking about how he wants to learn to play the banjo (This is one of his favorite songs: Banjo Boy - Ryan Shupe and the Rubberband) . I figured we would start small scale, so I bought him a banjo-shaped ukulele. No this isn't a dollar store ukulele, it is actually well reviewed on amazon. I just couldn't afford a fancy banjo this time. Once he is a ukulele master I think we will upgrade.

He had no clue, and let's face it, who would? What kind of wife buys her husband a ukulele? I do. And maybe it is silly, and maybe a little childish, but remember I am making him ribs. I am sure that makes up for my ridiculous present giving skills!

Happy birthday Jimmy dear!