A sad day

By kate on February 2nd, 2006

Today I had to take my wedding ring off. It’s never been off my finger since we got married, so it felt weird and sad. My hands have been getting a bit swollen (along with my feet and ankles), and I noticed this morning that it was almost impossible to slip the ring over my knuckle. I was worried that if I didn’t take the ring off at this point, it could get too tight and need to be cut off.

I replaced the ring with an aquamarine ring I had that was big enough to fit comfortably. Steve put it on as quickly as possible while removing the wedding ring. I thought about wearing the wedding ring on a necklace, but I don’t want to sleep in a necklace, and we were worried about it falling off and getting lost (worst of all). Instead, I pulled out its original box and stored it safely. Maybe I’ll get it cleaned and polished while it’s off.

I’m home sick from work today. It feels like I have one of those low-level colds where I don’t have serious cold symptoms, but am really low-energy, tired, and kind of achey. The upside of this is that I’m spending the whole day in my reclining armchair, which is now the most comfortable place in the world for me. It’s good for my back (reclined position and good lumbar support) and good to elevate my legs (for swelling).

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Stuff Stuff Stuff

By kate on January 30th, 2006

Zippy’s birth is seeming more imminent now, so today Steve and I buckled down and went on a shopping trip to acquire some things we don’t yet have. At the end of it, I feel like we’re in pretty good shape for the first few months of her life. We have the small stuff and most big stuff (as much as possible of which is borrowed).

We still need to decide on a diaper strategy, and buy some. Current front-runners are Fuzzi Bunz and gDiapers (anyone with recommendations on this are encouraged to talk to us). Also outstanding is a jogging stroller. Steve’s parents have offered to buy us one; we just need to select the one we want. We haven’t bought a crib, but will be borrowing a co-sleeper bassinet for the first few months, so it’s not as urgent.

It was fun shopping for baby clothes with Steve. We’ve received a bunch as gifts or hand-me-downs, but this is the first time we bought our own. We bought boy colors as well as girl colors. We got better at estimating the size of clothes. We learned that you really have to look at the price tag, because prices can vary widely, from clearance-next-to-nothing to $15-30 for one piece. We were unable to find a newborn hat we really liked, but got a small set of good items.

Aside from our shopping trip today, we got another bunch of baby things yesterday when I went to a baby shower given by the Aerialistas. I didn’t want a shower, but they insisted (and there was no saying no). The gifts from them were almost all baby clothes, most pink with stars added by hand. Everyone knows (including them) that I’m not a big fan of pink, but it’s an Aerialista color. I even got a handmade ruffle-butt costume (to go with one of our costumes), which was very cute. The best gift of all, though, was an Aerialista diaper bag. It’s a black R.E.Load messenger bag, with an embroidered Aerialistas logo (like this) that’s the same as the one on our jackets. They got the bag custom-made with a strap designed to be both a shoulder strap and to hook over a stroller. It comes with a matching changing pad. Overall, I was very overwhelmed with the quality and amount of gifts, and how much personal time and effort went into them. (I haven’t even mentioned the hand-made album or hand-made baby blanket yet.)

Until today, we’d been tossing all baby stuff into the stroller in a corner. The time to do something with it all always seemed far away, and I’d never been one to coo over baby things. However, when we came home from shopping today, there was finally so much stuff that something had to be done. We sorted through all the clothes we have, setting aside items that are too big for Zippy’s first few months and carefully folding everything (and removing the packaging). We pulled out a small dresser we had in the basement and put everything into the drawers. Then, we sorted through the non-clothing stuff (like bath things, diaper-changing things, etc.) as well.

I caught myself uncharacteristically exclaiming about how cute a pair of pants is, or how tiny and adorable the socks are. I blame the extra surge of pregnancy hormones. I’m starting to enjoy in these last weeks. I feel good about having Zippy’s things in order, and having a good sense of what we do and don’t have.

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General update

By kate on January 29th, 2006

I’ve started taking a weekly pre-natal yoga class at Whole Life Yoga in Greenwood. I usually prefer exercise that is more strenuous and goal-focused (such as soccer and aerial), but I thought that during pregnancy when I have less energy, yoga would be a better workout. It is a decent workout, so I’ll keep up with it for the next 6 weeks or so, but it’s still yoga and I still don’t really enjoy it very much. The best part about it is that it’s scheduled and paid-for, which ensures I’ll go. It’s also nice to be in a group of pregnant women, especially ones who are less flexible than me. 🙂

Aside from yoga and using the elliptical machine once or twice a week, I’m doing childbirth-preparation exercises daily, as recommended in our childbirth class. These include squatting, cat stretches, Kegel exercises, and perineal massage (with Steve’s help). I’ve been pretty good about doing this stuff most days so far.

Our childbirth class is going well. Each class has the same structure: introductory chat about how we’re doing, a lesson, a video, a break and snack, and labor practice. Last week we started on some breathing techniques. I was a little worried about being instructed to do deep breathing, because to me deep breathing feels like not having enough air (a result of my asthma). Surprisingly, though, the focus was more on the pace of breathing rather than the depth, and I never got that nervous feeling or hyperventilated.

We’ve begun to have midwife appointments every two weeks (instead of monthly). After one or two more, they’ll become weekly until birth. Two of those upcoming appointments will be home visits (one from each midwife), which will help them ensure they know how to find our house (just in case) and discuss any questions we have about our home environment.

My energy level is weakening somewhat. I’ve been having very busy and stressful workdays, and by the end of them I’m exhausted. We’ve hired someone else on our team who starts full-time on Monday, and that should help the pace. In any case, though, I’m starting to take it easier and take more time for resting.

All in all, though, I still feel like I’m having an easy pregnancy, relative to most women (or the ones I hear about, at least). My overall feeling is that things are okay, and I’m managing the small issues.

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What falls on the floor, stays on the floor

By kate on January 29th, 2006

I’m at that point in pregnancy where bending over is uncomfortable to impossible (depending on Zippy’s position and what I’ve eaten). Sometimes I make such a huffy puffery putting on my shoes that Steve comes over and ties them for me.

My worst pregnancy complication at the moment, though, is the hand and wrist pain. I’ve got a textbook case of pregnancy-related carpal tunnel syndrome which has been worsening over the past week or so*. I bought two brand-new wrist braces to replace my ancient ones, and they’re comfortable enough to wear overnight. Since I started doing that, I haven’t had the numbness and tingling in the morning. Throughout the rest of the day, I put on one or both braces as needed, and take them off to let my skin rest. I feel like it’s somewhat under control, although it’s still aggravating.

Combine the discomfort of bending over with hands made clumsy by pregnancy hormones and wrist braces, and you get someone who is more likely to just leave things on the floor rather than bother to pick up yet another fumbled item.

* Despite the association most people have between computer use and carpal tunnel syndrome, I’m certain that mine is not caused by too much typing. If that were the case, I’d have developed it years ago. I haven’t been typing as much lately as I have in the past, either. Also, as I said before, my mom got the same problem when she was pregnant, well before computers.

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Baby Names

By kate on January 27th, 2006

Here’s a humorous list of baby names from McSweeney’s. I particularly like “Stevelyn”.

I’ve been too busy to post anything lately, but there isn’t much news. I’m coping with some nerve issues in my wrist (pregnancy-related carpal tunnel), which wasn’t really a surprise because my mom got the same thing. Otherwise, there’s not too much to report.

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Thoughts after first birthing class

By kate on January 18th, 2006

We attended our first (of six) birthing classes tonight, at the home of our instructor, Penny Simkin. She’s been a childbirth educator for almost forty years, taught almost ten thousand women/couples, and literally wrote the book on it all. We got a copy of that book, as well as a book she wrote for birth partners, as part of the class. There were eight couples total in the class; all were man/woman pairs ranging from about 25 to 35 (I’d guess).

When we went around the room introducing ourselves, I was surprised to find that many of them have an earlier due date than me (by weeks), and yet I had the biggest belly in the room. I was hoping that being in a group of other pregnant women would make me feel less self-conscious and huge, but disappointingly, it didn’t.

The class was good, though, and we’re looking forward to the rest. Penny is very knowledgeable and experienced, and yet doesn’t have a rigid method of doing things. She’s tuned into what makes each woman’s birth different, and encouraged us to find what works for us. Among other things, we learned about the anatomy of the pelvis (and how squatting can help to open it), and watched a video of a birth. It was interesting to watch the video, and I’m looking forward to seeing more, since I haven’t witnessed a birth myself. All the births you see in TV and movies are a stereotypical screaming woman in stirrups at a hospital, which will probably not be the same as my experience.

One of the surprising things from the video was that the woman had chosen not to “push”. Apparently, the uterus is pushing on its own already, and the woman doesn’t necessarily have to. Many women have an irresistible instinct to push, but not all. Not pushing can make the labor take longer, but can also prevent injury and tears by giving the tissues time to stretch.

We both have homework this week – reading some chapters in our respective books. I’m also supposed to practice squatting and do cat stretches.