Yes, I’m still bitter about the monorail…

By kate on November 15th, 2005

… so I’m helping out in the attempt to associate Mayor Greg Nickels with http://www.mayorgridlock.com.

Filed under: current events, Links | Comment now »

Top 10 Reasons to Buy Local

By kate on November 12th, 2005

I’m pretty good at avoiding chain restaurants, but I could improve on how often I shop at local businesses of other kinds.

My colleague Joe got me thinking about paying more attention to that with his post Top Ten Reasons to Buy Local.

Filed under: consumerism | 1 Comment »

Frivolousness

By kate on November 8th, 2005

We bought the first frivolous Zippy-related thing the other day. Safeway was having a post-Halloween sale on costumes (50% off), so we picked up fuzzy bee and ladybug costumes for future dress-up fun. This is even though they probably won’t fit Zippy for at least a year or two.

Filed under: consumerism, pregnancy | 1 Comment »

Status report

By kate on November 4th, 2005

I haven’t written much lately because there’s not much new to report (except the brand-new kicking I just wrote about below). I’m making my way through an uneventful second trimester where there are no major difficulties, but many minor inconveniences.

I’m getting to the stage where pillows become more vital to getting a good night’s sleep. I’m using one to put between my legs that also sticks up and goes underneath my belly (to support it). Without that support, I was noticing kind of a strained feeling. I’m back to sleeping well again, with the adjustment, so I’m grateful for that.

With all the extra weight pulling forward on my body, my back has been getting understandably tired, and by the end of a work day, I’m usually sore. I finally found a novel solution to the problem. At my office, we have a video game room that includes a super-soft, fully-reclinable armchair. Now, I spend an hour every afternoon (usually 2-3pm) working from that room instead of my desk. With my laptop and a network connection, I can work on the same stuff. I put up a sign at my desk so people can find me, and everyone seems to be getting used to it. It is a great relief for my back (and for the after-lunch blahs).

I’ve also found a massage student who will be practicing on me for free. I participated (as a subject) in a pre-natal massage workshop at Brenneke last month, and Colleen was the person who worked on me there. I thought she did an excellent job, and was thrilled to hear she was looking to get extra practice. My first session with her is tomorrow morning.

I thought, now that it’s fall, that I’d be needing several larger sweaters. However, one of the perks of being pregnant in the cooler months is that I’m never cold! It’s a nice change.

We have our next midwife appointment next Wednesday, which will be nice. I enjoy checking in with them and getting a feel for how things seem to be going. Maybe we’ll finally resolve the question of Zippy’s true age.

Filed under: pregnancy | Comment now »

Maybe we should call her Pele…

By kate on November 4th, 2005

Zippy has made an exciting change in how she moves. All of a sudden, this week she is actually KICKING rather than slowly turning over. The first time I felt it, I thought maybe I was having a muscle twitch until I put my hand there and felt something kick back out at me. For a long time now, her head has been on my left and her legs on my right. So the kicking is just under my right ribs, and it’s surprisingly strong.

The best part is that Steve can finally feel it too!

It’s happened three times now. The first two were when I was reclining after a period of either sitting regularly or moving around. The third time is right now, just sitting at my desk at work.