Week 30 ramblings!

It's week 30 (on Saturday)! How am I having a baby in 10 weeks? (Or sooner! I'm convinced I'mma pop early). And I would type, "how are WE having a baby in 10 weeks," except -- let's talk about who's actually going to be doing the birthing. Yours truly. I wish Jims could help, but the sad part is, I'm on my own for the scary part. Nail bites!

Anyway, there's no medical reason behind my "early" hunch -- all of our appointments say we're perfectly on track and measuring just right. I just feel like I came early, my brother came early ... I know, delivery dates have probably gotten more accurate since 1986 and 1990, but. I'm predicting a Thanksgiving baby! And I'm still having dreams she's a girl, but who knows. Still preparing names for either sex!

And no, I still won't discuss specifics on here! James and I have the best time on college football Saturdays, watching every game available and "brainstorming." ... "Janarion, that's a good one. BUT WHAT ABOUT SAYQUON?" Sayquon Ganley, has a nice ring to it. It's a maybe.

In all seriousness, I think I've mentioned: In general, we like classic, old-fashioned names. I'm super crotchety, like, "too many Aidens/Jacksons/Bellas/Olivias/Sophias right now! NO."

I realize a few of those are classic, but really -- Olivias have taken over. The name manages to be classic and trendy all at the same time. And I still rule it out.

What else?

I'm craving pumpkin-y fall things. It's still nearly 100 degrees here, so ... hmmm. Hard to TRULY get in the fall mood! It's nice though, to still wear summer dresses to work every day. I don't like pants lately, or really anything touching my midsection. So many of my work dresses are bo-ho, flowy-like, so I'm still wearing about 60-70% of my wardrobe.

Desserts still sound bomb. All the time. But as always, Jims has been making me eat my vegetables -- and he made the BEST from-scratch chicken noodle soup the other day. What a guy.

Oh, and THANK YOU for all the personal messages and texts after my last baby post, the one where I was all, "I don't know where to start when it comes to car seats and strollers!" I received some really great suggestions, and I threw some ideas on our registries, too! Feeling relieved about all that.

Although, I'm also trying to keep in mind: Babies don't need much. Especially not at first! Edie told me to get the basics, but suppress my urge to buy all the things -- and just wait till (s)he gets here instead, to see what we really need. James can run to the store, and I have Amazon Prime (meaning things will arrive to our place quickly).

Changing topics, I'm sick, so that's a downer. My immune system isn't helping much, it's like, "bye! I have other things to tend to right this sec, good luck!"

It started as a sore throat, but that didn't last (thank goodness it wasn't strep).

Now I've just decided it's a bad cold. A bad cold, but a standard one. I messaged my midwife -- cool that you can do that with Kaiser -- and she's actually out of town, but another got back to me fast, giving me some tips. I didn't think I needed to schedule an appointment or anything; colds usually just need to run their course, you know what I'm saying?

Still. A downer, to be sitting at work with a numb face. I am SO stuffed up. My sinuses are backed up like crazy. I'm not sleeping well, because of all the congestion. I have a gross cough, and at any given time, would rather be blowing my nose. Sick-while-pregnant is kind of the crummiest. No one wants me at work, but I have so much to get done before our new site relaunches. (I did take Monday off though).

Enough bitching!

28-29 weeks? Ish? The lighting in our kitchen is awful, plz excuse!

Baby G prefers my left side -- has this ever happened to anyone else? I asked Google, and a lot of moms seem to report something similar ... where the baby will just curl up in one specific spot, and stay there. It makes my stomach look cray. And it kind of hurts, to have that much pressure on the one side! If it's bedtime and I'm trying to change into my PJs, it's like, I can't even lift my left leg, my "abs" on that side are so shot.

Whoops, I said enough bitching.

But really, it's the strangest thing! If I poke him enough (or her, I promise we still don't know the sex!), I can sometimes get BG to shift. But seriously ... the weirdest.

SPEAKING OF THE WEIRDEST.

Not only is the baby kicking up a storm -- it gets bigger and more surreal every day, no exaggeration, as I'm sure I've mentioned -- but now you can see it now from the outside!

Jimmy and I watch it and giggle like little kids. There's a human living inside me! I'm growing an extra set of lungs, an extra brain, possibly a penis ...

W.
T.
F.

Did I already write about our Tahoe hike a few weeks ago? We did Castle Peak, up in Tahoe. I slept for two days afterward, it might have been a bit draining! We didn't go to the very VERY top because it was all loose gravel and really steep, unpaved dirt -- I didn't want to fall -- but we made it approx 92 percent of the way. The elevation gain was no joke. It took us a few hours and kicked my ass, but in a good way. Still, that day I finally got the cue: Time to take it easier! You're not the Michelle you once were. (And, carrying 15-20 extra pounds is hard).

Ugh, I KNOW I've mentioned missing hot yoga. And really, I know some people go pregnant. But my doctor said from the beginning that she didn't advise it.  It's not that I'll kill it, it's just way too dehydrating. Not good for either of us. Sigh.

I mean, I get it. When I was die-hard about it, sometimes I'd have a bad class and just feel awful. The rest of the day, it was hard to bounce back. Sometimes I couldn't shake the sweat or truly cool down, or my head pounded or my sugars felt off.

But staying on a regular bikram routine was also something I thrived off of. I slept so well, my body felt strong and flexible, and it brought me so much peace. I could truly escape work, and my head, and I just miss it. Even the other day, I had this realization: "I can't even go back right away! I don't want to leave the baby for 90 minutes. Factor in how early you have to get there and then the automatic shower you're required to take, that's like, SO LONG away from BG!"

James laughed and told me I'd figure it out. I hope so! I am creaky like an attic these days.

Have I discussed how thick my hair is? #pregzbenefits   Man, this entry is jumping all over the place. I'll let you know on my nails, if I ever let them grow. (So, never).

Next up: Figuring out how much leave I can take, contacting HR at my job, and looking into FMLA. Whimper.

When it comes to ANYTHING baby-related these days, I'm just trying to keep my mind right: I'm going to do my best, but I'm not going to beat myself up if something goes awry.

And that includes breastfeeding, diapering, day-to-day, staying on top of my life ... I'm already a bit too Type-A/my own worst critic. I don't want to let motherhood push me over the edge! : )

That said, I feel very lucky to have such a great partner throughout all of this. Do I say this every blog entry? I should. James is the absolute best. We're excited to fly home soon for the shower!

And James is turning 33 next week!

And were you worried when I said midwife earlier? Kaiser (our hospital) has midwives, but there's still a doctor on hand. And they're still certified medical professionals. And we're still delivering AT the hospital. I know these questions have come up already with relatives, so I thought I'd mention!

Trust me, I want to be an organic, hippie mom in some senses ... wearing the baby, getting the hour of skin-to-skin bonding time right after birth (like, before (s)he gets cleaned off even), cloth-diapering, etc ... but we're still delivering at a hospital, with a team of docs!

My midwife (Carol) is basically just like, my main B. She's usually eye-rolling at me for watching an ECV video from Sweden on YouTube, or reading too many delivery horror stories on Reddit.

We love Carol.

Until next time!