(Getting) Ready?

First of all, this is my 100th post on this blog! Thanks for all who dare to read it, even if occasionally! It is a pleasure to write, and I have really enjoyed these nearly 5 years of learning how to Mommy.

I'm 34 weeks and I'm feeling pretty done. As much as I'm sad this is the last time I'll be pregnant I'm ready to wrap up the finale of "Shelly: The Pregnant Years" and start the series premiere of "My Three Sons".

One thing I'm struggling to get over is the fact that being pregnant makes me feel "special". People want to do things for you, you get special treatment, more massages, more leeway in general to be sore, tired, and/or moody. From here on after this pregnancy I'm no longer a mom-to-be I'm just a plain old mom. And we all know mom's are just supposed to put others needs ahead of their own. A nap? Psssh. A super-mom doesn't need a nap! 

After birth, my body tends to go a little crazy with hormones and my inflammation issues get much worse so not only will I be sleep deprived I will be in a lot of pain. So I'll have to go on a pretty strict wheat-free diet to help with that and I'm also looking into some physiotherapy this time around. So that will be easy with all my free time looking after 3 boys. Also my eating and weight have not been on my mind as something I can control in the past 5 years because I figure what's the point if I'm just going to get pregnant again? This means my wardrobe is stuffed to the brim with every size imaginable because who knows what size I will be at any given moment.

So despite having to work out all that plus in a year deciding how much I want to be working, I'm pretty ready to have this baby on the outside of my tummy. 

Here are my reasons why:

• 1. Everything gives me heartburn, I feel like a fire breathing dragon 90% of the day. All the papaya extract and tums in the world can't cure this crap.
  
  
  2. My entire body aches. Shins? You bet! Ears? Sure. Every day feels like 'the day after I was thrown from a moving bus' day.
  
  
  3. I'm still kind of nauseous. Ridiculous, I know! Though it's partially from the fact that I don't want to eat in risk of heartburn that I feel so ill.
  
  
  4. I'm getting dangerously close to punching a stranger for the "you look ready to pop" comments and the "I guess you'll try again for a girl" asides. I hate feeling like I'm letting down a complete stranger by saying actually it's another boy.
  
  
  5. I'm boiling, especially my feet. They feel similar to what I could imagine mini volcanoes feel like. I can be sitting with my feet in ice cold water with a fan blowing on me and I'm still sweating like I'm in the Sahara Desert.
  
  
  6. I'm waiting on confirmation from the midwife but I believe I have a condition called irritable uterus. Laugh if you want and then you can google it and stop. It basically means I have Braxton-Hicks contractions that are more than just tightenings, they feel like full on labor contractions. I had something similar with Oz, it was weeks of, "am I in labour, or am I not?" I was really hoping to skip that this time, but at least I'm much less scared of pre-term labor knowing this joy can go on for weeks and weeks. The only thing that makes it better is lying down on my side for a couple hours until it goes away. I hear there's a cure but it involves having your baby so I'll wait a bit for that.
  
  
  7.  I'm exhausted. I could have a 2 hour nap an hour after I wake up in the morning. Then if I do anything outside or stand or walk for about 5 minutes, then I need another nap. But it has to be a nap because sleeping the whole night through is just a thing of the past. Every 30 minutes I need to wake up to flip my body in the style of an awkward shaped pancake. The there is the million bathroom breaks a night and I'm getting over some sort of tonsil issue which means a very sore throat and about 3-4 times a night I wake up gasping for breath like some sort of sleep apnea. I'm looking forward to switching from desperately trying to sleep but cannot to would desperately love to sleep but cannot. There's a difference. Believe me. Either that or I'm too sleep-deprived to realize there's not. 

So crib is set up, baby stuff is washed. We have a car seat. I'm ready to enjoy this baby from the outside now. I know that baby benefits from every day he stays in there but it can't hurt my chances of not going to 40 weeks if I let this little guy know I'm ready and waiting. See ya when you're ready little guy!

32 Weeks

Well I'm approaching the end of my final pregnancy journey. It's been a doozy but I am thankful it has gotten a bit better in this last trimester. My entire body is achy and sore, my ribs are out, my neck is out, I have heartburn, I'm waddling.. and yet this is still an improvement over what the first two trimesters were. 

I'm slowly getting ready, not wanting to do it too early and risk disappointment, but also not wanting to take chances and wait until too late. Pregnancy is so weird. Plus we are discovering that we just don't have enough room in our house for all the stuff of five people. So we are getting a bit creative and obviously using the generously given storage room at my parents-in-laws place. 

I have learned a ton about my parenting since being off work which has been about 3 weeks now. I thought it would be stressful, and at times it has been, but it has also been very enjoyable. I have learned how good of a mother I am and also what I really need to work on. But most importantly I'm savoring the last months, weeks, with my two boys before everything gets turned on its head again and we start figuring it all out again. 

I have been enjoying preschool and routine a little too much. Since Eli has started four days a week preschool, Ozzy has been falling asleep on drop off and giving me an hour and a half to myself every afternoon. But in a week and a half we've got summer vacation starting and again I gotta learn it all from scratch again. 

Parenting is such a flux, you ride the waves and sometimes get sucked under by one, thrashing around at the bottom trying to get some air. Somehow you get back on your board and live to surf another day. I have been feeling very guilty that my yoga mat has not seen light of day in about 18 weeks or so, but I keep reminding myself that not all yoga is on the mat. Though I'm sure my body would appreciate the mat time, my mind has been having lots of time to practice being present and practicing acceptance.

Hopefully the weather stays cool and I do too! It should be an interesting summer either way! I'll keep you posted!