Dinner with friends

We have been out to dinner twice this week with friends we haven't seen in a long time. It's SO nice to catch up, isn't it? Truly, I miss the laughter most. As we embark on our new journey with a child, we'll have to remember that these are important to fit in every once in awhile.

Quick Poll

Oops. I accidentally typed "would you'd rather" and meant to type "would you rather".  For the self-proclaimed grammar Nazi, it's even more frustrating that once someone votes, I can't edit the poll.  

Forgive me?

The Wonders of Womanhood, part VII

Lest I sound like a super-complainer, I've been trying to deal with the little (okay, rather large) symptoms I've been dealt during my last trimester. But alas, 'tis time to share again. If I get too whiny, please feel free to stop reading at any time. I do feel, however, that there is one person out there who will read my post and be able to commiserate and even be comforted by the idea that there is someone else in their particular boat.

Without further ado, here are some of the finer points of pregnancy, months 7-9:

Carpal tunnel

Oh joy. I was taken out of work and rather than sit around watching TV the entire time, I decided to become more productive. I've always wanted to learn how to crochet, so I bought some books and yarn, signed up for a class, and set out to achieve my goal. Little did I know that my blanket project (pre-class), which seemed much more difficult and painful on my hands, might scar me for life...or, at least for the remainder of my pregnancy (let's hope). 

When I arrived at Tall Mouse with my tightly stitched blanket and gnarled hands, my adorable British instructor, Brenda, informed me that I had been doing the most basic stitch--a slip stitch--the entire time. While this does result in a very tightly woven material, it is not kind on the hands at all. She gave me a quick tutorial on the varied crochet stitches I could use and got 

me started on a proper baby blanket, complete with pattern and everything! To the left, you'll see our cheeky girl-cat Cleo sleeping soundly in the crib on top of my blanket during the chair rail installation. Apparently, she is quite the Princess, too, and wanted us to be fully aware of that fact.

Well, being that my doctor had put me into a quasi-bed rest situation, I was a woman on a mission. If I couldn't do the dishes, clean the house, etc., by God I was going to finish this blanket in record time. I crocheted like a maniac, somewhat possessed by my newfound talent. Yes, there are some imperfections, but my first creation is wonderful and I'm incredibly proud. Of  course, once I finished (in record time, I might add), I began to feel some pain in my right hand. Now I'm a product of those swollen joints I had read about and scoffed at on the message boards: "Ha ha ha!" I would proclaim in my head triumphantly. "I may have cramping, frequent contractions, and fainting spells, but I'll never get this 'carpal tunnel' thing from which you suffer. Ha ha ha!" Famous last words. 

In fact, I was going to post more, but typing is one of those tasks that affects said joints. So I'll have to update you with more maladies later.

Good news!

We had a doctor's appointment last night and because I'm at 34 weeks, the doctor has given me the okay to get up and move around, regardless of contractions!  YAY!  Of course, my wish is for her to make it to at least 38 weeks (or preferably past Keith's birthday).  She'll come when she comes, right?  

And at least I know she's healthy!  This little cheeky monkey has been so active during the last few days. My abdomen has been a flutter of activity, from rolling, to hiccups, to what feels inexplicably like the macarena... Dr. Henderson was outright giggling as he tried to find her heartbeat, only to be met with the swooshing sounds of her water-baby antics. When he did discover it, he noted that it was fast because she has been so active. Love that baby girl! The Princess sure keeps us entertained.

Home Improvement

Keith has been joking with me that I'm in a total nesting stage 

right now.  I'm sure it has nothing to

 do with the fact that I'm out of work and not able to do much, so all I can do is watch boatloads of HGTV and dream about the various renovations we could do around here prior to the arrival of our first child.

So yes, nesting kicked off last week with a formal garage cleaning, purging of all things electronic to the recycling event, a massive trip to Goodwill, and completion (well, almost!) of Princess' room.  Keith did all the heavy lifting, furniture moving, and most of the ladder-climbing (I had to help with the ceiling fan because I like to think that I channel Bob Vila's spirit when it comes to wiring).  Pictures will come soon once all of the work is done.

Today, we continue the process with Larry, our handyman, taking some of the heat off of my poor husband. The first picture you'll see is a sample of the four new lights we had installed (one by the front door, this one by the back door, and two on either side of the garage).  The second picture is of the backyard concrete slab where we used to have three very unsafe and rusty patio studs for a nonexistent patio cover (guess the old owner took it out but never replaced it). We had Larry saw down the studs and now, aside from some slight discoloration, we can actually make use of the space again! With a baby coming very soon, it seemed like an opportune time to take care of this.

With Keith taking a large amount of his spring break (and now his weeknights after working a good 11-12 hours) to do handyman tasks around the house, check writing never felt so good!  He returned home last night at 7:20, made me a healthy dinner, cleaned it up, and then retired to the garage to paint the chair rail that will be going up in Princess' room today.  He's got to be exhausted.

This is an online conversation between three ADULT women about to give birth

No, I'm not kidding.  (Now you'll understand my next post about being a grammar Nazi.)

Mom A:

Okay i think im geting contractions again but im not feeling pain so im assuming BH's but i was wondering if when anyone else gets them either real contractions ot BH's if their heart races and the feel the tightening up in their chest and you get like a hot flash and its almost like its taking the breath out of you..

Then all of that goes away as soon as your stomach isnt tight anymore..  Does this happen with anyone else or am i completely weird and alone in this.. lol

Mom B:

See if they get closer or you start having pain agin.  When are you due to take your med agin?  Then call in the morning and talk to doc.  Sometimes you have to get kinda agressive with the nurses.  Not mean but agressive.  If that makes since.

Mom A:

I hate going to L&D they moniter me for 6 hours almost then tell me okay your fine you can go home now..Yeah i think ill just wait to see if they get closer or call L&D and talk to a nurse there and see what she says.. 

Mom C:

Good idea! And I would do what the other mama's are advising too, but stay calm, your doing all the right things and that is what's best for baby :)

Grammar Nazi

Admittedly, I am completely persnickety when it comes to all things grammar, but some things annoy me more than others. Here are a few that I see BLATANTLY misused over and over again in our society:

• lose vs. loose -- No. You did no loose your cat or your purse, unless you pulled them until they stretched much larger. And that would be cruel.
• overused apostrophes -- When you add one of these bad boys plus an s to a word, you end up with POSSESSION, not plural.  So no, I would not like to go out for drink's and do not want to be wished a very merry Christmas from the Smith's. 
• Your and you're -- Don't you want to sound as smart as you think you are? When you're smart, your writing reflects that.
• Their, there, and they're -- There are three women talking in the previous post. Their grammar and spelling skills leave a lot to be desired.  They're annoying.
• Super DUMB spelling mistakes -- Look it up. You're an adult.  You can spell words like tomorrow and definitely correctly.  Be a ROLE (not roll) MODEL for our young generation, already!
• I'm sure there are more examples that frustrate the heck out of me, but I'm winded from all of this ranting. I'll have to write more later.

Regarding my more recent post with the moms talking: 

• Yes those mamas are nice, but they're not, nor will they ever be, "mama's".
  
• Spelling Lesson #1: again, not agin
• Spelling Lesson #2: aggressive, not agressive
• Spelling Lesson #3: sense, not since (at least the way you wrote it)
• Contractions aren't just for those who are pregnant or about to give birth! They're great!  They always involve an apostrophe, which is a special little symbol to let the reader know when you're shortening two words (like I am becomes "I'm").
• You're and your are not the same word. For instance, if you want to encourage someone, you say, "You're doing well!" and if you want to acknowledge someone's thanks, you say, "You're welcome."  Your is possessive.  It means you OWN something.  For instance, I might say, "Your intellect is clearly suffering from lack of grammar knowledge. This could be helped if you went back to elementary school."