The Pregnancy Files: Bring on the Baby! (28 weeks)

Circa August 5th

It finally happened.

After 27+ weeks of going about my life, pushing aside the discomfort and the exhaustion, trying to keep up with my kiddo and my job and my family and the pressing needs of ‘now’.  After 7 months of dishes, laundry, organizing and ignoring the black hole that will one day be my unborn son’s bedroom (and is now more of a storage closet), I finally opened the door.

I opened the door.  I touched those tiny sleepers hanging in the closet.  I cleared off the chair and sat and rocked for just a moment.  And our new world came flooding into my heart.

So I grabbed the Pickle and we put the crib together.

Complete with crib skirt, musical mobile, and a few little friends that the Pickle donated from her stash.

Aside from just a few days here and there of cleaning things out and sewing a couple of random items, this was the first real day that I allowed myself to get excited about our little buddy.  I daydreamed about rocking him in that quiet, cool room.  I imagined zipping him up in those teeny tiny clothes and cuddling him against my chest.  The Pickle began telling me all the things she had ‘planned’ for baby brother when he gets here.  And even my husband pretended to go in, lean over the crib, and pick up a sweet crying newborn (or a Cow, in this case).

It was so fun to take some time in our busy schedule to all daydream together as a family.

Why it has taken so long, I’ll never know, but now that I’ve allowed myself to imagine and dream and look forward to his arrival, it couldn’t come soon enough.

Well… I need to finish cleaning out that room first.  But then!

Bring on the Baby!

The Pregnancy Files: I’ve Lost Count

Circa June 1st

Is it possible, at 18 or so weeks with your second child, to lose count of how far along you are?  Because I’ve done it.  And my brain is too tired to do the math.  And I don’t really know what day or month it is, let alone how many weeks it’s been since our world was turned upside down by two pink lines.

Because life goes on outside the womb.

Summer came gently.  The beach proved glorious.  The Pickle started singing.  And finished soccer.  The house is still in disarray, waiting for a dedicated day, or weekend.  Road trips.  Groceries.  Sweeping.  Laundry.  Day turns into night and night rolls into day.

And somewhere in the midst of all of that, without much thought or notice, a child is being created.

The Pregnancy Files: Thirteen and Still Desperate for Love

Circa April 24th

I saw my little one just before Easter.

He kicked and karate-chopped and put his hands over his face just like his Sissy.

It’s amazing the difference a month makes.

And in no time the cool outside will be Fall and I’ll buy a pumpkin that will grace his first baby pictures.  And I’ll wonder how my girl will handle the sharing of love.  And indeed we’ll all have to share some love… all three of us.

All two of us.

Because we’ve been sharing each other since the day she was born

The Pregnancy Files: When Everything is Fine

Circa April 1st

Well… we made it.

Without much fanfare or revelry, we crossed over into safer waters yesterday.  By safer waters, I mean my risks for miscarriage have dropped significantly in the past twenty-four hours.

Yup.  That’s what ten weeks means to me.

The Day I Almost Threw Frozen in the Trash.

We watched Frozen today. It was the Pickle’s choice as part of her quiet time after I cut her car nap short and forced her to go into Aldi with me to buy peppers. She likes Frozen. I think it’s cute, and while it’s not my favorite Disney movie ever, for various reasons, I think it’s fun that my three year old is starting to enjoy longer storylines.

I will admit, there are a couple of things about Frozen that I don’t care for, but for the last several weeks I’ve just assumed that I’m an old fuddy-dud English teacher mom who thinks too deeply and just needs to let a kids show be a kids show.

Until tonight.