I have loads of super cute pictures from today, but instead of binge-posting them, I’ll be spreading them out over the next couple of days.  First, I’d like to introduce you to what the baby’s room looked like just before we moved in (note the hilarious “Pimpin Lane” signage above the twin bed):

Notice the horrible bookshelves on the left.  Also notice the original, single-pane window from 1973.  And the awful wood trim.  Ick.

Here’s where we stand today:

My apologies for the flash artifact on the left—-it’s still prettier than the bookshelf that used to be there:)  The new window does a lot for this little room, I think.  Here’s another view:

The yellow nightstand was an old piece of furniture that was handed down to us—it was originally a dark wood, with lots of gouges in it.  I took some leftover yellow paint and made it look like a new piece of furniture.  The glider (I’ve always wanted one, but never had the $$$ for it), was a CraigsList find for $20.  Score!

The artwork hanging on the wall here was something I did in an afternoon with H.  I bought pieces of styrofoam from the craft store, and with H, painted the edges with the same yellow paint I used on the nightstand below.  I then cut scrapbook paper to fit the rectangular styrofoam pieces and glued them into place. Voila—instant, really cheap art!  I should get a close-up shot of these some day soon so you can see the detail on them.

The biggest purchase for the room was the rug, which we bought new (but discounted) online.  The biggest time investment in the room was fixing/painting the walls and the doors.  You can’t see the doors from the shots I posted, but wow—they went from dark 1970s wood to a crisp white.  Much better!

Not pictured here is the beautiful artwork that Holden made for his brother.  I still need to get a decent shot of H’s creation so I can post it here.  He came up with his own intergalatic-themed painting to go with the rug since he thinks the little circles on the rug look like planets:)

So that’s our little guy’s new bedroom!  We think it turned out really well, although he likely won’t be sleeping in there for a few more months!

I saw the  midwife last night after a whirlwind day of activities with H.  Blood pressure is good, and I haven’t gained any more weight (yippee!)  I’m now 3 cm dilated, 70% effaced, zero station.  Things could go on this way for a couple more weeks (like how they did with H), but who knows.  The only reason I like having this information is so that when labor starts, I know where my baseline is, and know that there are 3 cm that I don’t have to worry about.  It’s more of a mental thing for labor, as I know it doesn’t really provide any useful information about WHEN labor will start.

A couple of nights ago I had some contractions that woke me up pretty early in the morning.  The contractions felt like true labor contractions (they were in my back), but they didn’t last long like “real” contractions.  I stayed in bed, waiting to see what would happen, but nothing did.  I ended up e-mailing my boss and co-worker later that morning to say that I would not be coming in, not because I thought I was in labor, but because I was afraid of working all day, only to go into labor that night and be totally exhausted.  My boss and co-worker thought maybe I’d come in today, but I ended up e-mailing them and saying that I just really need to be home now.  I think I reached my limit with work—sitting in one spot was excruciating for my back, and I’ve been in so much pain at work that I don’t think I’m actually all that productive.  It’s been nice to stay home today while H is in school—I’m getting some light cleaning done (the house has been a disaster for weeks), and I’m polishing up a couple of chores that I’ve been meaning to do for years (like back-up all of my old files from my 10-year old laptop!)  I assure you, this is not nesting behavior, this is just “my-house-is-a-freaking-disaster” type of behavior, and I’d be foolish not to clean it now while I can.  Family will be here soon, and I assume that my parents will come up at some point, so I’ve had to prepare the guest bedroom and guest bathroom, and generally create a more hygienic environment for everyone.  Yes, it’s that bad.  But at the same time, I am AMAZED at what I can get done while H is in school.

It’s snowing here now but not sticking to the ground.  The grass has begun to turn green, and there are buds on the trees.  Our flowers are starting to poke through the ground.  My hospital bag is packed and in the car.  We’re feeling ready for this little guy to get here, but I’m not sure he’s quite ready yet.  Technically, I’m not due until April, yet the e-mails started coming last week, with people wondering if I’d had the baby.  It’s annoying, even though they do this to settle their own curiosity and anxiety about things.  So, it might be time to unplug soon, for my own sanity.

So, I’ve been slacking on the updates.  I’ve had 2 midwife appointments since my last post, and I’ve failed to give you the lowdown.  Shame on me.

There’s really not much to report.  One week I had lost a pound.  The next week I had gained 3.  I’m up 32 pounds total.  Blood pressure is good.  I haven’t asked for any more cervical checks, but I might actually ask for one this week out of curiosity.  I’m still doing weekly yoga, still working part-time, still having back pain and heartburn.  Baby boy is still crazy active.

Holden is going through a bit of a rough patch with his behavior.  I don’t think it has  anything to do with the impending baby, I just think it’s normal 3.5 year old stuff.  It’s been challenging to drag a kicking and screaming boy into time out, when he weighs FORTY POUNDS, and my pelvis feels like it’s going to crack from the pressure.  It’s challenging, but the discipline must go on.  We had an especially rough day on Friday, when my neighbor gave him a friendly reminder about his behavior (totally fine with me, I actually like when other adults chime in).  In response, Holden told her “You can’t tell me what to do.”  Um, woah.  So I made him apologize right away, then left with him to put him in an immediate time out at our house.  I had to DRAG him up the stairs.  I locked him in his room, and after some yelling, crying, throwing things, and having an all-out tantrum, I told him he’d be getting an X for the day.  He’s been working on earning an outer space placemat for the past 2.5 weeks, and at the end of each day, he earns either a check or an X.  He doesn’t have to be perfect to get a check mark, but telling off the neighbor was definite grounds for getting an X. When he learned he’d be getting an X, he started sobbing and after a few minutes alone in his room, he grew quiet.  After a little while, I went into his room so we could talk about the situation together.  Later that same night while tucking him in, he told me that he didn’t know he couldn’t say such a thing to a grown-up.  I believe him (he’s not nearly sophisticated enough to lie about something like that).  And when I started thinking about it, I realized where he may have gotten the idea to say such a thing to a neighbor.  Recently, H was watching another kid play and started to be a little bossy with the kid, and I told H, “You shouldn’t be bossy with him, you shouldn’t be telling other kids what to do, or how to play.”  Of course, it seemed perfectly natural for H to generalize this and say to our neighbor, “You can’t tell me what to do.”  Sigh.  Being three is all about learning exceptions to rules—it’s about revealing all of the many social qualifiers that guide acceptable human interaction.  It’s tough stuff:

Listen to grown-ups

• But not strangers, because they might be sketchy

Don’t be bossy

• Unless another kid is doing something dangerous
• Or they are trying to hurt/annoy you, and you need to tell them to stop
• Or they are hurting someone else

Don’t let other people touch your private areas

• Unless he or she is your doctor
• Or your mom or dad
• Or your teacher is helping you go potty
• And you have granted these people permission to do so

Ugh, so many rules!  In my opinion, this is what makes the age of three WAY harder than any previous age.  Learning how to navigate these social situations is difficult; explaining how these social situations work is exhausting.  Once H gets the words, unless, except, if, but, and, & or fully incorporated into his vocabulary, he’ll have mastered this form of social kung fu.

In other news, my boss was recently diagnosed with cancer.  She had surgery a couple of weeks ago and has started a 6-month course of chemotherapy.  It’s horrible news, and we are all hoping for a positive outcome.  That said, I don’t know about the future of my job, and whether I’ll have one to return to after maternity leave.  Weird, because I lost my job after H was born, but for completely different reasons.  Is the universe trying to tell me something?  For now, I’m going to stay positive and assume that I’ll be able to go back.

Hey, you want to see a picture?  People have been bugging me because I have basically taken no maternity photos during this pregnancy.  So here’s one of the four of us last week (38 weeks) enjoying our unseasonably warm weather down by the lake:

My. ribs. hurt.

I had a check-up today.  I’m up 30 lbs. (not happy about that, but it is what it is, I guess.)  I’m 1.5-2 cm dilated, 60% effaced, -2 station.  So—things are starting, but labor is still off in the distance by several weeks.  They are estimating an 8.5-9 lb. baby when all is said and done.  I’m starting my weekly appointments this week, so there’s going to be a lot more driving back and forth to the hospital.  Plus, my chiropractor wants to see me now once each week, which is fine, but is just another thing to pencil into the calendar.

I feel good, other than the fact that my back, hips, and ribs hurt nearly all the time.  Sleep is hard.  Breathing is hard.  How is it that I forgot how miserable this last month of pregnancy is?  It’s been especially hard to wrangle Holden.  He’s had a few days this week with full-on temper tantrums that required me to put him in time out.  Of course, he thought it would be cute to giggle and run away from me instead of going to his room for his punishment, so I had to drag all 40 lbs of him into his room, which always kills my back and makes my stomach tense up.  I think he’s going through typical 3.5 year old stuff, but I also think that he’s upset that I can’t do as many things with him as I used to—like chasing him around the yard, playing hide and seek, getting on my hands and knees to play, etc.  He just needs to get used to it, because this is how it is.

I have more to say, but my back is on fire just sitting here for a few minutes typing.  Sitting for any length of time is unbearable.  I’m working up until my due date, and although I really love my job, the whole sitting-in-front-of-a-computer thing is not working out too well these days.

Oh, and I could use a drink:)