There are only two weeks left of fall. We have entered the rainy season here in Southern California. We survived Thanksgiving. We watched the birth video at our Bradley class. We toured the labor & delivery suites at the hospital. I helped out with Operation Firefly. It is 10 days until our next OB appointment, the one where I will do my glucose tolerance test.
Here is a round-up of the symptoms for the past month:
Week 22 - Nov 4-10 headache, neckache, backache, heartburn, abdominal itchiness
Week 23 - Nov 11-17 acne, abdominal aches, heartburn
Week 24 - Nov 18-24 heartburn, headache, tender breasts, Braxton-Hicks contractions
Week 24 - Nov 18-24 heartburn, headache, tender breasts, Braxton-Hicks contractions
Week 25 - Nov 25-Dec 1 heartburn, tender breasts, heart palpitations
Week 26 - Dec 2-8 heartburn, headache, leg cramp, heart palpitations
I get check-ups from a nurse via phone through my health insurance. I told them about the heart palpitations and they suggested I call my OB, who suggested I call my PCP, who suggested urgent care, but I'm refusing to go to urgent care because of exposure to sick people. I plan to just wait until my next appointment and see how my blood pressure reading is at that time.
I tried to write a blog post earlier in the week but I was just too exhausted to actually write anything. I had planned to teach a lesson (at this very moment) about how writing can help you learn new things, but I asked my students to RSVP whether they wanted to attend class or not and 7 out of 9 people said they would rather not attend. The other two didn't respond, which I take as a no. I got so sick of students giving me excuses why they couldn't be in class and I have so little energy, I just made an executive decision to give them the option to vote. I'm not going to waste my energy getting upset that the students aren't attending class.
We got rid of some more e-waste from our home and office. I love the Nicole Bernson SAFE Center. Seriously those people rock my world. I did a bunch of letters of recommendation for students applying to PhD programs. It was hard because I had some old files that are no longer accessible, so I had to just start from scratch.
The Thanksgiving holiday was a good one. My aunt and her new husband came to stay with us. We had a nice dinner ready and waiting for them when they arrived in town. The next morning we had a nice breakfast and then walked to campus. They sat in on my lecture and then we walked home. It has been fantastic weather, cool and humid, with super-clean air. I am loving it. Then we did all the shopping for the big meal. Thanksgiving day we watched a live stream of the Macy's parade, which is one of my annual traditions. We started preparing the food, baking a pie crust, chopping veggies, etc. My cousin came over and baked a sweet potato pie while my aunt took a nap. We baked a pecan pie and I made a layered banana pudding. We got the shrimp boil going and it was super easy and fun.
When I start to feel a bit of pain in my belly, it has been helpful to kind of swing it side to side. I don't know if that settles the baby or just distracts me from the pain. Putting on music and doing a bit of light dancing has really been helping me beat the blues. I find I have a very hard time just sitting, my back gets really stiff and I just feel miserable and restless.
The day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday) we avoided all the shopping craziness and took a public transportation adventure to Exposition Park. We went to see the space shuttle and an exhibit about dogs that we've been wanting to see for months. It was great for me to do all that walking because like I said, it's been torture to just sit still. I also had the tastiest ice cream at the Grand Central Market.
Over the past two weeks, I had the occasion to enjoy a particular food so much that I actually started bawling over it. One was a fresh-out-of-the-oven cinnamon roll. The other was the banana cream pudding. I get some strong cravings, I assume due to pregnancy and/or nostalgia, and when I get to eat exactly what I wanted, the emotion is just so overwhelming.
After our guests left, we had a few days of just sitting around the house with our feet up. One thing I did was use a Black Friday promotional code to order our travel system (stroller + car seat). The price dropped from $449 to $229 and then I had a 20% off coupon on top of that. I think about it all the time and I'm checking the FedEx tracking constantly to see when we can pick it up. Someone purchased the first item from our BabyList registry. I realize not everyone will follow what we picked out, but it is really nice that at least for those who enjoy shopping from a registry, it's there to give them an idea of exactly what we would want.
We also spent about 3 hours dealing with Sprint to decide what to do with our cell phones. I enjoy my phone a lot and I feel bad getting rid of it if it is working fine. So we decided to purchase our devices instead of upgrading to the newer model.
I found it hard to return to work after the 4-day weekend. I started chanting to myself "Keep it Simple" to just remind myself that I don't have to be amazing, I just have to show up and not get too dramatic. I had a fun time learning EquatIO with some women at my university. It's a program that helps you make your equations accessible for those who are blind.
In our Bradley class, we watched a video of natural childbirth. The woman was pretty calm throughout the whole thing and she had a good amount of patience. Her doctor was also super calm. It was almost freaky. It was interesting to see the hospital right on the same day. Unfortunately, they have only so many labor & delivery rooms, which were all full at the time of the tour. They did show this video and recommended we watch another two videos that were filmed at our hospital.
https://www.ellentube.com/studios/momsplaining/momsplaining-with-kristen-bell-babies-babies-everywhere-part-1.html
https://www.ellentube.com/studios/momsplaining/momsplaining-with-kristen-bell-babies-babies-everywhere-part-2.html
Even though I can't ride my bicycle right now and I won't be going to this weekend's Metro BEST ride or CicLAvia - The Valley, I still went out and helped hand out free bike lights during CSUN's operation firefly. It was hard being on my feet so much on Tuesday, I even took the afternoon on Wednesday off and went home to put my feet up. I had such a headache on Wednesday. I guess it's getting pretty real that the third trimester is just around the corner (i.e. next week!)
It's almost time to pack the "hospital bag" and I'm not sure exactly what to put in there. I have some pregnancy apps that make recommendations, but I guess I'm just finding that all a bit overwhelming right now. A few things our hospital suggested are PILLOWS and NIPPLE CREAM so I guess I will start making that list and packing that bag.
In other family news, it's one week until we see "A Christmas Carol" at the Glendale Center Theater. My nephew just had surgery yesterday to repair a torn ACL. So we will be visiting with them in Newport Beach in two weeks (Babymoon Part 4, I guess). That way they won't have to travel up to see us on Christmas day. Then, we're having a Christmas dinner at our house in about 2.5 weeks. My brother-in-law will be staying the night with us. Dear husband has a week off (between Christmas and New Year's Day) so I'm really looking forward to relaxing at home together.
In other work news, it's 1.5 weeks until our department holiday pot-luck and white elephant gift exchange. I enjoy getting together with my colleagues and playing this fun game, but it does mean that I need to get all the ingredients for the dish I will make (banana cream pudding again) and buy two gifts for exchange. Not to mention holiday shopping for family, which I suppose we will do this weekend.
I got such a great gift from my "Secret Stork" which was arranged through my reddit monthly bumper group. I spoke with a colleague who has had 3 deliveries (the 3rd was a set of twins at age 39) and she told me that it's good to read about other people's experience of pregnancy, whether through an online community, a blog or an actual book. It can help normalize all the strange feelings. I remember reading lots of other people's blogs about infertility and pregnancy after IVF and it was a big comfort to me, which is partly why I keep writing these pregnancy posts. This year will be among my most active in blogging, so I feel encouraged that this pregnancy experience has given me so much to write about.
Week 26 - Dec 2-8 heartburn, headache, leg cramp, heart palpitations
I get check-ups from a nurse via phone through my health insurance. I told them about the heart palpitations and they suggested I call my OB, who suggested I call my PCP, who suggested urgent care, but I'm refusing to go to urgent care because of exposure to sick people. I plan to just wait until my next appointment and see how my blood pressure reading is at that time.
I tried to write a blog post earlier in the week but I was just too exhausted to actually write anything. I had planned to teach a lesson (at this very moment) about how writing can help you learn new things, but I asked my students to RSVP whether they wanted to attend class or not and 7 out of 9 people said they would rather not attend. The other two didn't respond, which I take as a no. I got so sick of students giving me excuses why they couldn't be in class and I have so little energy, I just made an executive decision to give them the option to vote. I'm not going to waste my energy getting upset that the students aren't attending class.
We got rid of some more e-waste from our home and office. I love the Nicole Bernson SAFE Center. Seriously those people rock my world. I did a bunch of letters of recommendation for students applying to PhD programs. It was hard because I had some old files that are no longer accessible, so I had to just start from scratch.
The Thanksgiving holiday was a good one. My aunt and her new husband came to stay with us. We had a nice dinner ready and waiting for them when they arrived in town. The next morning we had a nice breakfast and then walked to campus. They sat in on my lecture and then we walked home. It has been fantastic weather, cool and humid, with super-clean air. I am loving it. Then we did all the shopping for the big meal. Thanksgiving day we watched a live stream of the Macy's parade, which is one of my annual traditions. We started preparing the food, baking a pie crust, chopping veggies, etc. My cousin came over and baked a sweet potato pie while my aunt took a nap. We baked a pecan pie and I made a layered banana pudding. We got the shrimp boil going and it was super easy and fun.
When I start to feel a bit of pain in my belly, it has been helpful to kind of swing it side to side. I don't know if that settles the baby or just distracts me from the pain. Putting on music and doing a bit of light dancing has really been helping me beat the blues. I find I have a very hard time just sitting, my back gets really stiff and I just feel miserable and restless.
The day after Thanksgiving (Black Friday) we avoided all the shopping craziness and took a public transportation adventure to Exposition Park. We went to see the space shuttle and an exhibit about dogs that we've been wanting to see for months. It was great for me to do all that walking because like I said, it's been torture to just sit still. I also had the tastiest ice cream at the Grand Central Market.
Over the past two weeks, I had the occasion to enjoy a particular food so much that I actually started bawling over it. One was a fresh-out-of-the-oven cinnamon roll. The other was the banana cream pudding. I get some strong cravings, I assume due to pregnancy and/or nostalgia, and when I get to eat exactly what I wanted, the emotion is just so overwhelming.
After our guests left, we had a few days of just sitting around the house with our feet up. One thing I did was use a Black Friday promotional code to order our travel system (stroller + car seat). The price dropped from $449 to $229 and then I had a 20% off coupon on top of that. I think about it all the time and I'm checking the FedEx tracking constantly to see when we can pick it up. Someone purchased the first item from our BabyList registry. I realize not everyone will follow what we picked out, but it is really nice that at least for those who enjoy shopping from a registry, it's there to give them an idea of exactly what we would want.
We also spent about 3 hours dealing with Sprint to decide what to do with our cell phones. I enjoy my phone a lot and I feel bad getting rid of it if it is working fine. So we decided to purchase our devices instead of upgrading to the newer model.
I found it hard to return to work after the 4-day weekend. I started chanting to myself "Keep it Simple" to just remind myself that I don't have to be amazing, I just have to show up and not get too dramatic. I had a fun time learning EquatIO with some women at my university. It's a program that helps you make your equations accessible for those who are blind.
In our Bradley class, we watched a video of natural childbirth. The woman was pretty calm throughout the whole thing and she had a good amount of patience. Her doctor was also super calm. It was almost freaky. It was interesting to see the hospital right on the same day. Unfortunately, they have only so many labor & delivery rooms, which were all full at the time of the tour. They did show this video and recommended we watch another two videos that were filmed at our hospital.
https://www.ellentube.com/studios/momsplaining/momsplaining-with-kristen-bell-babies-babies-everywhere-part-1.html
https://www.ellentube.com/studios/momsplaining/momsplaining-with-kristen-bell-babies-babies-everywhere-part-2.html
Even though I can't ride my bicycle right now and I won't be going to this weekend's Metro BEST ride or CicLAvia - The Valley, I still went out and helped hand out free bike lights during CSUN's operation firefly. It was hard being on my feet so much on Tuesday, I even took the afternoon on Wednesday off and went home to put my feet up. I had such a headache on Wednesday. I guess it's getting pretty real that the third trimester is just around the corner (i.e. next week!)
It's almost time to pack the "hospital bag" and I'm not sure exactly what to put in there. I have some pregnancy apps that make recommendations, but I guess I'm just finding that all a bit overwhelming right now. A few things our hospital suggested are PILLOWS and NIPPLE CREAM so I guess I will start making that list and packing that bag.
In other family news, it's one week until we see "A Christmas Carol" at the Glendale Center Theater. My nephew just had surgery yesterday to repair a torn ACL. So we will be visiting with them in Newport Beach in two weeks (Babymoon Part 4, I guess). That way they won't have to travel up to see us on Christmas day. Then, we're having a Christmas dinner at our house in about 2.5 weeks. My brother-in-law will be staying the night with us. Dear husband has a week off (between Christmas and New Year's Day) so I'm really looking forward to relaxing at home together.
In other work news, it's 1.5 weeks until our department holiday pot-luck and white elephant gift exchange. I enjoy getting together with my colleagues and playing this fun game, but it does mean that I need to get all the ingredients for the dish I will make (banana cream pudding again) and buy two gifts for exchange. Not to mention holiday shopping for family, which I suppose we will do this weekend.
I got such a great gift from my "Secret Stork" which was arranged through my reddit monthly bumper group. I spoke with a colleague who has had 3 deliveries (the 3rd was a set of twins at age 39) and she told me that it's good to read about other people's experience of pregnancy, whether through an online community, a blog or an actual book. It can help normalize all the strange feelings. I remember reading lots of other people's blogs about infertility and pregnancy after IVF and it was a big comfort to me, which is partly why I keep writing these pregnancy posts. This year will be among my most active in blogging, so I feel encouraged that this pregnancy experience has given me so much to write about.
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