Keepin' On Keepin' On

I have to say, I am sort of rocking this whole pregnancy thing these days. Yesterday was my 28 week appointment. Had to drink that crappy glucose whatever and then get blood drawn. And then today I have to go back and get my shot of Rhogam since I am Rh negative. But I've only gained 2 lbs. since the last appointment and the veins on my leg are looking better thanks to my strict regiment of wearing support hose (most of the time), elevating my feet whenever I get the chance and pampering the ugly things with cool witch hazel compresses. I'm eating well and excersising every day and all in all, I have to say that I'm feeling pretty good about stuff.

It helps that the Husband and I had an enjoyable (7th!) anniversary. We slept in and then rode our bikes downtown for breakfast. After that, we spectated at the bicycle race that was going on and then went to this movie. Dinner was casual but then there was time for some *ahem* intimacy that we had been lacking for, oh, the last month or so. (Apparently, pregnancy is not a turn-on for the Husband...but he was nice enough to fake it for the sake of my sanity.) So that was that.

Now, I just need to get ready for my parents to come later this week and for our baby shower on Sunday. I can't believe its here already. Ack!

Random thoughts and plans. In no particular order.

-Finally, we are having summer weather! Yipee. Its been in the 80's all week. The Husband complains of being too hot, but I love it. I especially love riding my bike to work without freezing my ass off. Such a nice change.

-The Mother-in-Law dropped off a crib, changing table, and other odds and ends yesterday. And we received a box of baby toys from my mom. All of a sudden THERE IS BABY STUFF AT MY HOUSE. This is almost too weird to even wrap my head around. And the kid is going to be here so soon...I'm already in the 3rd trimester- 3 months to go. Eeeep!

-Last night, there was a fabulous punk rock show that I just couldn't stay away from. I was out way to late and am pretty tired today but it was so worth it just to be out on a warm summer night, hanging with friends and hearing great music. Besides, this summer may be my last chance to do this kind of stuff with minimal worry and fuss for a while. So I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts.

- We have a busy weekend ahead: Tonight, we are headed down to Ft.Collins (CO) to meet the in-laws for dinner. Tomorrow, I'm having lunch with a friend to finalize the plans for the baby shower BBQ which is next weekend and both tomorrow and Sunday I hope to make more progress on getting the kid's room set up. Sunday is also our 7th wedding anniversary. Which is just strange.

-Next week, my parents are coming to visit and I'm so excited. They live so far away now that I rarely get to see them...maybe twice a year. My dad and I are going to build a picnic table together. Should be lots of fun. Yay summer!!

Photo shoot

So, Husband's band is putting out their next album this month. Last night was the photo shoot for the cover and we decided to get my pregnant belly in on the action. This is 26 weeks:

I even got my hair done before the shoot (not that you can see it in this picture) but it was totally cute. Big rockabilly pomp in front with a pony tail. I loved it! And, they borrowed 3 classic GTO's for the shoot that we all got to gawk at and drool over. A good time was had by all and I think they got some really nice shots for cover art.

McHann

As a person who grew up with pets, I feel like I have a special appreciation for their place in a home. In fact, I can confidently say that a house is not a home for me at all without pets. Growing up, we had several cats, fish, birds, gerbils, hamsters and Doc. Dr. Tubbs, or Doc for short, was a cute little black dog (1/2 cocker spaniel and 1/2 dachsund) who was with us for 17 years. He grew up along side us- there through all the growing pains, school dances, make-ups and break-ups, departures for college. I never thought I'd love another dog the way I loved Doc.


But then I got married. And with the Husband came McHann. A 2 year old German Shepherd with the sweetest disposition I have ever witnessed in a dog. Plagued by health problems her whole life, McHann has seen more of the vet than any animal ever should. When she developed a benign tumor in her ear, we actually took out a loan to pay for the surgery to fix it before it began pushing on her brain, slowly killing her. She has had an absess in her neck and once ate a dishtowel (I said she was sweet- not particularly bright ;-) and had to have her stomach cut open in 3 places to remove all the fibers. Through it all, she remained sweet, devoted, gentle and relentlessly loyal. She has never growled, snapped, bitten or been at all aggressive towards anyone- not even the Dr. who cut her head open to save her life. Now with only one ear, she has a cock-eyed goofiness that is impossible not to love.

Fast forward to the present-at 10 years old, McHann is starting to show her age. Her hips are stiff and seem painful at times, in spite of the glucosamine supplements prescribed by the vet. She moves slower and has less stamina for long walks or hikes. She sleeps more and her muzzle is gray.

But one thing has not changed: her relentless optimism and love. Each day when we walk through the door, its like Christmas- as though she has not seen us in days and days and is just SO HAPPY we have come back to her. Her big, brown eyes look up at us with the absolute love and trust that seems to be unique to her species. It may sound silly, but we feel truly blessed to have her in our lives.

When the baby comes, I know she will be wonderful. I hope we can continue to provide her with the love and attention she deserves. And as she gets older, I hope we can give her the things she has given us during the 7 years of our marriage: comfort, companionship, friendship, and unconditional love.

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Maximum Suckitude

How lame was the final episode of the Sopranos!? Boo, I say.

Would you like some cheese with that Whine?

First of all, the house is a no-go. Its just too expensive. As convincing as the realtor and lender can be, I simply cannot handle the stress of trying to force something to work that would be such a stretch for us. Especially since we know this kid is going to cost a small fortune. At this point, I think we have decided to maybe wait a year and then try again. Just get used to the kid related expenses, maybe try to save some money and pay off some debts and then re-evaluate next spring. As disappointing as this is, its probably for the best and honestly, I feel a little relieved. Going through all that financial crap and moving would be stressful right now and I kind of just want to concentrate on getting this little feller here.

And of course, as nice as it would be to have a place of our own, the rental we have right now is perfectly adequate and the kid is not going to give one monkey shit where we live as long as he is warm and dry and has easy access to a boob. So. I think we'll be just fine.

On the pregnancy related front: Oy. Things are kind of crappy right now. I'm trying to have a positive attitude but Holy Shit am I the Heaviest I've ever been in my Life and it just totally freaks me out. Plus, the midwife is worried about a varicose vein on my leg. So as if I wasn't feeling sexy enough, I am now supposed to wear TED hose. And as much as I try to curb the colorful metaphors on this blog, this majorly fucking sucks. Because- HELLO- it is summer. If it was January I don't think I'd really much care- it would just be another layer against the Wyoming wind, but now that its finally nice out, its just a cruel, cruel joke.

Now, I know things could be so. much. worse. I could be on bed rest or diabetic or losing the baby or any other number of things. I should really count my blessings that for the most part I am super healthy and the kid seems to be doing just dandy. But I think its ok to just feel like shit is crappy sometimes. And I don't think that makes me a bad person.

Shhhhh.

I don't want to jinx this. I really don't. But we saw the perfect house on Friday. Well, perfect except for that it is a bit more than we wanted to spend. That's all I'm going to say. Please send good housey vibes.

Note to self: Do NOT get your hopes up. Do NOT.