36 weeks

Well, it has been a LONG time since I last blogged.  So, I will probably end up doing several posts in a row to make up for lost time.  It turns out it's a lot of work being a pregnant mom to an active toddler who happens to also direct the ward choir (for me, this is more work than the average, I suspect).

My morning sickness has not abated at all during this pregnancy, so I continue to medicate.  Thank you, Vitamin B6 and doxylamine: I would not be the same without you.  I look forward to having a normal appetite and no more queasiness.

This pregnancy has been gloriously complication free, other than the nine months of morning sickness.  We did decide to change providers and go back to the midwives at Shady Grove Hospital where Peter was born.  This was a hard decision to make, as I have always dreamed of having a home birth.  But it just seemed like $1000 was too much to pay out of pocket when we could have a free birth at the hospital.  Yes, I know there are risks of intervention at the hospital.  However, if something should go wrong with the labor, I won't have to transfer, so that is one good thing about the whole switch.  And I do very much love the midwives at Shady Grove.  I just don't so much love that they have to answer to the OB practice with whom they share business.  But I am hopeful for another unmedicated, uncomplicated birth for little Eleanor.

We have decided to name her Eleanor Marilyn.  For some reason I had a difficult time deciding on a middle name, but Chris was insistent it be a family name.  But in the last month or so, I just felt that Eleanor Marilyn would be perfect for our little girl.  We will probably call her Elly (not Ellie, as Chris informs me that he had a family dog with this name and spelling.  This is not the first family dog to spoil a favorite name of ours...ahem...Doug and Melanie...;)   ).

Peter has been so sweet with this pregnancy.  He has been quite the patient little boy, especially early on when his mother was a zombie who had no energy and couldn't be very active in an effort to keep food down.  I'm not sure if he really understands what is growing inside my belly, but we have talked to him at length about the situation.  He affectionately refers to my belly as, "Elly belly," per a fleeting suggestion from Chris at one point.  He constantly wants me to lift up my shirt and touch my belly and asks, "Elly moving?"  He has tried to lift up my shirt in public places, but luckily I have been able to keep covered up.  But he is already quite affectionate with her and snuggles my belly on occasion.  Hopefully he feels the same fondness for her when she actually arrives.

The ladies in the ward threw me a baby shower.  Apparently you are entitled to a baby shower if you are having a baby of a different gender.  We now have a lots of cute little girly things, so I hope that ultrasound tech was right!!  Anyway, there are so many lovely people in this ward and it was a very fun shower.  It makes me sad that we might have to move out of the ward.

Yes, the cigarette smoke and marijuana smoke has proven too much to bear for us.  But more than that, we just feel like it's the right decision to get out of this apartment.  We would like to move closer in so that Chris's commute is shorter, but we also would love to stay in our ward.  Our lease is up at the end of June, so we will know sooner or later where we will be going.  It's not going to be fun at all to move with a newborn.  I'm not sure how I'm going to care for a toddler, a newborn, and pack and clean everything.  It should be interesting, to say the least.

In the meantime, I have approximately four weeks to go (although if we're on Peter's schedule, 2 weeks, yikes!).  I am feeling so much more at peace about this time around.  I know a lot of this has to do with my going through the experience of natural childbirth already.  I know what's coming, and I know how I'm likely going to deal with it, so this makes me feel a lot better.  Of course, there are always the unknowns that are a little scary.  But since those are out of my control, I might as well not worry about them until I have to meet them.  So, I'm just really looking forward to meeting this little girl of ours!

The scary part for me is what happens after she's born.  Right now, Peter gets so much attention from Chris and me.  And he is such a tender-hearted little guy, that I hope his feelings aren't hurt by my divided attention.  So, I am anxious about Peter's transition and my ability to deal with it and help him feel loved.  I imagine it will be somewhat of an adjustment period for us, but I'm hoping it won't be too difficult.  Luckily, I get to have my dad come and visit, so I think this will help Peter for the first week or two.