I had a rough week last week, physically and mentally, and although the physical stuff isn’t going away, a long weekend with my best friend, her husband, and two adorable kids has pretty much healed me mentally. I’ve barely checked Twitter all weekend, haven’t opened a book, and it seems ages since I’ve blogged regularly. Hopefully I’ll be back in action this week, but in the meantime here are a few links that I have found fun, interesting, or uplifting.
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>My brother created this addicting website called Epic Spoilers. A movie spoiler pops up, you mouse over it, and the movie name appears (along with Netflix and Rotten Tomatoes integration!) The tagline is “You know you want to,” and it’s true. I know the endings of way too many movies now.
>Kate shared this link on Twitter, and it was hilarious. As she said, “Kate Middleton is amused by your simple, unroyal life.”
>Thankfully I don’t have to deal with this for awhile, but reading this post about changing to reusable pads was super interesting. I am no longer utterly disgusted by the idea!
>I want to subscribe to a bunch more magazines just to make an inspiration journal like this!
>I was in Babies R Us today doing some pre-registry research, and when I saw that a Moby wrap costs $40 for what is literally just a long piece of knit fabric I was convinced that I can make my own. I searched and found this tutorial – no sewing required!
Hosted by Chelsea as always, and this week’s questions were provided by Erin.
1. When someone asks you for a book recommendation, what is your go-to book? It depends on the person, so first I’ll find out what they like. A fiction book I wish everyone would read is A Prayer For Owen Meany by John Irving. For girls I recommend Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. A historical Christian memoir that blew me away was The Hiding Placeby Corrie ten Boom. I could keep going.
2. Do you buy your books, or are you a library patron? I always check the library first, unless it is a book by one of my favorite authors or one I’ve read before that I know I want to own. Usually I can get a book from the library if I’m willing to wait a bit, and sometimes I procure books from swapping sites like Paperbackswap or BookMooch. I will also borrow from a friend if I have that option. If I need a book quickly (like for book club) and all of those outlets fail me, I’ll try to buy it used at my local bookstore or get it for my Sony Reader.
3. E-readers, yay or nay? Yay. I have a Sony Reader Daily Edition and I love it. Although I will never quit reading paper books, I find that my Reader is a perfect companion. It’s convenient when I need a book fast, I can get many classics for free on it from Gutenberg.org (great for those long ones that you don’t want to lug around), and it’s extremely easy to get used to and read. I can even check books out from the library on it, although I do have to wait for them to become available.
4. What was your favorite book as a child? Matildaby Roald Dahl. I read it over and over, and my copy is all beat up. I think it has a lot to do with the reason I love reading today.
5. If you could be any character in a book, who would you be?
Hard question! This may sound strange, but I just might pick Watson from the Sherlock Holmes stories. Holmes is one of my favorite characters, and I’d love to be privy to the inner workings of his mind and go on his adventures with him. Also, Watson is a doctor which is right up my alley. If I had to choose a girl I’d pick the narrator from Rebecca (she is never named) because her story is so romantic.
6. What book would you love to see turned into a movie? I would definitely enjoy seeing Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card as a movie. I am pretty sure that he’s serious about getting it made, and according to IMDb it’s in development for 2013, but we’ll see if it happens. For the record, I love movies that are based on books I’ve read. Yes, sometimes they are terrible, but I still look forward to seeing on screen the things I’ve imagined.
7. What is your all-time favorite book? For me, nothing can top The Lord of the Ringsby J.R.R. Tolkien.
8. How many books do you read at once? Not too long ago I found myself strung out between five different books, and I decided I needed to make a change. These days I stick with one main book, one audiobook for my car, some supplemental reading every now and then about childbirth and parenting, and I’m going through The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin month by month. So although I’m “currently reading” four books, there is really only one main one.
9. What is your favorite book genre? Literary fiction, but memoirs and narrative nonfiction are a close second.
10. Which Harry Potter book is the best? Or haven’t you read them at all? I love Harry Potter, but it’s been awhile since I’ve read the books. I remember loving The Prisoner of Azkaban, and it’s also a good one because it’s number three which is before a lot of the heavy stuff starts to happen.
Symptoms: Pregnancy is, like, the weirdest thing ever. Seems like every week something new is happening to my body. Like how three weeks ago I ended up in the hospital because they thought I might have appendicitis but it turned out to be only a bladder infection and possibly bad gas. Then there’s the fact that all my joints have loosened and one of my ribs is now “wandering” (as my doctor put it), not quite in place anymore. Ouch. I feel this strange sensation in my left upper abdomen, on top of my ribs, that is almost like someone pressing up from the inside and moving around. I’m thinking my intestines are way up there now. And every morning after I’ve been lying down, I take a deep breath and feel a vibration throughout my chest that feels like friction. It has my doctor stumped, but she suspects it has to do with the inflammation of my ribs.
Oh, and the hormones! After I saw my doctor yesterday, a perfectly good visit, I was suddenly struck with such a case of melancholy. It took a cup of coffee and total immersion in work to numb it. Then yesterday I drove the thirty miles to work and took the bus home, an hour-long ride, and didn’t realize that I had abandoned my car until I couldn’t find it at the park and ride. I wanted to cry. I believe this is what they call pregnancy brain.
Medical Stuff: I have gained a total of 15 pounds so far. I took my 2-hour glucose tolerance test yesterday, and since I haven’t heard that it was abnormal I’m assuming it was fine. Three weeks ago my blood counts were all low so my doctor retested them yesterday but I don’t know the results. I’m so tempted to look them up myself (it would be so easy), but that would be a violation of HIPAA and I’m too much of a goody-goody for that.
Movement: She moves! The first time I felt it for sure was on St. Patrick’s Day, and two days later early on Saturday morning David and I were lying in bed (he sleeping, me resting) and I grabbed his hand, pressed it to my belly, and he felt her. Neither of us can get enough of it now.
Clothes: I still wear my regular scrub pants most of the time, but they’re getting a bit tight. A couple of my scrub tops fit, but mostly I wear t-shirts with them. I can’t do regular pants anymore, but I haven’t bought anything yet. I have a few hand-me-down maternity clothes, including jeans, and I make do with those plus sundresses and yoga pants. I want to spend as little as possible on clothes.
Preparation: This is what has me the most stressed. We’ve done a lot of painting in our house, but there’s still a lot more to go. We’re attending childbirth classes, but lately I’ve chosen to read memoirs & humorous accounts of pregnancy & parenting rather than actual, informative books. We’re going to visit another daycare today, and I hope we love it because it’s the cheapest one around. I need to register but I need HELP.
Also: I absolutely cannot picture myself as an actual mother. I know people do this all the time, but I haven’t done it yet and I’m still pretty scared. I love Meredith so much but oh my goodness this is all happening so fast!
When people ask me when I’m due, I’m so used to responding, “In July, so I’ve still got a ways to go.” But now when I tell them July they say, “That’s not very far away!” And oh my goodness, it’s not. In just a little more than three months, we should have a baby in the house. I just cannot imagine it.
Not a free day until the end of the month!
There’s so much still that I want to get done before that time, but one of my best friends recently reminded me that getting ready for a baby isn’t like planning a wedding. If you don’t finish everything in time, you can get to it afterward. I’m trying to remember that, because my life is kind of booked right now. In addition to 11-12 hours of being gone for work every day, I have Bible study on Tuesdays, childbirth classes on Wednesdays, and youth group on Thursdays – every week. I have monthly book club and craft club meetings, church commitments, and family gatherings. I’m trying not to abandon the things I love like blogging and keeping up with friends, reading, and a few select TV shows. All of this, except for the childbirth classes, doesn’t include any sort of baby preparation at all.
Saturdays have recently turned into work days around the house. With the help of our parents and siblings, we’ve made a big dent in the painting. My dad helped change out a couple more light fixtures, and I’m even working on hanging some mirrors and art on the walls. A vision for the nursery is slowly starting to form in my mind. In two weeks we’re having company for a few days, so the guest room and bathroom are going to get whipped into shape.
The breakfast nook. I like it.
This weekend I also managed to repaint my toenails, have dinner and game night with some couples from church, visit my dog Cleo at my parents’ house (and came away with a few original paintings by my grandfather), wrangle our mentally disturbed dog Eddie who will not let us sleep OMG, do a little shopping for the guest room, and watch some of the Master’s while catching up on blogs.
When I look at my calendar and I think about my to-do list, I have no idea how I’m going to make it. One day at a time, I suppose!
That’s a quote from Tombstone, in case you were wondering, and in case you were wondering, Tombstone is one of my all-time favorite movies. Anyway.
I’m checking in to give you a general update on my life, since it doesn’t seem that I’ve done that for awhile. Some things have been happening and I’d love your feedback.
Pregnancy & Health
Since my hospital visit a couple weeks ago, I’ve had a bit of a rough time. It took me a week and a half to recover from my cold, and during that time I had absolutely no energy. I just barely started feeling good again this week, and now for two days I’ve had a sore throat that won’t go away. I’m really hoping it doesn’t develop into something more, or my immune system and I are going to have words.
On top of that, I’ve had some pretty killer back pain. For awhile I had a pulled muscle near one of my shoulder blades, and that was just miserable. But thanks to Epsom salt baths, a massage, Icy Hot, and patience, that has healed up. What I have now is constant pain around my ribs on the left back side that wraps around to the front. Usually it is a dull ache but occasionally it becomes quite sharp. No idea what’s causing this, but as uncomfortable as it is, it is better than the pulled muscle.
I can feel Meredith moving lots now, and she’s strong enough at times that my husband and family have been able to feel her too. This is really special, because I feel like she’s my little buddy, keeping me company throughout the day.
More detailed pregnancy updates to come next week after I see my doctor again!
My view looking down
Dogs
Oliver has been so good for over a month now that we really don’t want to give him away. Cleo has been doing fine at my parents’ house, but we are contemplating bringing her home for a visit to see how she and Oliver interact because we miss her a lot (even though I do visit frequently).
Strangely, Eddie has been the problem child lately. She is ten years old and has been extremely attached to David since she was a puppy. She’s always been prone to anxiety, but it usually comes out during thunderstorms or when the dishwasher is running. Nowadays she’s the only one out and about in the house during the day since Cleo is gone and we keep Oliver in his crate.
For the past couple of weeks we have noticed things being disturbed in the house, until finally Eddie became downright destructive. She went in David’s closet and completely tore up all the carpet including the foam underneath, spreading it all across our room. We took her to the vet, who said she appears very healthy (bloodwork was normal too) and he believes she is suffering separation anxiety because she senses changes in the family. I don’t know if it’s because she’s lonely during the day without Cleo, if she senses I’m pregnant and is worried, or what. We have her on anti-anxiety medication now, but she is still very needy and driving us just a little bit crazy.
This is what a crybaby looks like
Home Improvement
We finally started working on the house again! Last weekend a bunch of my family came over to help paint. There are several rooms plus a hallway including all the trim, doors, and ceilings to do, so it’s quite a project. So far we’ve completely done the front entryway and the guest room minus the trim and door. We also installed a new light fixture in the entryway. Eventually I’ll get around to hanging art, getting a console table, and retiling, but painting is job #1 for now.
The current state of the entryway
Things are up and down around here, but we’re making it!
