Oh, Baby!

Since I have pretty much neglected my newest belly buddy I have decided to dedicate a few posts to baby...

Here I am, in the third trimester.  The holiday season is such a busy time that I told myself I would get my affairs in order "after Christmas".  Unfortunately it is now "after Christmas" and I am running low on time.  As in I have two months...60 days...8 weeks...YIKES.

I have yet to order my birth supplies (a homebirth requires ordering things such as lancets, umbilical ties, gloves, etc), nor have I dusted off the tiny baby clothes.  Also on my to-do list: organize photos, transfer videos from the handicam to DVDs, some MAJOR nesting cleaning, and plan a birthday party for my (current) youngest.

Yes, I have done this before.  I know the sentiments of mothers everywhere that the cleaning can wait.  Blah, blah, blah.  I need this stuff done.  I don't want to wait another two years to have time to do it because meanwhile there will be more and more piling up.  I'd really love to have a fresh start, and then in two years have just a fraction of the to-do list.  See?

Yep, these posts are mostly for me.  Getting my thoughts out and "on paper" so to speak will help me get crap done.  One of my biggest obstacles is that even though my kiddos hit the hay by 7:30 every night, I am too tired to be productive.  I literally just want to sit around, eat some bad food, watch some equally bad TV, and go to sleep myself.  If I could just muster up the energy after they go to bed to accomplish something on my list I'd be okay...but NOOOO.  So starting tonight I think I will dedicate an hour to baby preparations each night.  No, really...I will!

Back to the original statement: I have not properly blogged about this baby!  Partly because I am too busy with the rest of my life, and partly because time just ticks by unrelentingly.  But I am finally ready to let new baby take over my life.  First of all I am thrilled to finally get my homebirth I've always wanted.  With my first two I loved my midwives (CNMs) so much that I was willing to birth at the hospital in order to have them with me.  Then with my third I decided even though I thoroughly loved the midwives, it was time to have a homebirth.  It didn't work out due to insurance issues-ridiculous they can FORCE you to have a birth THEY decide on-and my son was born at the hospital.  I was bound and determined, even if it meant selling one of the other kids (just kidding), to have  it MY way this time.  No hassle of packing a bag (I always had trouble with that part somehow), no worries about childcare, no loud nurses hootin and hollering all night long. Just the peace of being in my own home with my family, being able to cuddle in my own bed, and shower without begging permission.  Ahh, bliss.

I'm currently at that stage where nature tries to prepare you for the sleep deprivation that comes after the baby is born.  Stupid nature must have not gotten the memo that I have been sleep-deprived for 6 years I don't need her interference.  First comes the moment of pure happiness when the children go to sleep and I get to raid the kitchen for all my hidden goodies.  The desire to do this is so strong there is no way I could fight it.  None.  After my treats and couch-potato combo the heartburn creeps up.  I know it's coming before I even start snacking, but it doesn't stop me.  No worries, however, because I have Tums stashed all over the house (and in the car).  The real show is while I'm warming the couch watching true crime shows...which is really an unhealthy habit considering the raging hormones.  I learned long ago, with my second pregnancy, that putting bowls of cereal, ice cream, or plates of cake on my belly as if it were a tray is a BAD idea.  How did I learn?  I was innocently eating a bowl of Lucky Charms and my daughter suddenly pushed the bowl off of my tummy and onto the floor.  And me.  And the couch.  So I don't sit food on my bump anymore, but I do put the remote or my phone there, and every night the show in my belly is better than whatever show on TV I'm watching.  It starts with the baby kicking the items off.  I poke him (or her!), he pokes back.  I "pet" my belly, he gets excited and squirms around.  You'd think after an hour or more the wee one would be tuckered out.  Nope, not MY kids.



Another one of my favorite things is letting the other kids "play" with their sibling-it really creates a bond before baby arrives.  The boys will lay their heads on my belly and when they get kicked they throw themselves to the floor and say, "Whoa!" like they have actually been karate kicked to the ground. Makes me laugh every time.  And my only girl, my eldest, insists that we call the baby "Baby Sarah".  It doesn't matter that there is a good chance we're going to have a boy-it's Baby Sarah or nothing!  On the other end of the spectrum I literally had a 20 minute discussion with my middle son about why Jack Sparrow is not a practical name for a baby.  It ended with him pretty angry and shooting my ugly looks.  This is new territory for me since when I had my last the other two were only 4 and 2.  They didn't have opinions about names, gender, or anything else.  They just knew another baby was coming, but in an abstract kind of way.

There.  Now I feel much less guilty about not showering attention on the bump.  Prepare to be bombarded with baby blog posts!  ;)