An Easy Day

Last weekend I made a little system for myself, in an attempt to control some chaos. I made and printed out a checklist for the things I SHOULD do on school-nights, and stuck it on my fridge. It says:

Make dinner
Do dishes/clean kitchen
Pick up clutter
Write in blog
Go over tomorrow's assignments
Lay out tomorrow's clothes
Load of laundry OR sweep floors OR clean bedroom OR clean bathroom
Get tomorrow's meals ready as needed
Bradley exercises
Wash face/moisturize*.

I also spiced it up a little bit with a picture of a 1940's pinup girl. I don't know why I felt the need to do that, other than I guess the checklist just needed some visual interest and my kitchen needed a little somethin-somethin.

Anyway, I successfully completed this checklist every night, with one notable exception: I did not write in my blog, not once. Which is odd, because out of all those things, THAT is the only one I truly enjoy. I guess I feel much more comfortable spending my time doing things I don't really love than I do on things that make me happy. I've had some horrible vacation Bible school song about Martha and Mary stuck in my head all week. But I have also been beautifully organized and stress-free all week.

AND, it felt really nice to face a weekend that didn't involve massive shoveling-out of my house because I let it fall down around my ears all week. Instead, I can get some OTHER things done. Today we:

Went to an appointment at the birth center, where we learned that I have gained 10 POUNDS in two weeks. How?? How do you gain that much weight in that little time? Joey responded to this entirely rhetorical ranty-question by stating smugly that HE did not.
Also, HE is not currently creating a new human life, which I think clearly means he shouldn't think TOO highly of himself.


Shopped around for a new cell phone for me. I frustrated - slash - amused various people, including my husband, with my disregard for phone quality, price, or features. Because all I wanted was a CUTE phone. Preferably pink. Am still looking.


Went to various stores for various nursery renovation - related items. And at each store was accosted by check-out people with semi-obnoxious pregnancy chatter. At the hardware store I was scolded for finding out the gender ahead of time. Apparently this is supposed to be a surprise. At Wal-Mart (how do I hate this store so actively, yet always end up buying things there??)I was informed that I look MUCH bigger than 8-ish months, and then told various horror stories about newborn babies that weighed FOURTEEN POUNDS. Joey and I decided that the next stranger who asks my due date will be told something outlandish, like "this July". Which is much kinder than my big-gun response of "What do you mean, due?"


I took McLovin for a walk, since the midwife gave me permission to walk 30 minutes-1 hour a day. Since I am HUGE LIKE BEAR and all. It was a really unseasonably beautiful day today (seventy degrees in January? What?) and a nice time to explore the neighborhood a bit. Even though McLovin was fully traumatized by the concept that she may not walk in front of me (tripping hazards aside, Cesar says not to let dogs do that, and Cesar is totally the boss of me.) and spent the vast majority of our 25 minute walk choking herself on the leash. And making what can only be described as unGodly gacking noises. A fast learner she is not.


My mamma finished painting the nursery today (!!!) and tomorrow I will be cleaning it up and setting up baby things, and OMG, now that this room is painted, we can totally have a baby! Scout hung out with Joey and McLovin all afternoon, enjoying some quality time outside while Joey did yard work. Which resulted in:




"Do you know what I did when he blowed the leaves with that thing-thing? I ATE the wind!"

Not quite safe, we informed Joey, but it does make for an excellent photo-op. Even if SOMEONE left the camera at school, and alls I had was my cellphone camera.



AND I spent a good part of the afternoon reading the archives of this awesome blog. Is that weird to do? Am I the only one who does that? When I find a blog I really love, I always have the compulsion to go back and read all the stuff I missed. Especially if I've missed a lot. I feel excited to see how REAL LIFE unfolds for people other than myself. Or possibly, am just a stalker.



I'm kind of amazed that it's only eight thirty now, and not like twelve. It seems like I lot got crowded into this day, but without feeling crowded or rushed at all. I think I'll go take a bath now. I've been seriously LIVING in the bathtub lately, even though there is never quite enough hot water (but really, is there EVER enough hot water?) because it relaxes my muscles. Which are exhausted from carrying around all this extra bulk! I must look impressively pregnant (I KNOW I'm waddling like a duck all the time now) because people keep asking me if I'm alright, and seeming very surprised when I say I am. Yes, I have a whole litany (correct usage?) of complaints, but I've kind of been assuming they are par for the knocked-up course. Joey asked me the other night if I'm terribly worried about how much labor will hurt (this after a traumatic viewing of a birth video at our Bradley Method class)and all that. I was genuinely surprised by this question. Why would I worry about THAT? I asked him - we already KNOW it's gonna hurt.

I worry -a LOT- about a lot of things, but labor isn't one of them. Obviously, it will suck. It will be excruciatingly painful and I will cry and possibly throw things at my nearest and dearest. But it won't last forever (even if I end up being Bad At Birthing, the worst that will happen is they will transfer me to a regular hospital and hook me up to some drugs.) and then I'll have a delicious BABY. I'm all kinds of worried about what happens AFTER labor, because I just don't know how it will be. But I think we can agree that a first-time mother attempting natural childbirth is going to be in a lot of pain. Pretty much end of story.

Which really makes me happy, because FINALLY I find something that I'm not obsessing about! I'm not COMPLETELY high-strung and neurotic. Perchance, I am mellowing a little!


Perchance, I should stop reading Sense And Sensibility in the bathtub,though, as it is weird to say "perchance" in everyday conversation.



*Would you believe that I have to put this on my checklist because otherwise I am TOTALLY capable of sleeping in my makeup? Because I am. I really do know how horrible that is for the skin, and that I deserve to be more broken-out than a fourteen year old. Why this is hard for me to remember is a complete mystery.