Tonight at yoga not only did I feel like a walrus, but I discovered my balance has gone to hell. I had to lean against a wall just to bend my friggin' knee.

The sad thing is I don't think it had anything at all to do with being pregnant.

Update on the bellybutton: it is now almost 3/4 of the way to being a full outie. So cute!

s.

• Weight gain: so far only 17 lbs in total. Not bad.


• Blood pressure: 100/60.


• Fundal height is 27 or 28, so right on track.


• Baby's heartbeat was 150. Which reminds me... since we have the doppler, I'm going to record his heartbeat and put it on here. Must get on that! Must get on alot of things.


• Blood work: aok. No diabetes. BUT, GP called thismorning wanting to see me to discuss blood results (why? She hasn't called me in 6 months and I've had loads of bloodwork with this pregnancy) So I go in and they tell me I'm anemic. But my OB said all was good. So I'm a bit confused. Left a message with my OB earlier, I'll take her word for it, whatever that may be when I hear back.


• Speaking of GP... I'm looking for a new one. Anyone who may be reading this from Greater Vancouver recommend one in Burnaby or East Van? I don't want to drive too far for a doctor's appointment for my child. Me? I usually go 30 minutes away to appointments because I don't mind, but not if I'm panicking when my baby's umbilical cord is falling off and I want to get to a doctor YESTERDAY out of sheer panic. ;-) Ya know? Let alone if he gets really sick...


• Vaccines. Brought up the fact (with my GP thismorning) that we are starting discussions on whether or not we are going to vaccinate and everything to do with that. Well, the response I got was pretty rude to say the least. And after I told her that I didn't want to know her thoughts, just her facts, I also asked for the list of vaccinations and vaccination schedule for babies. So now we have that information to go forward with our research. Yikes.

Anyone care to weigh in on why you DIDN'T or why you DID decide to vaccinate? Facts and sources would be fantastic too please so me and the D-Man can follow up on this end.

27 weeks along!

A bit about mom:

I'm tired. So very very tired. Not just sleepy, but tired. Need a nap in the afternoon (need more than want), then I'm up until after midnight (which is great actually, I get to spend time with my husband. He's a night owl.). I wake up again around 4 or 5am for a bit, then back to sleep until about 8. It's odd. I'm finding that I tire easily, just walking even. Going into Costco yesterday (you know, they have NO baby stuff at all. Except diapers.), I had to keep yelling out to Donald to wait up. I was trailing behind at a snails pace. This totally crept up on me over the past week or so. I need to take my time.

And I'm surprisingly ok with that.

I've popped again over the past 4 days or so. All of a sudden, the belly is much bigger.

Lovin' it. Will have to get some more pics up soon. Wait... maybe I'll set up the camera now....

Decided my coat-sweater thing isn't going to cut it, and am going to spend the money on a maternity winter coat/jacket. It's just getting too cold, and Donald and I love to grab a coffee and stroll Robson later in the evenings, so I don't want to give that up. Even though it may take me an hour to get from one block to the next!

My feet are doing weird things. I'm not really gaining that much weight, and am only swollen once in a while, but my shoes don't really fit. I've heard that the bones in your feet kind of spread out or something to help distribute weight (does this happen when people just gain alot of weight too, not necessarily just pregnant women?). Anyhoo, I am now shopping for the winter coat AND comfy shoes to wear with jeans. I won't be dressing up for any cocktail parties (sigh, I SO miss heels) this Christmas, so casual shoes it is.

And the baby?

He's rockin' and rollin' in there. I had a doctor appointment yesterday so asked her exactly how he was laid out in there, because there's something sticking out by my belly button (WHAT BELLY BUTTON?) in the morning when he (and me) is waking up and I don't know if it's his head, his bum, or a REALLY REALLY big foot.

Turns out it's his bum. His little bum! He's head down, diagonal right now.

He weighs about 2 lbs and is 15 inches long from head to toe. That's friggin' big. I know I always sound so amazed... it's because I AM. Wild times for the Lee family these days.

Apparently this week, or next, is the actual week his little eyes will start to open and close. And he'll start to dream too! Must tell him great stories before bedtime. No ghost stories this halloween!

Best news I've received this week?

I can eat sushi while breastfeeding!

SUSHI! That totally made my day! Tojo's here I come. That's going to be my first meal. I'm so happy I can eat sushi while breastfeeding. So, so happy.

Here's the 27 week belly shot (I've got to learn how to use my camera so i don't have 7 chins each time I snap!)

S.

Oh God.

This was the first yoga class where I felt like a walrus.

Not a beached whale... A friggin' walrus. I felt heavy and uncoordinated and stiff.

It was glorious!

I'm hitting that stage. That stage where, even though I'm not gaining much weight, I'm getting heavier. Or I'm feeling heavier anyway.

I've popped again as well. As my brother-in-law said last night (a few of us went on The Haunted Vancouver Trolley tour), "your air bag has deployed". Nice one. But so true!

I was laying there on the mat and realized I just couldn't put my foot up by my hand anymore. And when I bent over to do some stretchy thing sitting in cross-legged, my belly hit my ankle and just kind of plopped there. There's a girl in the class (also a Stephanie, whom I quite like.), and I looked over at her at one point and she's flailing about as well. We all were. It was friggin' hilarious.

Our instructor, Brenna (a gem), is this gorgeous thin flexible creature WHOM I USED TO BE! I used to be in modelling. I used to be in figure skating, in majorettes, in syncronized swimming. I went to circus school. I used to be graceful and flexible and nimble.

And there I was, flailing about on the floor like a fish washed up on the shore.

A very very heavy fish.

It was a fun night at yoga.

Tomorrow, I'm 27 weeks along. Shall report back!

S.

Had a very very busy day yesterday, trapsing all over town, but it was so great. Me and mom hung out. Hit the "Vancouver's Largest Baby Shower" at Heritage Hall on Main.

It sucked.

The best part was standing in line and laughing with mom. Even though we STOOD IN LINE FOR 1.5 HOURS! Not well organized by any means. And by the time we got in, they were out of gift bags. I am consoling myself by believing the contents were probably only collateral of sponsors, partners, etc.

Mom enjoyed the baby sign language seminar and I enjoyed chatting with the cloth diaper folks. Actually got to see and feel so I know more of what I'm getting myself into! Other than that, I didn't really see anything (AT ALL) of interest. And I was nearly decapitated by a very excited pregnant woman who turned quickly to point to someone on the other side of the room.

1.5 hours in line. 20 minutes in show.

Next stop was Chapters and lunch.

I'm disappointed in Chapters. Every time I go in to buy something in particular, they don't have it. BUT, it's cheaper online anyway, so that's the silver lining. This is the 2nd time I was in looking for 5 books and I ended up leaving and ordering last night from the comfort of my bed.

On it's way?

• The Girlfriend's Guide to Baby Gear. Was loaned this one, but I'm a highlighter and page marker so want to get my own copy. Lots of fantastic tips on what to buy, how much to buy, where to buy, etc.
• The Mind of your Newborn Baby. Was recommended by my girlfriend Dena and I totally trust her ideas so I bought it without a second thought.
• Dr. Robert Sears', The Vaccine Book. Apparently this is the best to get both sides of the vaccine story. Want to make sure we're well-versed to make the decision IF we're going to and if so, when we're going to, and what ones we'll go for. Scary decision. But there you go.

After Chapters we went for lunch at The Red Door. Was there with Dena ages ago and thought mom might find it good. And it's in a neighbourhood she hasn't been to yet and I love, so off we went. Had a delicious lunch and headed out to Ikea where I bought a few drawer organizers for baby clothes (I don't think I need anything anymore! Went through 2 more rubbermaids last night that my sister-in-law gave us. I think we're pretty much ok for the first 6 months. Except "going out" clothes.) Anyway, bought a couple of pictures for the house too - after 1.5 years of living here, we're finally putting stuff up on the walls and had a blank spot to fill!).

So it was a great day, sunny and crisp. Today I'm going to tackle the front yard and hit the Scrapbooking Store to find an envelope for the little guy's Baby Book to put all the overflow info, stories, pictures, etc. I'm filling it up and he's not even born yet!

All for now. I'm exhausted from writing this so I might take a nap before hitting the yard. Oh the joys of pregnancy... I can get away with having a nap 2 hours after I get up!

s.

Random updates.

Just a few notes for tonight:

Re: my cold. Thanks so much for your well wishes. This cold is actually the worse part of my pregnancy. It's been a breeze up until now. And it's just the cold that is bad, the pregnancy still rocks!

Re: rolling over at night. I was trying to put it into words but couldn't exactly find the right way to describe it. Some ways you all did was beached whale (yes), production (yes) ordeal (yes), but I've finally found the phrase that I've been trying to reach.... it's like a friggin' three-point turn! Seriously, it's like a 3-point turn.

Re: cloth diapers: back to wanting to use them. If they don't work with our little guys needs, we'll just use disposable instead. Done.

Re: vaccinations: just now ordered the Dr. Sears (his son actually, Robert I think?) book on vaccines. We'll see.... lots more posts on this topic, I'm sure.

And a final note before I shut the light off for the night: it is easy to second guess myself about so many decisions -from what colour to paint the nursery, to the circumcision decision. BUT, I do have to trust that I'm not the first woman to ever go through this. Every mom was, at one time, a first timer! I have to remember that and continue on.

And right now I'm going to continue on with putting myself into bed for the night! I'm exhausted.

S.

I'm dreadfully sick with a cold. Feel horrendous. Is it multiplied because I'm pregnant? Or are colds getting worse becuase I'm aging? Hey, last Christmas I was deathly ill with a cold, it was freaky. It was just a cold, but it knocked me out for three days.

Anyhoo, I'm sick. I have a cold. I can't think.

But a quick update: The D-Man and I have finally agreed on the circumcision dealio. It was Round 4 last night. He told me who he talked to, I told him who I talked to, then we both got on a computer and did some more research. I was visiting Dr. Pollock of Circumcision Vancouver (who, for some reason, kind of freaks me out. Reminds me of a hair-plug surgery website... scarey), and he was over visiting the folks of the Canadian Children's Rights Council.

On Dr. Pollock's website, it states that he gives them sugar-coated pacifiers to take their attention away. I voiced my concerns over this, and that "So he's trying to create an alternate reality for a newborn so he won't feel pain. A NEWBORN. CREATING AN ALTERNATE REALITY FOR A NEWBORN." Uh, hello???? Sybil, anyone? When Rabbit Howls anyone? (Ok, ok, that might be a bit extreme, but that's exactly where I went. I mean, it's just to take his attention away - and Donald does the same thing to get a bandaid off me.... but it still freaked me out). Anyway, as I was voicing my concern over this, Donald silently got up and walked into the kitchen.

"We're not circumsizing."

I was shocked silent. I mean, I thought we'd have a few more goes at this. What changed his mind was the information on the Canadian Children's Rights Council website.

So I didn't really know what to do at that moment. I saw the look on his face and my heart hurt. He looked almost defeated. I said to him, "I feel like I've taken a piece of you away."

His response?

"At least we won't be taking a piece of our son away."

So I knew he was ok and we had a good chuckle and actually chatted about it instead of butting heads. If only 13.9% of Canadian boys are now being circumsized (as of 2003), that tells me that our little guy isn't going to be the only one in the locker room with a different looking penis, so to speak.

Two battles over and done with: exclusive breastfeeding and circumcision. Next up, cloth diapers and vaccinations. Oh joy.

(I'm sad that simple conversations over these kind of things tend to turn into WWIII in our household. It always turns into a battle - one of us trying to "win". And that's sad because it's not about that, it's about trying to make the best choices for our baby until he can make his own choices. But we lose track of that most times. Perhaps bringing that into the consciousness will help to change things from here on out.)

All for now.
s.