Ready

Dave and I spent the day yesterday preparing for baby. Technically, once I pick up my birth supplies tomorrow, we will be totally ready for baby to come. With the exception that one of our midwives is out of the country, the other has a cold and we don't have anyone in place to take pictures.

I'm totally okay with all that. Though the midwives forgot to mention what the plan is if someone goes into labor while one is on vacation (and I forgot to ask) I think I know who they would call in. And I'm comfortable with this person - though I wasn't for the longest time.

She's a really experienced midwife who has been doing this since she was a child and learned outside of Portland (always nice to have a non-Birthingway experience). She is very direct and doesn't mess around with niceties. I was always uncomfortable around her until I ran into her randomly at the park a month or so ago. We chatted and I got over my unease.

And as for not having a helper for photos and pups - though I still really want pictures, I seem to be easily letting go of that. If we don't have anyone to take pics all the time, that's okay. As for the pups - they respond to their environment and they will be great, I really don't have any doubts. They'll listen to Dave and probably really just sleep a lot of the time. It will be dark in the house, something that always relaxes them, and they know what's going on.

So I feel good.

And I'm GBS negative.

THE MAJIMOMENT WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR

HELLO to all my faithful friends, fans, and fantastic SKULL CONVENIENT STORE regulars. THIS IS MAJI! and I LOVE YOU. Tonight is THE BIG NIGHT - OSCAR NIGHT! If you have been following MY TWEETS, you know that my very special date WAS UP IN THE AIR until just a few hours ago. THERE HAS BEEN much speculation about this year's special man, and like previous years, the criteria for my choosing were as follows:

HE MUST EITHER BE: DEAD, or, HIS CAREER MUST BE DEAD.

NOW I know what you are thinking...you are thinking, MAJI, WHY DEAD? Well, my answer is, WHY NOT? There are many benefits to dating a dead celebrity. FOR INSTANCE, you can pick WHAT YEAR you want your celebrity to be from - meaning, I can have my pick between YOUNG FIT SEXUAL JIM MORRISON and OLD FAT LIMP JIM MORRISON.

My pick, of course, would be for YOUNG FIT SEXUAL JIM MORRISON (to the left). As the photos tell the story, you can tell why.

Once again, this was not an easy selection, as I have many suitors. In the end, it was very difficult to say "Maybe....no" to the likes of Mr. Buddy Holly,

Mr. Jim Henson, and especially the darling of last year's Oscar night, Mr. Heath "can I tell you in words how much I love you???" Ledger.

(Young or old, Mr. Ledger, you certainly do stop this Beagle's heart.)

There were others, of course...there always are, but for the sake of TIME & SPACE, and since this BITCH has GOT TO GET HER NAILS DONE!, I'd like to round it down to the runner up, the runner up to the runner up, and of course, THIS YEAR'S BIG WINNER!

RUNNER UP TO THE RUNNER UP: Dan Aykroyd:

I know WHAT YOU'RE SAYING. You're saying, HASN'T MR. AYKROYD BEEN DEAD TOO LONG? I was thinking the same thing, until I realized IT'S NOT HIM THAT'S DEAD, IT'S JUST HIS CAREER!

I was really hoping to pep him up when he came in to the SKULL CONVENIENT STORE for the Sunday L.A. Times to fine glorious MORNING, but in the end, I realized that the sexual tension that exists between us would just be too much for the paparazzi to handle. So instead I WILL WAVE TO YOU ON THE CARPET, MR. AYKROYD.

MR. RUNNER UP: PATRICK "DIRTY DANCE PARTNER" SWAYZE.

NO ONE PUTS MR. SWAYZE IN THE CORNER....NO ONE! And Mr. Swayze NEVER PUTS MAJI IN THE CORNER EITHER! (Unless she asks him to do so...).

My love for Mr. Patrick Swayze needs no explaining in this forum. For those of you who FOLLOW MY TWEETS, you know all about it. Suffice to say, Patrick may not be with me on the carpet, but HE KNOWS WHERE THE AFTER PARTY IS...

AND THE WINNER....

MR. CHRIS FARLEY!

THAT IS RIGHT, LADIES AND BEAGLEBACKS! Mr. Chris Farley. WHY? Well let me tell you. After last year's OUTRAGEOUS TIME with Mr. John Belushi, I thought it would be best to entertain a FAT FUNNY MAN again...and there he was, looking all FUNNY AND LONESOME in the back of the SKULL CONVENIENT STORE yesterday morning, scratching a lottery ticket. AND WHEN HE CAME IN TO REDEEM HIS $2.00 SCRATCH OFF, I looked into Mr. Farley's bloodshot eyes and said, "THAT'S NOT ALL YOU JUST ONE, MR. FAT FUNNYMAN!"

LUCKY FOR MAJI, not only is MR. CHRIS FARLEY a fantastic dancer, and a real bull around the buffet table, but he also cleans up well.

Thank you to all my loyal fans, friends, and friendly customers. And now I must slip into my Serena line of Nike Wear, finish MY NAILS and prepare for a little razzle dazzle.

LOVE MAJI!

35 Weeks 5 Days

Hello Midwives - we get to see each other every week from now until the birth. I brought chocolate to the prenatal to celebrate.

BP: 118/80 - Lower than last time and not creeping up, but somewhere along the line I've decided that my blood pressure was something I would worry about. The midwives aren't concerned, but I would love for it to be lower because I'm so used to it being lower - though it's normal to be higher in pregnancy. Dave's was, as he says, "a choice" 116/80.

Pulse: 90 - High for me, normal to be raised during pregnancy.

Weight: 152.8 - Almost 2 pound gain from 2 weeks ago. Total weight gain = 41 pounds.

Urinalysis: 7.0pH

Fetal Position: ROT

FHT: 142

Fundal Height: 37 - That's a 4cm increase from 2 weeks ago!!! I wouldn't be surprised if I don't grow much in the next week or two.

Kim thought she felt baby had one leg extended to the left, which I've felt all along and can confirm by the kicks. She also thought the other leg was bent back with heel to booty. Laurie wasn't so sure she agreed.

It would be interesting if baby does have his or her legs in an odd position because in the womb my left leg was bunched up in an odd way. This left my leg turned in and requiring a brace when I was an infant.

I've been thinking about patterns lately and there are a lot of patterns I don't want to repeat as a mother. One of them is getting in a car accident to get labor going. This is what happened to my mom and I've definitely been having slight anxiety when driving about someone hitting me.

I told the ladies about my decreased appetite, but that I was still eating and probably getting as many calories and protein as before. Mentioned my love for milk and was told that the lactose sugar does put the weight on a baby. While sugar is Mircale-Gro for babies, especially at this stage of pregnancy, I just can't imagine having a baby bigger than 9 pounds. Plus, there is no way I'm going to reduce my milk consumption because it makes me so happy. And it's better than ice cream.

We filled out the hospital transport sheet stating any allergies (none), doc preferences (none), etc in case we have to go in. My first choice is Emanuel Hospital because they are most welcoming of homebirth transports, I've worked with some of the OBs there and it's closest.

Also got tested for GBS. Group Beta Strep is a transient bacteria found in the vagina that comes and goes as it pleases. It causes zero harm to mom, but if baby is colonized with it (rare), it can be deadly.

I thought a lot about what to do with this information. The hitch for me is how hospitals respond to the results. If you test positive, they require antibiotics in labor or a serious testing package on the baby (we're talking spinal tap here) and at least a 3 day hospital stay for baby.

There is some negotiation that can happen in this case, but none of it is easy or pretty. And if you aren't tested for GBS they assume you are positive, so not taking the test isn't a great option if you are worried about how the hospital interprets your medical records.

If I wasn't concerned about the hospital I would have taken the test without a thought (it's just a little swab or the vagina and perineum that you do yourself). I don't plan on actually doing anything with the results (except perhaps increasing my probiotic intake), but it is good information to have on hand postpartum if there is something odd happening with baby.

So I thought about it a lot and because a hospital would assume I was positive if I didn't take the test, I did it. Let me tell you, it feels so icky to do something like that based on a hospital's incorrect policy on treating all mothers and babies the same. Very frustrating and sad.

We also handed in our consent forms for the newborn screen (heel poke for baby to test for a large variety of metabolic and endocrine diseases). At first Dave didn't want to do any testing on the baby (options are no testing, heel poke at 24 hours and 2 weeks or heel poke at 5 days). I was coming from it on a more clinical side of things - I've done a bunch of blood draws on babies and it always seems like a non-event for them. Dave disagreed and I see his point. In the end we went with the 2 heel pokes.

Still need to make my decision about baby receiving vitamin K after birth...............

They asked about my emotional state. Weepy is a great word to describe me. We watched the end of Titanic over the weekend and it devolved into me crying about getting old and how I'll handle my 90th year. Plus unrequited love stories always leave me feeling so sad and upset.

We've also been dealing with a really sad and stressful situation around our friend who we asked to take photos and care for the dogs during the birth. She is in a weird head space right now, a pattern we've seen many times over the years.

My reaction to this behavior is that I pull away and don't want to hang out with her. She becomes very narcissistic, walled off and often says things like, "I hate everyone. People can go fuck themselves. I don't care about anyone." One of the unfortunate things is that her behavior reflects those words.

The problem starts with me never communicating to her how her behavior affects our friendship. It was always easier to pull away and not talk to her because I knew it would end and she would become a centered person again.

But this time that can't happen. I need her to be a centered person at the birth and she's unable to be. She refused to speak to me about this and reacted in a very messy and emotional way. So I told her she isn't invited to my birth anymore. I'm glad to discover this now and not one week closer to baby arrival time.

To Do List Before Birth

• Deep clean kitchen. I'd love to rent a floor buffer and get the grime out.
• Taxes (92% complete).
• Finish getting birth supplies; hose, adaptor, tub liner, medium sterile gloves, cord ring.
• Get printer to print wireless. Hoping Friend Dan can make that happen.
• Window cleaning. I have a Groupon.
• Put air in birth ball.
• Clean out junk drawer.
• Replace rusted paper clip that is holding the toilet together.
• Wrap presents for midwives and my brother's birthday.
• Wash car
• Install car seat
• Refresh on newborn and placenta exam. I want to perform these after the birth.
• Stock up on processed veggies for dogs.
• Finish childbirth sessions; Labor positions and finish reading Ina May's Guide to Childbirth out loud in bed.
• Deep clean living room and hallway.
• Deep clean bathroom. I have a feeling I'll be in there quite a lot during labor.
• Research potential ND's and MD's.
• Complete birth announcements as much as possible. Brother Benny will finish the rest.
• Continue freezing meals for postpartum.
• Maintain raw meat supply so we can continue to fulfill Moe's Meats orders as much as possible after baby.
• Keep fridge stocked with food in case I don't have 30 hours of early labor which would allow us enough time to go grocery shopping.

Most Recent MajiLift Moments

Dave:

~ End of month office cleaning

~ Crow message

~ A very successful week

~ Another Maji-Sunday

~ If you have to ask...

Courtney:

~ Get it done afternoon

~ Workplace conflict dismissal

~ Doing things when they need to be done

~ The Steve mix-up

~ Napping in bed

~ Birth prep Saturday

No More Yoga

I so didn't want to be in class today and the two classes before that were a little boring to me. My standby is child's pose, which when pregnant is really dynamic - my knees move so far wide and my pelvis opens up. But now that baby is so low I can't go low anymore, and I think that's when the yoga stopped being fun.

I thought that when it was time to stop going to regular, non-prenatal Hatha yoga I would have a hard time making the decision. But, like most things with pregnancy, the decision was already made. No wondering if I was doing the right thing. So, I put a hold on my membership.

There is a part of me, the athlete, that creeps up and asks how am I meant to accomplish the event of labor when I stop training weeks in advance. But I know there is more to it than that. I also know my body has a great ability to maintain it's level of endurance and athleticism, even in times of rest.

If there is one thing this pregnancy has taught me, it is that I have a great physical body. No matter the sport I was training in - marathon, triathlon, rock climbing, hockey - I never thought my physical capabilities were awesome. But now, I'll never doubt that again.

When Baby?

A few close friends have told me that they feel baby will come sometime in March. I dismissed their predictions even though I've been having dreams that baby will be born on March 18th (and be a boy).

Last night Dave came home from a workshop he was teaching and said he had a strong sense, accompanied by stomach cramps when thinking about the labor, that baby was going to be born sometime in March, like around 37 or 38 weeks.

So when Dave says something like that I've learned over the years to go with it. Today I spent the morning gathering all the homebirth supplies I have laying around - towels, wash cloths, heating pad, sterile gloves, sterile lube, etc - and making a list of all the things I need to go and buy - RV hose, faucet adaptor.

I think early birth predictions are pretty common for first-time moms and it's pretty common for first-time moms to go past 40 weeks. I'm trying not to get caught up in them because I don't want to hit 40 weeks and be frustrated because I thought baby was going to be born 3 weeks ago.

Plus, I'm really stuck on baby being an Aries and I don't know why.

My State

34 weeks and looking forward to the few weeks until I birth my baby. This could happen anytime from 2 - 7 weeks. For me to feel like everything is ready and in place, I'd like baby to come anytime after March 14.

We have a beach trip planned this Saturday through Tuesday, Dan and Stacy arrive on March 5, my Blessingway is March 6, home visit with the midwives and Kelly (Doggie Doula), and then Dave and I are taking advantage of a free downtown hotel stay (with the dogs) on the 12th. After that, baby can come. By that time I'll be past the 38 week mark and feeling confident in baby's breathing, digestion, coordination and size.

I still have some things to take care of around the house; deep clean a few more rooms, get some computer work done, research who we want to use for an MD and ND for baby...that kind of stuff. We also have one more childbirth education session to complete.

I won't say that I worry about early labor, but every week that I advance in my pregnancy I have a sigh of relief that there have been no preterm labor signs. By this time I am not worried about baby's survival outside the womb, but it is not a legal time to have a homebirth. Baby needs to wait until 35 and half weeks (with doctor permission) to be born at home. Plus, it's really just a good idea for baby to stay inside a few more weeks to make feeding a lot easier.

My emotional state is becoming increasingly teary. It's like I don't have room inside myself for both a baby and tamped emotions (which is a great thing). The other morning I had a dream that Dave cheated on me with a German woman. When I told him about the dream he said that he, as a whole, doesn't find German women attractive and would never cheat on me with someone he wasn't attracted to. While this kind of comment would usually make me laugh, I got really upset. I spent the next 20 minutes crying, okay it was actually sobbing, with Dave comforting me.

Fortunately, Dave has been awesome about everything. I mean really, really awesome. My last crying jag happened a few days earlier when Satchel frustrated me to no end because he wouldn't lay down. I couldn't seem to let go of the anger, went to bed, had a bad night sleep, woke up pissed and then had another mini-sob session with Dave. Everything seems to feel better after a good cry.

I'd have to say the best (and really I think there has only been these three times) was a few weeks ago when I got so very upset that Dave decided to go to bed before me and didn't let me know that's what he was getting ready to do. Part of me knew I was being totally irrational and crazy but the rest of me couldn't do anything about it. I went to the bathroom and cried until I felt better. And again, Dave was great through it all.

I've been drinking a lot of whole chocolate milk lately. Love it. If I let myself I could probably drink an entire quart in a day, but if I did that I fear I would gross myself out and hate it. So I pace myself. Before pregnancy the last time I drank milk was in middle school. I always hated it. Now, and probably because it's chocolate, it's my thing.

Anytime I dream about a baby it's a boy. Last night I dreamt that I was breastfeeding our son (he latched well but never for long) who had lots of brown hair and was born on March 17 (second dream that baby was born in March). Despite these reoccurring dreams, I just don't buy it. I still say girl all the way.

Physically, things are going well. I'm sleeping wonderfully - meaning I get up 3 times a night to pee and usually drink Recharge because I'm so dehydrated and then I fall back asleep again. I'm still eating a snack in the morning then going back to bed on the couch.

My lower back is great, but my mid-back does get tight. If I sit upright too long (like now) it starts to hurt. Recently, I've had to start watching TV in a reclining position, which is actually quite wonderful because most of the time Dave rubs my feet while we watch Jersey Shore or the X-Files.

The skin on my arms is super dry and flaky. Not sure why this is but it's kinda gross, so I'm trying not to look at it too often. No amount of oil will make it any better. When this happened about 10 weeks ago I put Bag Balm on it and that helped, but that stuff is nasty, so I'm saving my liver and not putting it on during pregnancy.

Hmm, what else? I've noticed a definite pattern where I don't have a strong appetite for a few days every other week or so. During that time I eat when I'm not hungry and eat foods that I'm not into because I'm not really into anything at all. This definitely bums me out. But then it changes all of a sudden and I love everything I'm eating (which is the same as what I always eat) and I'm hungry every few hours. Being hungry makes eating so much easier.

I have never been able to palpate baby's head, but baby let me feel it on Thursday (it was cute and tiny). When I woke up the next day and bent over to put my pants on there was baby feeling much lower than usual. Since baby has always been low, I didn't experience a sudden ability to breathe deeper or eat bigger meals. I also haven't felt any extra bladder or rectum pressure now that baby has dropped since I've had that for a long time now. I'm still a little unsure of baby actually did drop, but I'm feeling like he or she did. We'll see what the midwives have to say.

Mobile

Lookie - it's the mobile I made for baby. If you've ever shopped for a mobile, you know they cost a ridiculous amount of money, even the crappy plastic ones. So I was feeling focused on Friday and sat down for 2.5 hours and came up with this random shapes mobile. I don't think I've ever sat down for 2.5 hours straight and created something.

Switching it All Up

Dave and Josh moved our queen bed to what was the guest bedroom downstairs and the futon to our upstairs bedroom last night. The dog crates also came to live downstairs and my bookshelf and desk moved up. (My laptop is now living at the kitchen table).

Now that we're sleeping downstairs until after baby arrives, I have to walk just 10 feet to the bathroom and my Recharge (something I can't live without in the middle of the night) is a mere 20 second walk to the kitchen. So much easier than walking up and down stairs 3 times a night.

Plus I love having everyone on the same floor in the morning and nights. I've always wanted to live in a ranch and I have a feeling this is the closest I'll come to it.

The dream is to keep the queen bed downstairs as a guest bed and buy a king bed for the upstairs. Ohh the luxury, I can't even imagine. Just as I can't really imagine all three of us sleeping comfortably in a queen.

Dave and I love switching rooms in the house. It feels so un-adult like.

Fatigue - the Calling Card of my Pregnancy

I just realized that my thing is being tired all the time. And I'm totally okay with that. Much better than sciatic, depression, major food aversions, serious back pain, constant indigestion, UTIs, vomiting everyday, yeast infections, tremendous mood swings, or any other pregnancy aliment that a lot of women suffer from.

I'm simply tired....most of the time. And I am so grateful that is what I have to deal with right now. I am in a perfect place to be able to deal with it.

And I hope that I can come back to this post when I'm 36 or 37 weeks, when the real discomfort of pregnancy will most likely set in, and remember that I was generally tired and not much else.

32 Weeks 5 Days

While I don't have a home yoga practice, I wanted to capture my favorite pregnancy yoga pose on camera.

Half Moon makes me feel so strong and balanced and I love doing it. I imagine baby also likes it as well.

Prenatal today. I love prenatal days and now they will be happening every 2 weeks.

BP: 124/74 - a little high for me. I did just sit up from laying down and I was excited.

Pulse: 72

Urinalysis: pH8.0 (it's their dipsticks. On my dipsticks I have a pH of 5)

Weight: 151 - that's a total of 39 pounds added!!! And I probably will gain another 10.

FHT: 147 bpm

Baby Position: ROT - such a stable little creature I have. He or she knows the position they like.

Fundal Height: 33.5

Everything is going great. And by great I mean that my mental attitude is lovely and I generally feel good in my body. Great also includes me being tired all the time, my thinking is slowing down and I move at a snail pace.

No digestion issues. No lower back pain. Some mid-back pain. Sleeping well. And by well I mean I'm not spending hours awake each night (thanks to my pregnancy pillow). No peeing pain. Not constipated. Baby is happy. I'm happy. Dave is happy. Satchel and Maji are happy.

And now that I feel we have most of the STUFF we need for baby, I'm able to move my attention inward and focus on the baby. This shift has been instant - as soon as I declared all the baby stuff is in order I realized that I will soon be giving birth to an actual person who will be a part of my life until I die. I still find it unbelievable.

Banjo Fiction Baby Shower

The baby shower on Saturday was a delight. Lots of friends showed up around 4 and the kitchen got way too hot for me as we were heating all the dinner dishes and people were crowding around the appetizers (my face was super red).

Dinner was served at 5 and was a beautiful potluck of enchiladas, savory pies, an amazing Spanish meatball soup and lentil soup.

Around 5:30 Dave introduced the lay-out of the rest of the evening by interviewing me. Nope, no games. Nope, no baby food tasting. Nope, no gift opening.

He introduced Peter Sears, an Oregon poet and runner-up as Oregon's Poet Laurette this year. He read a poem about being a father to an infant. Next came John Morrison who read a beautiful birth poem.

Dessert was then served, my favorite part. So many options to choose from. I skipped the multiple cakes, poached pears and cookies and went straight for these amazing carrot cupcakes (baby likes carrots).

After dessert a lot of people cleared out and then Dave read a poem from his chapbook. Banjo Fiction was next, something the kids and the adults definitely enjoyed.

Except for a few friends, everyone left after that. I was exhausted when we finally got home around 10pm, but not too tired to open most of our presents.

The next day left me feeling like I had a big night out and moved furniture the day before. My body was sore and head was foggy.

We got lots of compliments about the party mostly along the lines of this email: "Way to not have a sucky baby shower. That was probably the coolest baby shower I have ever been to. Banjo Fiction was rocking."

Dressing Up

We have this idea of what we should look like when we dress up to go out. When you're pregnant, you have to throw that idea out the window.

I spent a long time trying on and re-trying maternity dresses that I have in my closet trying to figure out what to wear for the baby shower. When I think of what I want to look like when I go out it usually involves a dress or long skirt that is vibrant and bright with some sort of add-on like leg warmers, arm sleeves or a scarf.

Remembering that I've been given all my maternity clothes from three different people, the styles aren't mine. Pair that with the fact that putting a dress on my body makes it tent out and adding any kind of accessories adds unnecessary width to my body, I'm left with few options. Especially considering I didn't want to wear something I wear everyday, like a knee-length skirt with knee-high socks and a top.

So, I'm going with dress-up jeans and a shirt. Pretty neutral. And kinda odd for me.

I'm looking forward to when I can start wearing my style again. But I have this feeling that all my clothes, even after I lose weight, just won't fit right anymore.

Can I Really Get Any Bigger???

The answer is yes, I can get bigger. And I will. But I, like most other women at 32 weeks, just don't know how that will be possible. Luckily, baby likes to hang out a little lower in my uterus so I feel like I have some room to grow up top. But not much more room, I swear.

Every evening I rub my belly and boobs with oil, an activity baby loves. As I work my way up my chest I always rub my lymph glands and check in with them to make sure they aren't feeling congested or tender (no reason really, just something I like to do).

A thick layer of fat was put down within the 24 hours between massages on my chest - that fast!! Pretty amazing. Dave noticed it in the morning but I didn't believe him (not sure why - denial?). It wasn't until that night that I actually felt my extra padding. Body is definitely getting ready for breastfeeding (but no colostrum yet).

As I live my life and watch my body grow and grow I do occasionally have the fleeting thought that baby is just too big already - like 7 pounds. And of course that isn't true, baby is still under 4 pounds. But man, if I didn't know any better I know I would be worried about the size of baby.

It probably doesn't help when strangers say things like, "You're so big! How long you have to go?" "Girl, you're that big and aren't gonna have the baby until when??!!" Most of these comments happen in the women's locker room at the community pool as I'm trying to dry my feet without stepping on the dirty, smelly tile floor.

Sleep Now, Rest Now

Sleep is the word to describe the third trimester. It's different than my need to sleep during the beginning of pregnancy. That was more about being so nauseous that all I could do was lay down and feel like hell. The second trimester I was tired, but that was because I was feeling so good that I was able to work a lot and do a bunch of stuff.

The third trimester is simply draining. I feel great overall, but need lots of sleep. And the sleep is inconsistent. For example, Monday I got 8 hours of great sleep, Tuesday a solid 10 (with 3 pee breaks) and last night was a spotty 7. No matter how much sleep I'm getting at night, I still usually need a nap in the morning.

I like to wake up, eat a pre-breakfast, do dishes, check my email, then lay back down on the couch. Sometimes the morning naps are 20 minutes and other times 2 hours. If I don't get my morning nap because I have things to do or because it feels like I don't need one, I'm usually feeling it by the afternoon.

For some reason I'm unable to go back to sleep this morning. I even tried getting back in bed with sleeping Dave and passed out Satchel (he takes my place the second I get out of bed), but it didn't work. I'm actually feeling quite lonely this morning and wish Dave would wake up, but he didn't get home until around midnight last night, so I'll let him sleep longer.

But like I said, overall I feel great. Ever since the chiro fixed my back it no longer tightens (even when I don't go to yoga). With my new once a week swimming practice I've found that I've naturally cut back on yoga from 3-4 times a week to 2-3 times, and usually more on the 2 side.

I do have some mid-back tightness and my shoulders are really inflexible, but that's nothing that feels unbearable at all (and will probably get worse with breastfeeding). Overall, my body is doing just great and I'm really proud of it. I feel like my lifetime of athletics (minus those hazey years in college) have really paid off.

There is something I hate: walking. It puts so much pressure on my bladder that I have to pee the minute I leave the house until I get home. This means the pups usually get jipped out of their regular hour walk and we now go for 30 minutes, if they're lucky. I feel bad, especially on these sunny January days, but even when I squat behind a tree to pee I still have to go if I continue walking. And I seem to get really bored when I walk. This never used to happen to me but now, if I'm not on the phone with someone I can barely stand being out there. Walking will definitely not be a way to induce labor for me.

I also hate my maternity coat. I mean, I love that I have one, but I hate how heavy and large it is. It's wool and big and adds about 25 pounds to my body. I feel I can barely move in it and then add a pair of boots to the mix when it's raining and I feel like I'm walking through 4 feet of snow.

The walking the dogs and the subsequent squatting to wipe their paws and take off my heavy boots and coat is about the most difficult thing going on with this pregnancy.

That sounds so...something. But I really am lucky to not have to work during this time. If I was at the birth center my body would be killing me and I'd be unhappy and if I were working in an office, sitting in a chair for 9 hours a day, my body would be a wreck in a different way.

Having this time to get myself and the house prepared for the birth has been a blessing. A blessing that sometimes leaves me feeling guilty about how I spend my time and scared about money, but I have nothing to do but have faith that it will all work out, because it always does, and know that this is what I need to be doing for this particular pregnancy.

It's Childbirth Education Time

Dave and I are beginning our in-home childbirth and parenting education workshops. They last about 20 - 40 minutes and begin at random times when Dave has the availability.

We watched Happiest Baby on the Block and as you can see from the pictures, we've already practiced swaddling and babywearing with the Moby. We have a few more sling positions and types of slings to figure out how to use. Oh, and we need to figure out how to use those ready-made swaddlers. I have a few, each one is different, and they seem confusing to me. After that we will be focusing on:

~ Each of us identifying our fears around childbirth and parenting

~ Common hospital interventions for mom and baby

~ What early labor looks like

~ Ways Dave can help me during labor

~ Problem solving during labor (like if I tell him I can't stop shaking, he'll already know what that means and what he can do)

~ Comfort measure activity

~ Practice labor positions

We stopped reading The Birth Partner together in December, about half way through, because it seemed to stop being useful after awhile. In place of that we did start reading Beowulf out loud and that has been way more fun.

And while Dave and I practice baby things, Satchel is brushing up on his obedience training with a Canine Good Citizen class. It's been fun for Dave and I to attend, while Satchel is grateful his brain won't turn to mush this winter. Once Satchel's class ends we're going to try and squeeze in a class for Maji, perhaps Games and Tricks, before baby arrives.

Boiling Diapers and Other Fun Things

These past two days have found me super motivated for several hours to get stuff done.

Aside from boiling diapers to make them absorbent, I've crossed off a bunch of little things off my list like ordering broken stove parts (Sears has an amazing website for this), returning onsies, making thank you cards - stuff like that.

I've also started on my early labor task list. This includes the standard homebirth prep like getting all my supplies out for the midwives and setting up the birth tub. I'll also be lining up the flower essences and aromatherapy I want used in labor and laying down reusable chux pads on furniture I will probably use during labor and don't want stained.

Included on that list is watching Wedding Crashers (we bought a copy just for this event) and perhaps cooking a postpartum meal. If there are any other awesome suggestions you think I should add, please email me.

What Have Your MajiLift Moments Been This Year?

Courtney:

~ Nesting cooking

~ Rib re-placement

~ CGC

~ Josh Guy

~ Swimming

Dave:

~ Moe teeth

~ Figuring out how to do Moe's inventory correctly

~ Josh Guy

~ No Wednesday meeting at Nike

~ 3rd writing of the day

~ Sunday focus

One of the 5 S's

While Satchel sleeps like a baby, we practice our swaddling skills on Baby Maji.