Little Visitor

After going months and months at full speed, I told myself that this weekend was officially the beginning of my do-nothing phase of pregnancy.  Isn't that nice, giving myself 10 whole days before my due date to just BE?  Well. Turns out we had a little excitement this weekend that changed that "non-plan" a bit!

If you follow me on FaceBook, you'll know we had an adorable little visitor come to our house on Saturday morning...and it WASN'T the one we've been planning and hoping for!

Name one thing an allergic couple on the verge of  becoming first-time parents needs 10 days before their due date.  GO!

I'm gonna guess you didn't think "kitten,' right?  Well, that's what we got!   

Could you just faint from the cuteness?  Believe me, Mark and I are not typically "cat people" (although we certainly don't have anything against them), but I'm pretty sure he'd be staying if we didn't have a baby coming into our lives in just a matter of single-digit days.  He has been a blast and I already know I'm going to cry when we have to give him away.  We're working hard to find a good home for him right now, so if you know of anyone, PLEASE let me know!  To add to this story, our neighbors came to our house last night with another surprise - two more matching orange kitties in a cage.  Turns out this little guy wasn't alone when he found us!  They are going to keep one, so now it looks as though we have more than one home to find for these sweet fellas.  Keep your fingers crossed that we don't need to resort to bringing them to the (NO KILL) shelter.  Sniff.

As an aside, I keep meaning to Google "Is it a sign when you are 38.5 weeks pregnant and a kitten shows up at your house?"  I mean, really...what are the chances?

On the pregnancy front, we had another doctor's appointment this morning.  When my midwife went to listen for the baby's heartbeat, she said, "Oh, you're having a contraction right now!'  She called them "rehearsal contractions" and said it's a good - but not ALARMING - sign that my uterus is getting its act together for the real thing.  Funny thing is that I've been feeling plenty of them lately, but this one I couldn't feel at all.  It's good to know I'm getting that practice even when I don't know it - Lord knows I'm going to feel them on a much more....OUCHIE level soon enough.  We opted out of an exam to see how far along I'm dilated because that wouldn't change anything and might just cause anxiety or anticipation we don't need. 

So that's about it.  A surprise kitty and a surprise contraction.  Just nine days and counting...we cannot WAIT to meet our precious little person and finally get to know him/her!

Hork and Windy

Soooooooo.  You know how I was whining back in the day about not feeling sick, because I was worried this meant things weren't progressing as they should?  WELL.  I made it through the entire first trimester without a lick of sickness, only to begin throwing up at 12.5 weeks.  How do ya like them apples?

Hmmm...apples - I don't think those would go well with stomach acid.

Over the past few days, I've been learning ways I can avoid the run to the toilet (although I had to make due with the kitchen sink one day...).  I absolutely CANNOT skip breakfast, and eating it in bed to allow for no movements seems to help.  Also, brushing my teeth presents new challenges, so I have to be careful not to brush my tongue too far back or else I lose the breakfast immediately.  I also learned the hard way that you should always have a spare plastic bag in your car (and purse!) so you don't have to drive to work with your window down on the expressway in 40 degree weather.  The strangest thing is that I pretty much have no warning.  I go from feeling fine to feeling nauseous, to throwing up in a matter of seconds, only to feel pretty much back to normal 5 minutes later.  I'm not complaining; I know it could be so much worse, but I do feel like someone could have warned me that this could come out of nowhere in the 2nd trimester!

Aside from that less-than-ideal symptom, I've been feeling really good.  SUPER gassy and constipated, but I can handle that.  The other night, I looked at Mark and said, "How can you handle how SEXY I am?!" after breaking wind.  He said it's a tough job, but someone has to do it.  He's such a peach.

P.S. If you get the reference in my title, you're my new best friend.  HEE!