The Do-Again List

Many people seem to have some sort of stereotype of a pregnant women in their head. Either she's a whiny shrew or she's so cheerful it makes you want to scream. I like to think I've struck a healthy balance between the two this pregnancy. If someone asks how I'm feeling, as a nitpicky Virgo I almost automatically mention the "bad" things first, like how my back is hurting or how tired I am. But I don't go on and on about it, and I'm just as quick to point out when Jellyfish is kicking or how I can gleefully state that, at 34 weeks, I still don't have stretch marks.

That being said, I've begun to compile my mental list of things I can't wait to be able do again. It's not intended to be an angry, ranty list, bitching about the activities that now escape me for various reasons; rather more of a wistful, oh-it'll-be-nice list.

• putting on footwear without gasping or using special tools
• reaching the back of a cabinet or the end of a counter
• holding my bladder like a normal human being
• while we're on the topic, not feeling the urge to pee every time I change position
• being able to fasten the front of my coat (I estimate I will lose this ability within two weeks)
• swing quickly in and out of bed
• rolling over in two seconds instead of two minutes
• eat a large meal and not feel like I'm going to explode
• carry/push heavy objects
• have a choice between more than three pairs of pants and six tops
• drink alcohol or caffeine without censorious glares from my husband

Naturally, of course, there will be another mental list compiling in about two months, one that's a little bit snarkier and more emotional, of the I-wish-I-could-still-do-this variety. It will likely include such items as:

• sleeping longer than two hours at a time
• showering more than twice a week
• talking to someone besides the baby about something other other than baby poop...

So when does this nesting thing start again?

I've begun about a dozen blog posts about my pregnancy so far, and have, as you may have noticed, posted about two of them. Procrastination is my strong suit, let me tell you.

Here's the update so far: I'm almost 33 weeks along (due around February 24th, give or take), my midwives say I'm healthy and so is the baby - who is head down now and likely to stay that way, huzzah - and I'm aiming for having a water birth at home, which makes my husband very anxious.

Overall throughout the pregnancy, I've been trying to eat better, exercise, and do everything A Good Mom Should Do. I've avoided over-the-counter medications as much as I've been able (so far I've had a couple of Reactines for fall allergies, a Benadryl for a food reaction, and two ibuprofen for shoulder/back pain), I've taken prenatal yoga classes - though keeping up with the exercises has been spotty at best - and painted the nursery with low- and no-VOC paint.


I've avoided lifting heavy things, and when I do I bend at the knees. I use a shoehorn to put on my boots instead of failing miserably at reaching my feet. I sleep with a pillow between my knees and one supporting my growing belly. I get my husband to slather my belly with cheap lotion and so far, no stretch marks as far as we can tell, though I may be developing linea nigra very faintly below my navel.

Jellyfish, as we've been calling the little one, is very active. I was actually able to distinguish a limb moving last week; I suspect it was an arm. It was the oddest thing to see. The baby moves quite a bit when I'm resting, i.e. at the computer, but is gradually moving around regardless of my activities. Although it doesn't really hurt most of the time, it gets really quite uncomfortable when Jelly decides to park its keister (or its feet, I can't really tell yet), right below my ribcage. Firm but gentle pressure on the hardened bit eventually makes it sink back down into a more comfortable area, but more often than not it just moves back after a few minutes. Oh, well.


Due to my increasing abdominal girth, my centre of gravity has shifted and my back hurts more often. While I have had the good fortune to not have really gained any weight in my legs or derrière, when pants fit well there they have now become too tight around my pelvis, with elastic maternity waistbands squishing my bladder. When the elastic fits well over my belly, the pants are extremely baggy from the hips down and I constantly have to hike them up. I guess I should be grateful that I'll have less adipose tissue to try to eliminate post-natally, but it's hard to feel grateful when you pull up your waistband for the 17th time in an hour.


I'm not quite at the, "I'm sick of being pregnant" phase, but I think I'm getting close. I've scheduled a pregnancy massage for the end of the month, at a hotel/spa recommended by a friend, and I can't wait. It feels amazing when my husband rubs my sore back, but that's usually only for a few minutes before I roll over or we fall asleep or whatever. This will be one hour of bliss, if my friend's experience is any indication.

So I keep waiting for this "nesting" rage to happen. It seems to have come in spurts over the past months: I HAD to finish painting the nursery, I HAD to get more baby clothes from Value Village, I HAD to clean our bathroom at 11 PM the other night. I keep expecting to wake up in the middle of the night and have a sudden urge (and pre-pregnancy flexibility) to ninja through all the crap in our house and get rid of it.

Something I've realized about myself is that when I'm happy, I'm a slob. I only seem to clean if I'm in a bad mood, because then I can angrily clean the shit out of something and feel like I'm working out my frustrations on the sundry scum of my life. (Yes, I was in a bad mood when I cleaned our bathroom the other night, in case you were wondering.)

But I still have about 7 weeks left, give or take, so I suppose like the rest of the things happening to my body, I'll just have to wait for it.