Happy Valentine's Day!

My family is in town for a baby shower this weekend. Last night Bob and I shared a special Valentine's Day dinner with my brother Jason and his wife Lee Ann. We went to a hip new restaurant on Valencia Street called Spork. (Thanks to Gimme for the recommendation!) This new restaurant is in the same place where there used to be a KFC fast food restaurant. I learned that KFC introduced the spork utensil in the 1960's, and that is what inspired the new restaurant's name and theme. The food was pretty good, and the atmosphere of Spork was unique. Best of all was the company. It was great to celebrate Valentine's Day with loved ones. I'm glad we took advantage and went out for the night, because my future Valentine's Days will most likely be spent with a baby, or with thoughts of "I wonder if the kid is okay...". However, the little girl in my belly was very active all through dinner, so she made sure I remembered that she was with us. Bob was able to feel her kicking, too. For dinner I ate filet mignon! It wasn't bad. The brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes were good, and I loved the butter lettuce salad. Our waiter gave us a little Scooby-Doo valentine card with the check, as well as M&Ms and heart candies.

Intentions for labor and birth:

PATIENCE

TRUST

LOVE

JOY

At yoga class this week, Britt asked us each to come up with one word to describe what we would like our birth experience to include. Like setting an intention for our labor and birth. The first thing that came to my mind was "love", then I thought of "joy" (which is also a name we like for a girl's middle name), and then I decided on "patience". I have used intentions before in yoga classes, and when I first became a dedicated yoga student, keeping the word "patience" in mind with each breath helped me a lot to get through the classes (as opposed to leaving the class early which was sometimes my gut reaction to an uncomfortable pose).

I think that keeping PATIENCE in mind during labor and birth will help me. It will also help to remember to TRUST my body and my birth assistants, and to keep in touch with feelings of LOVE and JOY.

Museum

Bob and I went to the SF MOMA on Saturday, and enjoyed an installation called "Take your time" by Olafur Eliasson. They were interactive pieces, and we went because a couple from our Hypnobirthing class recommended it. One piece had you stand about 6 inches close to a large screen and stare at it while it changed colors from white to yellow, green, violet, blue and red. It was intense how the color felt as if it was surrounding me, and my favorite color was the sky blue/violet, which reminded me of the sky and made me feel like I was flying. It felt empowering. The exhibit will continue to be at the museum through February 24th, so check it out if you have a chance. The couple in our class recommended it because one of the guided visualizations that we learned in class involved going through the colors of the rainbow one by one and being immersed in the colors.

I've been reading a book called Breastfeeding Made Simple, and I've watched some breastfeeding videos online to get me ready for when the baby is born. Although breastfeeding is natural, it is also a learned skill rather than purely instinctual for the mother.

Little earthquakes

So now we are 29 weeks pregnant, or 6.5 months. I'm feeling huge most of the time, although I still meet aquaintances who insist I look "tiny". I often explain to people that I have a long torso, or I'll say with a smile, "I wear it well". What can I say to people who express disbelief that I'm as far along as I say I am? One woman yesterday told me that when she was 3 months pregnant she looked as big as I am now. Well, I've gained 20 pounds and as far as I can tell it is all in my front body. Yes, 20 pounds! For the first time in my life I have to slide the scale weight over to the "150" mark. It is harder and harder to bend forward (like when putting on pants or shoes), and I'm feeling like my insides are cramped up under my rib cage (because they are).

Bob and I went to our 2 sessions of the Hypnobirthing class we signed up for. We learned the basics of hypnobirthing, and we'll have opportunities to go over it more with our doula later this month when we meet with her. I like the teachings of hypnobirthing, but unfortunately Bob and I weren't psyched about the teacher of our class. There was a lot that I read in the book that she didn't go over at all, or that I would have liked to hear in more detail. So I look forward to learning more about hypnobirthing from our doula, and I'll probably have to reread some parts of the book to get a firmer understanding.

Here's a photo that Bob took last night while I was mellowed out after a bath and watching my belly shake from the baby's movements. It reminded me of that Tori Amos song, "little earthquakes".


I went to two different prenatal yoga classes this week, to make up for skipping a class last week. I have a goal to go to at least one public yoga class each week. So now I've been to 4 different teachers' prenatal yoga classes, and I have to say I love Britt Fohrman's class! Going to a different teacher made me appreciate her even more. I feel lucky to have a teacher that I like so much. I trust her judgement and I appreciate her teachings. Every class she teaches is different from the previous class, and I am learning a lot about pregnancy and birth just through her yoga classes.

6 months pregnant

We are 6 months pregnant now. Here's a picture that shows my belly (photo by Bob). I've been getting a lot of feedback from people who see me and think I don't look 6 months pregnant. They say I look "tiny" or just a little over weight. However, I saw my midwife today who measured my belly and said I am the perfect size. When I told her that people tell me I look small, she said it is because I have a long torso. She said women with short torsos have the opposite appearance, and those are the women who always get asked if they are having twins when they are not.

So my glucose test came back normal. Yay! However my other lab results show that I am anemic. I have to try taking the iron supplements again. I'd tried taking them a few months ago, but I thought they were affecting my digestion so I stopped taking them. The midwife said to try taking it every other day or every 3rd day.

Bob and I found a doula we like a lot. She is also a yoga teacher, and I've gone to her prenatal yoga class the last 2 weeks. I enjoy her class a lot, and it is good to get to know her better through her teaching, and also to get used to relaxing or moving in response to her voice and instructions.

Orange soda test

On Monday I went to the blood lab at St. Luke's hospital for my glucose tolerance test. It is a standard test that every pregnant woman gets these days, since pregnant women have a risk of becoming diabetic while pregnant. I'd heard about women who got a false positive on the test because they ate too many sweets before taking the test, and so I was careful about what I ate that morning. I even consulted with our family diabetes expert to figure out what foods I could eat that wouldn't spike my blood sugar (thanks, Lee Ann!). I heard women complain about the syrupy sweet stuff they make you drink, but I didn't think it was bad at all. I am not a soda drinker, so to me it just tasted like orange soda and it was fine. The only bad part was that it was very cold and I had to drink it in 5 minutes or less so I got that brain-freeze feeling momentarily. But really, it was no problem. And today I scheduled a cleaning with my dentist (my teeth did feel a bit sugar coated during the hour that I had to wait in the lab until they drew my blood). I will find out the results next Monday at my next midwife visit. I think it will be normal.

I'm so happy to be feeling better! Although I am still congested, it is sooooo much better than it was! I'm no longer going through a box of Puffs Plus a day. Now I'm down to using about 1/7 box a day. But a patient at work today said "oh, you sound like you have a cold!" and I explained that this is actually me almost recovered from the cold I had a week before Christmas. Pregnant women tend to be more congested in general. We have more fluids going through our bodies--more blood, more mucus, etc. My allergist told me that at this point it might just be "pregnancy rhinitis" that is bothering me, and not the remnants of a cold. He said it will go away after the baby is born. I'm hoping that it is left over from the cold, though, and that I can clear it up in the next coupla weeks. I've been using a nasal saline rinse twice a day, and that helps a little. My voice still sounds funny, though. Pregnant women aren't supposed to use decongestants, otherwise I'm sure Sudafed would help a lot.

On Sunday Bob and I went to a baby supply store in the Richmond district to look at crib options. We decided to start with a co-sleeper and see how long that lasts us. We don't really have room for a crib in our one bedroom apartment, and I like the idea of having baby right next to us while we sleep to make feedings and care-taking easier. While we were in the neighborhood, we ate lunch at a Thai restaurant we like called Be My Guest. On the walk to the restaurant Bob spotted this sign for a bar and he showed me how to hold my hand up and then took a picture:

We had a fun time out together after so many days of just resting at home. Resting at home was fun, too, don't get me wrong. But it was nice to be outside.

Holidays 2007

Merry Christmas! Bob and I spent Christmas Eve and Day with Bob's side of the family, then flew to NJ for a few days to see Jen's side. Unfortunately, we were both under the weather throughout all festivities, but it was good to spend time with family. Now we are finally recovering from the holiday viruses we had, and so a blog update is in order!

Here's a picture of Bob and Jen on Christmas Eve, so you can see how big the belly is getting... (click picture to enlarge)


From left to right we have Brian, Michelle (Bob's sister), Dr. Don, Sylvia (Bob's mom), Bob and Jen.


Bob officiated a wedding the day after Christmas. Here is Minister Bob (center) with the bride and groom, Celina and Philip. Congratulations!


And this photo was taken in our New Jersey hotel room, since we were too sick to get out much. From left to right you see Lee Ann, Jason (Jen's brother), Jessie (Jen's mom), Jen and Bob


More blogging yet to come. In the mean time, take care!
~ Jen