I made a big, very serious decision today.
I’m not going to attempt to venture out for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1.
I was considering going to the theater to see it during a not-busy time because, really, how much different is propping my feet on the railings and leaning back in a comfy theater seat different from propping my feet and watching a movie at home? Not terribly different.
But if something were to happen, if I were to go into labor, I would hate myself. I would hate Harry Potter.
I can’t hate Harry Potter.
This decision hurts me deep down inside, but you know what? Sorry, Harry Potter, but my babies are more important.
‘Tis better to be safe than sorry.
So what’s under penalty of death? Spoilers. I’m going to hibernate from all pop culture sites and shows as much as possible. I’m going to switch the channel each time a commercial for the movie comes on (we all know they show more and more scenes once the movie is released). I’m going to avoid blogs I know may talk about it. I’m going to avoid Facebook statuses, Twitter updates and message boards as much as possible during opening weekend.
But there’s only so much I can do to avoid the idiot who runs around screaming about how thrilling it was to see the scene where Harry and Ginny fight Gollum to the death at the base of Mount Doom.
Or something like that.
So, should you be that idiot, consider this fair warning that our relationship – however great or minuscule – will be over quicker than you can say Expelliarmus.
Consider yourself warned, fellow HP fans. Oh, and have fun seeing the film. I know it’s one we’ve all been anticipating like whoa. After being disappointed in movies 4-6, I think these next two have great potential to be the best in the series.
Pip, pip!
Bed rest isn’t nearly as lazy and boring as I thought it would be. Not for my brain, at least.
No worries, blog fans. I don’t do much of anything. My most strenuous activity is probably heaving myself out of bed in the morning and at nap times. I actually have avoided laying on the couch because the heaving from there is that much more difficult.
Laying down flat at all really makes life much more difficult. I swear my muscles (and hip/leg/pelvic joints) go on strike each time I’m down for any period of time, and PB&J all stack on top of each other, making my belly look (and feel) all sorts of weird. The poor baby (or babies, if I’m on my right side) on the bottom of the pile doth protest much, and I get lots of kicks and then someone trying to escape around to my back. That’s only when I’m actually laying.
Getting up is the worst. I have to sit at the edge of my bed for a couple minutes to try letting gravity move babies back into a comfortable upright position, and this usually takes place on top of my bladder, which is just dying to break free. Then I have to actually stand, and the 10-foot walk from my side of the bed to the bathroom is done with shuffling steps in great pain. Finally, I can pee. On my cracked toilet seat.
(Oh, you didn’t hear about that? Yeah, Gigundo here cracked a toiled seat. Rob tells me he stood on it to hang a cabinet above the toilet the week before and that he likely started the crack, so that made me feel a little less hefty.)
I’m going to talk with my OB to make sure I’m right, but I’ve decided that reclining in my darling Betsy is just as good as laying in bed – maybe even better since I’m not getting myself all out of breath and uncomfortable.
Yesterday was a huge day for my pregnancy. I hit 27 weeks and crossed into the official third trimester. Babies born from this point on have much fewer breathing problems because their lungs are pretty much ready for breathing. PB&J still need to stay inside to cook for longer, but we’ve been able to increase their chances of survival by nearly 20 percent from the night we had our consultation with the NICU doctor.
Talk about a huge sigh of relief, right?
Another big milestone yesterday was the appearance of the first stretch marks on my belly.
Stop right now if you’re going to console me for these “ugly” marks. I do not consider them ugly. They weren’t there until yesterday, and I consider them a blessing – just another reminder of how much growth PB&J have been able to safely accomplish without fighting the outside world.
If I had delivered at 25 weeks when I was in the hospital, I might have been free of stretch marks, but I also might not have my three sweet babies.
What’s hilarious is the marks are mostly off to the right side of my way-low abdomen. That’s the part on me that definitely carries the most weight since both girls are on my right, and I’m carrying lower than I am high.
The marks are logical, and they’re a testament of my growing babies. I love them.
Plus, after all we went through to even get here in the first place, do you think it’d make sense for me to complain about something as silly as stretch marks? I’m no super model, so I have no problem sacrificing some vanity in the name of family.
So, I’ve covered the heaving and the uncomfies and the stretching – what next?
Oh, yes. The nursery. Another of my brain tasks has been planning and plotting the completion of what will be PB&J’s bedroom. We now have all the furniture in there, and all the clothes have been washed and hung (although some are hanging on the guest room bed, waiting for the armoire to be equipped with hangability – we ran out of room in the closet!).
All that’s left are getting into place the crib mattresses (which will arrive this week some time), hanging (dictating, on my part) the various pieces of wall art and deciding on some last-minute organization. I stop in for a quick peek and brain refresher each time I use the bathroom. I try to imagine juggling three screaming babies and what would make for the easiest grab-and-go of the various baby items.
I can’t wait to declare that everything has a place, and everything is in its place – just ready and waiting for the three little ones who will eventually displace as much as they can reach.
I can certainly wait for that, but the thought of it makes me grin like a fool.
Voting ends today for The Bump’s best fertility blog and best multiples blog – two Mommy Blog Awards categories for which I am a finalist. Give What the Blog? a final push with votes today, please – the links are in the sidebar. That $50 Pottery Barn Kids gift card would be put to GREAT use! xoxoxo
I’m A-OK with admitting that I’m stubborn and opinionated and will do whatever I damn well please regardless of others’ opinions.
That’s only when I have my own opinion, though.
I’m a bit stuck on what to do with one of my decor pieces, for lack of a better term, and I need some help.
I have these darling alphabet flash cards I want to hang on the wall in PB&J’s room. There are 26 5×7 cards, and I want to hang them in a big block formation to make one fairly large piece of smart art for PB&J to suck genius from. I think I’m (and when I say “I,” I mean someone else under my polite direction) going to hang them in four parallel rows – the top three rows with seven letter cards each, and the final row with five letter cards.
But how should I hang them? I’ve been waffling over this question for months now, pretty much since I started to make loose nursery idea-plans.
The current options I’m considering:
(I’d most likely have much shorter ribbon tails since there will be four rows.)
(unsure about having similar end pieces or leaving the ends open)
The only other idea I have is to somehow nearly invisibly attach string or ribbon to the backs of the card and just barely see a bit of string/ribbon in between each card. It’d look like they were magically floating above the string/ribbon.
I know, I know. This is a truly trite decision, but I have the cards, and they’re just sitting around in their sleeve, waiting for me to make a (verbal) move.
My only requirements: The hanging method must stick to my 7x7x7x5 idea; and it must be inexpensive. I’m not going to spend money on 26 5×7 frames. We’re on a wicked tight budget, and the cards only cost $20 in the first place.
What do you think, peanut gallery? How should I hang my alphabet cards?
p.s. Broken record, here! Care to take a moment and vote for my blog in the Mommy Blog Awards? The links are over yonder in the sidebar. Thanks, pals!
(Edited to add) p.p.s. I’m pretty sure whatever I decide will have a more straight-line look versus the swag look. Does that help anyone visualize better?
Last night, PB&J’s room got a big push toward being closer to done. Rob put up the cribs!
We have three IKEA Gulliver cribs and love them so far. The price was just right, and the safety ratings are even better. The cribs will eventually convert to toddler beds, so PB&J will be able to use them for quite a while. Maybe until we move to bunk beds for the trio!
You can see that space is tight, and we’re even adding a fifth piece of furniture. It’s big, but it’s essential. An armoire will go opposite of the crib that stands alone. We need all the storage we can get, and it’s a free hand-me-down from Rob’s parents. I can’t wait to see it in the room and see how little space we really have.
It’s a good thing babies are small people, right?
A week ago, we were on contraction watch, hoping and praying for uterine silence. Today, I’m home, my injection-site and IV-site bruises are healing, and I’m celebrating another week of being pregnant, now at 26 weeks, 4 days.
pssst! If you have a few seconds to spare, would you mind clicking the links in the sidebar and voting for What the Blog? for best fertility blog and best multiples blog? Thank you, readers!
I’m not normally a personal-horn-tooter, and I’m less of an ask-for-help type, but I’m too stoked about possibly being a finalist to stay quiet and just hope my readers notice the new additions to my sidebar.
What the Blog? is a finalist in two categories of The Bump’s 2nd Mommy Blog Awards! I’m a finalist for Best Fertility Blog and Best Multiples Blog.
The two categories are a pretty meaningful testimony to the last year in our house. I first started to share our experiences trying to conceive late October of last year. This blog has gone through a lot since then – from fertility testing to conception to loss to conception to another loss and all the heartache and victories in between.
An ultrasound in June forever changed my world, and the appearance of PB&J moved us into the world of multiples.
I haven’t even tipped the iceberg when it comes to blogging about multiples. Being pregnant with PB&J has been an experience already, but something tells me things will get a lot more interesting once they’re outside babies.
And despite no longer being an active participant in the world of trying to conceive, it’s a subject that is near and dear to my heart. I’ll always wear my bracelet representing Infertility’s Common Thread, and I’ll always grab onto any opportunity I have to tell the world how important it is to be educated in the fertility game.
Whether you’re a new reader since PB&J joined the picture or if you’ve been around since my days of RE visits, I’d really appreciate it if you could spare a few seconds and clicks to vote for me. The winner in each category will receive a $50 gift certificate for Pottery Barn Kids – a prize that would be a great help – and a copy of “The Baby Bump,” The Bump’s new pregnancy book. The grand-prize winner will receive an iPad and keyboard dock. Be still my heart.
You can vote as many times as your little, What-the-Blog-loving heart desires, and you don’t need an account with The Bump to do so. Voting began today and closes at midnight on Nov. 15.
Best fertility blog:
Best multiples blog:
Thank you, dear readers!
