The Hospital Tour

I don't know about you, but this just got real.

This past Saturday was our hospital tour. Although I didn't really feel like I got a whole lot of new information out of the experience, I still feel like it was a good idea because I will feel much more comfortable in the chaos of labor knowing that I've been there before and have a plan of sorts.

Fun facts to note from our tour:
1. I am still trying to be cute as a pregnant woman, but apparently this is not the norm.  Not to be arrogant, but I mean, come on! Make up, ladies, has not suddenly become toxic due to pregnancy. And just because you are big doesn't mean your clothes have to come from the elephant-size rack.
2. Even with a yeti-length beard, my husband still looks cute, too! You aren't on the tour for a 12-24 hour long marathon of labor, so don't come in pjs, sweats, or anything of the like. Wait until the real deal to come in your comfy clothes, even if it is a Saturday!
3. There is no policy on whether or not I can eat during labor from the hospital, but I must first discuss this option with my Dr. I would love to hear that I am allowed more than ice chips in case I am in it for the long haul!
4. You can "rent" a birthing tub for labor, but then you can't have an epidural, because your legs won't work well enough to get in and out of the tub. You can also rent a birthing ball or a mirror. I am thinking of hosting a core class with ab focus while in labor. Who wants to sign up?
5. You can labor in the shower if you want.
6. Must pass ER before moving on to your next stop.
7.Check out time (without a C-section) is at MOST 48 hours after arrival. Yikes! That gives us 2 days or fewer to figure out what the heck this parenting thing is all about.
8. Don't steal the blankets or other hospital supplies that haven't been in baby's mouth or butt. 

Now, I knew SOME of this information before, but as the tour was quick and simple, only bits of information really stood out to me.  And I guess I didn't really worry about the size of the companion bed in the room, or the open-ended visiting hours policy, because I already knew that having visited friends and family in the hospital after babies were born.

I can't wait for baby classes to find out even more. (Maybe then I'll be less critical and sarcastic and will perhaps be a bit scared out of my mind for the impending birth instead...)

Hopefully I didn't offend anyone.

Mercy Gilbert Hospital- baby's first home! And me at 30 weeks.

Camping with Blue

I have accomplished something many pregnant women will not attempt.

I went camping at nearly 7 months pregnant!

And I survived.

Why did I do it, you ask? First, the prospect of missing out on a summer camping trip this summer was far too depressing. We go every summer, so I didn't want to miss it this summer (even though we should have planned to go earlier in the summer). Second, it is so gosh darn hot in Phoenix that getting away to the woods and shade was far more appealing than staying in town for another record-breaking weekend in the heat. Even if it did mean roughing it with food and bathroom facilities.

So off towards Flagstaff we went. Ashurst Campground, with a lake, trees, and a breeze that is below 80 degrees!

Leaving the campground and still smiling!

I brought reinforcements of course. Plenty of snacks. An air mattress for inside the tent. And all my pillows with extra blankets! Besides getting out of the tent, I didn't have too many problems being bigger than usual. However, I did have to resort to using the outhouse toilets, but we made sure our campsite was close to one so I wouldn't have to go as far for the frequent bathroom breaks.

We had a lot of fun with some of our camping-afficionado friends. Friday night was party time, complete with beer pong like we were still in college, and not parents/soon-to-be parents. (Don't worry, I did not drink the beer!) Saturday we enjoyed the rain from under our pop-up shelter. We built big campfires, and we made all the campfire classic meals: Pudgie Pies, Hobo Stew, and S'mores!

On our way out of town, I couldn't quite bear leaving the cooler temperatures, so we stopped at Macy's European Cafe for a breakfast pastry (delicious) and then went on a Kyle and Erica style adventure- off roading in the Honda Accord up Shultz Pass Road (we have a thing for driving over mountain passes and documenting them).

Here are some more pictures from the weekend!

Add another mountain pass to our list- and this one is NOT in Colorado!

Me at 29 weeks (almost)

Kyle and Casey kayaking in the rain

Yea for a breeze, water, clouds!!!

The campsite- with TREES!

This is what trouble looks like

Feeling a Part of the Elite

I used to feel like I was out of the loop. Everyone I knew was pregnant or had a little one. I didn't know what to ask about because I wasn't sure who was on the edge or who wanted to share their personal stories of all the "behind the scenes" symptoms of pregnancy. However, once I learned of my pregnancy, I got to join this exclusive club of women who know the reality about what it's like to be pregnant. Since then, I have been "privileged" to learn about a number of the fun things that people don't want to explain to women before pregnancy, most likely because NO ONE WOULD EVER GET PREGNANT if people really talked bluntly about it. Or maybe I wouldn't have been so naive.

I didn't want to believe that I had been living in any sort of utopian world of the joys of pregnancy because I have been surrounded by pregnant women for the past four or five years of my life. But I STILL didn't know about all the things that I was in for until I was in the middle of them.All the books say "Well, no one will tell you about this until you read this book", so screw that, I'm going to give it to you for free throughout this blog, not just this post, and I have a very hard time holding it back.

For one, and I know this is where some of you should probably stop reading, having a child, as we all know, means hours of eating and pooping as part of the daily routine. You count how many times your kid has pood in a day. You begin to post status updates on Twitter and Facebook that revolve around the "health" of your baby based on (gasp!) fecal matter. You brag about potty training, and we ALL know someone who has actually taken a picture of the first time her kid pood in the toilet. I had already vowed not to be that mommy. Well, guess what, I already take back every eye roll because I am about to share something. It isn't that life gets filled with food and poo after the baby. This type of daily record begins IN PREGNANCY!

"What do you mean?" you say. Well, as a pregnant woman, a small victory every day is having a regular bowl movement. A week that is constipation-free is a true reason to celebrate! Jenny McCarthy actually did a great job in her book Belly Laughs treating the subject of constipation with dignity. But I have actually had days where I was grateful for a good, old-fashioned BM, one that didn't involve praying and some geriatric-style Metamusil and prune juice.

With as much fruit as I have been consuming, you'd think this wouldn't be a true issue for me. But as I had a couple of uncomfortable days over the course of this pregnancy (understated for your protection), I know that it must be one of those inevitable side-effects of pregnancy that no one wants to talk about. 
Until I just unloaded that load of s@*# on you, you poor and unassuming reader.

I guess the moral of this story is that we shouldn't assume anything, and we should be nice to those women who post about their babies' diaper contents. After all, they are probably just happy it is no longer just about their bathroom issues. I am sure that I am going to be relieved when it is all over. Pun intended.

As a reward for making it through this, a picture for you.

19 weeks from the deck in Dillon, Colorado with the lake and Breckenridge in the background.

Blueberry's Texas Adventure!

This past June, to escape the Arizona heat, we escaped to the Texas beach. Yep, Texas. Nope, not cooler than Phoenix once you factor in 90% humidity.

We traveled to South Padre Island, a place that is near and dear to Kyle's childhood, as his grandma lived there in winters and he visited often. Having never been there, I was excited to get to share in his nostalgia. We filled the weekend with family fun. Blueberry got to take a dip in the Gulf of Mexico, met some sea turtles, and took a sandcastle building class. We even went snorkeling! That is one busy kid!

My favorite part of the trip was the food! We ate so much great sea food and had a fabulous breakfast buffet to start my day. And I got a Fanta Pineapple and Peach?! Only on the Mexican border :)

Here are some pictures (one you may recognize as my current Facebook profile picture).

We're on a boat! On our snorkel trip

This bench is carved like our wedding bench! At the turtle sanctuary.

Hello turtle! It's Crush in real life!

Blueberry, your parents are so weird! These are our turtle faces.

The sandcastle class. Yours truly may have knocked over the tower...

Taking my profile pic shot!

The sandcastle extravaganza! Ours became a pirate fort.

3 Months to Go!

We have made into my 6th month, approaching 27 weeks. It has really, in retrospect, seemed to have gone by quickly. I mean, a half a year of pregnancy?!

I feel energetic, I have definitely started nesting, and I am starting to feel like we're making progress on being prepared for the baby!

Here is the big belly shot.