First Day of Leave

Today is my first day of maternity leave - well technically I am on PTO this week and my official leave runs from 3/5/12 - 7/2/12, but the main point is that I am done with work for a little while :)  I was 37 weeks on Saturday and feeling really well. All my stats are great and I have no swelling at all.  My hip area does get sore in the evenings from the expansion in my joints, but all in all I feel well.  With Sam I was on modified bed rest from 35 to 37 weeks so this is technically the longest I have baked a baby and still been "active".  This weekend was a little rough bcs Sam vetoed his nap on both days - besides the fact that the parental units do not have a break, we are left with a very, very tired toddler who has numerous (and very dramatic ;) breakdowns over things like not being able to get the drum stick in his pocket.  Also, Saturday night was a little rough bcs Sam puked for some reason and made a huge mess.  So Geoff gave him his second bath while I worked on changing the sheets and getting the vomit smell out of the room.  Sam pukes like that every so often it is a little odd.  The last time he did it was exactly a month before when Geoff was at the Celtics with Gitchel.

So this week I do not have many plans or appointments and have some little things here and there planned.  This morning I did an on-site visit to a pre-school for Sam.  I picked up sticks in the yard, and am now headed to Wilson Farms to buy some plants for the house and then go for a walk at Habitat.  Things in the "prep for baby" department are pretty good to go, and I think one of the last few items that needs to be done is for Geoff to fix straps on infant car carrier (I messed them up after washing the inserts) and install the bases to each car.  Besides that we are pretty much good to go :)

It is honestly so nice just to have a little time to get some minor things done around the house, go for walks and take it easy.  This morning it was amazing just to have a quiet house :)  Sam is at Nicholas' house this week so it is extra quiet.   So I am super-thankful to have a little time to get myself ready for the baby, but also don't want to be waiting around for 3-4 weeks for her arrival - I think I will be a bit bored by that point. So if I could send her post-it note with my request, I would say that is she could arrive in a week and a half that would be fine by me :)

Baby #2

So a quick update on baby #2. I had my 36 (ish) week appointment this morning and everything seems perfectly normal.  All my stats are good, her heartbeat is great and she is head down.  She is a very, very active baby which is super-reassuring though still catches me by surprise sometimes :)  She has been head down for a few weeks (I think) so I am happy things are pointing in the right direction.

Funny, I think this may be the first ops about baby #2 to the ole blog - this blog started off as a pregnancy journal with Sam (based on a recommendation in some baby/health book I was reading) and then it quickly morphed into photos of Sam and now our little growing family.

This is the last week of my work before my office leave.  I am working from home 50% of the time now, which really means 100% of the time.  Normally when I work 100% of the time that translates to 150% ;)  I have a huge campaign (my top client) that I am working through communication approval on, but after this week it will be a distant memory for a few months.

For this baby, we have a birth doula lined up to help us.  We had one with Sam, but she never ended up making it to the hospital bcs he was taken out so quickly.  I am hoping we get a bit more value from this doula ;)  She is really terrific though and Geoff and I are very happy we found her.  She is  Certified Professional Midwife and doula and has attended over 300 births.  It makes me feel better to know that I will have the extra support because the midwives at the hospital will pop in an out.

Also, I am working interviewing some "mother's helpers" type of people for after the baby is born.  I am starting to sort though the applicants now and try to get something solid lined up for after the baby is here.  I am just looking for help for a few hours 4 days a week so I can shower, go to the gym or take a nap if I need to.  Sam and Nicholas will be with their nanny, so I just need someone who can mind the baby and maybe do some baby-related house stuff when she is asleep.

So in general, I am prepping here and there, but with life so busy there are still a lot of to-do's on the list.  I am not really worried about it though - there will be plenty of time after she is born, and thankfully newborns are forgiving in that fashion ;)