Monday, September 1, 2014

Labor Day Update - Pregnancy, Fitness and Back to School

Happy Labor Day, people! It is awfully close to another "labor" day for this girl, so I thought I would stop by to do an update - and likely last post - before the little guy makes his appearance. 

I have to say that I woke up feeling really excited and maybe a little relieved that we have finally made it to September. I can take myself back to the exact moment in January when I found out I'd be having a baby in September - and I thought September sounded so far away. But here we are. Time really does fly by - it is scary just how fast. I thought this was an appropriate song for how I feel about today (kind of inappropriate, I suppose.)


So - when is this kid coming? My due date is September 12th. My birthday is September 10th. I am naturally biased toward the month and Virgos in general. I'll be happy to have a little type-A buddy to keep me company, but I don't want to necessarily SHARE a birthday. Most people say things like, "Oh - wouldn't it be fun to have the same birthday?" I always feel like I'd rather he had his own day. We can still celebrate together, but I want him to have his very own birthday. My hope is that he waits until after his due date, but sometimes I feel like he has other plans and I could burst at any moment. Place your bets! The fact of the matter is that I don't know if I am ready to share him with the whole world yet. Right now, we have this special bond that is just ours - and I'm not over that yet. I will miss the little pokes and jabs, so I am trying to enjoy all of those special pregnancy-specific things for the time being.

Are you still working out? If you follow my instagram you have probably been seeing sweaty photos of me, because I am still running. I don't run every day, but most days. I usually last 3-5 miles depending on how I feel. I'm still managing about 9 minute miles, which I am ok with because I don't want to push it. The other day, a jerk in a pick-up truck shouted "IDIOT!" at me as I ran down the street - I assumed because he thought that running while pregnant was dangerous??? I spent the rest of that run being annoyed at the fat, sitting-down guy shouting insults at someone that is actually trying to make good, healthy choices; my pace that run ended up being about 8:30 min/mi. Anger = faster running. On days that I don't run, I am still walking about 3 miles with my pup and I am doing plenty of work around the house and yard to keep active. I am also using a pedometer issued by my job to keep track of my activity - which helps to keep me accountable. 



How do you feel? In general, I feel really fantastic. Being this late in the pregnancy, I am almost afraid to say that to people - especially women who have had a hard time with pregnancy. Aside from being tired in the beginning and having heartburn throughout, I cannot complain at all. My mood hasn't really changed. I'm still getting *enough* sleep. I'm not waddling. I am able-bodied and perfectly capable of 90% of the things I did before. I don't want to jinx anything because I still have labor and parenting to get through - but - pregnancy was relatively easy for me. Thank god. I am truly thankful...but I don't think it is random...I am pretty sure that my lifestyle helped me out quite a bit.

Diet and Weigh-Gain? I would say that I eat less now than I did before - just because of the heartburn and the lack of room in my belly. And - truth be told - I am not hungry all the time. You always hear about how pregnant women are constantly starving and I definitely have days when I am like, "GIVE ME THE FOOD!" but generally speaking...not that hungry. My diet is NOT perfect by any means. I have been obsessed with Golden Grahams and Honey Combs. I eat a gross amount of fruit everyday. I have ice cream at least twice a week. I have hated peanut butter and jelly my WHOLE LIFE, but I have it every day for the last two weeks. At my 37 week appointment last week, I had gained a total of 16.5 pounds. I am happy with that, because I should be able to keep my total weight gain under 20 pounds. 



How has life changed so far? I barely recognize my life right now. We got a new car this past weekend that is more "family friendly" - an SUV with lots of room for strollers and car seats, unlike my tiny car which now resembles a clown car in comparison. We are finishing the yard and the basement. We got new furniture. We turned our office space into our nursery. The Mister is in grad school and got a new "adult" hair cut. He even said, "I think I need to get respectable pajamas, because I can't have this kid seeing me in over-sized t-shirts and basketball shorts." haha. We are definitely more content staying home than before. Our social life has changed a lot...and I'm not surprised. Of course, we still love all of our friends, but it is nice to stay home working on projects, making dinner together, getting ready for the truly BIG CHANGE coming down the pipe. I think this pregnancy and all of its anticipation have made our relationship a lot stronger - and we were pretty solid before! 

Are you going back to school? We are both teachers and tomorrow is the first day back with students. Since my due date is so close, I am obviously taking things one day at a time...hoping to keep the little dude in there as long as it is safe for us both. I really want to be able to spend some time getting to know my students, so that when I go back to work after maternity leave, the kids will know me, my style, my expectations. It would be extremely challenging to just show up in the middle of the year and expect the kids to conform to my teaching style, rules, etc. I will be taking the full 12 weeks that are allowed - which might not be ideal from a teaching stand-point, but I am willing to be a lot selfish here: baby comes first and nothing is more important than bonding in the beginning. 

What are you looking forward to? I'm just in an excited mindset...I feel like Christmas is coming. I can't wait to finally meet this little boy! I cannot wait to see Mister as a daddy! I can't wait to see Gertie as a "doggy sister." I'm excited for my parents to have another grand-baby to spoil (only their second!) The pumpkin farm. Halloween costumes. Christmas traditions. Easter bunny. Tooth fairy. Kindergarten. Little league. A life time of firsts with our little guy. I am looking forward to it all. And I'm looking forward to doing it all with my best friend, the best partner I could've dreamed up for me, by my side. 

So - I guess that is about it! I don't know how often I will be updating on here (maybe a lot, maybe not at all) once I am home with the little one...but I promise to update on Instagram! Follow me there if you don't already: instagram.com/laceandrace