I don't know if it's baby girl's personality, her gender (we ladies ARE feisty), the second pregnancy aspect, or the fact that I'm three years older (practically 30, GASP!) but this is a tougher pregnancy for sure. I now have a pregnancy belt that I wear some days or nights because my legs and back just won't hold me up. I'm also needing to lay down most nights after dinner because she's so uncomfortable in there and laying down is the only way to stop the violent flips she's doing. 2028 Olympic gymnastic team here we come!
At the 34 week appointment, she's measuring 36 centimeters but we're right on with weight gain, blood pressure and size. I mentioned the violent flipping and pain from this week and was told as long as it goes away when I lay down, no worries. Just normal hormonal/physical changes going on. Muscles relaxing, hips shifting, you know, super exciting things like that! Some days, though, I wish she were just here and I was recovering already.
It's not to say that I'm not excited about these last weeks, because I am. But man am I tired! I think mostly I feel worse about being a good mom to Jack. My hormones are definitely all over the place so I probably seem bipolar to him but I just can't run after him the way I used to. And I think he's noticing the difference. Perhaps the shrieking is cluing him in? Or the fact that mommy disappears for most of the evening and he comes in to say goodnight to me now, not the other way around. Talk about weird.
Something I've found this week to possibly make up some of the ground I feel I'm losing with him are toddler busy bags (or toddler activity bags). If you have children, or will have children, I swear to God you need to take a look at these! I've spent about $30 so far on various materials to start creating different bags and I've rarely seen Jack so excited about something for so long. "A game?! For me?!"
The first one I saw was done by a friend who had it at one of our regular Olive Garden dinners. Jack sat in the lobby (in one place!) for almost 15 minutes playing this Pom-Pom game. It was nothing but craft pompoms and a box with a hole in it. You take the pompoms out and the kid puts them back in the box one at a time through the hole. A monkey could do it and a toddler will be amazed by it! We now have that game, a similar version using a Pringles can and pipe cleaners, a lacing card game and a clothespin activity.
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| Hanging up the laundry! |
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| Using the lacing cards |
I'm working on more lacing cards (Daddy's the artist in our house so we're dependent on him to make us patterns) and up next is a pasta beading activity bag. I'm pretty excited to dye pasta sometime this week because, of course, it wouldn't be a cool toddler game without some color!
Who knew I was a closet crafty person? Well, I guess it started when Danielle and I made those sweet Christmas gifts followed by the freezer meal extravaganza! Apparently if you surround yourself with crafty people it rubs off! Thanks!
Anyway, the long story made short is that Jack and I have been able to bond through these little activities. They give him something to do that I can either help with or sit and watch him do to give myself time to rest. He gets to be creative and "be a good boy" which is something he's very proud of!
We just finished up a Parent-Tot swim class trying to achieve the same purpose. Even though Mommy couldn't swim every night, Daddy stepped up to the challenge and took over on the nights that my back or legs couldn't take it. (Baby Girl favors the right side, directly over my sciatic nerve which often makes my leg tingly or outright numb. Nice, huh?) But Jack LOVED swimming with either of us and it gave us time to just be HIS parent for a while. I'll need to remember things like this in the future when she gets all the attention.He's one cool little dude and he needs a mommy too!
