Another Early Morning

Once again I am up before the dawn, even earlier than usual, thanks to Sgt. Edwards telling everyone they had to be there at 4:45 AM. The unit is going out for a field exercise for a week, so Alan won’t be home until probably Tuesday. Fortunately most of his gear is now kept in a large locker at the new footprint, so preparing for FTX no longer requires the use of every inch of available floor space to prepare. Alan has also, in his infinite wisdom, made a list of all his gear and which bag it’s packed in. So when he does need something, he can just check the list instead of digging through all his stuff.

I’m out of the first trimester now and for the most part, nausea-free. My gag reflex is on a hair trigger still and I’ve had some chest congestion for which there’s nothing I can absolutely take. I’ve also developed an aversion to eggs, which sucks because I love eggs. So instead of any kind of protein in the mornings I’ve been having toast with jam. Nutritious. On the plus side, I’m craving lots and lots of fruit. Since Sunday I’ve eaten five oranges, four apples, two tomatoes, a banana, and about a third of a watermelon. The remaining fruit is not going to make it the rest of the week.

Alan has chosen two middle names from my list of family names, apparently accepting that I will not be giving my child a name that is meaningless and has no connection at all to my family. His family gets the last name, so mine should get the middle name. He’s accepted Bricker and MacKenzie, both of which come from my mom’s side of the family. And his current top three first names are Emma, Pippa, and Mila. Honestly, I really like the sound of Pippa Slinsky. Only I don’t like it with Bricker because it sounds very stilted, like you’re reciting a grocery list. Pippa MacKenzie Slinsky is awesome… only that would make her initials PMS. Do I really want to do that to my child? Maybe we just shouldn’t get her anything with her initials on unless it’s in monogram form with the last initial in the middle like "pSm."

I think I’m starting to feel some flutterings of movement. It’s hard to tell since I don’t know what it should feel like. I certainly hope I’m feeling movement because at this point it’s hard to tell that I’m pregnant at all. I’m not sick anymore and not nearly as tired. I’m not showing really, just looking chubbier. And while I know that I gain weight in my hips and thighs, no one else knows that. I don’t even look at the scale, but I’m sure I’m over my highest previous weight by now. What reassures me is that I bought jeans in a size that used to be tight on me (when I was bigger) and they’re still loose even though I weigh more than what I did then, meaning that all weight gained is apparently going straight to my uterus.

It makes sense in my head.

I notice a bit of tummy and Alan does too. When I look in the mirror, I can’t suck in very far.

And then there’s the sudden tininess of my stomach. I’m hungry constantly, but can’t eat very much at one time. An orange is suddenly a very filling meal. So I take that as a good indication that everything is still on track. I don’t have another appointment until next Wednesday, so my fingers are crossed.

I talked to my dad and he offered to fly me home for a visit so I could get away from Colorado for a little while. I might take him up on it. He also suggested that I come back to Connecticut to have the baby, since I have such a good support network of family and friends there. I think if he really thought about it he would see how silly that is. I had to explain to him about TriCare not covering it and also the fact that I’m going to be doing all my prenatal care here, so why would I then go to CT to have the baby with a doctor I’ve only just met. At least out here I’ll be meeting all of the midwives in the practice and one of them will definitely be on call when I go into labor. Then he wanted to know how I would get to the hospital if I’m in labor and then he freaked out a bit about the midwife thing. I had to assure him that these are Certified Nurse Midwives with medical backgrounds and that I will be delivering in a hospital with doctors nearby should anything go wrong. Also, that if I was at high risk for something going wrong, they already would have referred me to a specialist. So overprotective. I’ve since talked about it with my mom and her plan is to come out here in late February so she’s here before the baby. Hopefully. As we know, these things can happen at any time. LOL

Alan and I have talked a bit about how "we" should do the sleeping arrangements. I really like the idea of a co-sleeper. It’s a bassinet/ crib that attaches to the side of the bed so that the baby is not actually in bed with the parents, but within reach for nighttime feedings. Then at about 6-9 months, I would move the baby into his/her own room, and instead of using a crib, have a floor bed – a mattress on the floor that allows the baby to get in and out of bed when they want. That way, should s/he wake up in the middle of the night, there’s no crying to get out, just for actual necessity. Obviously, it requires a slightly different type of baby-proofing, with loud toys out of reach and a gate across the door, but I think it could be better than crib, especially once s/he is able to climb out. I like the concept and I think Alan is coming around to it as well.

Odd thing happened the other day. I was sitting out on the deck and a squirrel jumped from the tree onto the railing. Nothing odd in that since I feed the squirrels with seed in the winter and put out bread ends periodically in the summer. The odd part is that even though he saw me, he decided it was still worth taking the chance and checking to see if there was food in the bowl. Ballsy little rodent.

Anyway, that’s all I’ve got for now.

~Liz