Less than 6 weeks to go, only 2 more pants-on checkups left at my OB office and then we start the Great Contraction Watch of 2010. I was going to say Cervix Watch but that seemed too…graphic. You’re welcome.

(Also, in case you’ve been holding your breath, I’ll put up a “guess the birth date” post right after Thanksgiving and offer some sort of prize for the person who gets it right. Nothing fancy – probably a knitting project, but better than last time when no one got anything. I may do a sub category for birth weight/length but that seems like a lot to keep track of and as far as I know WordPress doesn’t have a plug-in to do it for me yet.)

I went to my appointment today expecting a lecture on my weight and had already planned out my whiny blog post in advance…but instead I got a doctor who looked at my chart, did the math and said “35 pounds! Right on target.”

Which one is the blank-stare-blinky emoticon? I need about two dozen of those.

Honestly, 35 pounds SOUNDS like a lot. I was hoping to keep it closer to 25 this time. It also feels like a lot – just ask my pelvis and my sciatic nerve, which cry a little every time I have to trek down to the basement for yet another half-gallon of milk for the thirstiest toddler on the planet. But despite once again being on the high end of the suggested weight gain scale, I am still having an extremely healthy pregnancy. Excellent blood pressure, no gestational diabetes, no preeclampsia, no warnings about gigantic babies that cannot possibly fit through my tiny delicate lady parts. And for the record, all my pre-pregnancy underwear still fits, as do my pre-pregnancy pants – if I don’t try to zip them. I’m still going to Stroller Strides at least twice a week, I am capable of buying ice cream/candy/cookies and not eating ALL OF IT within seconds, and I haven’t scarfed down more than 1 cheeseburger in a sitting the whole 8 months. MY WILLPOWER, LET ME SHOW YOU IT.

So why have I gained just as many pounds as last time, when I DID eat ice cream and cheeseburgers like they were the last food on the planet and barely moved from the couch after my 4th month? Is this just how much fat my body needs to grow a baby? Is this one going to be bigger? Is this weight going to be just as hard to lose or will it magically burn away with the breastfeeding like so many people claim? That last one would be AWESOME. The potentially larger baby, not so much (my lady parts might be made for birthin’ the babies but I’d like it if they weren’t torn to shreds in the process)(You’re welcome again).

Tell me mamas, am I fooling myself? Is my butt really that much bigger than I’m seeing in my mirror?

The winner of Giveaway Week Day 1: Allora Handmade is…

#49 Majestic Domestic aka Bonnie!

Congrats!! I will forward your info to Jessica so she can set you up with your shop credit. I advise you to spend it on yourself and not try to do the nice thing and buy anyone a Christmas present. You’ll just resent them later because they’re wearing YOUR rosettes.

Yesterday, I had a friend tell me that although I am very very pregnant I am “all belly”. It was one of the nicest things anyone has ever said and definitely goes on the “appropriate to say to a pregnant woman” side of the list. I’m not even going to evaluate whether or not it’s true. I certainly feel very belly-ful and can also still get my non-maternity pants on – I just can’t button them. Or zip them. But my butt fits!

The glider we ordered from Babies R Us came in on Saturday. Of course it wasn’t until we got it home, up the stairs and right side up that we realized the gliding mechanism is TOTALLY defective. One of the screws is rubbing against the metal frame, making a terrible noise and preventing any sort of gliding from taking place. No, it cannot be bent back into place – trust me, we tried. E spent ALL DAY Monday trying to get a hold of the company, because it says in GIANT ORANGE LETTERS on the packaging “DO NOT RETURN TO STORE – CALL 1-800-BLAH BLAH”. So of course when they FINALLY called him back they said “Oh yeah, you should return it to the store.” Luckily, Babies R Us was willing to do an even-exchange and get us another (hopefully non-defective) one in 7-10 days. You can bet your ass we’re opening the box right there in the store to make sure it’s not all screwed up too. No way we are dragging ANOTHER chair home again just to drag it back.

(Side note: It took three different people almost a full hour to figure out HOW to do the even-exchange. One cashier literally just stared at the receipt for five full minutes while I stared at her staring. I *know* retail computer systems can be confusing but SERIOUSLY? CALL A MANAGER. OR SOMETHING. I have four different pieces of paper that show how much I paid and I don’t even want my money back.)

The new master bedroom is closer to being done than not done but we’re trapped in renovation limbo until the carpet goes in on Thursday, which means my clothes are in one room, E’s clothes are in another, there’s a banister in our guest room, bed rails in the nursery and we’re sleeping on mattresses on the floor of the 3rd floor. And by “floor” I mean bare plywood. BUT! My new closet organizer is in! I haven’t had a real closet in 3 years and am using this bedroom move to viciously edit my wardrobe down to stuff I actually wear and by actually wear I mean wear on a regular, consistent basis and not just for a couple of hours once every few months so I can feel less guilty about not giving it away.

I’ve started having nightmares about giving birth. I had them last time too, but figured since things went pretty well with Baby Evan I’d be a little calmer this time. The dreams never involve the actual BIRTH part, just weird hospital frustrations and baby mix-ups and birth certificates with “Special Snowflake Davis” on them. But they’re the kind of dreams that you wake up from just as exhausted as when you collapsed into bed after chasing around the world’s fastest toddler all day.

And because now that it’s November no one really cares about Halloween costumes anymore, this is where I share pictures of Little Evan in his costume(s).

He still thinks tiny gourds are delicious. Even ones he originally called "BALL" and threw at passersby.

I taught him that monkeys scratch their armpits and say "Oooo ooo ooo!" This is his best try.

There are pants that go with that costume too, but considering THIS is the meltdown that occured when I tried to get him to take a picture with me, the fight over the pants was totally not worth it.

Yes, I DID buy a second costume to dress Evan in for answering the door. There are a limited number of years you can dress up kids without their input and I'm taking FULL advantage. (Also: He is not holding a candle. Tiny LED candle-like light)

Despite this face, he actually LOVED the outfit. Except for the hat part. Why don't they make costumes without hats?

P.S. The rest of the giveaways are still open but Uff Da closes tonight!
Day 2 is open until November 2nd! Uff Da Designs
Day 3 is open until November 3rd! Taradara
Day 4 is open until November 4th! Peggy Ann Design
Day 5 is open until November 5th! aPearantly Sew
Day 6 is open until November 6th! Gussy
Day 7 is open until November 7th! A knit Phoebe Mouse…by ME!
Day 8 is open until November 8th! Hugs & Kisses Designs

Alternate title of this post: Maybe this time around I’ll actually remember to tag my posts in such a way it doesn’t take me three weeks to find them.

I started this here little bebehblog the day I found out I was pregnant with Baby Evan. I’m actually incredibly thankful for that now, since going back to read about how stuff happened last time is both fun and reassuring. The looking back is NOT so fun when I realize that this is what I looked like at 10-ish weeks during my first pregnancy:

Yeah, in my head, that was a bump. I hate you, past Suzanne.

And now, this is what 11 weeks looks like:

Also for the record, This is actually my other side. I flipped the picture so it was easier to compare. That tattoo is pre-babies.

It’s actually even worse when I wear clothes:

Not a maternity dress. The good news is that dress didn't fit at ALL a few months after I had Baby Evan, so getting into it - especially pregnant - was a happy moment. P.S. I bought it in Paris. I thought you should know. P.P.S. Please ignore the toilet paper holder. Bathroom self portrait.

Important less learned from my previous pregnancy: I’m going to have my maternity photos taken at a much earlier, cuter date instead of waiting for 35+ weeks when I was all swollen and puffy. I lost contact with the girl who did them last time (we were MySpace friends and my account is LONG gone) so if anyone in Connecticut has a recommendation let me know. Although I should mention now I’m not in any position to spend $1200 just for the rights to the digital prints. I learned that lesson the hard way.

12 weeks ago I posted about the Get Fit Challenge at my Stroller Strides class and how pathetic I was for only being able to do 8 push-ups. Well 12 weeks is apparently more than enough time to see an improvement if you go to class almost every single day because this morning I did 20 PUSH UPS. 20 real, straight leg, not so wimpy after all push-ups. I still don’t think they’d pass boot-camp inspection but they certainly weren’t easy.

I also improved my plank hold from 1 minute 7 seconds to 1 minute 31 seconds, which was pretty good considering it was after those damn push-ups. Not so much improvement in my crunches (53 last time, 56 this time) but in my own defense ab exercises have been making me nauseous this week so I may not have tried as hard as I should. PREGNANT LADY EXCUSES, I HAS THEM.

I didn’t write down my time on the shuttle run last time but my time today was 10.3 seconds which sure SOUNDS impressive. We’ll call that an improvement too. I need all the positive reinforcement I can get from my actual fitness though since after 12 weeks of working out at least 5 days a week, making healthy choices like salad instead of french fries and not buying a single bag of candy I lost a whopping…zero pounds. Zero. I weigh exactly the same thing I did when we started. My SS instructor told me it was totally OK! I clearly gained muscle mass! I’m pregnant! (MORE EXCUSES, WE HAS THEM) but it’s still heart-crushingly disappointing. I was hoping to be down enough that this pregnancy’s weight gain couldn’t possibly put me over -insert own personal horrifyingly high number here- but no such luck. I guess I’ll just have to wait another 9 months before I can start a crash new diet.

Until then, I’ll just keep doing push ups.