HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEFFERY!

Keonis 32nd b-day was on Wednesday. We went to Green Papaya downtown (12th & Morrison) to celebrate at their "Island Night". Funny how "Island Night" meant some fruity drinks on the specials list and about 20 minutes of Island music - then it was just another club until 2am. Also disappointing was the lack of desserts at this Thai/Vietnamese eatery. Lychee with chocolate?! What the f**k? Sigh. I guess you cant have it all.

Pediatrician!

How did we go about choosing a pediatrician? Its such an important decision because if you and the doc arent on the same page - what a nightmare! Mr A and I are both sort of skeptical when it comes to modern medicine and doctors in general, so finding a doctor that would be sensitive to that while still being able to take care of our child (following OUR guidelines) seems difficult enough.

When I went to my insurance and printed out a list of the pediatricians in my area that were in-network (obviously thats going to be the biggest deciding factor), it was so frustrating! "Where do I even start?" How can you possibly know based on a long list of names who is going to be even sort of compatible with you and your kid? I looked at some of their profiles on websites and such, but most pediatricians make the same bland observations about their philosophy of childcare.

I wish that insurance companies provided a search engine that was more like Eharmony or some other comparable online dating service! Cant I just narrow it down like:

"Married organic couple seeks open minded doctor to care for newborn son. Preventative approaches and naturopathic remedies required. Must be open to possibilities regarding circumcision and vaccination schedules. Condescending attitudes need not reply!"

So the next best thing to shooting fish in a bucket is asking people we know who have the same general medical values we do. And thats just what I did. How crazy that they all pointed us to the exact same clinic! When I called the clinic last week they said that they werent accepting any new patients. TRAGIC! But, since they came so highly recommended by so many different people (and I didnt want to spend the next three weeks having the baby while simultaneously continuing this never-ending search for an acceptable care provider), I was really persistent and eventually I got a call back today that they would be willing to take us on!

I am pleased to introduce you to Ikas new doctor, Lucy Douglass, MD!

STILL NO BABY!

I know that in these long last days (weeks), skipping even a few days of posting will lead some to believe we have had the baby already. NOT SO!

He is just not coming out. There is absolutely nothing else I can do to hasten the process. Im walking miles, drinking gallons of my tea & tincture, eating junk, sleeping recklessly, etc. He will come when he is good and ready.

I hope its soon. Like so many other women I have fallen prey to the last minute stretch marks. My mom and Granny both didnt get stretch marks but they both had their kids earlier than this. If I had given birth a week or so ago I could have avoided the same fate. There is really no way of telling how bad/noticeable they will be post-baby, but the mere fact that they exist is frustrating nonetheless. I have been trying to coat my torso daily with aloe vera juice. I heard somewhere that this can help with cell turnover. Only time will tell.

Mr A took my body composition today at the gym. The good news is that Im still clocking in under 160, which was my modified weight goal (and thats after my super indulgent weekend of pumpkin blizzard/ice cream rampage). The bad news is that Im at 32% body fat. At four months preggo I was 22%. Talk about a steep slide! Although Im not that upset about it for two reasons. One: women need higher body fat in order to breast feed. So this just means I will be making more of that spectacular milk for my sweet baby boy. Two: even with the higher body fat percentage I still registered with a body age that is 2 years younger than my chronological age. Of course, as I have said many times before, none of this really matters. The real test is what happens after he is born and Im back to being a normal human being rather than a baby receptacle.

Haha - why am I even writing all of this?! Its so trivial. I should be thinking of something a little more insightful to write about...

Did I mention that I successfully made and froze some meals? I made about 5 meatloaves, a teri-chicken dinner, a lasagna (SO big, too big for 2 people, I should have cut it into smaller pieces before I froze it), chicken taco soup and some marinara sauce. I definitely think that freezing smaller servings (like I froze the sauce into several butter containers instead of one big Tupperware) is the way to go. The hard part is not eating all of it before the actual baby gets here!

Sadly, that wasnt any more insightful.

Something Different!

Alright everyone. Take a deep breath. Calm down. We have found pumpkin in Portland.

This blizzard is awesome. A-W-E-S-O-M-E! It inspired awe from deep within the core of my very being. It was like a pumpkin ice cream milkshake sort of taste with the pie spice. But as an added textural bonus there were chunks of crust mixed throughout. Spectacular!

I guess Mr A picked up on the "desperate for pumpkin" vibe that I was sending out yesterday because he surprised me with one of these babies after work today. Have I mentioned how much I love my husband? What a guy!

I dont know if I can completely let go of my predilection for Burgerville pumpkin smoothies because, lets face it, a fro-yo smoothie is marginally healthier for you and I like to cut corners where I can. I also am making a pumpkin bread but at the time of this posting the loaf has yet to finish in the oven, so I cant comment on its deliciousness.

Went to the midwife today and she said everything is trucking along just fine. Hes lower now than he was last week. Good heartbeat (still 120ish), measured at 40 which I thought was surprising but she didnt seem to think it was that big of a deal. I suggested that maybe she was measuring the pumpkin pie blizzard I consumed shortly before arriving there!

I also would like to point out that I agree with Stephanies comments on my last post. I dont think this kid is going to take these latest indulgences with him on his way out. Which means I should be careful because I might end up being pregnant for another month and then Ika will be a diabetic Oompa-Loompa.

***I will NOT, however, apologize for any judgement I passed about eating fast food. Im not condoning it just because Im doing it right now! Do as I say, not as I do, woman!

WHERES THE G*DAMN PUMPKINS AT?!

Its October. October. The month of the pumpkin.

I have been waiting patiently for Burgerville to figure this out and start offering some g'damn pumpkin fare. When its autumn, I want pumpkin everything. I want my bread, pancakes, milkshakes, soups, EVERYTHING to be pumpkin flavored. Its been autumn for almost two weeks now! Sure, I could just buy a stupid pumpkin and make it myself. But the bliss of being so pregnant in October was supposed to be the convenience of finding the delicious pumpkin flavor everywhere I turned!

If I dont get a pumpkin milkshake by the end of next week...something bad, people. Something really bad.

Halang!

Talked to midwife Beth yesterday and she suggested that spicy food has been reported to send some people over the edge into laborland. So Mr A and I went out and got some (oh my god Im embarassed even typing this) Kung Pao and Orange Chicken dinner at THE MALL and then we caught a movie and ate some real ice cream (Im unwilling to totally give up on the junk food theory since Im so fond of that idea...)
As of right now the boy is still on the inside, thus disproves that. Anyone else got suggestions?

Labor Union

We made it! Now we are having an October baby for sure. Right on!

Yesterday at the gym I was going on about how it would be cool to go into labor last night and deliver the baby shortly after midnight, that way I get my October baby without having to be pregnant for one second longer than necessary.
Valerie, Mr As client at the gym, said that her mother-in-law took her out for all kinds of junk food, burgers, pie, etc. and she went into labor shortly afterwards. Hey Valerie, I like your thinking!
So on the way home Mr A and I stopped by Burgerville and I got a smoothie and then we went to Papa Murphys and got the thin crust Herb Chicken pizza and I had a Hawaiian Host Caramac for dessert - YUMMY!
I dont know if it was the fact that I got the best of the worst (I mean, I could have gone full force and just gotten a milkshake at BV and a 5 meat stuffed pizza, effectively making my meal a saturated fat bomb) but I did NOT go into labor. Im starting to think that Valerie was just being a saboteur.