Nearing the end...

And staying put.
More baby updates later.
Hope everyone had a great Christmas & Hanukkah. We celebrated in fine style at the house. Had something going on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and the day after. And in true Irish fashion, the collective masses knocked back some serious libations. I mean, I surveyed my kitchen the morning after Christmas and was frankly in shock at the number of cans and wine bottles -- and that was without my contribution to the festivities.
That and we had enough left-overs to feed a small army.
So good work to all the family. But we did have a good time. I think everyone had a great time. And minus some smack talking over a very critical game of Trivial Pursuit, everyone got along.
Which is good as we are all going to be seeing each other again in roughly 3 weeks when the Little Leprechaun makes his big debut.
Did get introduced to the extended family on Joe's side. As expected, I needed a family tree to keep track of everyone, but I think I did ok. Met his great-Aunt and Uncle, who are both 90+, have been married for 71 years and still live in their own home. She introduced herself to me as she was kicking back a Bud Light.
Suffice it to say. I liked her.
Actually really like everyone. They were great.

What else? Slow work week this week. When do I ever say that?? This should translate to loads and loads of productive things out of my cube. But, not sure that I am gonna get there from here. At a minimum, I am working on getting everything prepped for my maternity leave. So the peeps taking over the work aren't totally left in the lurch.
Which leads us to our maternity update for the week.
Smooth transition I know.
We are on weekly appointments now. Which means I am becoming BFF's with the nurses at the clinic.
The stats as of this week:
Me: gained a total of 26 lbs to date. While this is not a bad thing --recommended weight gain is 25-35 lbs total for the entire pregnancy -- I had a lot to start with, thus have hit some numbers on the scale that are a new high (or low, depending on how you look at it) for me. Bit of a sticker shock when you are looking at those damn numbers bouncing back and forth before they settle on the judgement due to you.
Little Leprechaun: Heart Rate -- sitting at an active 140 BPM. He is head down and frankly, seems pretty darn content to stay put for the time being,
Haven't dropped. And there is no sign of any of the necessary changes down below to indicate that this kid is showing up a second before the 19th -- and that is probably the earliest we will see him. I have maintained for some time that he is going to be past the due date. I guess time will tell. On the upside, we have hit the 37 week mark - which makes us technically full term. So it really could be any day now.
And as such, I have actually started sorta packing my bag for the hospital. It does seem really odd to be doing so, but then again....
So that is about it from this neck of the woods. I would love to report that I have some serious New Years plans, however in recent days I have discovered the following: for every hour of activity that I do, I need roughly an hour of nap time. So rocking out the New Year this year... probably not gonna be happening. That and most of my friends are going the house party route this year, or so it seems. I think Joe has to work, so it may just be a cozy night in with the Dick Clark on the TV -- or whomever is taking his place these days.
Yes, this seals my fate as 1) lame and 2) Really Lame and 3) 8.5 months pregnant on New Years.
Jealous much?
Thought so.

Now Listening: Sister Sweetly by Big Head Todd and the Monsters

Week 36/37 Update

Had the first of the weekly appointments today with the doctor.
This is both a good thing and a colossal pain in the ass.
It is good in that it means that we are down to the final count.
It is a colossal pain in the ass in that I have to go the doctor EVERY WEEK.
And this isn't your typical drive-thru appointment any more.
No, we have reached, well lets just say, the more invasive portion of our programming.
Good times.

As for today -- well, it was kinda cool. We had to get an ultrasound to confirm that he was head down.
He was.
But we got some more pics of the little leprechaun. They are a little harder to make heads or tails from because he is so scrunched up in there. They are on the Flickr site (link on the left)
But we confirmed the following:
He is in fact, still a he. Good thing -- we have lots of boy-centric stuff.
He has a head full of hair. The real question, what color will have to remain a mystery. I still think dark.
He was sucking his thumb -- again. In EVERY ultrasound picture we have, that hand is up by his mouth.
We were not allowed to find out how big he is. The tech said the doctors don't want them sharing the news because it has freaked out too many women. In either way -- too big or too small. All she would say is that he is on track.
Whatever that means.
So now begins the all important, really exciting waiting part of our program.
Like the last 7.5 months HAVEN'T been about waiting?!?!?
Meanwhile, I get to get poked and prodded from the inside out -- and its not that comfortable or cute anymore.
Hiccups = annoying.
Constant moving = total inability to focus on what it is I am doing.
And for the record, there is nothing more distracting that sitting in a meeting and watching my ID badge dance all over my stomach as he moves around.

Ok - back to work. Need to leave right on time today as we have a TON to do around the house in preparation for the onslaught of family this week.

Now Listening: Good News for People Who Love Bad News by Modest Mouse

It's the end of the world as we know it....

For those of you that don't live in Iowa -- I know there are a few of you out there -- you would have thought that the world was coming to an icy end yesterday.
We were slated to be at the center of the perfect winter storm. Snow from the north, sleet & freezing rain from the south. The newscasts were full of warnings, emergency procedures and general wrath of god type stuff.
Keep in mind, this is Iowa. In December. Its not like this is the first time we have seen sleet, snow, ice or any combination thereof.
However, the gloom and doom was prevalent yesterday. So much so that they started letting schools out at 2 PM. Which then means, that the office started emptying out at 2 PM as people left to go get their kids. Our office Christmas party -- postponed.
All the while, not a cloud in the sky, roads were dry and we were business as usual.
3PM - same thing.
4 PM - same thing
5 PM - same thing
6 PM - same thing
At roughly 7ish, we finally saw some sleet. And so Joe and I decided as it was a night we had planned on being at the office party, to go run errands. And frankly, it was great. No one was out. Roads were pretty good and we got a ton done because no one was out. Babies R Us -- ghost town. Target - ghost town.
All this 6 days before Christmas. It was awesome.
And then of course, I came to work this morning. Made it in 20 minutes (with a coffee stop) and I was the ONLY one in my area until about 9 AM. I mean, the roads weren't perfect, but I have seen MUCH worse in these parts before.
So here's hoping I can get a lot done in the next few hours. I would estimate roughly 2/3's of my teams are out. Which means, if I am productive, I am going to try and get out of here around 2 PM and hit the mall. If everyone is hibernating in their homes afraid of the roads, the mall won't be total chaos.
Here's hoping.

Now Listening: Gossip in the Grain by Ray LaMontagne

I think its time to move....

Sign # 12873 that the Apocalypse is upon us:
Heard on the radio this morning on the way to work...
Well, things are looking good in the metro. Looking for a much warmer day today, so enjoy it. Currently the temperature is 4 degrees and we are looking at a high of 22.

Go ahead.
Digest that for a minute.
And all that before coffee.

Now Listening: Autopilot by The Samples