Paradox

So slow, but so fast, too.  So close, yet so far away!

That’s how I’ve felt throughout this entire pregnancy.  Time seems to be going by SO slow, but also SO fast – the day when we finally get to meet our sweet bug feels so close, but also so far away!

I think it’s because when you’re pregnant, there are certain milestones you can’t WAIT to reach, but they seem like they’ll NEVER get here – getting into the next trimester, reaching “V day,” feeling consistent movement, getting to full-term.  But then, as the end is in sight, you feel like it’s coming too fast because there is still so much to do/buy/accomplish in order to feel ready to be a mama!

Anyway, that’s where I’m stuck right now – between feeling like time is going by SO slow (because I just want to make it to the safety of “full-term”) and feeling like time is going by SO fast (because I don’t think we’re quite ready yet!).

But the truth is, other than taking care of myself to the best of my ability, Baby Peele is going to make his/her debut when he/she is ready.  There’s nothing I can do and no way for me to control the way things go over the next seven and a half weeks.  So right now I’m just trying to focus on staying calm and stress-free, being as lazy as possible and productive as possible all at the same time, and enjoying all of the incredible movements of Baby Peele (that I’m going to miss so, so much).

We had our 32-week checkup this week and all is well!  Belly is measuring right on 32 weeks, weight is up (I’m not too far away from weighing as much as my hub!!), blood pressure is good, and heart sounded strong.  Also, the little bug is head down for now – hopefully he/she will stay that way!  (By the way, it’s crazy to me that when I lay on my back, the doctor can just feel around and tell how the little one is positioned!)  As I’ve written about before, we’re now on the two-week schedule for appointments, which is SO much better than having to wait a month between visits!

This week was also a wake-up call in terms of how much I’m having to slow down.  The weather cooled down a bit and I decided to take my 4-mile walk outside instead of on our basement treadmill.  I set out to tackle a loop that runs through Wake Forest University and neighboring roads, and about 2 miles in I was s-t-r-u-g-g-l-i-n-g.  Unfortunately, I didn’t really have a choice other than to keep trucking along!  I was pitiful – literally almost in tears – because my back, hips, and pelvis were killing me!  Luckily, my hub’s good friend happened to drive by around mile 3 and a half.  He stopped to say hi, and my response was, “This whole exercising while 8 months pregnant thing is way overrated.”  “Want a ride?” He replied.  “Yes please!”  I said.  So he drove me home, where I showered, got in my pj’s, and parked my ever-widening butt on the couch for the rest of the evening.  This experience, along with feeling utterly exhausted on Friday after my first full week back at work have both solidified that it’s time to turn it down a gear!

The good thing about being this pregnant is that people are SO nice to you!  Every time I go to the grocery store now, the employees are always jumping right in to take my groceries to the car for me!  And I don’t even protest. J

In other pregnancy news, we had a maternity photo session yesterday!!  This guy from my grad school cohort and his wife have recently started a photography business and are trying to build their portfolio.  So they asked if they could “borrow” my bump!  They did all of the pics for free and are giving us a cd with all of the edited images!  They put a few teasers on Facebook last night, and I have to say, they sure know how to make a pregnant girl look good.  I’m not sure if I’ll be mounting 16”x20” picture of my 32-week pregnant body in my house anytime soon, but they got some great shots. J  As soon as we get the cd of pictures, I’ll be sure to post some on here!

Big week ahead for Mama and Baby Peele… school starts for kids on Thursday, so life is sure to get even more busy and exhausting from here on out!  But in exciting news, our next baby shower is Saturday!!!  My mother-in-law is throwing one for us, and I can’t wait!!!!!  Next week I’ll be sure to have tons of pictures!!

In the meantime, I’m going to attempt to enjoy the paradox of time flying by and creeping by all at the same time. J

32!!!!!

32 under a maternity shirt that used to be HUGE on me!