30 weeks

What better way to celebrate turning 30 weeks than heading to the Chief's pre-season opener (better if they'd won, I guess)? Me, my sister Leah, her beau Neal, and my brother Timothy all joined the baby using my dad's season tickets. When taking my side view photo, some guy yells, "Hey, I can do that too!" Umm, no, actually you can't. You're a man. And, in my opinion, no one should be proud of the ability to look pregnant when not...perhaps, that's just me, though.

Baby 2.O continues to remind me of its presence, nearly constantly, with movements. Sometimes a spastic fit, sometimes a slow roll, sometimes a foot jutting straight out my abdomen, sometimes the hiccups, sometimes jumping on my bladder, and most painfully, sometimes by stretching out while lying horizontal and pushing on both of my sides just below the ribs. Also, another way in which this pregnancy is identical to Brock's, I failed the 1 hour glucose test and had to take the 3 hour. Let's hope I pass the second like I did with Brock...I'd rather not have to think about everything I eat.

Sleep is slowly becoming more and more difficult, for a multitude of reasons. The indigestion (for which I have switched medications to "the big guns" - Protonix), the RLS, the leg cramping, the waking to pee and the general discomfort all combine to provide a challenge that not even our Simmon's pillowtop can overcome.

On a positive note, I AM 30 weeks! That means [hopefully] less than 10 weeks until we get to meet our little nugget of love. I think the fact that I can nearly discern every body part when pushing on my tummy, makes me even more excited to meet the lil' one. I just know something perfect and wonderful is cooking in there. I bought a little somthin' for 2.O for the first time today, just a onesie and a hat - it was too cute and tiny to resist. I also bought a "Big Brother" t-shirt for Brock (I almost purchased the matching newborn onesie that said, "Lil Brother", but quickly caught myself realizing, it might not be a boy...)Without planning it, Leah and I wore identical outfits - mine being the maternity version. Target ribbed v-neck, Gap dark denim ankle jeans, and Old Navy simple flip-flops!!

KC's got it goin' on (for free).

At his current stage in life, Brock remains interested in activities for only very limited periods of time. Sometimes he surprises us and lasts a good 30 minutes, but because this is a rare occasion, I prefer not to pay to do things with him. So, these past couple weekends, we have made the rounds in Kansas City.

The City Market

Brock's number one interest at the city market was pulling the cart. His number two, eating. Number three, watching the street-side musicians. But what I will remember most about this visit, is that the Market provided me with my first "child abduction scare". One second I am looking into my camera taking a picture of my nephew, Xander, with Brock right by my mother's side, next second he was absolutely out of sight. All I say, is: "Brock's gone". And take off in one of the 2 directions I am guessing he has gone...nope, he didn't head that way. I get back to where we last saw him, and my mother, sister and grandma are all kind of standing there bewildered, so I repeat, "Brock is gone." Immediately, my mother gets frazzled and begins assuming the worst, while I take off in the other direction. A few farmer booths later, I spot my tiny, little toddler in the middle of the crowded walkway with his hands up-turned, saying, 'Where's mommy?" Thank goodness I know my son well enough to generally predict his moves. That harness is sounding better, and better.

The Zoo

I guess the zoo is not techinically "free", as I paid for a season membership, but it feels free everytime we go because I don't pay at that moment. This visit, I decided, would be guided completely by Brock. Being nearly 7 months pregnant, carrying and fighting with a toddler in the heat are not appealing. Therefore, our visit consisted of, playing with the automatic doors at the entrance and polar bear exhibit as well as the doors of the lorakeet exibit. Also, riding the train, and riding the merry-go-round. I think he spotted the polar bears and the lorakeets while playing with the doors, and that was the extent of our animal spotting, at the zoo! Worked for me - it was enough to make him pass out in the car on the ride home.

Touch-A-Truck

Like most little boys, Brock loves cars and trucks. So, when an opportunity came to go tour some big trucks, we took it. At home, we have a hard time getting Brock out of the car, he loves to just play in it. But suddenly, when he has limitless opportunity to explore, he has
minimal interest. I have decided Brock shares my crowd anxiety. If there are lines and lots of people, I am not going to enjoy myself. Fact. He seems to be the same way. He did take comfort in the ambulance...yet again, he is interested in the medical world. So, despite his father-like looks, he takes after me in many little personality traits.

So, thank you Kansas City for stimulating and exhausting my child, for free.

Lucky Friday the 13th

Today was a huge turning point, for many reasons.

1. Done with tests (for the next couple years anyway). Which means done with studying!!!! Not a minute too soon, I tell ya. It is beginning to get uncomfortable to sit in a chair for long periods of time. Well, short periods of time too - if it's the wrong kind of chair. Partly due to belly, partly due to back aches but mostly the RLS. Which brings me to my next big transition:

2. 3rd trimester. I am 28 weeks today. This entire pregnancy, I had kind of hoped, for Brock's sake, we would have another little boy. But a friend of ours came to visit with their little 4 week old girl, and Brock was just as sweet as pie. He kept saying, "baby, is sa babies" and petting her, and trying to shove her pacifier back in her mouth. He even rested his head on her to give her a hug. Perhaps a girl will calm him down - where as another boy will only compound the energy! Speaking of energy, a great place to release some of it is the pool, but:

3. Last day of Summer pool hours. We now have to wait until after 4pm to go to the pool on weekdays. Which is a bummer, especially because:

4. The temperature has taken a dive! This has been one of the hottest Summers to date (in my 28 years of existence). I feel like an old person talking about weather, but man, not a great Summer to be preggers. I always thought people saying, "it's too hot for the pool" was just ridiculous. Well, this week, it has been too hot for the pool - unless you feel like taking a bath while sitting in a sauna, which is what it felt like here in KC all week. Suddenly, this creepy, and bizarre Friday the 13th evening, the temp dropped about 20 degrees and it's done nothing but lightening. The winds are a changin'.

Oh, how I do enjoy change, when it's for the better. And in 12 short weeks (or less) our lives will be changed, yet again, forever.

"I like a man that goes for seconds."

Though I should have been studying all day, I decided to take a break from the routine and head to the Crown Center fountains with Brock on my birthday. We met up with Annora and Xander (and she watched the boys for a moment while I shopped in Halls and found a perfect pair of birthday shoes!) Brock wasn't so into getting in the fountains himself, but didn't mind playing with his truck near the water. I took a ridiculous number of photos, because I was playing with Matt and I's brand new point and shoot camera! A Canon S90 (I now know what camera to recommend to anyone who wants a "nice camera" but not one that you need to know anything about photography to use.)

Later that evening, Matt and I, sans the little boy, went to Genghis Khan for dinner (a Mongolian BBQ style restaurant). Then ended the night down in the Crossroads for First Fridays. Eric of Lemonlime Photography had a showing, so we spent most of the time in one studio. A nice, quiet evening, just what the doctor ordered.

Emmy & Marty Rice
August 7th, 2010
Loose Mansion

Then, Saturday evening we attended a lovely wedding at St Francis Xavier, followed by reception at the Loose Mansion. In the buffet was a salad that just tasted incredible. So, Matt spent half of dinner trying to convince "the pregnant, fatty" to go get seconds of the salad. Personally, I was stuffed, and I definitely did not feel like moving. So, I spent the other half of dinner convincing him to go get it himself, while there were still people eating. Long story short, he finally got up to get another plate, which broke the ice and a few people followed. Someone even complemented him, by exclaiming, "I like a man that goes for seconds." Yup, that's why I married him.

Gum-smacking

While sitting in a waiting room, such as, oh I don't know, let's say, for an OB appointment, everyone sits quietly. They whisper, read magazines, text or do other things on their phone, etc. Ninety-eight percent of people are aware and courteous of their surroundings. They "patiently" (I guess that's why we're called patients...) await their name getting called, and that's that. MOST of the time.

Well, this was not the case recently. As Matt and I sat, behaving as good waiting room guests do, a lady came in and sat behind us. I have heard gum-smacking in my lifetime, but NEVER any to this degree. The peaceful quietness, coupled with the anxiousness that accompanies any type of appointment (for me anyway hair, dentist, you name it, I'm anxious) made this chomping the most irritating, piercing, awful, disgusting sound I have ever heard in my entire life. I have never come so close to randomly asking a complete stranger to quit doing something annoying.

And not to mention, this begs the question, how has this gone on for 40+ years? We are not talking about a teenager, this was a full grown woman. Your parents were fine with you chewing gum in that manner? And even if they were, your friends were fine with it? And even if they were, all your boyfriends, significant others, husband[s] were/are fine with it? Have you truly not been around a single classmate, roommate, teacher, sibling, co-worker, or person on a routine basis that had the fortitude to simply tell you to stop? And, if you did encounter such person, you just completely ignored their suggestion??

I am just really confused. I am all for being your own person, but it shouldn't harm others in the process.

Pros' versus Cons'.

We are getting to (or at) the age, that if you are married, and have been for more than a while, you are discussing the prospect of children. The first question is, do we want to have child[ren]? The second question, when should we have a child? When I am approached for advice/an opinion on the subject, the first thing I try to explain is that having a child is NOT a logical decision. It is absolutely not a subject that should be solved with reason – beyond the obvious things, such as: if you are unattached, living with your parents, unemployed, under-employed, those might be red flags to not have a child right at this moment. Though, we all know, the unexpected can happen, and even then, you make do, and love the kid!

If everyone used logic to have children, NONE of us would be here. What kids provide in life is not a quantifiable thing; here’s proof:

PROS': Children...	CONS': Children...
• are a miracle.	• are expensive.
• teach you life lessons you would never learn, otherwise.	• cost a lot of money.
• provide a kind of love you can experience no other way.	• take a lot of time.
• are indescribable.	• take a lot of energy.
	• misbehave.
	• have to be fed.
	• cannot be left alone.
	• get sick.
	• are permanent.
	• destroy things.
	• rob you of sleep.
	• require stimulation.
	• require entertaining.
	• require potty training.
	• complicate life.
	• make dinner plans hard.
	• reduce spontaneity.

We all know what decision, I made...