Little Cheeto is due six weeks from today. Can I just say, “HOLY CRAP!”? First off, I can’t believe the month of June is over. It seems like Memorial Day was last weekend, there’ s no way it can already be July. No possible way! And six weeks? Are you kidding me? I remember back in January when it seemed like we had forever and a day until Cheeto would come into our lives. Heck, I think in January, Cheeto wasn’t even called Cheeto, we were still calling Cheeto “it” in January.
But here we are. A mere six weeks out. And I am doing fine. Alan is doing fine. Cheeto is doing fine. And it’s nice. Sure, my belly is getting pretty big, but that’s supposed to happen. It weighs me down a little, but when Alan’s home, he helps me get up, especially from the couch, which I just sink into and get stuck in. He once tried to help me up by pushing my butt, I advised him to never do that again.
I no longer sleep through the nights. It’s not anxiety or excitement or worry that wakes me, it’s my bladder, which gets full every 1.5 – 2.0 hours. Luckily I can fall back asleep quickly, but it feels like just minutes have passed when I wake again to use the bathroom but it’s been a couple hours. Getting up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom can be interesting. First off, Alan’s asleep, so I am on my own to get belly and the rest of me out of bed. Then there are the first few steps. They can be quite comical to observe. Cheeto likes the right side of my uterus, and thus, the right side of my back, my right hip/IT band, and occasionally right knee share a groan when I place weight on my right leg. But what’s funny is that each time I get up in the middle of the night, it gets easier and easier and the aches get less and less. So, by the time my alarm goes off, I get up and there are no aches or pains at all. I start my days fluid and dexterous, and it slowly dwindles as the day progresses on.
Six weeks away, and really I think the only thing we need at this point is a baby. The nursery is done. We have a plethora of clothing, blankets, diapers, and wipes. We have diaper bags, changing pads, burp cloths and the like. We have anything a little baby could ever want or need, and then some due to the generosity of our family, friends, and co-workers. And this helps. It helps me relax and enjoy these last few weeks. My nesting instinct is still going strong, but I can’t do as much physically as I once could, and I am coping with that just fine. Sure, I cleaned and dusted my cube at work, but that I could do sitting down.
Sunday I went on a terror, scrubbing the tub and sink in the bathroom, then getting on my hands and knees to clean the bathroom floor, then made some snack mix for us to enjoy for the week, then cooked dinner, then did a couple other things, and by the time I stopped, I felt like crap. I went to bed and Monday morning, still felt off, so I worked from home (and was super productive). That was (has to be) my last mega day of nesting. I hurt too bad and it brought on a lot of braxton hicks contractions. And so, I have accepted (for the most part) that I physically can’t do all that I want to do. I am now allowing myself just one nesting activity a day. Last night it was dusting. Tonight it may be straightening up the living room.
What I am doing is realizing that it’s okay to just lay on the couch and read or watch TV. It’s okay to just relax, and play with the dog, and pet the cat. It’s okay, even, to be downright lazy. Because in about six weeks, there will be no more lounging on the couch, there will be motherhood. I am so very excited for that, but in the meantime, I’m going to enjoy my last few moments of laziness.