Pregnant Ramblings, Part Deux
Knit one, perl two... and then PUSH... and BREATHE
As Tim mentioned in his recent entry, this past weekend we attended our first of two "Preparing for Labour and Childbirth" class (of course, being in the US, Labour was spelled without the "u" but that's their problem, not mine. I intend for my labour to consist of a "u" - probably several, pronounced "uuuuuuh" or, if directed at my loving husband, "what in the $%*& did 'u' do to me?!" but I digress ;-)).
The class was informative. A little scary. Very real. But what I really want to share was this little gem:
http://www.birthinternational.com/product/model/ta011.html
That's right. It's a uterus. Complete with baby inside. "Knitted in a ribbed design for ease of use in two tone pink wool". This is the tool our instructor used to demonstrate the dilation of the cervix during labour, and the crowning of the baby. There were actually a whole lot of results that came up when I put "knitted uterus" into the search text box, but this one was Australian - so they put the "u" in labour just like me. But I've belaboured that point enough :-).
Note, per the description, that "The fetal doll and placenta will fit inside and the vaginal extension is attached by snap fasteners". It's a very thorough little mockup.
Wait a minute... "and placenta"? What's this? Surely they jest.
But no. The doll really does come with its very own placenta!
http://www.birthinternational.com/product/model/ta003.html
Hmm. Our instructor must have been saving this lovely feature for "Day 2". What other treats lie in store for us this Saturday, I wonder?
The Winds of Change
On a completely separate note (but of course still within the subject of pregnancy ;-)) according to "Pregnancy, Childbirth and the Newborn", the book our doctor gave us, in the 2nd trimester I should expect to experience some or all of the following common emotional changes:
- Greater feeling of dependancy
- Acceptance of pregnancy
- Increased interest in babies and parenting
- Introspectiveness
- More daydreaming and dreaming at night
- Developing sense of growth and creativity
- Varying feelings about changing appearance.
I would say that "Acceptance of pregancy" pretty much came when I first saw the 2nd line appear on the stick :-) It's true it's definitely become more real for both of us in the 2nd trimester though.
On the increased interest in babies and parenting - that might explain my sudden urge to watch "Dateline" last night to hear about parents who condone (and even encourage) teen drinking in their homes as a way of "deterring" drinking and driving. (Don't get me started. That's a whole separate blog entry). And it probably also explains why, when channel surfing this evening, I stopped on "Nanny 911" and watched in amazement and horror as the details of the King Family's completely dysfunctional, chaotic and disrespectful household was revealed before my very eyes. I couldn't turn away. I tried. But I couldn't. It held me captive. After which I immediately ran into the office and told Tim to NEVER NEVER let me watch another one of those shows, and to promise me in 5 years we wouldn't be the subject of some disfunctional family reality TV or talk show.
I would also agree with the introspectiveness. If this blog entry isn't enough proof, then you can go back through the archives :-)
And I would definitely have to agree with the varying feelings about changing appearance. Although I have to admit I've surprised myself by overall how positive I've felt about how I look. Of course, the decision to stop weighing myself around week 11 (or even looking at the scale at the dr's office) was absolutely the right one. Wise move :-) I have no clue how much I weigh. And I'm absolutely ecstatic now that I'm actually showing. It makes me feel "real". Like I've EARNED something now that you can see I'm pregnant. And I have when you think about what all is going on in this body of mine right now! But I do have my moments of self conciousness about my appearance and fits of frustration when things don't fit right. Tim is witness to most of these, and he's been great, even during the worst of them :-)
"Developing sense of growth and creativity" is actually probably the most obvious change that's taken place within me. I was quite surprised to see it printed in black and white in my book and then realize that's exactly what's been happening. It explains why I spent an entire weekend searching the internet for nursery artwork - looking specifically for images depicting little girls in bright colours engaged in gender-neutral or non-traditional activities. For example - there are lots of pictures of little boys in planes, little boys sailing ships, little boys playing soccer. There are very few of girls flying planes or sailing ships or playing sports. "Girl" art consists of flowers and fairies and princesses and ballet dancers. It's even a category on many art/poster web sites in the Nursery art area. And there's nothing wrong with those images - but I'd like our little girl to have a balance, and the gender-neutral animal theme can only go so far. The two images I did find of a little girl wearing a baseball outfit and a little girl playing soccer were done in light pastels, not bright, happy, interesting colours. Exasperated with the options available for purchase but having a vivid vision in my mind of what it was I wanted framed and hanging on our daughter's nursery wall, I promptly went out and bought paints, brushes, paper, and a book on watercolour, and set about creating my own masterpiece. A little girl in flying cap, scarf, and goggles, with reddish/brown hair streaming behind her, flying a bright green, blue and red bi-plane over rolling hills of trees and farmlands. Eh... it's ok (I'm very critical of my own artwork). It's not bad for a first attempt, for sure. And framed, it will make a lovely addition to the nursery and a nice compliment to some of the other nice artwork we've found (and the nice frame job might help minimize some of the beginner-artist flaws :-)). I doubt it'll last on the wall much past the age of 5. She'll get embarassed by it and take it down eventually. But maybe someday when she's older she'll understand that even though it isn't a great work of art, it was painted by her Mom with love and purpose - to let her know she can do and be anything she wants. The sky's the limit.
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