And Now for the Truly Scary...

I thought I'd share some odd and disturbing pregnancy related gems from around the Internet for your viewing displeasure this Halloween.  

From Awkward Family Photos:

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This last one's my favorite.  That's one close family.

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Maybe some of you pregnant ladies are still looking for a last-minute costume.  A coworker of mine suggested I show up to school like this:  

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Or, perhaps your'e looking for a nice keepsake to remember your placenta with.  May I recommend the DIY Placenta Encapsulation Kit:  

Not feeling it?  Okay, how about this instead?

And this last link is really messed up.   I warn you, these images cannot be unseen.  It put me off cake, and that's saying A LOT!  If you have a weak stomach, or are simply repulsed by the female anatomy, I suggest you not follow the link.  However, if you have a sick and morbid sense of curiosity like I do, it's well worth a glance....cause people are weird, man.

10 Vagina Cakes For Baby Showers That Are Disturbing And Awesome

Sisters, Sisters...

Madeline is excited about the arrival of her baby sister.  She drew a picture of our family at school, which she eagerly thrust into my hands when I arrived to pick her up this afternoon.  She pointed to her colorful blobs with pride.  "That's Mumma.  And that's Dada.  And that's Maddie.  And that's Little Sister!"  She likes to tell me that she's going to help feed the baby milk and change her "pooh-pooh" diapers.  She has grand plans for the games they will play together in the future.  Mainly dress up and "ball in the hallway."  I'm trying to help her understand that the baby will be little more than a very loud loaf of bread for at least a year,  but Madeline isn't convinced.

Of course, this all sounds great to Madeline in theory.  What three-year-old child wouldn't want their very own living doll?  But the reality is that adding a sister to the mix is going to seriously rock the boat.  And while I believe, and hope, that Madeline will be a great big sister, I'm also not naive enough to think she's going to handle all these big changes with perfect ease.  

My mother sent me a link to a post Babyccino Kids wrote about siblings last week.  The author was writing in response to an article in Time Magazine called "The New Science of Siblings".  The article cites research conducted on the importance siblings play in shaping one another's personalities.  Due to the sheer amount of time one spends with brothers and sisters, an impact is made on everything from one's conflict resolution, to performance in the work place, to choice in spouse, to whether or not a person decides to become a smoker or not.

For better or for worse, and the article claims that it's mostly for the better, adding a second child to our family is going to have a huge impact on the personalities both Madeline and the new baby are going to end up with.  This probably isn't ground-breaking news to anyone who has multiple children, or to anyone who has a sibling, but I still find it fascinating to think about.

On a personal level, I'm not sure how to manage the bonds, feuds, and rivalries that are sure to arise between our girls.  I am the youngest of three sisters, but due to a significant age gap between us, I was raised as an only child in many ways.  My sisters had moved out of the house and started families of their own by the time I left elementary school.  I never had to worry about sharing toys, clothes, or even my parents' attention.  I had plenty of friends with siblings close in age, and mostly I remember them trying to kill one another...sometimes literally.

Therefore, I'm headed into completely unfamiliar territory when it comes to handling fights over toys, or competition, or even the way they will join forces to gain up on their parents.  This is all a complete guessing game for me.  

Mostly, I'm worried about the favoritism issue, which is something you hear everyone with siblings complain about.  I know parents love all their children.  The heart makes room for everyone.  Yet, right now, it's hard to imagine loving another child as much as I love Madeline, or investing as much energy into this new baby as I did into Madeline.

There was another study making the news in recent weeks claiming that first-born children are smarter than their younger siblings due the amount of energy parents invest in parenting the oldest versus subsequent children.  I guess this is good news for Madeline in the long run, although I doubt she'll be thanking us for punishing her more harshly for not doing her homework while little sister gets away with whatever she wants.

I have this comical image in my head of our second girl rebelling against the girly, pink universe that Madeline cloaks herself in.  She'll paint her side of the room black, demand to be called Jewel, and write bad poetry on her arm about how misunderstood she is.  Meanwhile Madeline will make honor roll and go to the homecoming dance in a strapless pink dress.

I guess at the end of the day, I'll love my children equally but in different ways.  Madeline will be special because she's my first child.  Her little sister will be special because she'll be my baby.  Both of them will probably think the other has it easier.

Tonight I met a woman with two little boys who are three years apart just like Madeline and her sister will be.  She told me that she loved having two boys because they are best friends.  Then she added with an eyeroll and a smile that this also means that they spend a lot of time driving one another other crazy.  Sure enough, as soon as the mother finished speaking, the brothers started poking eachother and giggling, then fighting, then giggling some more until she stepped in and sharply redirected them to their pizza.

For better and for worse, that's my future.  

Our Little Unicorn

Because we're bad parents, we forgot all about Madeline's Halloween parade at school last Friday.  (Although, in fairness, the notice went out two weeks ago, and there were no reminders on Thursday.  I can barely remember to leave the house wearing a bra most mornings, so I can not be expected to remember Halloween parades.)  

So instead of parading around the school wearing her real costume, Madeline got to wear this:    

 Is that Madeline, or is it Edgar Allen Poe?  It's hard to tell.

To try to make up for some of my mother guilt, we brought her to the Halloween party at our local Barnes and Noble on Saturday morning.

There, she got to wear her real costume:

She was a unicorn princess, which fits Madeline's personality so much better than Edgar Allen Poe.  

It's hard pinning down a costume for a three-year-old girl.  She changed her mind about ten thousand times, but mostly, she wanted to be a princess.  I'm not against princesses, but she dresses up as Cinderella on a daily basis, and Halloween should be special.  Luckily, the unicorn idea stuck.

I made her horn out of of some scrap fabric and attached it to a headband from the dollar bin.  I wasn't sure if she'd wear the headband for long, but she didn't take it off all day on Saturday.

  
 And although it's hard to see in the pictures, she also has a tail made out of strips of fabric and pink ribbon.  I simply safety pinned it on to her waistband.  These simple accessories paired with some sparkly boots, leggings, and ballerina skirt...and I think she makes one mighty fine unicorn princess.  When we got trick or treating later this week, she'll wear a pair of rainbow pajamas with the horn and tail instead to keep warm.

 She had a grand old time at the bookstore.  It was fun watching her respond to the other costumes.  "Look!  That baby's a BEEE!"  or "Mumma, it's Princess Sofia!"  She listened intently during story time, and proudly marched around the store collecting candy.  Hopefully, this makes up for having to wear a mustache at school.

Pregnancy Updates: 31 Weeks

How far along? 31

Total weight gain/loss: 21 lbs 

Maternity Clothes: I’m wearing so many damn support garments.  And bras are the worst.   Seriously WHY can’t I wear yoga pants and an over sized flannel shirt to work? 

Sleep: I slept under three hours on Monday night.  Other than that, I’ve been going to bed early.   

Best Moments this Week: Taking Madeline’s old baby clothes out of storage.  Awww, tiny shoes! 

Movement:  The doctor squeezed my belly at my appointment this week and baby girl went wild.  I guess she didn’t want to be bothered during her nap. 

Food Cravings: Nothing in particular.  I’m craving fall flavors like pumpkin and apple, but I think that’s how I feel every year at this time.   

Food Aversions: No

Gender:  Girl

Labor Signs:  My belly can tense up and become rock hard on occasion.  I guess my body is starting to get ready. 

Pregnancy Symptoms:  When your doctor says, “Oh, hum, I’ve never seen that before!” it’s never a good thing.  I’ll spare you the details, but I definitely have a lot of pregnancy symptoms. 

Belly Button In or Out?  Way out, man.  

What I Miss: Just having more energy in general.  I’m so slow and waddle-y these days. 

What I am Looking Forward to: Now that the closet’s done, I’m looking forward to getting Madeline’s big girl bed set up and finishing the girls’ room. 

Upcoming Appointments/ Events: I have my next appointment in two weeks. 

Current Food Comparison? Four navel oranges 

Meanwhile, I'm the size of...

And the last time I was 31 weeks pregnant, I looked like this.  

Closet Makeover

This is not the door to Narnia.

Rather, it is the small door to Madeline's larger-than-expected closet.  And for the past two weekends, Eric has spent more time in this thing than R Kelly.

Madeline's closet is the largest one in our house, but it was a little run down and is very awkwardly shaped, so it hasn't been used for anything other than a dumping ground for left-over baby items since we moved in.  Yes, I know we moved in over two years ago...let's not dwell on the past, shall we?

Due to my ineffective pregnancy brain, I forgot to take a picture when the closet was full of junk.
But, we pulled this pile of stuff out of it.

And this pile too.

 Oh, yes, and most of this pile.  (Except for the child.  She does not sleep in the closet.  Unless she's bad.  I kid!)

Needless to say, this walk-in closet was not very walk-in-able.

When we found out that we were having another girl,  Eric declared that he was going to redo the closet.  I told him that this was a brilliant idea.  Two weeks ago, we finally got around to doing just that.

However, the problem with having a pregnant wife is that while she's not very handy when it comes to helping during home improvement projects, she remains full of good ideas and harebrained schemes.  I think Eric envisioned slapping a fresh coat of paint on the space, putting in some organizers, and calling it done.  I agreed, but I also wanted beadboard and new flooring.

My biggest concern was the enormous cracks in our plaster walls.  One, I was worried the roof may be caving in.  Two, I was certain large spiders would crawl out of those cracks and drag us back in to feed their babies.  

Eric assured me that the roof was not caving in, and I believed him.  But just in case I didn't really believe him, I called in my step dad, Bob the Builder, to give us a professional opinion.

Bob confirmed that Eric was right, and he also convinced Eric that beadboard was a great idea.  In the end, we were both winners.

Therefore, Eric and Bob spent an entire Saturday afternoon affixing sheets of beadboard to the closet walls.

Meanwhile, Mimi, Madeline, and I played downstairs.

See how those nasty cracks are magically gone?!  Or at least covered up so that giant spiders don't come get us?

 Eric spent the following afternoon finishing the trim, patching up holes with wood putty, sanding and priming.

Priming took a very long time.

He had to wait until the following weekend to finish up.  Painting also took a very long time.

But when it was done, it looked pretty and shiny and new, and my toes curled in excitement when I saw it.

 The cracks are gone!

Eric spent the rest of the weekend finishing everything off.  He installed the organizers.  We opted to go for something that is easily adjustable to suit our ever-changing needs as the girls get older.

Finally, we chose new wood laminate flooring to replace the worn green carpet.  As it turns out, under that ugly green rug was even uglier laminate flooring from the 1950s.  It's probably filled with asbestos, so the new floor went right over that old one.  Surprisingly, the flooring was probably the quickest part of this whole project.

Ta-DA!

So much better than this:

And it looks even better with all the girls' clothes in it!

 I pulled the baby clothes we saved out of storage, and have started adding to the collection when I see good sales.  Eeep!  Adorable baby clothes once more!

I'm not finished putting everything back in the closet, but I'm getting close.  I love that we've got a place in the back for spare sheets, blankets, and anything else that we don't use on a daily basis.

Madeline likes to play in it.  She calls it her "hideout," or sometimes pretends it's a kitchen.  We're also getting her in the habit of putting away her clothes since she can reach the lower bar and shoe rack.  She actually asked for more laundry to put away the other afternoon.  Sure, Maddie Bear, have a BLAST!  We'll see how long that lasts.  

So, thank you, sweet husband for making my dreams of a functional, not-scary closet come true!  You spent a lot of hours in that closet, but it was so worth it!  

 Now, I'd really like to talk to you about crown moulding for the rest of the room...

Parenting is Hard Sometimes

Madeline has a gentle heart. It's one of the things I love most about her. We often find her blinking back tears of her own when she sees somebody suffering on TV or in a book.

Sure enough, her eyes turned red and her bottom lip puckered while reading The Bear Feels Scared the other night even though we've read it a hundred times before. She always takes it hard when the bear gets lost in the woods.

When we were finished reading, she buried her face in me, and we talked about how the bear's friends find him in the end. I thought it might be a good opportunity to discuss what to do if she ever gets lost.

Even though I tried to approach the subject as gently as possible, and heavily stressed that Mumma and Dada will always find her, I ended up completely freaking her out.

She turned away from me, and I could see that she was trying not to cry. I changed the subject, rubbed her back, but it was too late. She erupted into sobs. I held her for a long time assuring her she was safe, convincing her that Mumma wasn't going to lose her, and eventually, she calmed down and went to sleep.

Madeline is still very young, but I feel it's important for her to start to learn about protecting herself. The rub is that while I want her to be cautious, I also don't want to raise her to believe she has to be afraid of everything in the world. How do I keep her safe and maintain her innocence?

It's something I've been thinking about a lot recently. (Pregnancy anxiety, perhaps.) It's a tricky business, this parenting thing.

If I were Atticus Finch I'd know just what to say to my child to help her understand both the ugliness and the grace of society, but sadly, I'm at a loss.

Pregnancy Updates: 30 Weeks

How far along? 30

Total weight gain/loss:  Not sure.  A lot.  

Maternity Clothes:  Yes, except for my mysterious jeans that still fit me.  I'm not sure how this is possible since a good number of my maternity items are starting to get snug.  Magic pants...

Sleep: I woke up at 3 am on Tuesday and could not get back to sleep.  Other than that, sleep hasn't been much of a problem.  

Best Moments this Week:  Eric and I had a good talk about names this week.  Instead of just shrugging, he actually explained which names he likes best and why.  It was fun talking about how different names  fit with different personalities.  

Movement:  I'm starting to feel her body parts.  I can tell if it's a limb poking me versus her butt or head.  

Food Cravings:  None this week.  What the what?! 

Food Aversions: I was a little "meh" toward food in general.  What the what?!   

Gender:  Imagine if after all this time, baby girl came out a boy instead...that would be a shock.  

Labor Signs: No?  See below.  

Pregnancy Symptoms: I've been getting cramps on and off all this week.  Nothing too serious.  They feel a bit like menstrual cramps.  I didn't have Braxton Hicks contractions with Madeline, but I'm wondering if that's what I'm feeling now.  

Belly Button In or Out? Out.  

What I Miss:  Being able to tie my own shoes.  

What I am Looking Forward to:  Finishing the girls' room.  Eric made major progress on their closet last weekend, but it's not quite done yet.  

Upcoming Appointments/ Events:  Doctor next week.  The appointments are starting to get closer together.  

Current Food Comparison? A head of cabbage.  

Meanwhile, I'm the size of...

For a comparison of what I looked like last time I was growing a human, click HERE.  My belly looks a lot...um...further along?...this time.