Archive for August, 2006
Today and yesterday were both walking days for me. I have been getting up at 6 a.m. with Brian to go to the Rose Bowl where he runs and I walk with Lucy. It has been fun but I’m finding that I can’t push myself quite as hard as I could even a few weeks ago-the exhaustion of my first trimester seems to be sneaking back into my life. Yesterday, after my walk, I went to yoga in the middle of the day and was wiped out for the remainder of the daylight hours. A little too much moving around for this big girl, I guess. Going to the Rose Bowl always reminds me how much I really miss running, especially when the weather is so clear and cool like it was this morning. I guess at some point in the future I’ll be one of those moms with the running strollers that I see out there (and really admire) but who knows how long that will take. I have many other hurdles to cross before then, such as labor.In baby news, I was thrown a second baby shower this weekend by some of the women in my orchestra. It was really nice and it gave me a chance to go down to Orange County and see the new hall that our
orchestra is moving into this season:
It’s pretty swank, I guess! It’s no Disney Hall, but we’re pretty excited nonetheless. The inside is beautiful, but I was afraid I might get thrown out on my ass by security if I started taking pictures. Of course, since I am starting my leave from the orchestra pretty soon, I won’t actually get to play there until January but hopefully they’ll have all the kinks worked out by then.
5 weeks to go until I move into babyville. I’m not at the point of counting down days yet, but it is getting closer every second and I’m starting to get really excited to meet this alien being living inside my body. Yesterday was a crazy kicking fiesta in there-I’ll be curious to see him on the ultrasound this week and see if he has changed positions. If he hasn’t, then I guess he’s just been swimming laps these last few days. Crazy guy.
August 29th, 2006
I am now in week 34 of my pregnancy. I am round and beginning to waddle. Brian did an impression last night at dinner of me walking to the bathroom half asleep in the middle of the night and my sister asked, “Why does she look like Frankenstein?” Ha ha, very funny.
The time seems to be slipping away quite quickly, and I have a crapload of stuff to do still. Today I spent an enthralling hour trying to decipher the forms that I have to fill out for my state disability leave. Yes, it is called disability leave, something I am still trying to grasp. Since I don’t have a single employer who provides maternity leave, I have to file for payment throught the state. However, as with anything else in which the government is involved, it is confusing as hell. I made the mistake of actually calling the toll-free number and asking some polite questions, but that didn’t go over very well. Mrs. Davis, as she introduced herself, sounded like I was interrupting her manicure and how dare I risk her cracking a french tip! It was almost as fun as that time I called the Social Security office, but that’s a story for another day.
It is bloody hot again, which really doesn’t help my state of mind. Lucy and I are locked away in the air conditioning today and I refuse to come out until the sun has gone down. She, however, would love to go out and bask in the sun if only I would let her. Crazy biatch. The baby keeps getting bigger, which is of course a good thing, but is now pressing down on my lungs a bit so breathing is not such a fun and easy task anymore. Let’s see….what else can I complain about? Hmm…I fear that if I get into anymore detail about my physical discomfort, things may get a bit too, how you say, graphic. So, let’s just move on, shall we?
One thing I have accomplished in the past week was I READ A BOOK! What a novelty, having time to read. Granted, much of that time was found on breaks from scoring Cinderella 3 (direct-to-video, of course). I read Freakonomics, by Steven Levitt and Steven Dubner. It was incredibly interesting and I was surprised at how quickly I tore through it. Thanks to my friend Charlie for recommending it, lending me his copy, and not bitchslapping me when I told him I had lost it. After my success with this book, I decided to compile a post-partum reading list. I figure I’ll be taking 3 months off from work and be stuck at home a lot, so maybe I’ll do some more reading? (I can almost hear the laughter from the experienced mommies out there.) Anyway, this is what I have so far:
The Plot Against America, by Philip Roth (just started this one)
Blink, by Malcolm Gladwell
My Sister’s Keeper, by Jodi Picoult
The Poisonwood Bible, by Barbara Kingsolver
and of course, the requisite baby book:
The Happiest Baby on the Block: The New Way to Calm Crying and Help Your Newborn Baby Sleep Longer, by Harvey Karp M.D.
That last one was recommended by the teacher of our childbirth class-of course I don’t know if I’ll need it yet, but I figured better safe than sorry. (Depending on how things go, that one might get bumped up on the list.) If anyone out there has read any of these titles and has opinions to share, I would love to hear them. And more recommendations are always welcome. I might just be able to fight my late-onset illiteracy after all.
August 24th, 2006
It’s 3 a.m. and here I sit yet again, wide awake in front of the computer. This whole not sleeping in the middle of the night thing is getting old, I have to say. At least I have the comfort of knowing that once the baby comes I will be so tired that I should be able to sleep standing up in a moving bus if I want to. Wow, now there’s something to look forward to.
In other news, I have been trying to get myself geared up for life post-partum since it is just around the corner. I decided that maybe it was time to stop indulging my need for nightly cartons of ice cream as that will not be so helpful in getting my body back in shape after the birth. Also, every time I go into the supermarket and get in line with 4 pints of Ben & Jerry’s, I can’t help but feel like a bit of a cliche (pregnant woman, ice cream, all I need are some stupid pickles and to be in tears, constantly). So, we’ve switched to Skinny Cow desserts for now and I m trying to increase the walking I do every week. I’ve gotten back into using my Polar watch and heart rate monitor. If nothing else, it keeps me interested in walking becuase I get to come home, input the information into the computer and geek out over all the little charts and graphs it spits out. I know it will be a little while still before I’m running again but this helps me feel like I’m at least doing something.
My allotted 2 hours of sleeplessness are coming to a close. Hopefully no more posts tonight, only anxiety dreams about forgetting to change the baby’s diaper for 16 hours.
August 20th, 2006
I learned this morning that a former colleague of mine, Charles Barr, a bass player in the Cleveland Orchestra was killed in an accident. He was only 31. He was riding his bike when he lost control and was hit by a car. I hadn’t been in touch with Charles but he, Brian, myself and several of our close friends were all in the New World Symphony together. As many of us who spent time at New World do, we kept track of who was where and playing in which orchestra. When we heard Charles had won a job in Cleveland, one of the finest orchestras in the country, we were all thrilled for him. For so many classical musicians, landing a job like that is the realization of a life-long dream, the product of years of extremely hard work and a true testament to their talent. For any life to be cut short is always a tragedy, but this hits close to home.
You will be missed, Charles.
Bicycle Accident Claims Life of Cleveland Orchestra Bassist
August 14th, 2006
We had a fabulous baby shower this weekend. Many thanks to my dear sister who dared to invite 40+ musicians into her house AND serve alcohol. Quite a risk-taker, she is. Luckily, no one broke anything or fell down face first. Now we have a room full of baby gear and nowhere to put it. This weekend’s project is to begin the process of clearing all the junk out of the baby’s room (currently our guest room) and make space for all the new clothes, toys and books.
My other project for the weekend is to try not to freak out that this baby will most likely be living in our house, outside of my body, in less than 2 months. How did this happen? Where did the time go? I thought if I spent hours on end lying on the sofa with my feet up this summer, that time might pass more slowly, but alas, it did not.
Don’t get me wrong, I am more that a little excited about having this baby (maybe not so excited about pushing it out, but still excited). It’s just amazing to think that when I leave the hospital, someone is going to hand us a baby that we have to care for and not send anyone home with us to make sure we do it right. I feel like I should have filled out an application first or something, listed my job experience and degrees earned before being given a responsibility such as this. I’m sure we’ll figure it out, but the reality of it is still a little surreal for me.
At least we have the gear now. I get an odd sense of comfort standing in the room full of baby stuff knowing that, ok, when he cries maybe I can put him in this bouncy chair, or after he spits up all over himself and me and Brian, I can change him into this cute little outfit. There is some solace in that. And at the end of the day, I really can’t wait. It is going to be amazing. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t moments of pure terror and fear every once in a while.
In the meantime, I am trying to live it up as much as you can when you can’t drink, eat sushi, shop for normal size clothes, run, or really even walk up hills. That pretty much means, I eat ice cream, watch tv when I can (so glad Project Runway started this summer!!), go swimming and buy shoes. Thank god for shoes. Shoes and Summer.
And Ben & Jerry’s.
August 10th, 2006
