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prego saucy: October 20 - 31, 2006
October 20, 2006
I have been in a cabin in Pinetop for the last two days and hey, there's a tv in the corner! I forget about that thing sometimes so I decided to see what it was showing. The TLC channel features mom-oriented programming in the late morning. I watched several episodes (ok, 4) of "Baby Story" and 2 episodes of "Bringing Home Baby".
All episodes except one featured conventional hospital births. All of the hospital births, in addition to looking way too bright, clinical, and crowded, were difficult -- two were caesareans, the other women had to be induced, or have their water broken, and there was lots of crying and screaming in pain. The one unconventional birth, a water birth, was quick and the kiddo was immediately held by mom and dad (who was in the tub, too) -- the conventionally born kids were whisked away. Also, the mom giving birth in the tub was the only one told not to push. She was also not screaming in pain -- moaning and deep breathing, but no "omygawd it hurts I can't omygawd." Oh, and she had a baby shower featuring belly dancers.
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I used to take long trips by myself -- 10 days out in the Mojave, weekends or weeks at my trailer in the Tortolitas. This is the first trip I've taken by myself since I've been with JB and I can't wait to get home. I don't like travelling by myself anymore...good thing, I suppose.
October 23, 2006
I came home from Pinetop on Saturday and continued to loaf the rest of the weekend - but at least I could do it next to JB. I'm still amazed at how much I missed him - I used to take off for weeks by myself and love it. I must have found Mr. Right for Me.
I think I'll have to take long roadtrips with Scooter, though...teach her that girls can go out in the desert and do creative things and embrace the emptiness.
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Saturday night was the BYOB Autumn Feast at Roma Imports...oh so much good food, but I can stuff only half of what I used to in my tummy now as Scooter is taking over. So sad, so sad. And of course, two hours later I was hungry again. I should have snuck in a doggie bag. The wine JB brought was fantastic -- a 1995 La Poderina Brunello di Montalcino ...
I drank a little, so yummy...aah. We decided to bring the 1995 Sassicaia to Scooter's arrival. Even contemplated naming Scooter Sassicaia... Caia Kiely Brewer...actually doesn't sound bad!
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Finished both Michel Odent books this weekend. I'm having a hard time reconciling what I saw on the tv shows with what I've read in his books. No wonder the ladies on the "Baby Story" programs had difficult births - they were in strange, uncomfortable surroundings with way too many people hovering around them: both sets of parents, maybe a sister-in-law or aunt, in addition to the half dozen medical personnel (and the unseen tv crew)...it would impossible to relax. And this was seen as NORMAL.
I like what Odent says - you wouldn't expect a woman to feel comfortable making love in an environment like that, yet we expect them to give birth there. Birth is an intimate act, and needs to happen in a warm, private, secure place where the woman can feel free to let go of her inhibitions, and retreat into her own world. Endorphins will kick in, oxytocin will flow...adrenalin - which tenses you up and inhibits labour -- will be kept at bay.
Birth Reborn is about the radical maternity unit set up by Odent at the hospital in Pithiviers, France. The book is filled with anecdotes and beautiful photos of women giving birth -- ecstatically. Scientification of Love is about quantifying love, comparing natural with interfered birth, and summarizes studies relating difficult births with later problems in life -- people with autism, drug addiction, anorexia, etc. generally all had difficult births. Of course not everyone delivered with an epidural and forceps will end up a suicidal drug addict...the odds are greater.
I love this article: Why laboring
women don't need support.
And this one questioning routine
inductions is good, too.
Some more good links:
http://www.birthpsychology.com/
http://www.wombecology.com/index.html
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I think I need to tackle some of the classics I've always meant to read, and maybe something on logic or critical thinking, so that Scooter doesn't have an irrational mama. Also learn the stars in the sky.
And finish the God Delusion, which is a treat, despite occasional uneven reasoning and obvious bias (but, hey it's a bias I share!). Everyday I'm confronted by so-called normal things that I find absolutely freaky and weird and it frustrates me (I want to yell "can't you see how freaky and weird this is???") - it's comforting to know that even if I don't run into them in the course of my day, there are people out there willing to question things others take for granted: like god and epidurals.
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Giant grasshoppers are overrunning Tucson today.
OK, overrun is an exaggeration -- I've seen 6. But they are demented, flying into the sides of buildings and my window, 9 floors up, over and over and over again. And they are about the size of Vienna snausages.
October 24, 2006
It's becoming more difficult to sleep. I like to sleep on my back, using my pillow as a huggy as opposed to a support and I don't think I can do that much longer - I'll have to switch to my side. But sleeping on my side squarshes my face...poo!
Bending over is also more difficult (and less graceful) -- it feels like I have a football in my tummy.
Other than that, no complaints. Managed to stay up until 9:30 last night...
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Shopping, shopping, shopping...shopping, shopping, shopping:
kickass car seat / stroller combo thingie
October 25, 2006
I had the first of four prenatal massage appointments today; very niiiiiiice, very niiiiiiiiiice. The masseuse used lavender infused apricot oil, which smells very yummy on my skin (and I bet on JB's too, heh, heh, heh), and suggested taking warm baths with lavender - crush it under the faucet as the tub is filling, or steep a tea for about 20 minutes and pour it in the tub. Now that we have our fabulous new water heater, I may just have to do that...
Massages with lavender oil during labour will keep me calm, too, she said.
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Holy cow. I just had a V8 juice -- how come it's taken me so long? V8 juice rocks. It's a little salty, but I'm liking that. The next 20 weeks are going to be all about V8 juice. I hope it's sold in flats at Costco.
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I want watermelon Tootsie Pops for labour.
October 26, 2006
My sense of smell is ... bionic. If I have any cravings, it's for scents -- in the last few weeks I've purchased two bottles of perfume (Coco and Hanae Mori), and a slew of scented goodies from Berber Sources, including: a lavender-scented massage oil, a Moroccan and French orangeflower essence (I read that the French don't recognize baby powder as a positive smell since they use orangeflower in their baby products -- no reason Scooter has to be like other babies, I thought...she can smell like a yummy creamsicle instead!), and a gardenia eau de toilette.
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We have a room tonight at the Congress since the electric company guy couldn't come inspect our electrical panel upgrade today and the power remains off until tomorrow morning. Yay, an unexpected surprise mini getaway vacation! Also, since it's calendar time, I think we get a spiffy Mexican calendar with our room...ha-cha.
October 27, 2006
OK, so we didn't get a free calendar with our room, ah well. And I didn't want one badly enough to pay the $6.
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Not much going on with the tummy lately. Sometimes I feel great stretching and burgeoning, other times no. Lately has been an other time. Still, it's a nice round melon I have popping out. JB loves it. It's going to look like a big ol' watermelon, all stripey, in a month or two.
October 31, 2006
Hollerween!
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Last night JB took his first ever Nighttime Craving Run for me. Not only did he willingly go fetch butterscotch pudding (not just the shelf stable stuff, no -- from the refrigerator case!) for me, he returned with Nilla Wafers and whipped cream...
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Well, I have not finished our masks so we'll have to wear them just to the All Souls' Procession on Sunday and not for the trick or treaters tonight. It's going to be so much fun to have a kiddo to celebrate Hollerween with...carve pumpikins, play dress up...
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I have decided to start wearing red lipstick again. Maybe it was prompted by my online quiz result that the "celebrity mom" I'm most like is Gwen Stefani, but this having a kiddo stuff (and also not having to work in an office anymore...) is very self-actualizing. But for the life of me I cannot remember the (English) name of the Shiseido geisha red lip colour I have that looks like a suppository.
Pat Field doesn't have it on their website; I know I bought one there... I'm down to a suppository and a half...good thing I have my lifetime fassi supply.
Ah, the troubles I have.
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