Gracie’s Life Experiment

35 weeks down, 35 days to go!!!  It feels like I’ve been pregnant for almost a year already and I’m feeling like an elephant!  This week’s 10 things are 10 things that are annoying me at this stage of my pregnancy (~8 months).

1. Constant need to wee - I may as well pour whatever I’m drinking straight down the toilet it goes through me so fast. I’m needing to go every 30-60 mins during the day and every 2hrs at night now.
2. Cramps - last night my calf muscle went into a cramp while I was asleep. Woke up in pain screaming and hubby had to stretch it out by pushing my toes back. Who knows how long it was cramped for, but it’s become a massive bruise today. Also I seem to get butt cheek cramp at least once every day too (how embarrassing).
3. Indigestion - yuck, uncomfortable, burns your throat, makes you choke!
4. People commenting on the size of my bump - yes I am actually 8 months pregnant and I haven’t got my dates wrong. I guess I just carry my bump well as it’s not as huge as it could be, yet Shrimp was bang on 50th percentile at scans a fortnight ago. 
5. Suddenly having a social life - for ages we didn’t have very much in the diary socials wise, now suddenly there are loads of weddings, parties and reunions which we can’t go to.
6. Relatives wanting to know the exact day Shrimp will arrive - how am I supposed to know, oh yes let me get my crystal ball out shall I? All I can say is EDD is 31st July.
7. Insomnia - why is it that Shrimp likes to wake up when I am falling asleep and then do highland fling all night long?
8. Brain fog - I keep forgetting things. This morning I went down to make breakfast and put 2 slices of bread in the toaster, then I came upstairs to have a wee, went downstairs and put another 2 slices into the toaster. It was a bit of a surprise when 2 sets of toast popped up!! Ah well Mocha got to have toast for brekkie.
9. The house needing constant tidying - as soon as I’ve tidied it it gets messy within hours
10. Everything!!! It’s the hormones or something as everything is annoying me. Even all the inanimate objects. Today my T-shirt sleeve got stuck on the door handle as I went past and I almost cried in anger at it! I get angry at every little thing. Can’t bend myself to get my socks on, I have a big tantrum and throw the socks across the room. What is wrong with me - GET A GRIP!

Now I’m all riled up just thinking about the things that annoy me. I hope this goes away once the baby comes otherwise I’ll need to go to anger management classes or something. Poor hubby is coping really well with my anger/crying fits and constant demands and moaning about everything.

Summary of the day: Made 2 lots of breakfast!! Had a shower, Got to work on lit review, Made fishfingers for lunch (only 1 lot of lunch made), Did more work on PhD lit review (it’s starting to look in a good state now), Worked all afternoon, Made dinner, Played on Facebook for a while, Played fetch with doggy

Today I finally got round to packing my bag(s) to go to hospital when I finally go into labour (we’re only 34 weeks today, but better sooner rather than panic later).  I have a couple of bags - one of those wheelie trolley ones that you use for your cabin luggage on flights and I have the free changing bag from Boots Parenting Club (in which I’m packing Baby K’s stuff). Obviously I have more than 10 individual items, but here’s the main categories:

1. Clothes for me : a couple of pyjamas, a pack of 5 cheapo pants, some slipper socks [note to self - still need to get a couple of nursing bras and find my lightweight dressing gown]
2. Washing products : a selection of travel size/sample toiletries (shampoo/conditioner, freebie toothbrush/paste sets you get on planes, comb, lip balm, shower gel, decanted some Doublebase moisturiser into a little tupperware pot) also a towel.  [note to self - also want to buy some Aloe Vera spritzer spray from the Body Shop to keep me cool]
3. Disposables : a packet of 20 maternity pads (takes up 1/2 the volume of my bag) [note to self - still need to get some breast pads too]
4. Entertainment : Charged up my iPod and packed that away.  [need to get camera charged up and packed]
5. Comforts : Need to pack my hand held battery fan (once hubby has told me where it’s hidden).
6. Food/drinks : Not packed yet, but am going to get some chocolate, dextrose tablets and isotonic drinks to pack
7. 20 newborn sized nappies, sample packs of baby wipes
8. Baby clothes: 1 sleepsuit, 2 bodysuits, 3 bibs, a couple of mitts and some socks and booties
9. Baby blanket
10. Antibacterial hand gel (got a free sample in the Sainsbury’s/Huggies Mum Pack - the stuff you use to clean your hands without water)

There’s some other bits and bobs that will just go straight into the car and stay there until I need them (e.g. the baby car seat, clothes for me to go home in). Hubby can make a quick dash to the car park when I need them. Sure there’s plenty of other things I’ll stuff into the bags, but can’t think of much else at the moment. I have had a look at some of the lists that various parenting clubs provide and I’m at a loss how they manage to get all that in one bag. One list suggested bringing 2 pillows!!

Summary of the day:  Went to Part C marking day (yawn, it was over fairly painlessly after 2 hrs), Went to Sainsbury’s to pick up the free Mum & Baby bundle, Washed Baby K’s new clothes (it was so cute hanging the little mitts and socks on the line, the pegs were barely bigger than them), Started packing hospital bags, Made pasta bolognaise for dinner

This week’s 10 things are the last 10 new meals I’ve learnt to cook/experimented with (well, at least the last 10 I can remember):

1. Pan Fried Steak (believe it or not I’d never cooked a steak before)
2. Swedish Meatballs (inspired by an Ikea craving)
3. Oven Roasted Tomatoes & Peppers and Sweet Onion Chutney
4. Toad-in-the Hole
5. Flapjacks
6. Poison Curry (hmm won’t be trying that one again)
7. Pot-stickers
8. Char Siu Soh
9. Buk Poh (BBQ Sweet Meat) - must post this recipe some time as it’s really good
10. Bread & Butter Pudding (I quite like making a Blackforest one, mmm choc and cherry jam)

Some were obviously more successful than others.   The links aren’t to recipes, but, where I could find them pingbacks to when I tried to cook.

Summary of the day: Woke up at 2.30am and couldn’t sleep till about 5.30am, Slept till 8am, Had a shower, Did Killer Sudokus, Vegged 1/2 zombified watching daytime telly (wow 2 Dr Sloans!), Made steak for dinner, Sat in the nursery for a while, Had a bath to relax

After yesterday’s post about picking up freebies, I thought I would provide a list with links to some baby freebies/parenting clubs.

1. Tesco Baby & Toddler Club (gets you loads of vouchers for money off or points on various items, free basket of goodies when you buy a pack of Newborn Huggies, a pass to put in the car for parking in the Mum & Baby spaces, they send you more vouchers for money off over time)
2. Bounty Parenting Club (you get a number of packs free over time with various vouchers and samples in, also you can print out a voucher to get a free pack of Newborn Huggies @ Sainsbury’s)
3. Boots Parenting Club (you’ll get double points on your Advantage card on baby products bought, money off vouchers and a free changing bag when you buy Pampers New Baby)
4. Huggies Club (vouchers for money off Huggies worth £4)
5. Pampers (DVD guides, money off vouchers, sample New Baby nappy, sample Fairy non-bio washing tablet, sample Sudocrem, sachet of Ovaltine, some wet wipes)
6. Cow & Gate (various money off vouchers, free toy cow) - never did get the toy cow
7. Aptamil (free toy polar bear)
8. Emma’s Diary (pick up a freebie pack from Lloyds Pharmacy, mine had various vouchers in, sample Cocoa Butter anti-stretch mark cream and sachet of scar lotion, some sort of granola bar, some dried fruit)
9. Johnson’s Baby Soothing Naturals sachet
10. Mum Plus One (money off vouchers, just registered so don’t know what’s coming yet)

Other useful areas for freebies - relatives (we have got a whole chest of drawers full of baby clothes) and freecycle (there’s always baby stuff cropping up)

This week’s 10 things are 10 names that we are considering for Baby K now we know she’s a girl.

1. Abigail
2. Lilly
3. Lydia
4. Olivia
5. Kim
6. Evangeline
7. Elisha
8. Jessica
9. Jemima
10. Josephine

There’s a smattering of first and middle names. I think we’ve pretty much decided which names we want, but are going to keep it as a surprise for when she arrives.

Summary of the day: Looked at baby names on ‘net, Went into work in afternoon, Went out in the evening with friends

Today was my first Friday off. So this week’s 10 things Thursday (oops I know it’s Friday - I forgot yesterday) are ten things I did today:

1. Surfed internet looking at baby stuff (wow there’s a lot of stuff we still need to get)
2. Looked on ebay for above mentioned baby stuff (almost got a pile of stuff for £18
3. Loaded & put dishwasher on
4. Loaded & put washing maching on
5. Washed up the pots and pans (and other stuff that doesn’t fit in our tabletop dishwasher)
6. Removed old magnets from fridge and cleaned the outside of the fridge (yuck I don’t think I’ve wiped it down since we moved in 5 years ago)
7. Brillo’d the oven - yikes the glass is supposed to be transparent not an oily yellow grime slick
8. Made wonton noodle soup
9. Folded clothes that have sat in the dryer for 3 days
10. Groomed the dog

I keep having these days off before maternity leave and the only thing I have motivation to do is tidy. I think I must be getting nesting syndrome already as I’m the most sloth-like pit monster there is.

Summary of the day: Did the things above!!

No, not a job for me (I’m pretty much set for the next year on maternity leave).  Today hubby got a phone call from the school in Sydney he had a couple of interviews for at Easter.   They’ve offered him a job and have put a contract in the post.  Hurray.  But also boo as they want him to start in Term 4 (which is 1/2 way through Easter).  Unfortunately hubby has to give 1 full-term’s notice and that would have been latest 6th April.  D’oh so now we have some big decisions to make.  Obviously we don’t want to miss the opportunity and have to think about the future, but we don’t want to be in breach of contract and leave on bad terms.  And we need to be able to get everything in place much quicker now.  So this week’s 10 things are 10 items of information that will help us make the decision:

1. Will his present school release him from his contract without the required notice (given that the notice would be 4 months that’s quite a long time)?
2. Will the new school be prepared to wait another term without hubby?
3. What happens if hubby breaches his contract? Will it be worth the school bothering to sue?
4. Can hubby bypass his principles?
5. When will the baby get here?
6. Will we be able to get a passport and child visa before end of Sept? (within 2 months of birth)
7. Now we’ve booked our tickets to Oz in December, will we be able to change these/get a refund?
8. What are the exact terms and conditions of the new school’s contract?
9. Will we have somewhere to stay if we turn up in Oz in October?
10. When would we need to book dog into quarantine and put house on market?

Actually there are far more questions and it’s a bit scary that we may have to move so soon. Hubby has asked present school about releasing him from contract early and they said no, but are going to think about it. He’s also contacted new school to see if there’s anyway they can wait till January term instead. It feels a bit helpless as we’re just waiting to get these various bits of info.

Summary of the day: Got phone call from new school headmaster, Work, Sat through very difficult mediation meeting with students (total group breakdown), Got home late, Knackered, Hubby foraged takeaway (naughty), Worried, worried, realised there was nothing we could do, but still worried some more.

This week’s 10 things are 10 items I think that we still need to get before baby arrives.

1. Cot sheets
2. Feeding bottles and steriliser
3. Expressing pump
4. Baby bath
5. Baby carrier/sling thing
6. Baby blanket/Sleeping bag
7. Nappy bin
8. Towel/flannel/muslin type things for wiping up stuff
9. Lotions and potions!! (had a look in supermarket and ended up bamboozled by the number of different products - what is the difference between a wash, bath, shampoo, and oil?)
10. Reusable nappies (still unsure whether to get some here, or wait till Oz)

Our nursery is already looking full of stuff. We haven’t really bought anything apart from the travel system and travel cot. People keep giving us handmedown clothes till we have so many now I doubt our baby will need to wear the same outfit more than once before we move to Oz. So note to any friends/family/other well wishers - if you must buy us a gift to welcome baby, please don’t buy clothes!! Also I don’t want a baby shower as I don’t want peple to feel like they have to give us anything - also I would feel bad giving stuff to charity as I’m not paying to export it all to Oz at the end of the year.
 
Summary of the day: Work, Student sessions all afternoon, Gave a piano lesson, Went to Tescos (ah I hate shopping there, but it is a necessity once every month or so).

With all the life changes going on I thought it apt to do this week’s 10 things about possible things that I could do with my life.

1. Become a full-time housewife & mummy
2. As above but also become a “Lady Who Lunches”
3. Part-time lecturing at a Sydney university
4. Start a business working from home
5. Start my own consultancy
6. Do a diploma and become a piano teacher
7. Go back into industry and do the 9-5 grind
8. Do more paintings and sell them (hmm wonder if anyone would buy anything)
9. Become a sub-contractor in industry
10. Something completely new and different

I have no idea what I’m going to do. Have decided to give it a year off from when the baby’s born and then see what options I have. I may not want to go back to work, financially I may need to go back to work, I might be bored, I might not be bored. WHO KNOWS?

 Summary of the day:  Workshop all day long (yawn), Got kicked from inside all day long, Made mince n tofu for dinner, Did not a lot else!

I haven’t done the Thursday 10 Things for quite a few weeks as it’s been so busy on the Thursday I’ve had plenty to blog about!  This week’s 10 Things are 10 things that make baby kick (not sure if that means it likes it or doesn’t).

1. Eating meals (after about 5-10 mins Shrimp kicks - I wonder if it is Shrimp saying “yay food” or boo the stomach is making too much noise next to me)
2. Playing piano (Shrimp only likes some composers though)
3. Plane rides (Shrimp kicked on and off ALL the way to and from Australia)
4. Getting in the shower (Shrimp only kicks when the first flow of water goes over the bump)
5. When I’m falling asleep (just as I start to fall asleep I get a kicking)
6. In the middle of the night to wake me up (Shrimp gets bored and decides to do a mini-marathon every morning between 2 and 4 am)
7. When John speaks into the belly buttong (Shrimp responds by kicking him)
8. Lounging on the sofa (Shrimp doesn’t like it when I laze about)
9. Doing up my shoes (Shrimp gets squashed as I try and bend myself in half)
10. Sitting at my desk busy doing work (Shrimp gets jealous if I concentrate on something)

Summary of the day: Work (yet again), Had leftovers for dinner, Tidied house