Randomosity: Pregnancy Version

The good, the bad, and the terribly hideous

* Swollen feet

* Swollen ankles

* Swollen fingers (they look like sausages people!)

* Aches and pains (majorly)

* Comments from strangers (e.g. "Wow! You're big!", "You must be having a huge baby!", "Have a nice day, and congratulations!", "You look miserable!", "You look like you're ready to pop!", etc. etc.)

* Napping everyday

* Waddling

* Getting up to pee more times in the night than I'd like to (more than any normal person would like to, I'm sure.)

* Underestimating my ability to fit through tight spaces

* Lacking energy

* Inability to see my feet

* Bending over is a joke

* No comfortable sleep positions

* Anxiety (biggest fear right now: baby's head will be too big to fit through me and I'll have to have a Cesarean section.)

* Late night punches and kicks from the little man

* Feeling like I could drink gallons and gallons of ice water

* No names picked out yet (no, babe, we cannot name our son Jack Bauer Bates."

* Nothing fits (yikes)

* 3 more weeks *sigh*

* Best part about pregnancy:

New Baby Day Camp

We found out that the hospital offered a class to help siblings-to-be learn about newborns and what it will be like to have a new brother or sister in their home. Our friends told us about it so we signed up with them. Even though we've been talking to him about the new baby for some time now, we thought it would be helpful for Vessel to take this class. They watched a movie, read a book, and got to hold a life-like baby.

They got to learn how to change a diaper. Here is Vessel taking the "dirty" diaper off the baby.

Here he is taken back by the fact that this baby has no penis. We had to emphasize (yet again) that girl babies (and adult girls, too) do not have penises. Not that he has to worry about that, since we're having another boy. But it was funny to hear him so concerned about it.

With a clean diaper on baby, he then learned how to wrap the baby up in a blanket.

Ta-da! And here he is holding the baby. So cute. They tried to teach the kids how to hold the head and neck and made sure they understood the importance of having a grown-up present when they wanted to hold their new sibling.

The kids all got nifty little back-packs to take home as a souvenir.

Then they got to take a hike up to the maternity ward and see where their moms will be having the baby. They got to play with the remote control bed and see an actual newborn baby.

Here I am with my friend Jenny. We are due a week apart. It has been fun to be pregnant together. Good times!