Monday Moodswing Madness

My first day of maternity leave has been a bit bumpy.

I had a 9:15am doctor's appointment, so I got up with Morgan. The cats were all a bit needy and nutty, with Isobel lashing out at everyone, which made me testy. But then Isobel - the grumpiest of our kids, who I am quite convinced really doesn't like me - decided she wanted to lie across my belly and purr like a lunatic while I massaged her face and ears. That made me feel a bit better.

Then I managed to crack the toilet seat. That made me feel worse.

My doctor's office is all of 7 miles from my house, so typically giving myself 30-40 minutes to get there is way more than enough. Not today. Today, with the multiple accidents I passed and the general slowing at the new Highway 92 flyway, I was half an hour late for my appointment. Half an hour, I might add, spent sitting in the car near or in tears, just desperately wanting to get off the freeway. Note to myself and Morgan: if I approach active labor near morning rush hour, the froglet is going to either be born in the car or at home. Just saying.

When I finally got to my appointment, I apologized to the receptionist for being so late; she brushed it off and complimented my earrings.* I apologized again to the nurse who always takes my blood pressure and weighs me; she told me that with the prenatal appointments, which usually don't take longer than 10 minutes, I'm good as long as I show up before noon. All righty then. Both women were ridiculously sweet to the stressed out pregnant lady and, yes, made me feel better again.

According to my doctor, I'm still measuring big. Did he think the baby would shrink over the course of a week? Anyway, nothing new to report there. I have an ultrasound on Thursday and another appointment on Monday**; that is when we'll discuss whether he really feels a c-section will be necessary.

After my appointment, I went down to Kaiser member services to discuss what I need to do to collect state disability. The medical secretary had me fill out a bunch of forms, and then told me that Kaiser does the rest; all I have to do now is wait for a check. I can do that.

I also popped into the hospital admissions office to see if I could pre-register to avoid having to do so whilst in labor. After asking at the front desk, I was immediately called back by a woman in a rear cubicle who obviously enjoys registering the preggos. She took one look at me and cooed, "You are all belly. Its a boy?"

So my disability is being taken care of and I'm registered for whenever I have to check into the hospital. I feel like I had a ridiculously productive morning, even though really I did very little. And now the afternoon stretches out in front of me with a couple options: Laundry? Some light cleaning? Or a nap? Hmmm....

* I haven't explained my baby earrings yet, have I? Susan, who has cut my hair for the last four or so years (and has cut Morgan's hair for probably twice that long), makes jewelry that she also sells in her salon. I have a couple necklaces from her, one that Morgan bought me for Christmas a few years ago and one that I picked out for myself about a year ago. When we went in for haircuts last weekend, Susan pointed to her jewelry display and told me to pick out whatever I wanted, as birth jewelry. She explained that when she was pregnant with her son, she splurged on a pair of earrings that she then always cherished and associated with his birth. She lost one of them shortly before he moved away to college last year, but she found herself at jewelry store at the Portland airport. She found another item that has replaced the original earrings and that commemorates the next stage of her relationship with her son. So I chose a pair of earrings with stones that match the necklace I bought last year. And every time I've worn them, I've received compliments on them.

** My wonderful nurse, when making next week's appointment, told me she was putting me in the 9:15 slot again, but if I needed to be late it really didn't matter. I laughed and told her I would just give myself more time next week. She reminded me that after sleepless nights its really hard to get up in the morning and I should just do what I need to do. Really sweet, and I appreciate the thought. But I also now have a better idea of why my doctor is always running late...