36 weeks

Sorry for no picture this time. Imagine a woman who's 9 months pregnant and that's pretty much exactly how I look.

I'm now scheduled for weekly doctor's appointments until Baby Boy gets here. This definitely helps to alleviate some nerves as I get closer to the due date. It's nice to have a professional checking to make sure I didn't miss the signs of labor or something.

To my relief, Dr. Baram tells me he'd guess the baby is about 6 lbs and would expect an average sized baby-around 7 1/2 lbs. He also reassured me that the very annoying Braxton Hicks contractions are not the real thing, and I'll just need to tolerate them until the real contractions begin.

No green updates to report, except that plain white onesies are much more exciting  to get as a gift when they are organic (thanks Julie!)



I'm excited to finish stocking up on all the "necessities" (in quotations because all we really need is a car seat and some warm clothes-I'm reminded of this when Nate's mom tells me he slept in a drawer for the first few months. Babies don't need nearly as much stuff as we somehow acquire. But it's all so cute and little!)

I'll try to get a picture up soon!

Snowblower, Part 2

Our electric snowblower arrived Thursday, 2 days before the 5th biggest snowfall in the history of the Twin Cities metro area. We couldn't be more proud of its inaugural performance. Watch it throw 20 inches of snow like it thinks it's a gas-powered snow blower.

Nate was also impressed that he could pick it up with one hand and blow out the stairs as well. Can your gas snowblower do that?

The Snow Wins

3 years ago when we bought our house in the middle of winter, Nate and I enthusiastically (okay, maybe I was the only enthusiastic one) dug into the snow in our driveway with a shovel after every snowfall. I told myself how healthy it was to get out and shovel, and how eco-friendly it was to avoid the gas-guzzling snowblower.

Since I'm pregnant this winter, Nate is on full time shovel duty. Needless to say, it took one big snowfall for him to get online and find an eco-friendly snow blowing option.

He placed the order Sunday night. We are excited for the latest electrical addition to our household, a Toro Electric Snowthrower. We have our friends with gas-powered snowblowers on speed dial just in case we need some help getting our new toy out of a snow bank.

31 Weeks

At 31 weeks, people are starting to say things like "you're due when?!" and "you're getting big!" (some people don't beat around the bush) and looking at this picture I now understand why. If you look close you'll also notice my belly button has taken on a life of its own.

I have developed a subtle waddle and some awkward movements in order to change positions from laying to sitting to standing. Can't wait to see what the last two months bring in my physical prowess.

Despite challenges that come with gaining 25 lbs in 8 months (and darn proud of it!), I'm still enjoying the pregnancy. I'm still walking Kobie daily and have added weekly yoga and elliptical machine exercise. All this is in preparation for my latest pregnancy commitment...we turned in the paperwork agreeing to a water birth today. We'll be going all natural for the birth (as long as the rest of the pregnancy and labor go all right). I am still working through some trepidation around a drug-free birth, but I've done a ton of reading and mental and physical preparation, and will have great support from Nate to get through the challenge.

Why would I put myself through this some of my possibly more sane friends have asked? There are many benefits for baby and mom, which I'll let you read about from the American Pregnancy Association. My overwhelming reason, though, is the reviews I've consistently heard about the experience women have when they birth naturally. Both baby and mom come out of labor very alert and very connected. I think this first hour of bonding is such a critical time, and I want to give it the best circumstances I can.

Going Green in Winter

Nate found two more ways to make our house more efficient this winter, and is making improvements as I type. First, he bought a reusable air filter for the furnace. Once it's installed, you just clean it regularly and then reinstall.

Second, he is insulating the hot water pipes. It's just a wrap that looks like a small version of the insulation you'd put around the water heater; wrap it around the pipes and start using less energy to keep the water heated.

Easy changes that will improve our efficiency this winter.