Being deadline oriented

Here we are folks -- the 32 month marker. Which means I now have six weeks before this baby gets here. And what have we done to prepare? Absolutely nothing.

Ok, well, I shouldn't say nothing. We did buy a bassinet, and fortunately we've had two baby showers --one from my co-workers and one from my girls in Austin. However, everything is still in its box, nothing's been washed and perhaps the most distressing of them all, we have yet to order nursery furniture. It seems like every time we think about ordering furniture, we go on vacation instead. Denial much?

Yesterday, however, it hit me like a freight train. So I started researching furniture online, and at our weekly trip to Target yesterday, I bought a few things for the hospital. Oh, and some diaper rash cream, which so far is the only medicinal baby thing we've bought. On one hand, I don't know why I'm freaking out since, speaking from experience, babies really don't need that much when they're born, really. As long as you provide them with some sort of food and a warm place to sleep, they're fine really. And so far, we have both (the bassinet and my boobs).

Speaking of boobs, here's a freaky and TMI fact: I'm already starting to leak stuff out of them. They're not gushing or anything, but I noticed it the other day after I got out of the shower.

The other thing I did to "prepare" is start putting together my hospital bag, which mainly consists of toiletries. Ladies, here's a tip for you: Forget about packing cute PJs and the like because you WILL NOT use them. You'll find yourself in the hospital gown the entire time, and if you have a c-section (which you most likely will), nothing screams pain like a pair of pajama bottoms cutting into your waist. So you're better off sporting the gown. I find all these hospital packing lists laughable. Music? If you're not being prodded and probed by hospital staff, you'll want to be sleeping. Robes? The nurses don't care about your decency and honey, they've seen it all, so no point in trying to cover up. Reading material? See music.

I can't explain why I'm so nonchalant about this whole thing. Maybe because this ain't my first rodeo. What is different this time around is that I'm mentally prepared for this little guy, something I can't necessarily say for the first (no offense to my little monkey).

Symptoms this week: bloatedness, numb hands (that's a new one), extreme exhaustion (probably from the 30 lbs I've gained so far).

Iron woman

I finally got the results of my gestational diabetes test back last week, and I'm happy to report that I passed with flying colors! I was a little worried for a second there, simply because I have been eating ice cream like it's going out of style.

However, I'm anemic, which would explain my extreme fatigue and just sheer laziness. So the doc prescribed some iron pills for me to take until who knows. Ugh, these iron pills are disgusting. They really upset my stomach.

Anemia aside, I've never felt so heavy before in my life. Now at 30 weeks along, I am full-on waddling and breathing heavy. Sleep is becoming more and more uncomfortable since I can't seem to find a good position to sleep in. Or, as has been the case some nights, I'll wake up to a good hard kick in my gut. I've also discovered another unfortunate pregnancy symptom--snoring. Man, I must sound like a bear, because some nights, I wake up startled by it. Poor Jon. I don't know he copes with me sometimes.

Happy birthday, Jordan!

I can't believe three years have passed since Jordan's birth. Man, has it flown by! And in full parental form, we threw him the mother of all birthday parties. So far, anyway.

We rented a bouncy house/waterslide and created a whole Cars theme around the party. Cars 2 had just come out the weekend before, and yes, we were there. Not quite first in line, but second. Jordan handled his first movie experience like a champ. Never once whined or cried, or got restless. Instead, the entire time, his eyes were glued to the screen, and at one point he exclaimed, "This is the best movie ever!" It was adorable.

But, back to the party. So we got the bouncy house/waterslide, and the minute it was up (which was less than 30 minutes), Jordan was in there, bouncing away in his PJs. Jon and I, in the meantime, were running around like chickens with no heads. Fortunately, my brother had decided at the last minute to fly down to Houston to be here for his birthday, and thank God he did, because there's no way any of the stuff we needed to do would've gotten done. That aside, I really appreciated that he had decided to come at all.

All in all, Jordan and his friends had a great time. The final tally of guests came out to close to 35. Everyone ate, drank and was definitely merry. We had ordered a sandwich tray from a corner deli and gotten his cake from HEB (decorated with Cars characters, of course). Even though we did little cooking (which is really unlike us), there was still a lot that had to be done that day. But fortunately, we got it all done when the first guests arrived at 11 a.m.

At one point, when we were all singing happy birthday to Jordan, I looked around and almost got teary eyed. He's so loved, I thought, and it touched me that he was surrounded by his friends and family that day. I truly believe the hardest yet most important and pivotal part of being a good friend or family member is just showing up. And boy, did they show up. Happy birthday, little monkey. Here's to many more.

Making change

Something’s seriously wrong with me. It seems that I want to change everything lately. My hair, my living room décor, our bedroom linens, even my nails.

Is it nesting? I don’t know. It’s funny though because I haven’t gotten one thing for Baby #2’s room. The majority of my extreme makeover urges are mainly focused on my things. Maybe it’s the second child nesting syndrome, where you know you’ll be so consumed with everything childrenesque that you won’t have time to do anything for yourself.

My latest obsession has been my hair. Lately, I’ve been thinking I need a change. Plus, my hair is just driving me nuts. At one point, I thought about getting it cut into a bob, but backed off after thinking it’d make my face look fat. Now, I’m thinking of getting it highlighted and colored (something I haven’t done since before Jordan was born three years ago) and getting my bangs cut again. As if I’ll have time to maintain all this hair once Baby #2 comes around.

Seriously, they say having one child is hard and that you’ll never have time for yourself. That’s just not true. Sure, you have to make some accommodations, but all in all, it’s been pretty easy having one kid. Two kids, on the other hand, frighten me. Well, actually, make that three, since we’ve taken on a puppy.

Sweeter the second time around? No.

Lately, I've been waking up at 4 a.m. for no reason. Nothing extraordinary is going on. Just can't sleep. It's really annoying.

The same thing happened when I was pregnant with Jordan. I just couldn't sleep. But it happened later in my pregnancy, when I was around 30 weeks or so.

Everything about this pregnancy seems to be bumped up. The aches and pains I had in my hips is already hitting me, the lower back pain has plagued me since around 23 weeks. And I'm experiencing every weird symptom in the book -- literally. I remember reading "What to Expect," and reading about all these odd symptoms: nose bleeds, carpal tunnel syndrome, vision changes. Well, I've had them all. The stuffy nose is the most bothersome because I sound like a cocaine addict the way I blow my nose all the time. And as a result of the aggressive blowing (of the nose, not cocaine) my nose starts to bleed. Such a change from my first pregnancy. About the only symptom I experienced with Jordan was hunger, and extreme hunger at that. Don't get me wrong--I'm still hungry. ALL the time.

Let's just hope this one doesn't come out with a bang, like Jordan did. I'll be happy for his birth to be a quiet, peaceful affair.

Seeing 20/20

This week marks my 27th week of pregnancy, and I've already gained 20 lbs. I think with my last pregnancy, I gained 20 lbs TOTAL. Needless to say, I feel like a Beluga whale. And to think, I have 11 more weeks to go!

With this extra 20 lbs of weight on me, I've noticed that I move much slower. Like glacially slower. Getting out of bed is a chore; giving Jordan a bath is a chore; hell, sitting at a desk is a chore. It doesn't help that the Houston summer is one of the hottest on record, making me bloated and therefore MORE puffy.

My doctor doesn't seem to be concerned, but good god. I feel like a pre-makeover Biggest Loser contestant.

This week, I have to take the glucose test. I'm kinda nervous given all the ice cream I've been eating. Damn that ice cream. It's what got me to this point to begin with.

One hot mama

I've been unbelievably hot lately. Not as in good looking. As in physically hot. And once again, just as in my last pregnancy, we've been experiencing record heat. Today, it hit 104 degrees. I'm this close to buying a kiddie pool to soak in.

Today, I had my high risk doc appointment again. Baby weighs 2 lbs, 2 ounces. The doctor took some remarkable pictures too! What's even more remarkable is how much he looks like Jordan. He has the Rodriguez "beak." I swear, Jordan and baby #2 are going to look like twins.

Speaking of babies, Rocco's been doing really well lately. He's sort of getting the hang of potty training. When he has to go, he sniffs around at the door. But poor Rocco has also had his share of sibling rivalry with Jordan. Jordan is constantly telling on Rocco and telling him no. Case in point: Jordan was playing with his Legos and Rocco came over to sniff around. Jordan immediately launched into a world-class hissy fit. I guess it's good practice for Jordan for when his little brother comes around.