baby update (a day early)

Okay, since tomorrow is the 4th, i won't be at work, and therefore
won't have internet (and will probably be sleeping), so this is our
baby update. (again, courtesy of babycenter.com).

How your baby's growing: (week 28)
By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a
Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to
her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her
eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in
through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her
brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside
world.

also, I'm apparently in the third trimester (or i will be tomorrow!)
yay! this also means that i could be ready to give birth in as little
as nine weeks! I forget the right terminology, but apparently most
babies are actually ready to come into the world at 37 weeks, but 40
weeks is when the doctors tell you your pregnancy should be over...and
labor usually happens closer to that time, as well. any nurses want to
explain all that?

on a slightly related note, i've realized that iris will be born about
the time football season is getting underway, and i'm kinda hoping
that i have labor on a saturday, so at least i can watch a game while
i'm struggling through. her due date is actually the day before the
MSU/LSU (my and roy alma maters, respectively) game, which kinda feels
significant. I don't think i would go so far as to be induced on
purpose, but....I really like college football. a lot. especially
mississippi state football. of course, i'm not sure how this whole
labor thing will be, but i've just been thinking about that. my
mom's first labor was only six hours, so if i'm anything like her,
that's only a little bit longer than a football game. sorry this
paragraph is so foolish.

i went to the doctor on monday and i don't have gestational diabetes
(yay!), my uterus is 27 cm tall (is that the right dimension?), i
heard her heartbeat, and they didn't tell me i'd gained too much
weight. i'm pushing 160 at home, 165 at the doctors (i guess their
scale is the accurate one, right?) and i feel huge, but apparently i'm
doing okay. being pregnant is the only time i've ever felt guilty for
not eating enough AND eating too much. i definitely have too many
people's voices in my head about weight. odd. my next visit is three
weeks from monday and then i'll start going every two weeks.

I've done some registering, too. I still haven't really gotten serious
about putting big-ticket items on the registries...I'd so much rather
buy them at the Pear Orchard baby sale they are having at the end of
august, than have someone else pay full price for something that's so
extravagant and beyond our needs--it seems like it's impossible to
just get plain stuff. oh--they are at target and babys'r'us, by the
way. I also went to Lemuria (local indie bookstore) and made a list of
books I would like to have. I had to remember that i needed not just
the books from my childhood, but also books with characters of colors.
i could have stayed there all day instead of goign to the actual baby
stores to register.

other things i'd like: the miracle blanket (to help with swaddling), a
baby sling (i forget which kind), toys without batteries, things that
aren't pink.

things i have already been offered: a crib, a pack-n-play (it's
wonderful--all my older sister's friends are apparently deciding that
their childbearing days are over after a coupla kids, and i am reaping
the benefits!), an infant car seat (even though i still haven't
decided if i should take it, because it's older than six years and the
industry says you shouldn't use one that's that old...but are they
just protecting their products? I don't know), and then four of my
friends are going in together and buying me a Mountainsmith for
a diaper bag, which i'm really excited about. i guess it's a little
spoiled of me, but i just can't see myself walking around with a quilted bag
with monograms. and i know i could just use a tote bag or something, but...i don't know..i also kinda wanted one that would look good on roy, too, since he'll be pretty involved with childcare. though to be honest, i didn't ask his opinion at all.

I've had my calf cramp once and my toes once, and i'm definitely
starting to swell a lil bit... but it's damn hard to put your feet up
when you can't sit comfortably (aka slouchy, in my case) because your
uterus will squash your nerves. I'm still figuring that out.

non-baby related things:

I cooked a chicken and made cookies last night...I haven't been that
productive in a while. but i didn't clean up, either. now i have one
tub filled with chicken pieces, two very nice looking chicken breasts,
one tub full of broth, and some oat-meal raisin cookies. i'm trying to
figure out how to make those into meals. (not the cookies). I'm trying
to be better about not letting food go to waste, so...we'll see what i
come up with. i'm thinking chicken salad for the pieces (or just
eating it for lunch), using the breasts for a meal (they taste SOO
good...i basically stewed it with onions and green pepper and celery
and poultry seasoning and of course, salt and pepper), and using the
broth to make either soup or red-beans-and-rice (which i'm really
leaning towards). the recipe i read had beef broth, but will it really
matter? i'm also still eating on the vegetables from our sunday
pot-roast. hopefully i'll be done soon.

i really like cooking.

roy is speaking tonight at summer ruf. i like to call his talk "why
are Christians so annoying?" but it's really "why are christians so
judgmental and ______?" (i can't remember the other word.) he's using
the passage about the publican and the pharisee. it should be pretty
good.

also, my little sister is raising money to be an RUF intern, so if
you've got a few extra bucks, or some time to pray for her, please
give generously. she'll be at colorado state university. heck, you can
give sacrificially, too, if you want to. i can tell you that you will
definitely enjoy receiving her newsletters. i wish i could just direct
you to a website where you could give real easily, but i don't think
RUF has that capability.

We (or Roy, really) are raising money for RUF-Tougaloo, too (and some
of you have given and we really appreciate it!), but her need is
definitely more immediate, since she can't go to the campus until she
raises 70% of her support (=.70*~30,000)! She's making progress, but
every little bit helps. she and roy have the biggest hearts for the
gospel and sharing the gospel of any people i know, so i really want
her to be able to go tell the hippies about Jesus... (and roy to tell
the tougalooites)...and I'll just tell Iris.

okay. I need to get to work. but i just wanted to keep y'all updated.