Just 4 weeks left!
I realize that my due date is an estimate, not an exact date, so I am prepared to go over a bit. I have not decided what I will do if I go more than 1o days over. That is about how long I was over due with baby #2, so that is where my comfort zone extends too. Beyond that, I suppose I would call the doctor and ask for a check up? Not sure. I have some primrose oil that I will start using near my due date, but I don't want to get all crazy about having a baby "on time."
I am feeling well. My blood pressure is stable, my weight is stable, the baby is rolling around quite a bit, and I have only had one day of minor swelling in one foot, and I assume that is because I was up on my feet for two whole days, retexturing the nursery! I will have to start taking my alfalfa supplement again to help ward of swelling. Thankfully, I usually avoid any edema until after delivery, and its much easier to have your feet up afterwards. I find it hard to sit around during the last trimester, waiting, especially when there is so much to be done in a house that is still in need of organizing, unpacking and repair. I promise to slow down and work on easy stuff for the last month, though, like cooking and sewing and gardening :)
As you know, we decided not to find out what the baby's gender will be. I am happy with that decision and have not worried in the least about getting ready for the baby. I wish that I had made this choice with the other ones! I would have freed myself from a lot of stress and disappointment (when told that I was having yet another boy) and probably enjoyed my pregnancy more. Knowing that there is a very real possibility that this baby is a girl, I have started to take notice of some gender bias in our culture.
I guess I noticed it a little before, but it never really bothered me. Have you ever noticed that everyone gets really excited about someone having a little girl and not so much with the boys? When I go to a baby shower for a little girl, the presents abound, everyone is excited to buy dresses and "cute" stuff, and its pink Pink PINK everywhere! When the shower is for a boy, gifts are much more practical - onesies, diapers, toys. Its nice, its fun, but its just not as exciting to everyone. This could just be the fact that females bond over clothing and shopping, so we naturally extend that to our daughters, even the smallest of them.
I've also noticed while shopping online that there are far MORE crib sets for girls than there are for boys. There is more wall art for sale, better car seat covers, just MORE STUFF targeted towards those shopping for girls! I know I'm not crazy, I have noticed this before, but it never bothered me when I knew I was having a boy. I just found what I needed (or made it if I couldn't ) and called it good. Now, with the prospect of having a girl, it is both insulting and disgusting to me! I am offended that so much focus has been put on "how great it is to have a girl"! HELLO! Can our society function or continue without men? No? huh. Then maybe we should get a little more enthusiastic about our boys.
Don't get me wrong, I am excited that we could have a girl. But I am more excited that we will have a new family member, no matter their gender! Another boy would be great! I just want him or her to be healthy. I adore my boys and loved dressing them in their tiny clothes, every trip out of the house a chance to show off the baby! It was fun.
What I am NOT excited about is having a girl and then being flooded with gifts and PINK STUFF all over my house. I like pink, but I don't think that girls need to wear pink ALL THE TIME to let everyone know "I'm a girl!" I have tried to warn people that this is how I feel about pink, but they laugh it off like I'm being silly. SERIOUSLY. Pink doesn't make your little girl any more of a girl!
I have pulled pants and onesies, pajamas and sleepers out of my baby clothes totes, some blue or green, some yellow or white and I intend to use what I already have, whether it is a boy or girl! If it is a girl, I will not go out of my way or break my bank to put her in something "girly" every day! I did buy a few tops/dresses to pair with the pants and overalls I have on hand, and yes, a couple of the things are pink or floral. But mostly, I intend to make A line dresses, that can be worn as tops as she gets older, out of fabric I have on hand. Red, blue, green, yellow, purple, grey, orange, whatever I have is what she will wear and she will still be a girl! I don't want to be flooded with pink! I wonder if mother's of girls who suddenly have a boy feel the same way about boys stuff?
Ha! It's silly, I know. But for the love of rainbows, enough with the pink!
