Wimpathon...2008

I am steadily becoming the wimpiest version of myself. I've always been the 'Can-do' girl. I've moved furniture, done construction, hiked, biked, canoed, swam, cooked, cleaned, plumbed, invented, and watched other people's kids while doing all of that!

Now I am finding at a mere 16 weeks along, I am a weenie. I kind of ignored that rule about not lifting more than 20 lbs while pregnant, a lot, and it's finally catching up with me. There's a reason they tell you not to, but I am a know it all and figured, "I'm tough, I can do this occasionally." Like carrying an 85 lb canoe with one other person this past weekend. The result...painful cramps where there should NOT be cramps, just a baby, having to go to bed while we had company over and letting the guests and the geek shift for themselves on Father's Day, trouble sleeping, swollen fingers, feet and knees (I'm sure other places, but these where the ones I noticed) and lots of other little worrisome pains here and there internally. The trouble with me is, I used to be able to work like a horse and when I was done, sleep and feel refreshed. Any aches and pains were canceled out with a few handy ibuprofen. Now, I find my self wiped out before I even begin to do anything! Then if I press on, I'm over-doing it. I can't seem to find this balance!

The geek is not used to the changes either. He's always counted on me as a strong partner in any undertaking and now he's getting the brunt of the heavy lifting, so to speak. It's a bit of a strain on him though he takes it with more grace than I'd be able to muster. His first Father's Day and I'm in the bed! It sucked, but he was kind and caring and I am grateful. I never understood how people could get divorced while the wife was pregnant, but now I'm beginning to understand. Without grace, understanding and a willingness to put up with my (closely spaced) bouts of insanity and emotional breakdowns on the part of my sweet geek, we'd be through! I'm hard to live with. I can see that very clearly. I hope to find a more balanced place and learn to let go and trust.

We had an great example of that on the river the other day. I was tired before we even put the canoe in the water and due to some previous mishaps on that river with another friend, not trusting of the Geek's ability to steer us through the rougher parts to safety. Any of you who have paddled down a river will know that you can't steer from the front of the boat, but I was trying! Or at least trying to boss the Geek at the rudder. He finally pulled over and we had a mini 'discussion' about who was in charge of the boat and would I let him be the biggest and the strongest and trust him? It ended amicably and I realized I was not even upset about how we were going down the river, I was fearful about being out of control, worried that I was already too tired to be able to go down the river, and upset that I'd had to hike back to the car to get the forgotten life jackets and paddles. When I said all that and admitted where I was weak, it was easy to let him be the boss of the boat. I ended up having a great time and letting my nephew paddle in the front while I relaxed in the middle like the queen on Sheba on the Nile! It was great to see what a great man that the geek could be when I get out of the way, and let him wear the pants (or steer the boat). The geek always has this joke that he wears the pants, I just tell him which ones. Like the woman in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" who says "The man is the Head (of the family), but the woman is the neck and she turns the man whichever way she wants" If I'm the neck, then who is my husband following? Not God. And I don't think I'm a reliable source to follow. So in my wimpiness, I'm asking God to teach me to let go and let my hubby follow the One who has a WAY better plan.

Sweet, Sweet interwebs!

Oh how I've missed thee, interwebs. My nephew (a small clone of my big brother) is visiting for the next week (a total of 2 weeks) and we've been running around doing things fun for an 11 year old. The list so far:

Friday - his first plane trip ever! He loved it.
Saturday - worked at the ice-cream shop - the wee clone was my sample man and raked in the tips! (all of which I handed over to him)
Sunday - Sounds game - spent a zillion dollars on crappy hot dogs and icees, but it was fun and HOT. Sadly I got a little ill and we had to leave in the 5th inning. I have lost the ability to regulate my internal temperature lately and can't take the heat. It never used to bother me!
Monday - rode bikes to the Y and swam for several hours and then rode home. (with plenty of water breaks)
Tuesday - picked up the bug (all fixed!! Horray!) from the shop - by way of a 40 minute walk and a bus ride. After I shorted out the dash we nipped down to Autohaus to pick the brain of my friend BMWnerd who is a whiz with car electronics. Turns out I needed just a fuse!
Wednesday - went to the lake with Freckles!
Thursday - went dumpster diving for cardboard boxes and built a giant fot in the the wee clone's room!
Friday - lumped around and had a Harry Potter movie marathon. My friend Steph from way back came up to visit and spend the night.
Saturday - canoing in the Harpeth (yes, again - we like it)

New pregnancy symptom - check out the posting time for this blog. I wake up SO hungry and unable to sleep in the middle of the night. Hate it! I know I'll be so tired later (like when we are on the river) and there will be no chance for a nap! Sheesh. Wish I could sleep, but once I'm awake, I'm hot, figitey and the geek's snoring (albeit more gently than ever in the history of our marriage) keeps me awake and thinking about random stuff like home repairs. I'm sure I'll hear from all the experienced mom's "you just wait, it gets worse." Why tell me stuff like this? I don't like to be prepared for the worst! Let my cup stay half full and quit trying to drink it!

By the way, for those who are keeping up: I'm 15 weeks and the bean is about this size:

News you can Yews

This is a yew branch and has nothing to do with this post.

Summer is heating up and I am so glad to have a little time with no 'work', none that I get paid for anyway. My nephew is coming up to visit for 2 weeks (he's 11 years old) and then we both go to Texas to go to the same camp that I've been attending since the age of 6. We have lots of adventures planned for our time together, including another brave attempt at the Harpeth. I might bring someone bigger and stronger than me this time, if he agrees to it.

Working at the Creamery has been an adventure. Oddly enough I am not overwhelmed by cravings of ice-cream. The trick is to be lactose intolerant and to know the impending intestinal havoc that will follow if I give in. That being said, I'm a huge fan of the Trailer Trash 2.0. Trailer Trash is the owner's handmade vanilla ice-cream with every added chocolate candy bar you can think of. Trailer Trash 2.0 is that, but in her amazing Chocolate ice-cream. I gave in a little bit. Not overboard. Still paid for it in the end (pun intended tee hee!)

I am officially in my 2nd trimester and so far am just as tired as I was before. So much for that wave of energy I was supposed to get. I wonder it it has anything to do with working 2 jobs and swimming 3 days a week....nah. The first signs are there. I wore a skirt, that had been quite comfortable about a month ago, to work last week and ended up having to unbutton, unzip and pull my shirt down far so no one could tell. I just tucked in the flapping button ends and went on! I have still not learned totally that this is not a time to pretend like I am my old self. There is some pressure to continue with my old way of operating, but when I do act like I have all the energy and strength in the world, it catches up with me and I'm in the bed with a headache for the whole next day. I'm a smidge hard headed. What can I say.

The best news is that we are using our economic incentive to fix the bug, so the geek can have his own car (and space) back and I'll be cruisin' in my sweet tangerine super beetle! Just in time for escalating gas prices! Wow, ain't we lucky.

Thats all for now folks.