I think my creative blog title well runneth dry . . .sorry y’all.
The most exciting news is that tomorrow is our Colorado baby shower! We are super lucky to have friends and family throwing us showers in both Colorado (where we live and my family is) and Indiana (where La is from). So shower #1 is tomorrow and #2 is two weeks later, on Feb 14th. La and I haven’t had to do a thing for the showers, other than provide names and contact info, and it’s been really lovely. As an extra special bonus, BFFBF (our donor’s boyfriend and the friend who colored and cut my hair) want a good picture of my hair, so he’s coming over before the shower to give me the full on celebrity blow-out experience. The worth of this gift was reinforced earlier this week when I tried to straighten my own hair and it looked . . .well . . .not so hot. So I am very pleased to have BFFBF come over. If only I could figure out how to have this happen daily . . .
Here’s a few other highlights of my week:
- I have weird ear pain. I’ve had it for a bit now, mostly when I’m lying down or just wake up. The first morning I had it, I felt certain a full on sinus infection/ear infection was headed my way. But then nothing really showed. So then I thought it might be TMD (from the TMJ joint in the jaw) but I never really had any pain in my teeth or jaw, or any other indication of a problem. So I asked my midwife at our appointment, and she looked and said she saw inflammation . . .but then decided not to give me anything and told me to take sudafed for a few days and if it didn’t clear up to talk to my GP. Today I feel more congested and my throat is a little sore. So, I’m taking votes: do I go see my GP or book an appointment with a specialist about TMJ or just chalk this up to something else weird?
- Speaking of the midwife . . .we unfortunately had to see our very least favorite this week, confirming our decision to buck the system and start scheduling far out to be able to see our fave, who I’m naming Velma because she reminds me of that sassy, spunky nerdy scooby doo character. Going to a medical appointment every two weeks just sucks if you don’t like the person you’re seeing. I am also recruiting the universe to help me get Velma there for my birth! But, all was well. Seafoam was hard to capture on the doppler again, moving all around and making it obvious. But we finally got him. I’m measuring on-track, BP is normal (higher than last time, but they used the machine instead of doing it manually, so I’m taking it with a grain of salt) and I’m approved to fly to Indy in two weeks, and to Durango, Co in three (for work.)
- Speaking of work . . . Babs (my supervisee who you may remember from here has continued to be a pain in my ass since October, but things are finally showing up more clearly as poor work. Not so much that she’s a bad employee/person (she’s not) but more than she just doesn’t have the skills needed for the position. My ED and I had another talk with her this week, and it was rough. Babs cried, a lot, mostly because it’s hard to hear that people think you’re not good at your job, especially if you’re kind of clueless about it. I say this, but honestly, I felt like shit. I don’t think she’s a good fit for her position, but I also hate being a reason someone is hurt. We told her some things need to change very quickly, and she said she’s not sure she should stay. We are meeting in an hour to talk things through again. I imagine it will suck again. To round things out, we also had a site visit from the primary funder of the program I manage, who is often confusing and intimidating. It went well, but it was an entire 8 hour day of ass-kissing. So, I’m beat.
- I’m finally feeling seafoam up higher! I was starting to be confused/concerned that I only ever felt him down lower. But this past week I’ve gotten some clear thumps, bumps and kicks up higher. I think my placenta may be higher up in the front, as I’ve had multiple experiences this week of feeling a kick from the outside but NOT the inside, which seems weird? But reasonable, right? My guess is, since he’s been head down at every appointment we’ve had, that he’s just finally big enough for his legs and feet to be kicking me instead of flailing unbidden in the upper part of my uterus. But I’m not a doctor.
That’s all . . .expect some baby shower pictures and updates soon! Until then, send me good woo to be a caring, understanding but also take-no-shit manager, ok?
Update! Babs put in her notice . . .for TWO weeks. Expected, but maybe frustrating because . . .1) she talked a BIG game on weds about wanting to ‘transition well’ and leave things positively 2) a F’ing HUGE event that falls under her purview is scheduled for March 9th – less than 5 weeks away. 3) I’m going on maternity leave in 6-10 weeks. AND YET . . .I am so relieved.