39 weeks

After an excruciating chiropractor session that had me sweating, my back is feeling a little better. As a result, I've been busy doing more chores than I should be doing. Today I scrubbed our window sills with a toothbrush. This is how I nest. It's a slight improvement from the nesting that happened in my first trimester; I organized all of my photos and music on my computer. It's called electronic nesting, friends.

38 weeks

Remember when I said that this pregnancy has been kind to me? Last week? Perhaps I should have held my tongue. My back has been extremely sore for days, which means I can't move very quickly anymore. Strangers stare at me as I totter down the street. And then last night I had a muscle spasm in my calf. Not fun, friends. It's not fun for the person sharing your bed either, because you'll probably wake him up and ask him to make it stop. Actually, I wish I had been so calm.
But I'm not really complaining. I get to rest at home now that I'm done work, and so far, it's awesome. I just have to be strategic about my trips up and down the stairs. And I have to restrain myself from cleaning odd corners of the house. It's harder than it sounds.

37 weeks

Three weeks to go until the due date, and I just want to take a moment -- before everything gets crazy -- to acknowledge that this pregnancy has been kind to me.

Oh sure, I've had my share of ailments. My nose has been stuffed up every morning for the past seven months. I was nauseous for two months during the first trimester, though I avoided throwing up for the most part. My thighs go numb if I'm standing or walking for too long, and that's been happening since November. I've had heart burn, but not as bad as some. My feet just started swelling a little in recent weeks. And yes, I have stretch marks on my belly.

But overall, pregnancy has been a pleasant experience. I've been sleeping well. I've only taken a couple of sick days, and that was for exhaustion more than anything else. I haven't had any crazy cravings, and my appetite hasn't let me down (though I had to avoid beef and leafy greens in the early days). I've sidestepped colds (touch wood), and I've only had a couple of headaches. Not bad.

These days I have a hard time getting comfortable, and I'm quite emotional. I had a good cry on Saturday after hearing the song Glory for the first time. We had a miscarriage just over a year ago, so Jay-Z's lyrics really struck a chord. I think it's monumental that he acknowledges the fear that accompanies pregnancy, especially after miscarriage. Jezebel thinks so too.

36 weeks

We're in the home stretch, friends. I'm done work on January 20! I can't bend over very easily! I get really grumpy when I haven't eaten enough! I get overwhelmed when the hospital tour guide provides too many details about the delivery room (why do I need to know where the IV bags are?)! And even though I've been pregnant for eight months, I'm still sort of surprised that we're going to have a baby. Woah.

Tentative Plans

I have a few tentative plans for 2012. They're pretty modest for obvious reasons (i.e. I'm having a baby), but this is usually the case for me anyway.

Last year I planned to go to lure myself to the gym with the promise of a sauna afterwards, I planned to print and frame family photos, I planned to take care of my knives and I planned take advantage of my benefits with regular massages chiropractor appointments. I've done all of these things, to a certain extent, so I'm happy to strike them off the list.

This year I plan to be more mindful of the movies I watch, I plan to learn how to use my new camera (an Olympus PEN E-P3) and I plan to take a break from the Internet every now and again. Maybe one day a week?

For the movies, I'm going to use Johanna Schneller's Twelve 2011 movies that moved spirit and soul as a starting point. I was already a fan of the list when I saw that Beginners was included. It was my favorite movie of 2011.

Since reading the list, I've already watched and The Trip (on new year's eve) and Win Win (on new year's day), so I'm off to a good start. They were great, by the way. But not as good as Beginners.

Happy New Year

We're really looking forward to 2012, friends.

(P.S. You can find links our past holiday cards here.)