This would have been appropriate for Wordless Wednesday yesterday, but with our kitchen under construction and getting ready for this baby’s arrival any sort of regular blogging schedule has gone out the window lately.
The nursery is just about finished now. I’ve got paneling to put up in the closet today and then it’s just details left. I think I’ll wait to do the full room reveal after its occupant arrives as some of the wall art includes his name or hints to his name.
It’s been 2.5 weeks since our kitchen looked like this:
Here’s what it looks like today:
Progress has been slower than expected though I’m not sure if that’s because things have just taken more time/work than expected or because the guys have done more half days than we expected. Regardless, we thought we’d be back to an almost fully functional kitchen by now as yesterday was the original estimated end date. We’re learning that estimated is a key word here.
The cabinets arrive on Monday thanks to a little delay called “no shipping on the 4th of July.” Our best guess now is that everything will be done and hooked up by end of day Wednesday. If that’s the case, we’ll have gone without a kitchen for exactly 3 weeks. Monday should be the beginning of things starting to look like a real kitchen again: painting, flooring, and finishing the electrical. Maybe they’ll even set the base cabinets in the room! Tuesday we’re expecting the cabinets, countertops, sink, and appliances to go in. We’re still not sure when the plumber will be able to hook up the water, but it’s supposed to be Tuesday or Wednesday.
Here are some snapshots of the progress:
Old Stove Corner/New Sink Corner
Old Refrigerator Wall/New Stove Wall
Old Interior Window/New Landing Built-In
Ceiling
One very dusty day, they spent a long time chiseling out space in the two solid brick exterior walls to run electrical. A layer of drywall + a layer of cement + a layer of brick = no space for wiring. It also meant the living room got foggy with cement dust and I had to make my escape to the front porch for some fresh air.
We got a lot of new plumbing in the basement including a new sewage pipe. Sounds exciting, huh? Check out how rusted and gunked up our old lead sewage pipe was:
That hole is about the size of my pinky. That’s a lot of build-up. After seeing that, I was actually really happy to have new modern pipes in the basement.
Look! New outlets! Woo hoo!
The new window in progress:
Exterior window shot, still in progress:
Right about now I’m really ready to have my kitchen back. I miss having a sink on the main floor (our only bathroom is upstairs). I’m tired of our dining room and living room also being in upheaval. I want to use the dining room table to spread out and work on other projects.
Though as much as I’m ready to be done with this project, I’m still sure it will be worth it when the kitchen is done. I can’t wait to see it start to really take shape next week! So far I haven’t been stressing out too much about the baby coming early while the house is still in upheaval. Statistically we should have plenty of time to run all dishes through the dishwasher, unpack everything from the basement, and thoroughly dust the whole first floor before he makes his entrance. We’ve done pretty well eating-wise too — lots of sandwiches, a little grilling, Trader Joe’s microwave meals, and coupons for meals out have made it very doable if not quite as healthy or economical as usual.
I’m full-term now and technically Baby Roo could come any day… though I’m hoping for a minimum of at least another week while preparing myself for the statistical probability of another 3 weeks. It certainly wouldn’t be a disaster if he decided to come right now, but it would be inconvenient. After all, our kitchen still looks like this:
I’m feeling big and cumbersome these days, but overall I’m feeling well. I’m even still sleeping all the way through the night. I know, I know, pregnant women everywhere hate me for that. It’s like Jeff says: sleeping is my super power. For real.
My tiger stripes (aka stretch marks) showed up on my belly and hips a few weeks ago and continue to make strides. Good thing I love this baby already! Ah, well, they were inevitable I suppose.
We’ve made good nursery progress and the room is almost already to go. Like I said above, it wouldn’t be a disaster if he came now, but I’d really like just a little bit more time. My hospital bag is about half-packed.
We have a bazillion packages coming in the mail this week of various baby things. Okay, so more like 11. Four showed up today! UPS is going to get very familiar with our porch. Gotta get the most out of those 10% off baby registry completion discounts.
The biggest development came last week when I tested positive for Group B Strep (GBS). Basically that means I’m a carrier for this bacteria and I could pass it along to the baby during birth. He has a 1 in 200 chance (0.5%) of getting sick from the bacteria, but in this case “sick” means serious illness like pneumonia, meningitis, or sepsis. The normal course of action is to give the mother antibiotics during labor, reducing the risk of infection in the baby to 1 in 4,000 (0.025%). The issue starts to get complicated because introducing the baby’s immature immune system to antibiotics so early in life could cause other problems later on. I hate the idea of killing off all the good flora and bacteria essential to good health when I don’t know if it’s even necessary. It might be like killing a fly with a sledgehammer. It essentially becomes a numbers game. Risks vs. benefits. I see the baby’s doctor on Friday and hopefully he’ll have some good advice. If I accept the antibiotics (which seems likely at this point unless we’re prepared for a big fight against the hospital pediatricians), I’ll be prepared with strong probiotics to counteract the antibiotics. And, yes, I know I’m in the minority on this, but I really want what is best for the baby. Unfortunately, there appears to be research to back up both sides of the issue.
Since the risk to the baby is actually so low, my biggest anxiety with being GBS positive is what happens if my water breaks to kick off labor or breaks and labor is slow to start. I really want to labor at home for as long as possible, but the midwives want me to get started on antibiotics as soon as possible after my water breaks. I’ve already shared about this anxiety before, and it’s ramped up now that this new factor is in play. The numbers are in my favor for this not to happen, but it’s still hard to release my fears. The midwife I saw yesterday mentioned wanting to induce if my water breaks without spontaneous labor (so not cool!), and I have a call in to the office for clarification on that possible timeline. One of the reasons I picked this midwife practice was because they don’t pressure you to induce right away if your water breaks. I didn’t realize that being GBS+ could change all that.
Also, I’m allergic to the normally prescribed antibiotic and while there is another safe alternative for me, it comes with more possible side effects (for me and the baby). Not cool.
So… yeah. Prayers for wisdom and peace of mind are greatly appreciated.
I’ll leave you with the most recent belly picture (I swear I look bigger than this in real life):
I’m changing things up a little today. It’s me… in the flesh! Or as close as you can come on a blog.
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/25489050]
Okay, so here’s the abbreviated, picture version of the video tour minus commentary…
Kitchen before:
Ready for demolition and renovation:
You guys know I’ll be taking pictures every step of the way, right? That’s how I roll.
Day 1 progress:
Look what was hiding under the current floor. Gross!
To be continued…
I can’t remember how I stumbled across this recipe, but I’m sure glad I did. The only question I have is why didn’t I think of this? Nutella + cookies = baking genius.
These cookies have a wonderful blend of sweet and salty. Think sea salt caramel. If you’re not into that combination (Jeff isn’t in this case), the cookies are still good without the salt.
Nutella Cookies with Sea Salt
(from Sugarcrafter)
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup Nutella
1/3 cup milk
Sea salt, for sprinkling
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and cocoa powder. Set aside.
Using an electric mixer or stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the vanilla extract and nutella, mixing until smooth. Add the dry ingredients half at a time alternately with the milk until well-combined.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let chill in the refrigerator 15 minutes before baking.
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and roll the dough into 1″ balls. Place 2″ apart on the parchment paper. Press down gently and sprinkle with sea salt.
Bake 10-12 minutes until just starting to set. Let cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely. Makes 2-3 dozen cookies.
Linked up at Mouthwatering Mondays, Sweet Tooth Friday, Delicious Dishes, Made from Scratch Tuesday, Recipes I Can’t Wait to Try, A Themed Baker’s Sunday, and Friday Potluck.
I have hesitated about posting this, but finally decided it’s worth the risk if it will benefit others. Hopefully it will. I wrote the following at the prompting of my doula and have been meditating on and praying through it. I don’t usually give caveats to my posts, but please… be nice. I don’t need criticism or horror stories right now, I need encouragement, support, and positive words. Each pregnant woman faces childbirth in different ways and has different desires and expectations. Mine is but one of millions.
Also, this is obviously about childbirth. So… don’t keep reading if you don’t want to. You have been warned. 
***
I trust my body and the God-designed process of birth. As I concentrate on relaxing, I can feel my body opening up. I visualize my cervix opening, making way for my baby. Each wave is a sign of progress — one step closer to meeting my precious baby boy. As I visualize my body opening, I see a flower opening, as if in a time-lapse, in my mind’s eye.
My body is connected intimately to my mind. As I release my fears, my body is more fully able to do the work God created it to do. I am at peace and trusting God for the outcome of this perfectly normal process. An important part of the mind-body connection is recognizing, facing, and releasing my fears ahead of time.
The fears I have for the birth of my son include
1. Labor starting with my waters breaking in some inconvenient location such as the store, church, the car, etc.
Though I know only about 10% of labors begin this way, this may be my biggest fear. I am a planner by nature and appreciate some advance warning. I recognize that I have no control over how and when labor begins. The first signal is exciting. However my labor begins is the best for my baby and me.
2. Labor lasting for days.
This fear stems from worrying about running out of strength and energy and the possible consequences. I will refrain from watching the clock when labor begins. Jeff can track times for reference. Early labor does not count toward the time of the real thing — active labor is what really counts. I will focus on the moment I’m in while in labor rather than on what may be ahead. My body and my baby will take all the time they need for a successful birth.
3. Throwing up during labor.
This is a mild fear based on a friend throwing up with every contraction when her daughter was born, and my own vomiting from extreme physical exertion (usually accompanied by extreme heat). I am not afraid of throwing up at some point in labor, only of continuously experiencing it. My body will retain all of the fluids and energy it needs to birth my baby.
I refuse to be influenced by the culture of fear surrounding childbirth that has become so prevalent in our culture and society today. I look forward to rather than dread the birth of my baby.
I am not under the illusion that childbirth will be easy. Quite the opposite! I know it will take a lot of hard work and, accordingly, I am working now to prepare for it, physically, mentally, and spiritually. I want to work with my body, not against it, for labor pains are pain with a purpose. What a great reward awaits at the end!
Today’s quotes come from one of my all-time favorite books, which was made into one of my all-time favorite movies: To Kill A Mockingbird. The book is better, of course, but the film manages to capture the essence and character of the book in ways that few book-to-film titles do. All the same, do read the book if you have not had the pleasure yet.
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it.”
“Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.”
“Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit ’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”
— Harper Lee, To Kill A Mockingbird
