The Importance of Naps when Uber Pregnant

You guys, today, I am 36 weeks pregnant.

That is really pregnant.

That is so pregnant that I am pretty sure I have never been this pregnant and can't get any bigger than I currently am right now.

It is so pregnant that people are starting to stop me out in public to explain to me that I look like I am going to pop or sound sadly shocked to hear I still have over 3 weeks left to go.

I am SO PREGNANT that I can not put my socks on without a pep talk to my legs about bending and lifting. Forgetaboutit if I drop something on the floor because there is no way I'm bending over to get it. And if you for a minute think that I can get off the couch without a prayer, you are wrong, my friend. Wrong.

Being this pregnant also means that I sleep horribly at night (due to hip pain, constantly getting up to use the bathroom, slowly rolling over by trying to lead with my belly) (oh, and apparently I snore...like a pig...). This leads to me puttering out in the middle of the day and giving in to the siren song of napping.

Aren't naps great? I know I have always appreciated naps, even as a kid! I had morning kindergarten and I specifically remember coming home and asking for a nap. (Yes, I was the Best Kid Ever, thankyouverymuch.) There's just something so lovely about catching a few sleeps when the sun is out. Seriously, I could probably write a whole book of poems dedicated to naps.

A rare nap for Vivian.

The other day I was starting to feel the pull to take a nap and told Julia that I was going to go rest in my room for a little bit. Julia, who will be 7 years old next month, is usually pretty ok with me napping. When I first started needing them, I told her that growing people in your belly makes you really tired and that if I went to lay down it was only for an hour and that she and Vivian could watch tv while I napped. She found this to be the most excellent of deals.

Of course, there are times I feel guilty for napping during the day. I know that for a few months out of their lives having extra tv time is not a big deal, but I couldn't figure out why I was feeling guilty for trying to catch some much needed pregnant lady sleep this go-round. Then it dawned on me--this is the first time that I have been pregnant and had kids home during the day.

So, obviously, when I was pregnant with Elisabeth I had zero kids and could crash whenever I wanted while pregnant (well, after student teaching, of course). It was dreamy.

When I was pregnant with Julia, I worked full time. So I lived off of coffee at work and either came home and slept or went to bed super early (like 8:30pm). That actually sucked because I'd get home and either sleep through dinner, leaving Evan and Elisabeth to eat without me, or I'd go to bed the same time as Elisabeth and lose that down time with Evan.

With Vivian's pregnancy, I had three year old Julia at home with me, but she napped for 2-3 hours every day! I just napped when she napped. That was definitely the ideal.

But, with neither Julia or Vivian napping, now I have to squeeze in naps. I finally had to just give myself permission to not feel bad. They get to watch tv, they are given snacks, and both know that they can come wake me up if they need me (aka: blood or fire).

One day last week I was kind of cranky and borderline weepy. I can't even remember all the details, but I was huffing and puffing about something and I look over and see Julia staring at me. With the kind of wisdom only a child can possess she quietly said, "Mommy, I think today will need to be a nap day for you."

Yes, dear.

Settled.

My parents are coming to visit us today!  They are flying in and staying at our house until Tuesday.  The girls are beyond excited. They're our first house guests and the girls are dying to show off their rooms.  I won't lie, I'm dying to show off our house too.  I love our house.

Part of the reason that I love our house so much is that it feels like home.  We've settled into a routine and our life here in Texas and it makes such a difference in our moods. We still have to finish the nursery and the guest room is going to be rearranged now that Evan has my dad coming to help out, but otherwise, everything is where it's supposed to be.

Eating lunch with Elisabeth at school (isn't Julia's face lovely?):

 I am 25 weeks pregnant.  I told Evan that I feel like it's flying by, but also like I've been pregnant forever.  It's weird how it can feel like both things at once.  Of course, we found out I was pregnant pretty early in the pregnancy.  I wasn't even 4 weeks along.  It's really going to hit me that we're adding another person to our family after the holidays when it'll just be a little over a month before #3 makes her debut.

 Julia has finally decided to show an interest in clothing and unclothing herself.  I swear, that girl has her own time clock about when she should meet milestones.  She has shown zero interest in figuring out how to be independent in the clothing area, but in the last couple of weeks, she has started stripping and reclothing herself willy-nilly.  She also has been shoeing herself.  I told Evan that I don't know why we try to push her to do things before she's ready--she's never, ever complied.  She crawled when she wanted to, walked when she wanted to, weaned herself when she wanted to, talked when she wanted to.  Why are we surprised that she took her time potty training herself and has yet to want to poop in the toilet?  It's aggravating to no end, but it totally goes with her personality.  Her stubborn, ornery, sweet, unique personality.

 One thing that she has super excelled at is her gross motor skills.  That girl can ride a bike!  She was getting too big for her tricycle, so we found Ebeth's old training wheel bike.  It took Elisabeth weeks to get the hang of riding a bike; it took Julia 4 times going up and down the sidewalk before she told Evan she could do it by herself.

Just look at her go!

Snore.

You guys, I am a walking zombie today.

Last night my hips were KILLING me.  I hate that part of being pregnant. I have to sleep on my sides because I obviously can't sleep on my stomach or I'll squish the baby's house.  I can't sleep on my back because I can seriously feel my heart stop beating because the baby house is killing my internal organs.  So, it's my sides.  Except, my hips are expanding (cause they should totally expand...and make me feel even larger...I'm totally cool with that) and it HURTS.  So, I toss and turn and curse my body pillow for not supporting my hips more.

Then, for the last week, Julia has insisted on sleeping with every light in her room on.  Not a big deal, Ebeth did the same thing around that age and Evan did too when he was little.  But, Julia will wake up randomly and, since the light is so bright, she has no idea if the sun is up or not.  So, I have been going to her room before I go to sleep and turning off the overhead light (but leaving the desk lamp and the night light glowing).  Well at 6:00 this morning, I bolt out of bed because I can hear her calling for me and I'm assuming she's super pissed to find out that I've turned off a light when she's sleeping.  I walk into her room where I WAKE HER UP BY OPENING THE DOOR. I say, "Juju, did you call for me?"  She then looks at me like I am a moron and says, "No.  And will you turn dat big light back on?".  Awesome.

Thinking I'd dreamt it all, I go back to my room, knowing full well she's not going to go back to sleep for the next hour like I am hoping for, to hear that same noise again.  I tell Evan what happened and he says, "That's a cat making noises outside. I think it can see our cats through the windows." For the love of all that is holy.

As predicted, Julia is up as soon as she hears Elisabeth use the bathroom (at 6:30) declaring that she pooped her overnight pants.  I try to tell her to make Daddy change them (cause I am an awesome spouse) but she says he's in the shower.  So, I very grumpily stomp around to get stuff to change her pants (I need to let the entire house know that I am not happy with any of them and that I am SLEEP DEPRIVED for crying out loud), change her and tell her to go downstairs, without yelling at Elisabeth for once in her short little life, and eat something because I am going back to bed.  Evan comes to kiss me goodbye and to see if I'm getting out of bed.

Nope. No way. I am exhausted and my hips don't hurt right now.

He then asks what he should do with Julia who is awake and fed.  And, that, dear people, is when I say:

"Turn on the tv."

MOTY

Don't worry, though, because Julia came into my room as soon as Evan left to sit on my bed and stare at me while she talked to people on her play cellphone about how I was still sleeping and she was just waiting for me to get up because it was morning.

There is not enough coffee.  But, today, the baby growing in my belly is going to get more than one cup.