Killing time

Hi friends, I'm still coughing. Doc says my bp is fine but my sugars are elevated, so I have to go to a dumb nutrition class (like is there anybody who spends more time thinking about eating good food than me? I doubt it). I am praying that it goes down - I want to be pronounced healthy and be left alone. I'm tired of being treated like an invalid just 'cause I'm pregnant. And I want to have a nice natural birth, not be labeled "high risk" and hooked up to machines!

I realize that if I were really sick all the technology and medication would be right and good for me. But I don't think I am. I think it comes down to protocols set a bit too stringently and insurance being a bit too overcautious. Honestly, I feel better than ever (apart from the coughing). I've put on 9 pounds the whole pregnancy (3 of which is baby, 2 is placenta, and at least 1 is fluid) and I'm 7 months in. And my body has always been able to handle a little elevated bp when I'm stressed and a little juice or fruit every day. I don't eat fast food, I don't drink soda, I don't eat processed food, I don't eat sugar cereal, I mean, I pretty much follow a natural diet with occasional lapses into something like organic full-fat (but all natural) ice cream.

Sorry, I have to defend myself here because the docs won't always listen. The fact is, I know my body fairly well, and I know what it can handle. And I feel strongly that I am made well to do this childbirth thing. So I have a little extra weight on my hips and middle - that's cushioning the baby and giving her lots of nourishment! I have freakishly strong and flexible legs, even for an overweight person - I can bend in ways the skinny girls in class can't even do, and I can squat with the best of 'em. I really want to squat for birth!

Yeah, I hope this whole thing simmers down. Just let me take care of myself - I'm really quite good at educating myself on this stuff! I'm running into the medicalization of birth and pregnancy and it's tiring. Because I know my body can do this - the longer I'm pregnant the more I realize how perfectly made it is, how ingenius the whole female system truly is. And of course there are people whose systems don't work so well or who cause problems by bad habits. But I don't think I'm one of them. I come from a long line of women who are excellent birthers. We have big ol' hips and strong muscles. And we have a huge pain tolerance. So I have high hopes that I can handle this baby pushing thing on my own.

Speaking of, my sis-in-law pushed out a nearly 9 pounder the other day! Way to go, Shan! So now I have a new niece (Naomi Jean), a new best-friend's-daughter (Mary Rose Maxine), and a new cousin's daughter (is that a second cousin? Or first once removed? Anyway that's Eileen Tokiko). Three new women in the world! What a blessing!!

And we're still waiting to hear that our new nephew, Levi Allyn, has been born. Any day. But I'm especially happy with all the girls. And ours is definitely a girl too - we got a nice clear ultrasound (one of the perks of going to the high risk OB office). And for the first time, I saw a face - I mean, eyes, nose, mouth, cheeks, a real face. It was pretty amazing. Near as I can tell, she has my chubby cheeks (my baby pics look like Winston Churchill), J's pronounced nose, and Angelina Jolie's lips. She's either going to be terrifically cute or freakishly puffy. I'm sure we won't care.

Anyway, I've got to go hack my way through choir soon. I guess in the end all this pregnancy stuff is about producing the healthiest baby possible, so I can submit when I need to (oh, but that's hard for me!). Just hoping that I can be categorized as "healthy"!