That was FAST!

Holy cow this week went FAST! All of a sudden it’s Saturday morning and I’m 37+ weeks prego.

Here’s the recap.

• You all know about my doctor’s appointment Monday – but the newer news related to that is:
  • my insurance won’t extend my physical therapy benefit for another month to allow me to see my physical therapist for my pregnancy-related back pain. I’m not sure I really understand how if pregnancy lasts MORE than 60 days, can they restrict the coverage to 60 calendar days of treatment. Additionally, I am allowed either 15 or 30 actual sessions during that 60 days, and I have used like eight. But the good news is that my back only hurts when I sit at a desk hunched over a desk for too long (since I can’t get close enough to rest my arms on my desk because of my ever-expanding girth). Since I’ve been aware of what causes my pain and am careful to pull my keyboard to my lap, etc, I have been feeling pretty good. But still – it pisses me off.
  • My doctor wrote my note for me to be off work; it was supposed to say my last day was Friday, March 13. But she wrote it for “next week”, which to the HR people means Monday March 9. I was thinking I would maybe work part time next week to ease out (since I really feel OK most of the time) but HR says that my doctor would need to re-write the note to be super-specific (like, “patient can work 20 hours” or whatever, which I feel takes the flexibility of “do what I feel I am able to” out of it). My doctor offered to re-write the note but I told her that wouldn’t be necessary. My boss was fine with Friday being my last day and I ended up feeling pretty yucky on Thursday so it’s probably just as well that I am done. I will still be checking emails and helping when I can over the phone (just don’t tell HR…apparently if I work while out on leave, my leave pay stops). So, I am officially on leave – paid and it doesn’t affect my post-partum six or eight weeks I get.
• We had Mallory’s swim class again on Monday night. That girl LOVES.THE.WATER. OMG. I don’t know if I’m just more in tune to her giggles or what, but it seems like all I can hear while sitting on the sidelines during the class is her laughing at whatever Rick is doing with her in the water. She is fearless and loves to jump off the side of the pool into your arms (she is getting much more brave in that she sometimes she’ll even do it without holding Rick’s hands). Rick has been working on getting her to float on her back and she has also started to do a little doggy paddle (while you are holding her, of course). And she is a pro at doing the monkey crawl around the side of the pool. I need to remember the video camera on Monday so I can get some of this on tape since it’s her last class.
• Spring football workouts have started so Rick has had to leave the house at 4.30a Tuesday & Thursday mornings (next week too). So it’s been pretty fun to have him home, but I still have to do morning daycare drop-off. And just because he goes in that early, it doesn’t mean he is home early after work. Argh.
• The weather has gotten rather nice here this week and it has allowed Mallory & me to head out to the backyard to play with Cooper. He is still in love with his Jolly Ball (remember this video from last fall?) and will chase it around the yard for as long as someone is out there with him. We’ve been able to actually use the swingset we got Mallory for her birthday last November – I need to get Rick to teach Mallory how to pump her own legs so I don’t have to stand there and push for hours & hours! But the best is when I come inside and leave Mallory to putter around in her little plastic house while Cooper runs around after his ball. She collects rocks and talks to Cooper and it is really funny. The other day, I heard her at the door and I rushed over there with the towel to catch the dog’s muddy feet and she was standing in the door, with it open, holding the pooper-scooper telling me picked up Cooper’s poop. Nice that she was about to walk into my house with that nasty thing! I wonder how much she’ll like the pooper-scooper when it really is one of her chores? (And there wasn’t any poop to pick up, I did at soon as we got home from school).
• Another thing about the weather – it was like 60-some degrees here yesterday and the kids had no coats or hats or snowpants on at daycare. Mallory was telling me all this and informed me “we no have mittens…it not snowing out”. I think that at two years old, she is too young to know that the snow will be here again before summer arrives, unfortunately!
• And the funnest part of the week! Rick & I got to go see my Coach friend for dinner last night in Detroit. The Blue Jackets are in town to play the Wings so we made plans to get together. I almost didn’t want to bring Rick because Hitch always wants to talk about Michigan football and stuff but it was fine. There were some other dudes there too – one of the TV guys and one of the video guys and a couple of the assistant coaches. It’s so fun to be surrounded by all the “beeeen” (been) and “a-boot” (about) and “O-fence” (offense) and “eh?” – I can’t stand it. But it wasn’t as much fun sipping my O’Douls while everyone else had Labatt. I’m supposed to go to the game with my dad & Mallory tonight but I’m going to have Hitch put the tickets in my dad’s name just in case I don’t feel up to it. Last night was a late night and I was feeling pretty rough at the end of it – I am just afraid to do all that walking and stuff. We’ll see how today goes.

Well, Rick is out doing some crazy adventure race with his buddy today (nice that their team name is “Wife Might be in Labor”) and my sister kept Mallory for us overnight last night (so I could sleep in) but Rick was out the door at 6a this morning and wasn’t super quiet about it (even though he thought he was) so I was up early too. I has been nice to be able to get this long post put up though, without interruption! I am off to do another two quick posts with pictures for your viewing pleasure.