Interrupted

My Life Thus Far
2008-05-14 08:08:52 (UTC)

Life Before Sciatica

*****

Somehow I just accidentally deleted the entry I just
finished writing! I hit the wrong button and it was
gone... If I hadn't had such a good day, I'd be really
pissed off right now.

I had a hard time getting started, but once I did, I got a
lot done and I feel very pleased with my progress. All of
the baby stuff that had congregated in my kitchen is now
in it's designated rooms. Physically, I'm feeling pretty
damn good all things considered. Even after moving a
bookcase (albeit a small one) and lugging around baskets
of laundry, I'm not in too much pain. Just the occasional
twinge of sciatica. The sad thing is, I don't remember
life before sciatica. It's a constant for me right now.

At the moment, one of my main priorities is finishing up
my bedroom. It needs a good dusting and I have to find a
place for Snookums stereo. It used to live on the
bookcase, but I moved that to the living room to make room
for the bassinet. I should finish my bedroom tonight.
There isn't much left to be done.

Tomorrow or Friday (Thursday is booked solid with two
doctor's appointments and a shopping trip) I'll finish
packing my hospital bag and the diaper bag. I've got a few
of the items assembled, but I'm in the process of doing
laundry and some things have yet to be washed. Friday is
looking more promising.

I've still got the nursery to tackle, but I'm not too
worried about that. The baby won't be in there for a few
months yet (until he's sleeping through the night
consistently). So, I've got time. I need to get rid of
Kiki's too small clothes and girly crib sheets, blankets
and bumpers. They're taking up needed space and we won't
be using them again.

My breast pump is of the utmost importance right now as
well. It's been in storage for the past couple of years
and needs a good cleaning. The bag is covered in dirt and
it needs to be sterilized. I thought I was going to have
to sit down and take inventory of replacement parts I'd
need, but I got a pleasant surprise! For some strange
reason, these past 3 years I've had my Medela Lactina pump
up in a kitchen cabinet. It's a manual double pump, but I
only used it once because I bought the Pump In Style
Advanced (the best $350 I've ever spent), which is
electric and much more efficient. Well, today out of
curiosity I took it down and started playing with it's
parts. Turns out EVERYTHING is compatible with my electric
pump! The breast shields, the valves and rubber membranes
and most importantly THE TUBING! I thought I was going to
have to go to Farrell's (medical supply store) and replace
everything (which was going to be expensive, let me tell
you), but now I don't have to! I even found a stock pile
of milk storage bags (Gen gave me a bunch, too. So, I'm
set with those) and the finger-feeding tube I used with
Kiki when she couldn't figure out how to latch on. I'm so
set! Even if I hadn't gotten so much done today, this
discovery alone would have made my day! I might have to
replace the battery pack, but that's it. It got put away
with old batteries in it and they leaked. I've still got
the AC adapter, which was what I used most of the time
anyway. I liked the battery pack because when I needed to
pump in public I didn't have to look for a private
electrical outlet. This time I'm going to keep my fingers
crossed that the baby will latch on and nurse well and I
won't have to depend on my pump. It's still prudent to
have it ready though, just in case.

Okay. I need to go finish my room so I can go to bed. It's
already after 1am. I'll be glad when this baby is born so
I can get some sleep. I know that sounds backwards, but I
get more sleep with a newborn than I get in the 3rd
trimester. My comfort level has everything to do with it.
It's next to impossible for me to get comfortable right
now, so why bother? Ciao!




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