Staying sane while waiting for baby

I'm pretty confident I'm not the expert on sanity, as anyone who knows me would agree! But as I've reached the "waiting" stage of pregnancy, I think it's helpful to A) remind myself how I'm going to stay sane, and B) share these things with others who may be encountering the same feelings now or in the future.

(Note: my definition of the "waiting" stage is where baby is formed and mostly ready, no new exciting developments can be pinpointed, and really you're just finally to the point where you've been slightly uncomfortable for long enough that you're pretty much ready to be done being pregnant!)

I start my day at the same time, in the same way every week day. Having this morning routine has helped me feel a little more in control of a time that my body and emotions feel out of my control. I've never been a morning person or one to have a regular time to wake up, especially before 7 AM, but this is a habit I plan to keep around. I'm also pretending that me having a really regular sleep-wake cycle will rub off on Rhett, and he'll be a dream baby who sleeps through the night at 6 weeks old! A girl can dream, right?

I focus on one task at a time. For a while, I was making a list of all the things I wanted to do that day. Don't judge, I'm a list person. It would read something like: swiffer, vacuum stairs, laundry, empty dishwasher, etc, etc. While the things that need to get done around the house are a revolving door, jotting down which ones I planned to do that day felt good at first. But then writing those things down day after day started to make them feel so monotonous. Cause they are. But now, just tackling things as I see them feels much more manageable. If I have a day where baby is literally kicking the crap out of me, I'm uncomfortable, I'm super fatigued, I'm achy... I don't feel guilty for having this daunting list at the end of the day that I did nothing on. I still feel on top of the household, but I don't feel burdened by it.

I get out of the house. This is huge. Yeah, yeah, I'm living a blessed life where I'm not working, but people. We are in a new town where we don't know anyone, and there is truly very little to do. I'm a penny-pincher, especially now, so I can't exactly head out and go on shopping sprees, but I do try to go be a part of the world a little each day. This has been really important for me, because I go stir crazy being cooped up. I just don't usually realize it until I'm an emotional wreck!

I've accepted that every little twitch and ache is not labor. This sounds a little silly, because I'm not yet 37 weeks even, but I can absolutely understand how women end up going to the hospital five different times for false alarms. Is it contractions? Or just more Braxton Hicks? You (or maybe just me) read so much during this marathon about What To Expect and what signs to watch out for and all seriously endless things about what's normal and what constitutes a call to the doc, and it just made me a little crazy. Because what I've come to realize is there is no "normal"! Every pregnancy is a freaking snowflake, and ya can't really compare them. Oh, the movies will tell you your water breaking will be first and obviously you're in labor. Well, that's a lie cause that only happens to like 15% of women. And of those, most aren't even a big gush, but a small trickle, so good luck telling if your water broke or if you're just peeing your pants. Again. (Kidding.. Maybe.) But this week, I've had to accept that the weekly doctors' appointments are just a formality. Labor is likely not going to start with me in the doctors' office, so I'm getting cozy. I'm attempting to ignore every little thing that I could possibly stress over and Google, and when I finally reach a point that I can't ignore whatever symptom I'm experiencing, that's probably labor. Cool. Then it'll be go time.

I do something good for my body every day. Most days are not run days lately, obviously. My fitness is on a very natural decline as my body struggles to keep up with the energy demands of carrying this tiny person and lugging my big ole belly around. But that's not to say I'm not doing everything I can to keep it feeling good. Sometimes all I manage is a walk around our complex; other days I knock out a circuit with weights or bodyweight stuff with stretching. Sometimes, movement just isn't in the cards, and I'm a veggie queen with all the nutrient dense foods and such. But whatever it is that I do for my body, I wouldn't be doing it any favors to let myself go. Pregnancy is not an excuse to be lazy or eat a bunch of crap. If anything, I see this time as even more important for fitness and nutrition because I have the huge responsibility of nourishing another person. No one else can eat or drink water or exercise for Rhett right now, so eating the entire box of donuts that I would love to devour would be a little selfish. Those donuts won't build a healthy baby, or a healthy mom for that matter. On the other hand...

I don't stress about "cheats." I don't even like calling desserts and sweets and junk "cheats" anymore, because I really don't like assigning guilt to foods. We harbor enough guilt in this world, and it gets really dangerous when we feel that way about food. So while I am an advocate of a really healthy diet for baby, I'm also a fan of indulgence every now and then. We've gotten to this place ofeverything in moderation, but we don't actually understand what moderation is. Moderation is NOT an every day occurrence. It's not a bite here and a scoop there, because chances are, those things are adding up to a much higher percentage of your diet than you realize. So I've gone with a resist until you really really want it approach. This would absolutely not work for everybody, because a lot of folks would say "but I do really really want it." Most people think they have a relatively healthy diet. Ask anyone who is trying to lose weight and is frustrated, and 9 times out of 10, they'll say something like "but I eat pretty good." This is tricky, cause that typically turns out to not really be the case. I'm pretty good about putting emotions aside and not diving into the first sweet thing I see every time I see it. Most days of the week, I WANT froyo or a milkshake or cheesecake or donuts, but I'm pretty dang good at passing those up. So when this weekend rolls around and there are chances to relax and enjoy family time and beach dwelling and meals out, I won't feel guilty about letting loose and not having my bell peppers and almonds and dates and protein shake, because I'll be right back to having mostly those healthy foods the next day or so.

I may find it's much easier to feel sane about waiting around for this baby to make his unscheduled appearance now nearing the 37 week mark, as compared to how I may feel if he goes 40+ weeks. So we'll see just how long this sanity lasts!