30 Weeks!

Mr. Mustard took this picture of me outside our apartment to mark the 30th week! 10 weeks left until my due date- time is really flying! I was so burned out on studying this morning that I decided to get out of the house for a little bit. We decided to go see Cars, but when we got to the movie theater, it was packed with little kids and their parents who were going to see it, so we opted for the less popular X-Men 3. Of course, Mr. Mustard had already seen it, but he said he didn't mind seeing it again. I thought it was pretty good. The baby loved it, I think. She was very active during the movie, especially during the exciting bits with lots of music.

One of my goals for this week is to get back on a normal sleep schedule. I have not been able to get to sleep, so every night I end up falling asleep around 3:30 a.m. Then, I wake up every half hour to an hour to go to the bathroom. All of this is not good- especially since the Bar starts at 8 a.m., and I have been getting up around 10 every morning (due to going to bed so late). I think I was just made to stay up late, and so it's very natural for me to be awake in the middle of the night.

I've thought about just staying up all night, not going to sleep, and then trying to fall asleep early the next night to re-set my internal clock. That's what I usually do when this sort of thing happens, but being pregnant, I don't want to exhaust myself too much. All the traditional remedies don't work for me (relaxation tapes, tea, milk before bed, white noise makers, etc.)- trust me, I've tried them all multiple times! Things should be easier with Mr. Mustard going back to work on Monday, since he has to be there by 9, so I'll start getting up with him around 7:30 or 8-- which hopefully will do the trick to get me on an earlier schedule.

Well, it's back to studying for me now. It was nice to get out and have a short break from it by going to the movie!

Follow-Up From Doctor

Yea! I got a call this morning from the doctor's office telling me that my bloodwork came back okay and that I don't have to be monitored for gestational diabetes. I am so relieved! The numbers were still at the high end of the "normal" range, so the doctor said I need to eliminate sugar from my diet to the greatest degree possible in order to stay healthy. The numbers were definitely on the high side, so I will follow doctor's orders. It's a bummer because, of course, who doesn't want to eat dessert when they're pregnant?

In other news, my good friend Sarah (who lives in Colorado now) emailed me to say that she took a home pregnancy test yesterday and it came back positive! I'm SO happy for her and her husband, Tim! They are planning on coming out to California in August- and I hope they still plan on coming, even with the pregnancy! She is due Valentine's Day 2007, so she will still be fairly early in her pregnancy in August. I can't wait to see her and watch her progress these next nine months!

Mr. Mustard is finished with the documentary and has had yesterday and today off, before he starts his new job on Monday. Yesterday he took Hauser to the dog park- I am so grateful that he did that. In my advanced state of pregnancy and with my study schedule, I haven't been giving Hauser the exercise he needs- just little walks here and there. At the dog park, he can run around and really get out all of his energy. Mr. Mustard took him to another park this morning and threw the tennis ball with him. So, Hauser should be good and tired when they get back.

Last night I felt a HUGE kick on my right side, which I think was the baby changing positions. It was definitely a big thump and sort of hurt, actually! But, I'm glad I felt it because everytime I do feel movement, it's very reassuring. My next doctor's appointment is on June 23rd, when I'll be 32 weeks. I think they're going to do an ultrasound, which is great because I can see what she's doing in there!

A Call From the Doctor

I just got off the phone with the doctor. My blood test levels came back elevated for Gestational Diabetes, so I have to go in tomorrow for another test. It's a 3 hour test where they draw blood every hour to test how well I am processing glucose. At first I thought the doctor was just being overly cautious, so I asked him what my levels were and then checked them against the other women on my pregnancy board. The "cut-off" maxiumum allowable according to my doctor is 140- which was confirmed by everyone on my board. My levels were 153- which were much higher than most of the other people who had to re-take the test (they were getting 139-145 scores).

So, it's probably just a fluke, but I will go take the test anyway. Gestational Diabetes if undiagnosed and treated can cause a lot of pregnancy complications- including underdeveloped babies, so I need to get it checked out. I'm going to bring my IPod to listen to Bar Lectures, some earplugs, and my study materials so that I can get stuff done while I'm there.

I hope I pass this second glucose test! If I don't then I have to be monitored by my doctor (doc appt. at least once a week), given Non-Stress Tests (NSTs) on a regular basis, take daily readings of my blood sugar, follow a special diet, etc. That would not be fun given my current state of frenzied studying. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

In other news, Mr. Mustard found out yesterday that he got the job he wanted! It starts on Monday and goes through mid-August. He's turning down another show to do it, so I hope he likes it. Also, the Race called yesterday to book him for next season, but he had already accepted the job on the narrative show, so he had to turn them down. Moving from reality to narrative is a big leap- so I'm really happy for him. It's a good career move- and if it doesn't work out, then there's always back to what he's been doing. I'm extremely proud of him!

29 Weeks, 1 Day

Had a good weekend-- but it didn't exactly feel like a weekend. I mostly studied. Yesterday I made the mistake of looking up the California Bar Pass Rates- between 30-45%, if I remember correctly. That's not great odds- but whatever- I'll proceed in the face of it.

Yesterday, Mr. Mustard worked on the doc and went to the set of a show he might be working on. I stayed cool in the apartment- it was sooo hot outside- almost 90 degrees, but it felt hotter.

I woke up feeling horrible this morning- as if to suggest that morning sickness has returned. Mr. Mustard made me a fruit smoothie for breakfast, and I could only keep it down for about half an hour. It was awful.

So, later we went out to Wendy's for lunch- which I was really craving. It was good- lately all I've wanted to eat is protein, protein, protein. This baby is really growing, I think!

Then we drove around and looked at a few Open Houses for houses for sale. Not that we're going to buy anything- but it was something to do. We saw a duplex that we both really liked, but it was pricey ($700,000!!!!).

We're getting tired of where we live- there are some positive things about it (basically the low rent and the location), but 500 square feet is not too much space for two adults, a baby, a 75 pound dog, and a cat! The smallness of the apartment is not such a big deal to me- it's more the fact that there is no opportunity to go outside because there is absolutely no yard- and our building manager has all of his junky fixer-up cars in the parking lot.

It would be nice to be able to go outside and get some fresh air from time to time, especially living in a place with a climate as nice as Los Angeles. I commented to Mr. Mustard this morning that I was tempted to go over to one of our neighbor's houses and sit on their front porch since they're not using it- just get my books, get some lemonade, and make myself comfortable. People are very reluctant to be mean to a pregnant lady- so I could get away with it for the next few months anyway!

Mr. Mustard's show he was going to do on ABC was cancelled- so now he's trying to get something else comparable. He's up for one show that looks really interesting (a narrative), and I really hope he gets it. He wants it really badly. If that doesn't work out, he has talked about the possibility of doing a different show that's on ABC, which would run until next year. Either way, his work on RPS (the Rock Paper Scissors documentary) is coming to an end because they have to send a cut to the Toronto Film Festival soon. I hope it turns out the way he wants it to- he's worked so hard on it for the past few months...I can't wait to see a final cut.

My dad called today, which was really really nice. It was weird because I was just thinking of calling him and then he called me. He's looking forward to his trip to help Hurricane Katrina victims, which he leaves for in two weeks! He's been doing a lot of planning for it, so I hope it turns out well.

My mom emailed me to say that she's definitely coming out in August! I'm very excited!!! I have lots of fun things planned for us to do while she's here- it will be great to see her and spend my last few days of life before baby with my mom- we can do all the last minute shopping and stuff like that. I'll be finished with the Bar by then, so it's perfect timing. I'm really excited about it.

I realized today that I haven't taken any pregnancy pictures in awhile- so I did these myself with a timer- (Mr. Mustard is off working on the doc). They're not the best pictures, but they'll do to show how big I'm getting. I've been thinking of getting professional pregnancy pictures done (they're apparently all the rage), but don't really know where to go and don't have the time right now to research a photographer, etc., since studying is taking up all of my time outside of sleeping, eating, showering, and occasionally walking Hauser. So, maybe at some point in the future I can have Mr. Mustard take some really good pictures somewhere other than our bedroom or our apartment.

Oh- I'm also including pictures of the breakfast nook, which will probably be the baby's room until we can manage to move. I obviously haven't started decorating it yet. My brother Robbie suggested a "kitchen theme" for the decor, which I thought was appropriate. I'm not sure what I will do yet- probably a pink theme- Mr. Mustard wants something science-based, I think. We'll see. In any event, the dog and cat food will have to be moved elsewhere, as will our dining table. But, I'm not going to worry about all of that yet.

So, back to studying for me. Well, actually, I have to feed Hauser and then take him for a walk- then back to studying...

More About Cameron!

Ann sent me a bunch of pictures yesterday of Cameron- he is so PERFECT! He has the most impressive head of hair!

It's interesting to think that this baby growing inside me might have hair, too. I don't know why that's so shocking to me, but it just seems so incredible.

I'm still stuck studying. I'm meeting with Jessica later today to review Property Multi-State questions. It's been about a month since she's seen me, so I bet she's going to be surprised at how much bigger I've gotten!

Mr. Mustard went and saw the new X-Men movie last night with his friend Dave- I stayed home and studied a bit. I was bummed about not going, but Mr. Mustard wasn't too thrilled about the movie, so I didn't feel so bad. Mr. Mustard is a huge fan of the first two movies- so I think he came in with high expectations for X3.

I'm getting so excited for these last two months of pregnancy. Seeing Cameron makes everything seem so much more real! Well, I actually still have 2 and half months left-- and I'm just going to try to enjoy them. Yes, my feet are swollen, my ankles are huge, and everything is uncomfortable- but this is such a special time of life. I really don't want to waste it thinking about the future. Seeing these pictures makes me excited for the birth of our little girl!