SuperOva

A cheap but charming NYC lesbian mom muses about muses about consumerism and wanting the good life, without having to pay top dollar for it. (Oh, and with some random ramblings about her own extended family, parenting toddlers, the NYC school system, fashion, Lindsay Lohan, and other fun stuff.)

Thursday, May 31, 2007

38 Weeks


Hi everyone! Two weeks left til my due date! Today at my yoga class, my (new) teacher called me out, and said, "Isn't she amazing?" I guess because I'm still exercising at 2 weeks from my due date. I told her yoga was what had gotten me through my pregnancy, in fact!

I'm thinking about Lindsay Lohan and sending positive vibes that she gets it together. But can we talk about how she reportedly called her BFF Samantha Ronson a "fucking lesbian!" That reeks of a relationship that turns sexual when they're coked up and drunk. Linds, it's OK. Samantha Ronson IS cool. And cute. And if you're dealing with some internal homophobia, well, we've all been there.

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Braxton Hicks contractions

So, this week we're at 38 weeks, and I believe I had my first early contractions last night. I walked about 30 blocks in the morning and lifted weights at lunch, and while we were watching our Netflix, I felt these sharp jolts of discomfort from my lower pelvis through my vagina. They continued on and off for about an hour, and they weren't painful, exactly, but jarring. They sort of stopped my breath altogether. Jen, my work friend, says this is probably the beginning of my cervix opening up. I guess we'll find out on Friday, at my next visit.

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

37 Wks, at the Beach

We went to Stone Harbor for Memorial Day weekend. Had great weather. I got a lot of gawking looks on the beach--some scared, some supportive. One woman said, "You look ADORABLE!" over and over again.

Still not dilated at all, says Dr. D, and practicing my perineal massage every day, for at least a minute at a time.

Am inheriting a breast pump from Liz's friend Sue, who loaned it to her friend who is a VP in investment banking at JP Morgan. I am sending a messenger to have it picked up tomorrow from her doorman. Is that NYC, or what?

Thursday, May 24, 2007

A Lesbian Shower

Our friends Liz and Jessica threw us a surprise lesbian shower! Jess' and Liz's friends from Jess' basketball team, this fun group of lesbians, all came to Liz and Jess' beautiful backyard in Manhattan to shower us. They all brought gifts, and Jess created some really funny games: we played Pin the Sperm on the Vaginal Canal. Jess and her friends cut out celebrity men's faces and glued them to sperm tails. Then they created a poster with pics of Ingrid and me, with text that read "Who's Your Daddy?" and a little circle at the bottom of the poster. We were each blindfolded and spun around, and we had to pin a celebrity sperm on the poster, and whomever got closest to the hole (the vaginal canal) wins the prize. The celebrity who won was David Hasselhoff! Jessica also made a pinata shaped like a belly that we all hit at with a juggling pin. We had a great time that day and got some really cute new presents, including a onesie that says "Nobody puts Baby in the corner." Thanks, Liz and Jess!

Saturday, May 19, 2007

36 Wks Pictures


To the random pregnant woman who posted on my blog, who is also a patient of Dr. Dodson and Margano, thank you! Good luck with your pregnancy and your delivery! Do you live in Brooklyn, and can we have play dates?

Last night I guess I had anxiety dreams. I dreamt that Melissa, who is going to replace me on maternity leave, was also pregnant. We were in a big Jeep together with some other pregnant women, all patients of Dr. Dodson, who was driving us, and our lab tests, somewhere for processing. I asked Dodson when Melissa is due, and she said, sometime in July. I freaked out cuz that meant Melissa wouldn't be able to do my maternity leave. I started thinking about other options, and then I woke up. Melissa isn't really pregnant. I don't think Dodson has a jeep. Ingrid thinks I have Mommy issues with Dodson, that I want her approval/want her to like me. That's probably true.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

36 Week Doctor Visit

Well, we are officially at NINE MONTHS of pregnancy! Saw Dr. Dodson today, and we got hooked up to a fetal monitor to test the baby's heartrate and movement, which were both good. We got a sonogram, to test the levels of amniotic fluid, which were good. The sonographer says the baby's head is down, and she's facing my back, which is the right position for a vaginal birth. So we're getting there! Dodson also did a cervical exam and says my cervix is still closed, which means I am not at all dilated and not close to labor yet. She also told me that she thinks I should stay closer to home than the Jersey Shore after Memorial Day, in case I go into early labor. That means no Jersey Shore the weekends btw June 1 and June 15--I'm bummed. Stuck in the city! Not so bad though.

We saw the movie Waitress over the weekend and loved it. It's about a woman who gets pregnant and is very conflicted about it, and is very lonely. See it.

Monday, May 14, 2007

What Is Perineal Massage?

Ok. My mother-in-law and mother both will be horrified by this entry. It's kinda Our Bodies, Ourselves. Basically, I've heard about perineal massage from different doulas, and from our childbirth educator (also a doula), and I just last night read about it in a book Duffy loaned me, called Hypnobirthing. This book is like super hippie-dippie, but I kind of like it. (Thanks Duffy!) The book is about how to visualize and breathe through your pain, using self-hypnosis techniques.

So, perineal massage (http://www.childbirth.org/articles/massage.html) is basically when you or a partner stick their fingers into your perineum--the area between your vagina and your anus--to stretch and massage that tight skin, in order to help relax/open it more to make the pushing out of the fetus easier. Everyone who is doula-minded or natural-childbirth-minded at all recommends doing this. I forgot all about it until I read it last night. I was very sore in the hips so I took a bath and read the hypnobirthing book and was reminded of the perineal massage. So I got out some oil and lubed up my thumbs and put them inside the bottom of my vagina. Far from being pleasurable, as I thought it might be, it was uncomfortable--WAY uncomfortable. All the books and the doulas say that it gets easier as the skin stretches. I did it this morning again, and lo and behold, it was easier!

Will report back in a month as to whether this helped or not....

Friday, May 11, 2007

35 Weeks


Are my boobs starting to really sag? This picture might not be very lovely, but here it is, people! I've gained 26 lbs, which Dr. Dodson says is a good gain, and I'm measuring just right in terms of belly circumference.

Meanwhile, our tenant has new leaks in her apartment after last night's rains. Brilliant. Don't buy a brownstone, people.

Thursday, May 10, 2007

The Breast Whisperer

A woman who freelances for Little Brown Book, the magazine I edit, had a baby about four months ago. I talked to her for the first time today and she told me in no uncertain terms that breastfeeding is hell. She said her baby didn't latch on, and when he did, it was only on one side, and the other nipple was cracked and bleeding, and that at times her baby was spitting up blood. She said she's had friends for whom it was really easy, but that it was so tough for her. She and her husband hired a lactation consultant who came to their apartment, and they call her "The Breast Whisperer." She saved their sanity. She gave me her contact info, just in case.

Ignorant Comment of the Day

So this was a good one. I saw a man who works in my building, who has always been very friendly with me, on the way out today. He saw me, and he said, "Wow! Congratulations!" I guess I haven't seen him since I've been showing. He said, "I didn't know you were married."

"I'm not," I said, confused. "I'm partnered," I quickly said. "But last I checked, you don't have to be married to have a baby."

He was obviously flummoxed and didn't know what to say. I tried to make the moment less awkward, by saying, "You really meant to say that you thought I was too young to be a mom, right?" And he said, "No, I just didn't see a ring."

"Wow, you're old school," I said. I wasn't hostile, but really wanted to say, "Last I checked, this was the year 2007. Not sure what planet you're living on, but welcome to this one."

Meanwhile, I thought I saw Michelle Williams on the walk home; she lives in the nabe. I have seen this woman before, and if it isn't Michelle, it's her blonder, prettier (is that possible?) doppelganger. This one has a big fluffy Siberian husky-esque dog, and is skinny and beautiful. Michelle, where are you?

Friday, May 04, 2007

34 Weeks



Eight and a half months! Ing says I'm getting big. A woman came up to me at the gym this week, after we were in spin class together, and said, "Excuse me, but I'm pregnant, 3 months, and I saw you, and I wanted to ask you about working out while pregnant because I don't know anyone pregnant who works out." HUH? I told her to check out Fit Pregnancy magazine, and babycenter.com and urbanbaby.com, and that there are tons of resources online about exercise and pregnancy. I told about my workout regimen during pregnancy and she seemed relieved, but totally lost. I was surprised.

These are some toys--and the cookie party favors Ilka got for our NYC shower--that are in the nursery right now. Beautiful stuffed animals from different local Brooklyn toy stores. This weekend is the last shower, in Stone Harbor. Finally, the weather is making it feel like spring. No rain and storms.