32 Weeks: Demolition and Creation

As we near one of the biggest possible upheavals in our lives, we're surrounding ourselves with plenty of other commotion. As Mike mentioned, he's in the process of ripping all of the flooring out of our entire first floor, the stairs up to the second floor, and the second floor landing. All of that will soon be hardwood. Ever since we moved into the house over a year and a half ago, we'd been saying that the carpet and tile that covered all of this area needed to go. All of it was original to the house (and therefore, 15 years old), well-worn, and harboring its fair share of grime, dust, and who knows what else. However, given that all we ever did was walk on the floor, it wasn't near the top of our priority list. Thinking about a baby crawling around on these floors, though, well that was a different story. We finally had the reason we needed to go ahead and replace it all. Needless to say, this is a huge project. Our house has been torn apart for two weeks now, and I think it will be several more until all is said and done. The ultimate deadline is the arrival of the baby, but Mike's hoping to finish before then. However, with all the holiday festivities over the next few weekends, his work time is being limited. So far, the new flooring has been laid in the main hallway on the first floor, the dining room, and the kitchen. It looks fabulous -- so clean and bright! -- thanks to the hard work of Mike, his dad, and his brother, Rob. Currently, the carpet is ripped up from half of our living room and plywood is being laid down on top of the subfloor to bring it to the same level as the kitchen floor. As soon as that is done, they'll be onward and upward, literally, as they take on the stairs.

While Mike tackles floors, I've been tackling the nursery. It's really starting to look like a real bedroom. The laundry machine has been working overtime getting all of the sheets ready for the crib, towels and wash cloths ready for cleaning, and so on. It's exciting seeing everything come together and be able to envision a little baby in there soon.

Another big thing we're in the midst of now is our childbirth education class. We had our first class this past Monday and will continue every Monday night for the next several weeks. It's a small class - only us and two other couples - so we get to ask plenty of questions and really get the information we want. Mike was not looking forward to the classes at all, but after the first one, he was so excited. We learned the first signs of labor and the entire labor process on Monday night, and he came out ready to tackle the beast. It's very fun to watch his excitement, and I'm sure it will be invaluable once the big day comes. One thing the instructor talked about was the role of music in labor and ensuring that you have good music to help you through the process. I'm not a huge music person; I don't own an iPod or even very many CDs. I enjoy music, but it's not something that consumes me. So I had to stop and think about what music I would want in the birthing room to help calm and focus me. I'm thinking something acoustic and smooth - perhaps like a John Mayer or Norah Jones. But I'm curious and open to ideas -- what would you recommend?

And so we find ourselves having completed 32 weeks of this pregnancy and working our well steadily through the 33rd week. This week, the baby is about 4 1/2 pounds, or about the size of a large jicama. (Does anyone actually know what that is??) He has real fingernails, toenails, and hair, and his skin is becoming soft as he plumps up and packs on the pounds. I'm feeling good, overall. I'm starting to get tired again more easily and, conveniently, am finding it more difficult to sleep due to having problems getting comfortable, the dry air that makes it hard to breathe, and the frequent need to visit the bathroom. However, for the most part, I still feel great and am enjoying all the little twists and turns of this exciting journey!