Week 38: I have stretch marks!

Waist: 43" Oh, my God!
Weight: 145 lbs

Cravings: Egg salad sandwiches, soup, Chinese food, french fries, Doug's famous scones, milk, chocolate

This week I've been trying to wrap up all of my obligations at the studio and I've done pretty well. I was able to get the marketing plan and materials done for the next few months and and take care of some burning issues because Rachele has to handle the business for the next six weeks.

At home however, I'm not at successful. The place is a mess and I just don't have the energy to clean or organize things. Although I have started to do some cleaning while Finn is occupied. For example: while he's in the tub, I cleaned the bathroom. While he's eating, I managed to straighten up the dining room and clean up the living room.
As for the kitchen, well I do the best that I can. I'm so used to having everything clean that it's hard to walk past the dust bunnies and crumb covered countertops. Forget about vacuuming! Out of the question. As much as I love to clean the carpets, they will remain in their current state for a while.

Maternity photos: We all went to the studio to have our family portrait done and my maternity photos before we have one more little one. The session went pretty much like any other family I worked with. I was a little bit stressed about the way I looked and Doug was busy chasing the highly energetic Finnegan around the studio. And I thought my family would be different! Hah! It's nice to know that we are just like everyone else.

It was a good experience for me to be on the other side of the camera for such an important photo session because it put me in the shoes of my clients. Rachele made us feel very comfortable and she was very patient with us. The photos turned out great. I of course think that I look really huge! Which I am, but the images really are beautiful. There are some really great ones of Doug and Finn playing. I just love them.

Mobility: With the aid of the pain patches my life has changed dramatically. I no longer have to crawl around the house and I can actually get things done. Thank goodness for modern medicine. I am very slow and it's hard to roll over in bed or to find a comfortable position while sitting, but we are almost at the end.

Stretch marks: Just when I thought that I would escape this terrible over stretching of the skin, I noticed stretch marks on my belly. It was quite upsetting and I immediately told Doug that I was going on strike. No more strenuous activities until after the baby is born.

Stretch marks happen to just about everyone and mine aren't too bad. I just won't be able to compete in any bikini competitions, but they're over rated anyway. I'll just look at them as my badge of honor for being able to have another wonderful child in my life.