Snow, snow, flu..

It's been a while, so i thought we'd give an update until our prenatal next week. We are in the middle of one crazy winter up here in NE. We're having roughly one snowstorm a week, and even weeks with 2-3 storms. I'm getting used to it (doesn't mean i like it!), and it feels like it will be this way forever with this immense snow. We are 27 weeks now - one week shy of our "safe" zone. I'm in bed with the dreaded flu, but so grateful to my family for helping out so much. Feels good to eat again, for the sake of the baby, i was feeling bad for him. He is still breech, kicking so hard and low, and punching and flipping all the time. At least the break from food hasn't affected his activity!

I've been in some major discomfort and even pain with my hips separating - it is the strangest sensation. It is really impacting my sleep to the point where i am tossing from each side every few minutes all night (probably why i got sick). They ache and pop in my sleep and there is no way to get comfortable. I'm thinking of wearing one of those sexy pregnancy hip braces, hopefully not the ones that go all the way up the body and cross over the shoulders and then go down and cross over the butt like a jock strap! Anyone seen those? There are simpler ones i'd be willing to wear, and hopefully would help. I am desperate at this point.

We've been thinking more about the birth lately. We're going to plan for a natural birth again, but this time in a hospital, one of the biggest in the country at that, Brigham and Women's. We've begun Hypnobirthing classes which will allow Greg to be my support person, which we're excited about-it will be a twist on the homebirth. I have some apprehension about birthing naturally in a hospital setting, with all the potential for interventions, all the nurses, the environment, etc. But i'm confident that I will be prepared and do my best to have a good experience. I have some stuff to work through with Mim's birth, since it was more painful than i expected. But i believe that that just means i can learn from it and I also know that every birth is different. We also had a lot of stress in our lives before that we don't have now, me finishing school and us just moving days before M's birth. I think stress plays a huge role in childbirth, and therefore the lack of it too.

Otherwise, everyone's doing well here. I'm still working and getting new patients but the desire is definitely waning, at least for work that requires me to leave the house. The kids are great and both healthy for now. Mims is really looking forward to holding our baby and showing him her little babies. It will be something to see how she responds to the real thing. Noah's birthday is coming up so we're going to have a party and then he will leave for a week with his dad. Greg is still the biggest trooper, maintaining his high needs job and coming home to his high needs family everyday. He comes home to dinner and Mirabel singing and dancing the Wizard of Oz (she's obsessed with it, a little dorothy), doing the princess dance, and playing Yugioh cards, baths, cozy time with books, and bed...ahhh.