Next stop....Sioux Falls!

Nope, the travelling does not stop here folks! In just 3 short days I will be on a plane to visit my grad school bff (also a former BM) and her DH and my God child. This time my DH will be travelling with me so that will be fun (and also handy, for getting the carry-on in and out of the overhead bin). I am bringing a doctors note with me for this one just in case. You never know and I want to make sure I get on! Plus it was super easy to get the note - they pretty much have these forms all ready to go and they just fill in your due date and check the box that says you are fit for travelling. My doctor also mentioned that I should walk around at least once during the flight and take a baby asprin before to prevent any deep vein thrombosis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_vein_thrombosis). Not that it's likely, but just to be extra safe (hello, why didn't anyone tell me this when I flew to India? That gave me swelling that didn't go down for days).

Speaking of swelling, my swollen feet are pretty much my only remaining pregnancy symptom (I mean, annoying symptom. Obviously I've got this persistent kicking in my uterus) and since I figured I probably couldn't get away with teaching in flip flops (my first day back is on Wednesday!) I decided to invest in some flat foot wear. For those of you that haven't worked with me, this is a big step. I have never worn flats to teach in. But my swollen feet are not fitting so well in my cute teaching heels so...off to Nordstrum's rack I went this weekend and purchased 4 pairs of shoes! They are awesome. None of them are green however so I forsee another shoe purchase in my future. We also went to IKEA and the container store and invested in some major re-organizing projects. I would call this the "nesting" instinct kicking in but since it's all been headed by my DH I don't know what to call it (do men get that instinct??). But I love things to be organized so I am on board. It's mostly been restricted to re-organizing our laundry system and the cabinets in our bathroom (which are all being places into labelled bins/baskets, rather than randomly stored on a shelf).

Also, I think we have found a doula (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doula)! The one I had originally interviewed was great but had no experience doing hospital births so I ended up getting a recommendation for another doula. This one has been to over 100 births and has even worked with clients who have gone to my clinic (I guess if you have been to over 100 births in Tucson you probably know all the doctors) so she knows how each doctor works (and hopefully, they will recognize and have more trust with her). Basically, I would really like to try for a natural childbirth (aka, no IVs, no continuous fetal heart rate monitoring, no forceps/vacuums/episiotomy's, and no pain meds). This is all in hopes that I will avoide a c-section. A doula is there for help with pain management/relaxation but also to help be your advocate with the doctors and nurses. All for the low low fee of $600. Seriously though, I think it is a good deal considering the training they help you with before and after (with breastfeeding, etc.) which doesn't even include the actual labor itself. My DH and I went to a preparation for labor class on Saturday at one of the yoga studio's I go to and it was really good. It really helped increase my confidence that I can actually do this. We'll see of course (I mean, if I feel like I'm dying I'm getting the drugs!) but I feel like I at least have the tools I need to have a natural childbirth if I want one.