Friday, March 7, 2008

Chicks and things

When I was young, one of my treasures was a molded plastic comb in the shape of a seahorse. In my girlish mind, seahorses were at the top of the COOL list along with unicorns, rainbows and holographic stickers. As an adult, the last informative TV program I saw about seahorses left me thinking they were kind of gross.

I’ve been thinking about seahorses lately, but only because the male is the one who bears the offspring. In the middle of my pregnancy with this third child, I glance sidelong at Jason and think…..male pregnancy…..now that would be a good thing. In your best Schwarzenegger accent, think It’s not a tumor.

I know God had a perfect plan in his creation of mankind, but in my human weakness I grasp for total experiential sympathy from the husband. Not that Jason is mocking me, but he looked at me this morning and said with a goofy grin, “Nice overalls.” Smack. Maternity pants are always falling down, needing a constant hitch-up, and when yesterday my thumb mashed through the crotch fabric in my favorite jeans from all the hitching up, this morning I accepted defeat and unearthed the denim overalls from college days. I have also weathered his smirks from rushing to the bathroom for relief from a couple teaspoons of pee.

And the middle-of-the-night angst…a pregnant lady must arise at least once a night to pee. Imagine the agonizing dilemma a simple cold brings. Nasal congestion transforms me into a mouth-breather at night, which completely dries out the oral cavity. Getting a glass of water in the middle of the night guarantees another trip to the bathroom. So I lie awake trying to work up the spit to go back to sleep.

But then there are all the nice things about carrying a baby—a new wardrobe, snacks full of protein, the baby’s kicks and somersaults that are wonderful to feel. Jason has no concept. Because every time you grab his hand for him to feel the baby kick, the baby stops moving, silly thing.

Anywho, in other news, the kids and I took a field trip to Central Farm Supply and picked up a surprise.

The peeping that occurred on the way home was almost too much for the kids to stand. The chicks were placed into a small vented box which was taped shut, and they loudly chirped their confusion. Owen and Helen couldn't wait to get their little hands on those balls of fluff.
The poor chicks wised up to my children after a day. They now run from grabbing hands and don't hesitate to jump from astounding heights to get back to the warmth and safety of the large box in the garage.
And here's one more picture, fresh this morning, proving Owen is not scarred from his fire jammies, although he did protest them loudly last night.

12 comments:

kristinbucher said...

Pregnancy woes! My #1 reason to wait awhile for the next one. But once that baby is out, overnight she goes from newborn to 5 months. Makes me kind of sad.

Kristin

Cottonista said...

Kristin, what!! Don't tell me your newborn baby girl is 5 months already! Can't wait to see y'all.

Anonymous said...

Isn't it fun to visit every bathroom everywhere, especially your own about a zillion times a day? :)

Anonymous said...

hhhmmm birth to 5 mo overnight. . . doesn't sound all bad to me (or at least to 3 mo overnight) :). Blake is fascinated with the pics of Owen & Helen and now wants to know when we can go to Aunt Joyce's to see the chicks :). Jan

Anonymous said...

Oops, I forgot say that I think the basement carpet makes a nice backdrop for Owen and his flamming jammies!!

shaunjoy said...

Shaun heard me laughing at your blog and wanted to know what was so funny. I told him it was pregnancy woes...he didn't think that was very specific. Guess he knows there's a whole range there. :) Love the kids with their little balls of fluff!

Anonymous said...

So, this morning we are having the first ever GCT Easter Egg Hunt! As my Montgomery boss said to me: "Whatever does a Jewish girl know about that?" WEll, that's the truth: NOTHING! So, that leaves Tashia, Lisa, and Kelly to the planning. (I do celebrating well!) So, we will miss you and your gorgeous, precious children with their chicks...Hope I get to see you in your overalls someday soon...Joanne

Cottonista said...

Kris, during the daytime, I'm pretty good about ignoring the urge.

Jan--y'all can come anytime, and play with the chicks and play on the carpet.

Joy--these men have NO idea.

Joanne--maybe you could provide the refreshments--matzo balls and bitter herbs. ( : Sounds like a bunch of fun!

Anonymous said...

Joyce, I remember some of the pregnancy woes, but time does dim them somewhat. Now that my kids are into making grandkids for us, I say better you than me! As for the chicks, I love the photos with the children loving them--so sweet. But I saw the cat outside the patio door. Be careful. Love, Mom

Anonymous said...

Hmmm -- I saw the cat, too. What does that say about me and your mom? Are we just a bit too sadistic?

As for the PJ's -- at least Owen won't have to worry about the boogey man -- I think the poor old monster would be scared away with one look. :) (j/k -- they're quite original, but he looks darling in them.)

As for pregnancy -- at least you're big enough that it looks like a baby belly now -- my husband still has a mean habit of grabbing that extra belly fat you get in the beginning. Not quite sure why God chose to do that to us . . . :)

Unknown said...

Joyce, Please post pictures of that cute baby belly! I almost forgot you were pregnant. I totally agree with the whole pregnancy thing. I really couldn't say it better. :) Esp. the part about going to the bathroom only to pee about 2 tsp. ARGH! Cute baby chick pictures. What fun! And love the pj's...wish I could sew like that.

Cottonista said...

Mom--you're right. Better me than you. There would be no end to the therapy bills our family would rack up if a surprise like that would happen.

Lynette, I had some people this past week finally notice I was pregnant. Guess they just thought I was getting fat up till now!

Heather--thanks for the pj love. I learned sewing from mom and Grandma G. The more you do, the more confident you become.