the tortoise and the hare

Yesterday and today I made some progress toward preparing for baby, but I still feel like I'm in a race against time. In this race, I'm the tortoise (slow, prodding, big) and time (and the baby, of course) is the hare. Who will win? Mommy-to-be, who's trying to get the house ready in time for baby, or baby and time, who are supposed to take about three weeks from tomorrow to finish the race but could finish early or late? We'll see!

Yesterday I finally finished cleaning our bigger (and less frequently used) bathroom and making room for baby in it. This sounds like a small task, but with six drawers and two under-the-sink cupboards--half of which hadn't been touched/sorted through in the last twelve years (Al's)--it took a while. Of course, this also had something to do with the forty-some-pound puppy laying down behind my feet and tripping me up every time I turned around and the slow movements my body and brain make these days. But I managed to make room for baby's bathtub and accessories and baby's bathing products with room to spare as supplies grow. I even made room in the linen closet for baby's washcloths (plentiful) and towels (two). And then cleaned the gargantuan mirrors (the walls behind and beside the sinks are covered with them, ceiling to countertop), the counters and sinks, the toilet, and the floors (they were covered with dog hair). The only thing I didn't tackle was the bathtub, since it's a bit hard for me to bend over or sit on my knees these days. It took me all morning, but I felt accomplished. My small goal for the day was done. (Good thing, too, because between that and physical therapy, it wiped me out.)

Today I accomplished a few other small goals: I did some laundry, even carrying the baskets up and down the stairs by myself (it's hard because my belly is in the way; I either have to carry the basket at shoulder level so I fit down the stairs or be very, very uncomfortable and keep my arms extended enough so the basket doesn't bump against my belly, which is becoming more and more sensitive to the touch these days). I also put the second poly coat on the trim (yeah, I'm behind my original goals on this) and the first coat of stain/poly on the few pieces of the changing table that Al has sanded and on the unfinished hamper for which we registered. I started in on the kitchen (cleaning, getting rid of the piles and piles of stuff that are driving me crazy), but realized that I hadn't taken enough small sit down, put my feet up and nap breaks during the day when my back and legs started aching. I ended up sitting in the recliner with a heating pad on my back by the time Al came home and had to instruct him in preparing dinner (tacos). He did pretty good, chopping the lettuce and tomatoes nicely, browning the meat, and only adding one extra cup of water to the meat when he added the taco seasoning (Al: I don't think this water is ever going to go away. Me, knowing he used the glass measure: Did you only put 2/3 cup in, or did you add 1 2/3 cup? Al, looking at the glass measure and laughing: Oops. 1 2/3.)

After dinner, Al got on a cleaning kick too, making me feel bad for sitting around: needing to take out the garbage, he also broke down the big boxes we've managed to accumulate (at least the opened ones) and then got out the vacuum and vacuumed the entire house (nice, since the dog hair was everywhere and has been on my to-do list for days). He got a bit touchy when I asked him to get the sheets down (I can't reach them) and help me make the bed (the mattress rests inside the bedframe, making it difficult for me to put on the fitted sheet since you have to lift the mattress to do so) and I pointed out that he was putting the fitted sheet on inside out. Other than that, it was a fast and pleasant evening. I'm going to bed feeling tired, sore, yet accomplished. Another day gone and--wow--baby is approaching fast.