Christmas "Peared" Back

BJ and the kids got the tree up and decorated tonight. I say "BJ and the kids" because I had no part in it this year. I'm trying really hard to keep a positive outlook on life, but it's getting increasingly hard right now. I'm very grateful for how God has blessed my life. It just seems like sometimes I have to share my burdens so that I can move on.

I just visited my OB this afternoon after having a week of unbearable back pains. I've never had back pains like this in my life. They are almost debilitating. After the nurse practitioner checked and ruled out a bladder and/or kidney infection, early labor signs, and pelvic inflammation, her conclusion was that my hips are separating, the baby is laying really low since this is my third pregnancy, and I'm experiencing lower lumbar strain. In addition, I'm not resting enough or drinking enough fluids.

I left the appointment this evening with no helpful tips or meds. Instead my prescription was to take a spa day, find someone else to lift my 18-month old, and drink no less than 8 ounces of water/fluid per day to help Baby Three float a little better. The nurse said I looked "dried out." I admit my skin looks a little flaky, but whose doesn't this time of year with the cold and wind? But then she explained that she wasn't talking about my dry, flaky skin. Rather she was referring to how my veins and lips looked. I have to admit, I've been neglecting the fluid intake recently. When I thought back on my day, I had only drank half a cup of coffee in the morning and a few sips of water during the day. It was already 5 p.m. and I'd only had about 5 ounces of fluids. I started feeling like a very negligent pregnant woman. How could I neglect my own body, and therefore neglect the very dependent growing fetus?!

After the appointment I then realized I may have to deal with this back pain for the remainder of the pregnancy - about 4 more months. I vowed from then on to drink more water, let BJ do as much around the house as he wants without me feeling guilty while watching from the couch, and to not stress out over getting the Christmas tree decorated or cookies baked, which I can't eat anyway. Which brings me to another point...I'm still able to control my gestational diabetes with diet right now. The few times I splurged and ate small amounts of dessert, my glucose levels were elevated. Dr. B reviewed my glucose readings today and instructed me to start sticking my finger 4 times per day instead of just 2 because of those darn elevated readings. So I guess I'll have to refrain from any sweets for the remainder of the holidays. That has been tough because everyone has given us chocolate in all shapes and forms. It all looks so yummy and enticing. But for the sake of Baby Three, no desserts for me!

The tree turned out just lovely this evening even though we didn't use all the ornaments and decorations I would normally use. We opted to hang only unbreakable ornaments so that the kids could help and so that they could touch the tree without Mommy wanting to chop off their arms. Turns out that the tree is covered in nothing more than plastic apples and pears. I guess you could call it our "peared" back Christmas 2008.

P.S. And, Schaeffer has had a fever the past two days. He has definitely wanted me to pick him up and hold him a lot more this week. I'm sure that's not helping my lower lumbar strain one tiny bit.