I Ate Chocolate Cake.

I had another shot of terb today. Terb terb terb terb terb. Ugh.
However, today was relatively uneventful. My morning monitoring went well despite having a few contractions and my guppy's heart beat didn't drop during them, which made me feel a ton better. I ended up having the same nurse I had my first day which made me very happy, along with the student nurse that gave me my first steroid shot. She's in the USF nursing program, so naturally she's awesome. Lol ;) I complimented her on her injection-giving skills because I had no lingering pain or soreness from that injection. The nurse, who was an RN with lots of experience, who gave me my second shot the next day ended up injecting it waaaaaaaayyyy too fast and it was incredibly sore for days. So I figured I'd at least let her know that she rocks at giving extremely painful shots. I believe it's a good skill to have.
I must say, the food here is darned good for a hospital. I had a super tasty chicken salad on whole grain sandwich for lunch and a pork chop with mashed potatoes and mixed veggies for dinner. And chocolate cake for dessert. *gasp* For those that know me well, you're well aware that I'm not a fan of chocolate in most forms. I'm a total cake monster and feel a serious twinge of disappointment when I find out that a cake being served is chocolate. I'm vanilla all the way. Or lemon... mmmmm even better. Anyways, I decided to risk it with the chocolate cake and it paid off. It was a very fudgy cake... I'd hesitate to even call it cake because it was practically a somewhat light weight fudge. And it was actually really good. But don't get excited- I still don't like chocolate in most forms. Ironically, I used to joke around when people would act astonished about the fact that I don't like chocolate and I would typically say "yes, I have ovaries and no, I don't like chocolate." The irony is, I ended up finding out that I have bum ovaries that don't work on their own. If only I had the chocoholic gene, I probably wouldn't have needed the fertility drugs. Oh well.
So I did have to have a shot of terb today because my contractions picked up during the afternoon hours. This makes twice in a row that I planned on painting my fingernails and ended up getting terbed (yep, I just made terbutaline sulfate into a verb), therefore ruining my nail painting plans. But once the shakes wore off, I was able to finally paint my digits tonight and they look fancy-shmancy. On a side note, I find it funny that "terbed" is so oddly similar to "perturbed," which pretty much summarizes how I feel after getting terbed.
The OB said I'd be here until delivery, which I already knew, but she added that it would probably be another 6 or 7 weeks. Hah! I wish... it's interesting how the conversations and information is so different between OB's. The last few have said they are hopeful I can make it another two. Would I love to be on hospital bed rest for another 6 or 7 weeks? No. But would I love to take my Emma home with me a few days after she's born instead of her being in the NICU for weeks on end? YES. So if I have to be here for another 6 weeks, then so be it. I can handle it.
Otherwise, today was fine. Emma almost made me pee my pants because she pounded on my bladder really hard. That kid.
Speaking of that kid. I just can't wait to be a mother. People enter parenthood for so many reasons... some by accident, some because it's part of the expected path of adulthood, some because they are obligated by family, some do it for additional government benefits (ugh), and some do it because they truly want to be a parent. I feel like I fall into the latter category. I've wanted to be a mom since I was a kid, and I've loved children for a long time. Aside from that, I think there's something magical about having a little human being that I can teach, mold, nurture, love, snuggle with, and guide. If you think that's a "rose-colored glasses" type of approach, then you are so sorely mistaken. And how, you may ask, would someone with no children have any clue what parenting is really about? Well, I've worked with so many families over the last four years that I can't even count. There were good parents, great parents, bad parents, horrible parents, and everything in between. I constantly took mental notes about what works and what doesn't and I noticed that the parents who had the happiest families and most well-behaved kids were the ones that had that same view on parenting. Of course it's tough and there are plenty of moments you'd rather forget. But these amazing parents had a lot in common: they wanted to enrich their children's lives and teach them. The children loved to explore their world and ask questions and there was so much love you could sense it straight away. They had family dinners, played together, did activities, and showed affection towards one another. The parents didn't dictate anything to the kids and rarely used harsh tones. That's the environment I want for Emma... I want to do fun things with her and immerse her in a world of love, learning, and opportunity. I really want her to look back on her childhood and feel it was enriching and carry lots of fond memories with her into adulthood. That's my goal, as idealistic as it may sound. I know I won't be a perfect parent but I think as long as I try my best, she'll have a good shot in this world.
She's also going to be hilarious. Especially if she picks up any of her daddy's mannerisms. Hubby and I have spent a lot of time lately imagining and joking around about what she's going to be like and how she's going to act. I'm sure she'll pick up her mommy's exaggerated "I don't know" shrug. I just hope she doesn't pick up on daddy's fake punches when I tease him or prove him wrong. The last thing we need is this ninja kid going around fake punching people. It may not go over well with everyone. Although it would be pretty funny for her to run around in a fluffy pink tutu throwing air punches. Hee hee.
Ok, I'm stopping there so I don't write another novel. I can't believe people actually read these long ramblings! But I love you all, and thanks for all of the ongoing support and encouragement!