11 weeks pregnant!

Only one more week until the big appointment! The past 7.5 weeks have been so long!!

Here are some thoughts I've had while I've been writing my lecture-document for my DMA (which I sent off late last night):

1) How is it remotely possible for women to do this (doctorates, theses, dissertations) when they have a child? It's hard enough doing it while I'm pregnant. I'm tired all the time, and while I used to be able to stay up all night cranking out papers the night before they were due, I simply can't put my body, my belly, through that much stress now. It was hard enough staying up late for the past two nights to put finishing touches on my 94-page document. That goes for dads in grad school, or any school!, too. Or moms who have a partner in grad school, or vice versa. It just seems impossible that you would get anything done with a baby around to care for.

2) If I did have a baby/child right now, that kid wouldn't have a room. My next project is to clean up the mess I made in the study upstairs (future baby room). Papers all over the floor, several water glasses (somehow I kept forgetting I already had one/several up there), piles of Double Reed magazines/journals on the floor around me, music stand, various envelopes, various pieces of music and scores all over the place, notepads, books for research... The baby would be pushed out into the hallway.

And some random belly-related thoughts:

1) I hate cooking right now. I normally love it. Right now, it's the last thing I want to do. I don't like the smells, and I don't feel like eating after the smells.

2) My belly currently loves pickles. Did I mention that before? Isn't that the stereotypical pregnancy craving? Never thought it would happen.

3) My belly does not like onions.

4) My belly is grossed out by chicken.

5) My belly has turned me from what I thought was lactose-intolerant to loving milk and yogurt and cheese again.

6) My belly can't get enough part-skim mozzarella cheese string sticks.

7) My belly can't get enough ice cream bars.

8) Things that make me cry right now: Dave (who just laughs at me, as he probably thinks I'm faking the hormone thing...I can just picture him in the delivery room, "Oh, it's not that bad. You're just being overly dramatic."), Gerber commercial with moms giving birth, any Baby Story on TLC, dog commercial (for SPCA I think?) with the dogs in cages, saying they don't know why they're there, "I'm a good dog--I just want to go home." OK...I'm crying now, just at the thought of that commercial.

9) My belly is starting to show more.

More on that last one: I already wrote about my concert attire and even my rehearsal "outfit" on Friday night, carefully chosen to try to conceal my growing belly. (It was 70 degrees outside, everyone else wore shorts and sandals, and I was wearing long pants and a sweater.) I'm finding it more and more difficult to hide my belly. And I don't want to hide it! I may look a little chubby to most people right now, but when I put those maternity clothes on, my belly relaxes, pops out a bit and says, "here I am!" and I think I do look pregnant, not just chubby. Maybe I need to go into confinement for the next week. Rats. I have to teach, help run a music festival on Friday and Saturday, and play at another rehearsal between now and next Tuesday. More bulky form-hiding clothes for me!

OK, one more thing. We've been thinking of fun ways to tell individual friends and family members. I can't wait to write about them on here after we've done it!