Exciting Week for Baby Mama

With just 12 weeks remaining in the countdown, I am beginning to feel the stress of it all closing in. And it certainly isn’t keeping the exciting new happenings in the pregnancy and work at bay!

I have a white piece of paper posted in my office, on the pretty Mediterranean blue wall that colors the room. It’s taped up and looks so tacky. But the intention is the keep this list in sight everyday. It’s my to-do before maternity leave list, containing daunting tasks like “hire a new special exhibits manager” to silly little things like “assemble a team for Incredible Costumes.” With what seemed like a simple 24 bullet points spread over 3 goal dates, I thought “sure – this is doable!” As it turns out, not so much. You don’t realize your dependency on others’ abilities to make decisions until you have to check something off your list before a very important life change. 🙂

If this weren’t enough to do already, I was honored with a promotion this week to Associate VP opening the door for some new responsibilities in the coming months. I agree with most people who congratulate me – it’s simply amazing that they offered this to me just weeks before having a baby. Guess they want me to stick around, which is good because I like it at the museum.

At home, our list begins to dwindle but new things spring up occasionally – like the impending need for J’s (Max’s Daddy) knee surgery… or the potential need for a car to replace a dying Ford. Maybe both of these things will continue to push off into the new year…. and maybe not!

Meanwhile, this week I have felt the movements in my tummy region growing more violent. Some days, it’s like Max is riding a skateboard around a loop bumping all sides as he twists, flips, and rolls. I feel it the most when I lay on my side and it usually wakes me from a deep slumber. When it happens during the day, I think I must show it on my face. My coworkers always raise an eyebrow and say “is he moving around in there?” That’s a slight understatement. It’s an exciting little world in there, I guess.

As things pile on, I continue to remind myself that it all pails in comparison to having our baby. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is surely going to be an awesome kid – I just hope he appreciates all that his mom and dad do for him!