Oct. 6th, 2008

rivka: (trust beyond reason)
Tomorrow I will be 22 weeks pregnant. According to babycenter.com, the Niblet weighs about a pound and is about 11 inches long. This is the threshhold of fetal viability: if, God forbid, a disaster happened and the Niblet were born next week, he'd have a 25% chance of survival. Two weeks from now, a greater than 50% chance of survival.

I feel him kick every day now. It's probably too early to identify any sleep/wake patterns or responses to external stimuli; most of his kicks are light enough that it's easy to miss them if I'm doing something else. But at least a couple times a day, I feel kicks like little fingertip touches, deep in my belly. It's nice.

Speaking of belly, I have one. I am visibly pregnant, although not yet to the point where people who don't know for sure are comfortable asking about it. My maternity clothes are fitting better; I'm past the awkward stage when neither kind of clothes fit right. I'm guessing that when I go to the midwife next week I will have gained a couple of pounds, and my belly will have grown the correct number of centimeters. And my belly tends to ache and itch - definite signs of more growth on the way.

I am hungry. I am craving protein. I had a big bowl of Cheerios with milk this morning, and on the light rail suddenly found myself fantasizing about the hard-boiled eggs in the hospital cafeteria. So I stopped off on the way to my office and bought a hard-boiled egg and a cup of mixed fruit. Now I'm kind of wishing that it had been two eggs. In general it seems to work best for me to eat about every 3 hours.

I have started having episodes of exhaustion, shakiness, and emotional overload which can be 100% cured by protein.

I am starting to notice pregnancy-related limitations. I can walk as much and as comfortably as I ever could, which is good, given that during an average workday I walk 18-28 blocks (1.5-2.3 miles). But climbing more than one flight of stairs sets my heart racing, and I have trouble carrying Alex or a laundry basket - I wind up gasping for breath. I am starting to have trouble getting up off the floor, which is a problem, because as a parent and a preschool RE teacher I spend a lot of time kneeling or sitting on the floor.

Now that Niblet is regularly checking in with me (i.e., kicking), my terror and fatalism have subsided. I'm starting to let myself expect that there will be a baby at the end of this road. It's a good place to be.
rivka: (I hate myself)
Alex's nursery school newsletter this month brought the news that "Bolton Hill Nursery will be the recipient of a free nutrition education program - Food Is Elementary - for preschool and elementary school students. [...] The Food Studies Institute is devoted to changing the health destinies of children through proper nutrition and education. The curriculum is designed to create a positive experience of plant-based (fruits, veggies, grains) foods and food preparation that is fun, hands-on, and sensory-based."

Well, that sounds nice, but I read Junkfood Science, and it's made me skeptical of "nutrition education" as it tends to be offered in schools. So I looked up the Food Studies Institute and found this description of the lessons.

Now I am writing a letter to the parent and Board member who is listed as a contact person for the program. I'd appreciate any comments or suggestions people may have, especially from a Size Acceptance/Health At Any Size perspective and/or an "I know preschoolers" perspective.

draft letter below. )

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