I absolutely adore being pregnant, and I'd share the feeling if I could. It's pretty freakin' fantastic. And yep, I can feel specific parts when they move around. My currently pregnant friends can't, so I think it has to do with how far up this baby has been. By "up" I mean closer to my actual stomach, rather than settling in closer to my back or in between. She's been so active from the get go! I've been really lucky in terms of being so happy, especially in comparison to everyone else that's currently in the same boat around me..

A birthing tub is essentially just a huge over-sized bath tub that's used to help cope with labor pains naturally. It helps relieve back pain and contraction discomforts--all that good stuff.

It's really good to hear that everything is going so wonderfully for you! My sister is pregnant, so she's hopefully going to be feeling the same in a time.

So you're not going for an epideral?

Nope. My lower back has two herniated disks, and I don't want to risk making them worse. I'm going to give it my best to go completely natural, but if I can't I have some IV options. They won't take the pain away like an epidural does, but they'll take some of the edge off.

I'm going in with the mentality that women have been popping babies out for thousands upon thousands of years. And while thinking that I try not to also ponder what herbals they used for pain relief. :lol: I'll just tell myself they did it completely natural!

I also hope your sister has a great pregnancy! When is she due?

Ah complications. Would you have wanted an epideral if you didn't have the herniated disks? Woman have been going natural for a while, true. So I'm sure you'll do just fine.

And she's actually expected to be due March 22. So I'm hoping the baby's a week early. xD

I'm not sure. I would have weighed the risks versus the benefits. I don't like the idea of not being able to get up and walk around while laboring, and the idea of not being able to feel myself push, or not feel like I have control over my body, plus I'd have to have a catheter... I don't think I could do it. I'm much more comfortable with the idea of "taking the edge off" and still being able to wander around when I need to.

Haha! Might be on Uncle Asa's birthday! ;3

*noms on Chi's wings*

...

Ooooh, almost time for your baby to come out! :eager:

I can understand not feeling the push or having control over your body, but you intend to walk around while labouring? O.o
Are you sure you won't be in enough pain that it'll knock you off your feet?

And exactly! Which is why I've decided next year I'm going back to the states. By then it will have been 5 years since I've been back. I need to see friends, family and just be back in my home country again really. Sure, there's a large chance I'll have to work on my bachelors thesis the entirity of the summer. But I hope to be able to get all that done with no problems.

Walking helps laboring progress much faster. Someone I know once got told rather bluntly, "Would you take a shit laying down?"

Gravity is a laboring woman's best friend. :XD The pain should only get that bad when transition begins. I hear that it's too hard to stand up during that time, not without help. But transition is so close to the end, just before the pushing begins.

Eeeeee, that sounds really exciting!! Where will you be? When you mentioned traveling last time I think Pennsylvania was at least one place? I don't remember if you mentioned that's where your family is, or if you had friends there. Or both!

Lol I didn't know that. The way you see it on tv and everywhere, the pain is terrible right from the first contractions up until it's over. xD So you have to excuse my ignorance.

And it's Pennsylvania for both! Most of my mother's side of the family lives up in the north, close to New York. And all of my friends all live down south, all in York. And my sister lives in Texas. So I'm going to try to get her to come up to PA for the summer. So I'm going to just see what happens and hope for the best.

Also, I recently came across a Masters programme I'm really, really, really interested in. Except it's two hours away. (Very far for the Netherlands.) Which would require me moving and everything. So I assume next year is going to be an extremely busy summer.

Oh, this has all been a new learning experience for me too. :XD Anything I'm spewing out is what I've been looking into for the past nine months. I hadn't realized the traditional "push on the bed" can actually take a longer time because often times you end up "sitting" on the baby's head. They say trying to get a woman's hips up at least a little is better for the baby. If I can just give birth in the tub, I'll do that more than likely.

Oh wow. Two hours away? @[email protected] It sounds like a daunting prospect, but... I also know how important your goals are. You're definitely going to be busy busy!

TV has made me jaded. So little I knew!

And it's kind of exciting. Your bachelor and masters degree is subsidised by the government in the Netherlands. Except they've recently decided to only subsidise your first degree. So it's also become more important to chose something you really want to do. Quite often students would just pick an easy bachelor until they were sure of what they wanted to do. So I've been checking out masters in all the universities here, and this is really the one that appeals to me the most.

It's Media Culture. Here's a link if you're interested: Programme information - Maastricht University

Or if you decide to also do one. :P

I'm stopping at this Masters. I'm going to be so glad when it's over with. I think. I love the learning atmosphere and genuinely enjoy myself, but I'm ready to get all this knowledge out into an applicable format. I want to start working with people and let that inspire me instead of the books. The theories, the potential maybes... all that stuff. I'm ready for the realities.

Luckily I only have 2 more years of studies, as the final Fall, Spring and Summer semesters are spent interning. I think one of those semesters has one class alongside of it, but it's more centered around practicing actual therapy. I'll be working under someone's license, then I'd go get my own after graduating.

----------

*looking over the link*

Does this mean you're not going to pursue law anymore? o.o

I have the choice to do a masters thesis or an internship as well. I'm actually thinking about doing an internship, because I too am ready to get out in the field and start actually working.

And I didn't tell you?
Turns out I didn't actually like Law. It was too objective for me. I didn't like that I couldn't actually partake in discussions about it, and that I wasn't able to form any opinions based on my own observations, etc. It was just too bland for me, especially coming from English, were you are taught to think independently and to form your own ideas.

Nope, I never knew! I'm really glad you found interest in another field though. :3

I couldn't do law either. You already know I interned at a law firm geared toward low-income individuals, but I couldn't deal with how dirty I felt at the end of the day. I either felt dirty because I knew some of our clients were manipulating the system (and could), or I felt heartbroken about those that genuinely needed help and were denied. I just couldn't do it for my life's work. Law aside, the people aspect would get me too deeply.

Definitely tackle an internship. It'll be a great experience.

I think I'm gonna hike it to bed. It's going on midnight and my eyes are crossing. :XD

Well, my morals have taken the highway to hell, so that wouldn't necessarily be a problem. *shot*
But I see how it'd affect you differently, especially considering what your focus is.

And good night then! It's only nearly 6 am here. xD

Sleep tight when you're able to. xD <3 It was nice getting a little caught up!

Definitely. I'll try to keep in touch better. If I wasn't such a dern hermit.

Some Random Randomness:

I missed rando! </3 *hasn't seen him in a blue age*

I skimmed through and good luck with your schooling. Hopefully next time I'll bump into you.

*rolls around the thread*

Hungry and nauseated! D: What to eat?!

So read that as that you'll hopefully talk to me next year.

It had better be sooner than a year. :P

You never know with me.
Time is relative, so what could feel like a year for you is merely a few days for me. True story.

Rando!!!! :glomp:

No I just meant whenever. You seem to come and go so I know it's kind of a rare thing to bump into you. Chi is on here daily though. I'm hoping she'll still find time after the baby is here.

Man I'm bummed. Got stood up by MIL. She was gonna go to the Danish festival with me but she's 'too tired'. I posted a FB message and hoping one of my friends wants to ride up there. If not I might just say screw it and walk up...although it's a fairly far walk. I really hope she doesn't start this shit when school comes around. I'm just slightly bummed right now but I'll be fairly pissed off if she stands me up on that. She said she'd help and I'm really counting on her. :/

@Rando
I'm hoping the next year doesn't go by too quickly. :XD I'll be bummed if the baby isn't a baby all of a sudden.

@Izumi
The cynical bits of me prevent me from putting myself into situations to be stood up. Truthfully this is why we got the second vehicle this summer. We would only need someone to be here to watch the baby once a week (and only 4 times throughout the semester making twice a week) for an hour or so, but too many "what ifs" and whatnot... just wasn't worth taking the chance. Not on something that important.

Hopefully she doesn't stand you up over the semester. I hope you can get your license before term starts, just in case.

*sighs* I'm not counting on it. Aaron doesn't want me to drive the car until it's fixed, says there isn't enough money for a second car and quite truthfully I don't know where I'd go to get tested as I've been to both places in town and had bad experiences. I'm really worried about gambling with another $40 to have someone turn around and fail me. I'm kinda beating myself up over the whole situation right now. I really hate it, and while Aaron says all this stuff he goes it's up to me to get my license. I'm like how?

I'll always have at least once a week where I'm needing help getting to school. Aaron has apparently put in for a bunch of overtime as he feels the strong need to pay off the kids' dental bills asap. He's also sending emails to me that sound like work is just getting to be too much for him...and he's only working normal time. Apparently they put in another procedure that's infuriated him and all he's been focusing on is the time he gets to leave.

I've already emailed him and told him I'm tired, depressed, and just quite frankly having a shit day. I told him I'll try to comfort him regardless.

The kids called and I just let the voice mail pick it up. I don't really wish to talk to them right now. I'm not wanting to deal with anything negative regarding their life at their mother's. Not right now, not today.