The Calm Before the Storm

I know I haven't written in awhile. I have had a totally crazy month, getting ready for the baby, my baby shower, and the holidays. I am not complaining, because it is all very fun. It is definitely starting to catch up with me a little, because I am usually asleep on my couch in front of the TV by 8pm. In the middle of my favorite shows, my head will bob, and then before I know it my husband is waking me up to go to bed. The other day I woke up at 3am, made my husbands lunch, and then jumped back in bed, only to stare at the ceiling for the two hours I had left to sleep.

Things have just been hectic in my mind. I think I have hit a temporary writer's block. I can't think about anything but preparing and organizing things in my life. My thought is that this is the calm before the storm. That, for the next month and a half, my life is going to be pretty uneventful....and then the baby will come! I think then, that I will have more to write about.

I will say that I have become more mentally prepared for childbirth. The bigger my belly gets, the more I just want to get the labor and delivery over with already! I don't care if it hurts, the anticipation of such an event is too much to bear any longer! Now, If only I could figure out a name for this little girl...I have looked everywhere, and found no name that stands out for me. What a challenge.

Mexican.....or Chinese?

I read somewhere that Chihuahua's might have actually originated in China, and not Mexico. What do you think?

Time for Tunes Tuesday!

Recently I have been hunting down some really great music to play during my labor. I want music that is unique, and soothing, but not something that blends into the background too much. It really needs to distract me. Here are the few songs I have come up with so far...all of which are on a play list at the bottom of the page!

U2: The Unforgettable Fire
I could list any U2 song here, because they are all awesome! But this is my favorite. The song is empowering, and makes you want to tap your feet and bob your head while singing into your hairbrush.

Sigur Ros: Saeglopur
This song is so melodic and is totally a song I can just zone out to.

Filter: Take A Picture
Who doesn't remember this song? I love songs that I haven't heard in years. I might actually have my husband make a CD of music from the 80's and 90's for me to listen to. This way I won't ever know what songs to expect and it will always be a wonderful surprise!

Lali Puna: Faking the Books
I am going to save this song for when I really need to mellow out a little.

Yelle: Je Veux Te Voir
Gotta love the French! I just can't help but love this song!

Jose Gonzalez: Heartbeats
This is a remake of a song by The Knife, but I love this version so much more.

Does anyone have any other song suggestions for me?

Maternity Leave: a myth?

As you might already know, I work as a massage therapist. Massage Therapy is a really tough career. Depending on the environment, it is hard to get respect as a person who chose massage as a career. In most cases, it ends up feeling like a minimum wage job. I am truly saddened by the way Massage Therapists are treated in the workplace. Sometimes it feels more like slave work. The companies want to jam as many people in for massages, without giving the therapist breaks, and sometimes even scheduled lunches/or dinners. Massage Therapists working in most spa/salon settings are required to work nights, weekends, holidays, and do not get sick days, insurance benefits, or maternity leave. When therapists call in sick, they are given much guff because the spa has people scheduled, and no therapist to work on them. So, don' get sick....but trap yourself in a small room with strangers and rub their naked bodies over and over and see how often you get sick??!!

In massage school, we were told that it is not recommended to work full-time. This is because it can cause severe overuse problems with your body. Many therapists are forced to stop working due to things like thumb injuries. It is told to us that if you work full-time, your career might not last very long. So, most therapists are part-time. Because of this, many are not offered the benefits of full-time workers. It is sad. I don't know how to handle this. I keep up my license by attending classes and paying for my license renewals, which adds up to be pretty expensive....and I don't even get maternity leave?? What kind of career is this? I rely on my part-time job, IT IS MY CAREER! Now, I am praying that I will be able to work up until I have the baby and go back a week after she's born!! This is ridiculous. I am saddened and outraged that I thought I would be getting into this rewarding career, only to find out that I am just a slave. I bet people working at Mc Donalds get treated better than we do.

I do not know how I will be able to pay my bills if I can't continue working when I have my baby. It will cause my family to go into temporary poverty. If anyone out there is thinking of becoming a massage therapist, I highly DO NOT recommend it. I tell everyone I know that it is an awful career. Actually, I don't even think it can be called a "career" at all.

Note that not every massage therapist has it rough. There are some very successful massage therapists out there, but it is very difficult to find a good place to work, and also very difficult to start your own practice in an economy like this. Good Luck out there fellow therapists!

Also note that there are many other working women not receiving maternity leave. This is a major issue. I read on momsrising.org, that 51% of new moms do not receive maternity leave. Is there anything we can do about this?

This gap is driving me nuts!----------------------------------------------->

I am sort of a perfectionist. I like things organized and clean, and precisely placed. This little "marginal error" with my profile picture, has been messing with me. I spent days trying to figure out how to fix it with no results. Finally, I had my computer genius little brother fix it for me. It was wonderful. Relief from the torture of viewing my blog and being able to see nothing but a big space under my profile picture! I need it to line up perfectly!! :) Man, was that a problem solved.

The next day, it was back to this! This big gap is going to drive me into complete insanity for sure, and there is nothing I can do to fix it, unless I learn how to fix my html, and then do it every single day. What is with this? It began a couple of weeks ago. I hadn't made any big changes to my page or anything. My photo just decided to separate itself from my "about me" text. Is it ashamed of me? Is my blog trying to tell me something?

See.....I'm already a little more insane....I think my blog is trying to communicate with me!

p.s. My brother fixed the gap again, so this blog post might not make any sense to you. Let's hope it stays that way.

It's an Alien!!

I realize that it has been awhile since I have talked about my pregnancy. I am entering my 7th month, and the baby is so much more active than ever before. I am always shocked to see my belly moving in all different directions. It really is like that scene in the movie Alien!! I think it is so awesome to watch, but if I could see exactly what the baby was doing in there, I might freak out. Sometimes I try to picture a little baby, stretching it's arms and legs, and spinning and turning. Ewwww.....oops, I mean...Awwww. It is beautiful and gross at the same time.

I am finally getting her crib tomorrow. It is my first item to fill the baby room. I spent months looking for the perfect crib, bedding and mattress. I found a fairly inexpensive all organic mattress online, and the site offered free shipping! Sweet! If anyone wants to know where I found it, let me know. I'm in major nesting mode, and it's great. I am getting so much done lately. My house has never been so clean and organized! Projects excite me. How long will it last? If I could only have this much energy all of the time! -sigh-