CRACK!

There's something both terrifying and totally cool to have your head gently cradled in the hand of a strange man, hear him tell you to relax, and then suddenly hear and feel cracking noises that you're fairly certain resulted in a spinal fracture. And then, just when you realize that you do indeed still feel all your appendages, it's time to do it on the other side.
I should back up. My fingers have been all tingly. To back up even further...
I started swelling just before Christmas. Not the "Oh, you're just pregnant" swelling, but the "push your finger in on the shin bone and the indention stays there, kinda like putty" kind. I'd also noticed some random light-headedness. Not every day, just sometimes. So, one day, after noticing the swelling and realizing it was probably bad, I got Michael to check my blood pressure. My BP is typically fairly low, so the "normal" sounding BP that I had on that day, was actually quite elevated for me. I called Lulu, and she said to eat tons of protein and check back in after a couple days. Oh, and to back up even further, and take you into potential TMI territory, I'd also already been spilling protein into my urine at my past 2 appointments with her. All of this adds up to, "uh oh, things could get ugly."
Okay, so, when I noticed the tingly fingers, I chalked it up to swelling. Extra fluid could do that, right? But it kept getting worse. And if I slept on my left side, my left arm fell asleep. If i slept on the right, the right arm went out. No matter what position the arm was in, so it's not like I was laying on it and cramping it. So, I called Lulu again, and she said to get my hiney to the chiropractor, because that sounded like a nerve issue.

So, I went to the chiropractor today. I went for most of the third trimester with Mikayla, because my hips were so sore and popped every time I moved. I'd forgotten just how loudly joints, particularly necks, can crack. I'm surprised it didn't freak the kids out. They were too busy playing with the 3 foot tall skeleton model. Who lost a kneecap near the end of the exam. (The doctor told me it was fine for them to play with it, and laughed when the kneecap fell off.) They also hid my shoes under the table. So, he cracked pretty much every joint between my skull and my hips. Neck, upper back, lower back, elbows, wrists, and fingers. He believes that the tingling is from nerves in my neck. He said I should have relief in 2-3 days, but they feel much better already. I don't have to go back unless something else is bothering me, or if I go overdue, I can go in and he'll hit the right pressure points for urging the kid to get out.

That was my big fun of the day. Then, tonight, Michael checked my blood pressure again. It had started creeping up again late last week, after just ONE day of running lots of errands and eating out all day. But I'd eaten tons and tons of protein every day since then, and expected some progress. No luck. It's still not pretty. And when I say lots of protein, I mean, my goal every day is 80-100 grams, and I'm usually hitting around 90. I can tell you how many grams are in eggs, most dairy products, my bread and cereal (I can actually get as much from a slice of bread as I can from an egg. The beauty of whole grains!), peanuts, almonds, peanut butter, and some meats. My protein shake has 18 g per scoop, which is to be mixed with 3 oz of water but I use 4 oz of milk instead, to sneak in 4 more grams. Luna women's protein bars have 9-10 g per bar. And I get some or all of the above every day. After stuffing myself with all of that, there's not much room for other foods.

So, hopefully, my blood pressure will start cooperating any minute now, or else I'll go into labor very soon. With Xander, when my BP went up, he was born 2 days later. This time, I have zero signs of impending labor. I'm not nearly as miserable as I was at the tail end with the others. I'm tired, sure, but not absolutely miserable. I just complain a lot. I usually hit the miserable point before the baby comes. Maybe I'm just a happier person this time? Or too distracted by the crazy children running laps around me to notice how awful I feel? In any case, I don't think it'll be this week, anyway.

This Wednesday makes 37 weeks. I plan to post pictures again. I mean, you know how I have the best of intentions and make great plans and all, but seriously, maybe I'll get them taken, and posted. I will of course keep you posted of any changes, unless they fall into that "way TMI for the general public" category. He needs to stay put for at least a couple more days. Birth kit arrives tomorrow, and we need to finish cleaning. So, let's say that Thursday morning is the earliest that I'd want labor to start. I also need to work out a couple of plan B's for in case Mom can't make it up here in time to take the kids.

Okay, my ice cream is done (I haven't checked the label, but I know it has protein!) so, I'm off to bed. Let's see if I wake up with sleeping arms or not!