This handy ticker pretty much sums it up:

The little guy is still breech, and this is what I'm opting to do, assuming he doesn't turn on his own (not likely, and I'm not interested in trying an external cephalic version, just so you know). I'm frightened, but I'd be frightened regardless of how this birth happens.

I've learned a lot recently about where to find baby clothes -- specifically, the market stratification and where to find the clothes I like best. Here's a primer:

Strasburg Children: VERY EXPENSIVE. Cute clothes if you like little seersucker overalls and sailor suits (I do). Here's a sample:

and they're made of fine fabrics -- the knit items are pima cotton, and the other items are generally also cotton, like expensive sheets with a high thread count. One outfit can run you about $80.00. There are certain members of our families (not naming any names!) who probably would prefer that we dress Baby G. in nothing but these clothes. I was in this store today, and I wanted pretty much all the clothes in there, but I imagine if I'd bought anything, Jonathan would have vetoed any garment from there with extreme prejudice based on the admittedly outrageous prices.

Gymboree: These clothes I love, love, love, and I think this will be my first go-to store. I generally prefer baby clothes that don't have writing on them and that are very simple -- something like this:

The image is a whale, by the way, and the outfit is just $12.50. I went to Gymboree today as well and bought two little dinosaur-themed outfits on sale. I can't find them on the site, or I'd show you.

Then Target and Babies'R'Us also have baby clothes, along the lines of the plain, practical white Carter's onesies variety, which I think Jonathan prefers. I like those fine too. I just don't want Baby G. to wear something with a trying-to-be-funny slogan, like "If you think I'm cute, you should see my Daddy!" or this:

It must sound silly, but I want Baby G.'s little clothes to be dignified. In addition to those two outfits, I also bought a car seat yesterday -- the Britax Marathon, for those wondering. I feel excited but also somehow wary: these items are not for me, nor are they for Jonathan. They are for someone else, some other person.

Because, dude. I just can't post through the searing back pain. Here I am at 34 weeks, 5 days.

I hate how there aren't really any good online resources (that I've been able to find) about contemporary zydeco music -- especially the hip-hop/zydeco hybrid music I like and that they play on KNEK. Like there's this one song, and the chorus goes: "I know you heard us on the radio/Now it's time to do the zydeco..." I know that doesn't sound like it would be very good or clever, but it really is; I always car-dance when it comes on. The song takes samples from "It's All the Way Live":

and "Crush on You":

which is why I like it so much. Actually I don't know if that last sample is in fact from "Crush on You" or if Lil'Kim and Lil'Ceaz took it from somewhere else. Anyway, KNEK never mentions the name of the artist or song after they play it. I've been googling those lyrics and trying to find information about that song and others online, but I've been unsuccessful.

So I've been looking into daycare programs for little Bamm-Bamm, as I've been told that I need to get him on waiting lists ASAP. We wouldn't need daycare very many hours a week, and not until late August/early September, but obviously we want good care.

Yesterday, I called a Methodist church that has been highly recommended to me by people I trust, only to be told that their daycare program (called Mother's Day Out, which doesn't seem to be an uncommon name for daycare programs) is "only for non-working mothers."

Mmmmkay.

Now it could be that the person on the phone just told me that because they don't keep babies past 2:00 in the afternoon, and for most people who work, those hours aren't feasible. I think Jonathan and I may be able to swing it, though.

But -- what if it really is "only for non-working mothers"? Where do I start? There are so many problems with this, even if we're just talking about heteronormative households:

• I object to the very idea: there's no such thing as a non-working mother (or parent in general, for that matter).
• What if the mother works and the father stays at home? The at-home dad would still need days out to run errands. Would this kind of family be ineligible?
• What if both parents work (say, for the sake of argument, the mother works part-time) because they have to in order to pay the bills? Would this kind of family be ineligible?
• What if the mother works from home? Would this kind of family be ineligible?
• What about single-parent households in which the parent (father or mother) HAS to work, or the family has NO money? Would this kind of family be ineligible?

I want to join this church and use this daycare, but if they would actually ban us from the daycare program because I am employed, that's a huge red flag. I don't want to be put in a position of concealing the fact that I have a job.

• This isn't one of those tips I've seen on any of the GTD blogs, but it's one I intend to follow: only read/respond to work-related email on weekdays during business hours. I've been easing into it, and the regaining of mood stability has been dramatic and very healthy for me.
• Foods cooked this weekend: Salty Tuscan Pork Chops with Caramelized Apples and Shallots, more granola, more Black Beans with Rice, Curried Chickpeas and Tofu, Beef and Barley Soup with Escarole (we used chard, the recommended substitute, and rice instead of barley, which we couldn't find).
• I've never eaten healthier in my life. Again, this book is the greatest -- even if you're not pregnant. Jonathan and I think we'll keep following the diabetic diet even after the baby's born. I never thought about my blood sugar before or realized how important it is to regulate it. I have a LOT of diabetes in my family, so I want to be careful.
• 32 weeks, 2 days -- is how pregnant I am. I think FG has grown some extra limbs or something; I feel kicking and punching all over. Around the early second trimester, I had been concerned about doing kick counts and about not feeling enough movement. With kick counts, you see how much time it takes for you to feel "10 kicks, flutters, swishes, or rolls." If it takes over two hours, then there might be a problem. I think I feel that number of movements every couple of minutes.
• Teaching prep and then sleep await; hopefully I can post again before a whole other week passes.

I've had one of those weekends that has been thoroughly consumed in catching up with domestic work. I did three loads of laundry today (as I was looking at nothing clean to wear to work), and over the course of the weekend, I've cooked the following:

• Black beans and brown rice
• Spicy lentil and cauliflower soup
• Granola
• Huevos rancheros
• Pot roast with potatoes, carrots, and onions

Except the roast, everything I've cooked has come from recipes in my pregnancy cookbook, I'm Pregnant! Now What Do I Eat? The granola especially is excellent.

As much as possible, I try to do a modified version of once a month cooking for two main reasons:

1. Saving money. I live in a restaurant-rich city, and residents can, if they're not careful, dine themselves into a zero bank balance, if not debt. We're putting as much money as possible toward a down payment on a house, so we do NOT need to be going out to eat all the time. There's also all the baby stuff we still have to buy.

2. Health. I love how almost all the foods in the I'm Pregnant! book are high in fiber and protein but low in sugar and white carbs; they almost assume a diabetic diet. The authors also suggest fast meals, for when you're seriously about to faint. One example is a quick taco with black beans, salsa, and cheese on a whole wheat tortilla. Another is a toasted English muffin with sliced tomatoes and melted mozzarella on top. After making the black beans, which also included jalapenos, onion, garlic, and red and green bell peppers, I realized that I could put the bean mixture, cheese, and salsa on one of the whole wheat tortillas, poach some eggs, and have myself some huevos rancheros, which Jonathan and I did.

I've also been packing away winter clothes (didn't really need those, as it turned out) and hauling tote bags of books to my office. In preparation to move out of this apartment, I'm moving a lot of my books and fold-up shelves into my office.

Speaking of shelves, a house, and a baby, if anyone knows of any good online sources that show ways to secure shelves to walls in case crawly babies try to climb up them, please let me know. I'm interested in getting an estimate from some contractors on some built-in (or built-on, rather) shelves, as those seem the safest. Barring that, I think wall-mounted shelves may be the way to go, the kind with the brackets. I'm also toying with the idea of getting these barrister bookshelves, which close up.

Please don't do any teasing of the nesting instinct variety. kthx

Another checkup yesterday. I do have gestational diabetes, but it's a mild case. I don't have to check my sugar throughout the day or take any drugs, but here are foods I must avoid:

white rice
white bread
cake
cookies
ice cream
doughnuts
pretty much all other sweets
fruit (in large quantities)
fruit juice
whole milk
sodas
other sugary beverages

I'll also need to eat proteins with carbohydrates.

The best part of the checkup, though, was the Doppler. This is a Doppler, for those of you who don't know:

With that little wand on the right, you can hear the fetal heartbeat. Message board lore has it that fetuses hate the Doppler, and I've read several posts by women who said that their fetuses scramble to get away from the wand on their abdomens. FG, however, held still for the heartbeat check for a few seconds, but then gave the wand a vigorous KICK. Perfect aim, right on the tip of the wand.