a week off

I have finished two whole rotations of my internship--one at a hospital, and one at an outpatient diabetes clinic-- and now I have one whole glorious week off. I am SO excited. I'm going to sleep in, take a nap with Natalie every day, and spend lots of time playing with my baby and reminding her that her mommy in fact does exist.

When I'm not doing that, I'm going to pick up with doing everything that has gotten pushed to the wayside in the hectic-ness of everything now. All I'm saying is, working 8 hours a day (plus the 2+ hours driving time per day for my diabetes rotation), working on homework and projects at night, and then add in always feeling tired and exhausted from being pregnant... well... let's just say that things like picking up after myself, or cleaning, or making dinner, or doing just about anything else that doesn't involve a nap or sitting like a blob on the couch has been pushed to the wayside.

Despite all that, I have loved doing this internship. It really has been very enjoyable. It's nice to know that after years of school you really do like what you have chosen to do. And after this last rotation at the diabetes clinic, I am thinking seriously that being a diabetes educator is what I would like to do. We'll see though.

A few more details about pregnancy. I'm just about 14 weeks along, and so I'm starting the second trimester. I'm hoping to start feeling more "normal" soon. So far this pregnancy has been a little different from the last one. I haven't been as nausous, in fact, I haven't really had any nausea to speak of, which is a huge blessing. I have been a lot more emotional, though. And I have had a lot more cravings. I'm due April 22nd. My last day of the internship is April 4th. Considering that with Natalie they induced me at 37 weeks, and knowing that there is no way they will let me go beyond 39 weeks, it is very likely I will have the baby within a week of finishing. Yipes!

When Expiration Dates Sneak Up On You

 So don't you just hate it when things expire before you use them.  Sometimes I wish things would just wait in stasis until you were ready for them. For instance, probably our biggest food waste is vegetables, fruit, and leftovers going bad before we use them. That, or the amount of food Natalie throws on the floor. :) We actually try really hard to not let produce spoil, but it seems like some of it always hides in the corner of the crisper, or you just can't use those last couple green onions, or eat the last few grapes before they get squishy. Gross.

I think the stuff on the left used to be parsley?

Then there is the problem of coupons. I have a love/hate relationship with coupons. I love it when they get me free things or good prices on things I want (like 60 cents off the gallons of ice cream at Smith's). But then I feel that there are just as many times that they are for things that I probably wouldn't buy but then I feel that I need to because they're cheaper. Matthew is more susceptible to those than me; in fact, he's the only one who is susceptible. I just toss those ones and I have to try and convince Matthew to, too. Still, when there are good ones it's sad when they go bad because you forgot about them. For instance, recently we had a coupon for an oil change discount and Matthew noticed that it expired on 9/25, you guessed it, that day. So, we didn't have time to go do it. It's so much better when coupons don't expire. Matthew recently turned in a coupon for Apple-Cinnamon Cheerios from the 90's. More coupons should be like that!

  If things are going to expire, it's nice if they tell you in advance. That way you have some time to get used to the idea and make plans. Natalie was kind enough to help us out with this, which is good because this is something else that seems like it is expiring faster than I would have expected:

She has the "coy" look down pat.

P.S. We're in the market for boy names (just in case). Feel free to make suggestions, just know it will likely be rejected. :)