The Final Countdown, Knitting Action, Quick Dinners

The Final Countdown
Here I have arrived nearly in week 37 of my second and probably last pregnancy.

Almost baby time!

I just found out at my 36 week appointment that this little stinker is head up! I don't know if he flipped or has just always been hanging out that way (honestly a little hard to tell what's a butt or a head or if what is jabbing you is a foot or a fist after a certain point). At any rate, it's not good at this late in the game! I have an External Cephalic Version set for one week from today, so he's got seven days to do it himself or some doctor in a hospital is going to try to MAKE him turn, which will make mommy quite uncomfortable and carries its own set of risks. Suffice to say, I'm not looking forward to it.

Knitting Action
So I'm trying a few weird baby spinning exercises and otherwise trying not to think about it too much. Part of my distraction has been in the form of a big knitting project that I've been hankering to do for a long time: The Melrose Peacoat. It's a chunky knit so it hasn't taken me too long, actually...about three weeks from start to finish. Well, almost finished, there's still buttons and snaps to be applied, but all the knitting is done. I had a sick day yesterday and applied myself to blocking, seaming and putting final touches on my pretty red coat.

And here she is! 

The coat turned out a little baggy, but it fits (as far as I can tell around the big ol' belly, of course!). I was proud of myself because I had to learn a few new techniques for this project and I'm just pretty chuffed at how it actually turned out. With buttons, it is supposed to look like this:


So it's not too bad, really! It's probably the last big knitting project I'll be able to accomplish on any sort of normal time line for a few YEARS, so I was happy to be able to finish it before this bebe makes his appearance.

Only problem with all this is that I spent my day hunched over on the floor in weird positions trying not to let the belly get in the way of my work, so today I feel like I just had leg day at the gym! My legs and butt are so sore...add onto that the late pregnancy "swag" (aka waddle) and I'm sure I'm a fairly comical sight to any onlookers. Ouch.

Quick Dinners
So for all intents and purposes, in a few weeks' time, my life will never be the same. How anyone manages two kids at a time is still a mystery to me in practice. In theory, I know I can do it, but I've never actually *tried*.

My drive for dinners that are quick and easy is at an all-time high. Usually, I don't mind a bit of prep for a delicious, healthy dinner. But nowadays...I'd love thirty minutes or less from start to finish. Besides good ol' Rachael Ray, I don't actually have a ton of ideas for this sort of thing.

Making dinners for a new mama is an age-old church tradition (or just community tradition), but God bless the dinner-cookers...it ends up being a LOT of pasta and/or casseroles to fit in with people's schedules and budgets. I will definitely want something quick and easy to take a break from all the carbs and comfort-foodiness. So far, stir fry is my best idea. But I need more!

Do you have a tried-and-true healthy dinner that you go to in times of need? I'd love to hear it!

Tonight I'm varying from "healthy" in favor of "nostalgic" with what my mama called Haystacks. Fritos, canned chili, cheese, lettuce, tomato, some yogurt (in favor of sour cream) and black olives. In our house, we call them "Food Towers" so my child will eat them. =) Healthy, it is NOT. Delicious and family-friendly, it is!

Food Tower Time! 

Thanks for any help you can give!