Second Obstetric Appt.

So far there have been no further incidents with the Crazy Dog Lady, although that's also because each time we've left the house over the past few days, we have crated the dogs. Incidentally, I was advised not to mention to anyone here about crating the dogs as the Germans might consider that inhumane. Francoise's boyfriend is now back home having been away for the weekend. He apparently had words with the neighbor. Crazy Dog Lady claimed that she documented our dogs barking for 6 hours straight, and dogs are only permitted to bark for 30 minutes a day. Hmm... this is news to me. When I was told of this "law" before, I was under the impression it was stating that your dogs cannot bark more than 30 minutes straight. Apparently, CDL has been documenting any little peep from the dogs and must be counting each as several minutes at a time. Sigh... this law is bizarre.

We were told our container would arrive in Rotterdam on October 7th. At that point, it has to clear customs and then be shipped by land to us. Not sure if it will go by rail or truck, but I don't expect to see it for at least a week of so after that, so hopefully by mid-October we'll have furniture for our house. In the meantime, we are considering moving in this weekend even without furniture.

A page out of Gerrit's "My First Things That Go" Book.
This is how our furniture is being shipped across the Atlantic.

Spent the morning playing with Gerrit. After lunch, we walked into the center of Garching to look around. I walked to the English preschool I contacted to touch base with the owner one last time. She again said that on days I was willing to stay and help out, she would not charge me. If Gerrit gets up in time, we may go there tomorrow morning. The class for Gerrit's age group is from 8:30-12pm Tuesday and Thursday. By the time I got home, however, I was in a bit of pain. Only a few blocks after leaving, Gerrit decided that he didn't want to walk anymore. This meant I carried him in the sling with the backpack (diaper bag) on my back. Gerard had taken the car with the stroller still in the back so Gerrit had to hoof it or be carried. I also made the mistake of wearing nicer shoes rather than my sneakers. I had been told that no one in Europe actually wears sneakers, even with all the walking they do. Big mistake on my part! At eight months pregnant I had way too much weight on me and walked for too long. Of course my feet and ankles are all swollen now, so I've put them up hoping that will help. Must take it easy until the baby comes.

I still find myself missing teaching and wondering about my colleagues in La Canada. I'm sure they've all been busy with Back to School Night preparation, Beginning of the Year Assessments, and setting Early Bird/Late Bird schedules. Those things I do not envy, but I do miss being in the classroom each day and the camaraderie I felt with my colleagues. To combat that feeling a little, I'm trying to focus on things I can get involved in out here to start making connections.

WARNING: This next part contains "girl" information. If you are male and/or do not wish to read about my gynecologist visit, please skip the rest of this post.

I had my second visit with the gynecologist this afternoon. Routine things- urine sample, fetal heartbeat, blood pressure, weight, and iron test. The doctor then called me in to check my Mutter Mund (literal translation is Mother Mouth), referring to the uterine opening or cervix. One notable difference in the exams I've had here and in the States is how much I am asked to disrobe. In the U.S. each time I had a pelvic exam, I was asked to disrobe from the waist down and then handed one of those paper sheets to cover myself. Here, they don't even bother with that. I am asked to lie on a table, leave my shoes on, and pull my pants down to my knees while the doctor checks me. Makes everything faster and more efficient. The funny thing is that Gerrit gets to sit on the table on me or next to me, and Gerard is sitting across from me the entire time. Not so strange when you really think about it, but I think an eyebrow would have been raised about having my son sitting on me during a pelvic exam in the U.S. During the pelvic exam the doctor also checked for any bacterial infections and looked at the PH balance to be sure she didn't detect any amniotic fluid. So far, so good. She told me that the head is down and the cervix has started to soften but is still closed, so she expects to see me at least one more time before delivery. She wants to do another ultrasound at that time. My next appointment is set for October 1st, two weeks from today.

I sit here each visit for about ten minutes
while they monitor the baby's heart rate.

Gerrit maneuvered himself into a comfortable
sleeping position while we waited.

I didn't realize that Gerard even took this picture. Yes, this is
"the exam." The funny thing is that even though Gerrit looks
a bit freaked out, he's just been jabbering away with me.