She dropped!

So Monday night we were at our birthing class and the teacher was telling us about what our bodies do to get ready for labor and what the baby should do before labor. She told us about how the baby engages or descends or lightens somewhere between 2 and 4 weeks before labor (usually. Some babies are tardy). I've always carried kind of low, so I didn't really think she could get much lower. At the end of class, we do a hypnosis session together (Alann and I) practicing what we learned in class. During that session, Claire was all over the place. I haven't felt her move like that in a while because she is just too big now. I didn't really think anything of it, because our teacher mentioned that babies like the hypnosis and relaxation as much as the moms and the pets do. (The first night we listened to the hypnosis cd, Tanner insisted on staying on the bed until it was over.) We went home and were getting ready for bed and Alann noticed that she was a lot lower than she had been before class. It was a pretty classic presentation- we could feel her back right along the middle of my belly and her butt wasn't anywhere near my ribs (which was a relief!). She's moved a little bit since then (her favorite side is my right side. 90% of the time, that's where she is), but she hasn't popped back up at all. She's pretty solidly down there. I think she must have been practicing- she was listening during class and learning where she was supposed to be, and then when I was relaxed she was able to move into the position and try it out. It's amusing to me. What isn't amusing though is the fact that I just don't want to get dressed anymore. I wish I could just wear my pajama pants all the time. Nothing fits. Nothing covers my belly. My shoes don't fit. My feet hurt all the time from the swelling. Getting dressed is a pretty depressing point in my life right now. But just a few more weeks, then I will be on maternity leave and can wear pajamas and slippers as much as I want.

I know Alann hasn't mentioned it in public, since he hasn't blogged in a while, but his decision to go to grad school right away might have changed. We are still praying and pondering and trying to figure out what is going to be the best for us, but if he doesn't do grad school, we will be leaving Salt Lake. Actually now he is thinking of pursuing a masters in landscape architecture instead of urban planning. The two kind of go together. My thoughts are the same- I don't care where we go, so long as he is happy in his career choice and I can stay home. I think part of his anxiety comes from the impending change in our lives, and part of it is the inversion. He doesn't deal well with the smog and nastiness in the air. Now he has a cold because of it. But if he doesn't want to get his masters in urban planning, I'm not going to argue. If he just wants a bachelors for now and can find a job with it, by all means. He does have an application in at a promising looking place. We will see. I'll just be happy if we can get the car seat installed in my car before Claire is born. That's about as long-range as I can deal with right now.