Friday, May 30, 2008

Happenings

So, what's the happenings, you might be asking. Well, for starters, there are three weeks left of school and six weeks left to this pregnancy. Oh my.

Next, we bought some powdered Ch@rlie's Soap for our diapers. I'm experimenting with it using our own clothes because I have a phobia of powdered detergent stemming from my days I lived in England and they mostly used powder. Since I was a dumb American and accustomed to liquid, I always put too much powder into the drum and the soap residue was always all over my clothes. But..I think I get it now. I was using waaaay too much!

We had our breastfeeding class. It was good. Mostly things we knew, some we didn't. The teacher was a bit scatterbrained as well as a little bit sexist since she claimed men burp babies differently from women. Apparently, men burp babies by holding them like a puppy, face down, while women tend to put the baby over their shoulder to tap the back gently. I guess I fell into this stereotype since I automatically threw the semi-life-like breastfeeding babydoll right over my shoulder as the men put the babies in their laps or, yes, even held them like dogs.

It led me to wonder if the presence of a lesbian couple is ticking off the other couples in the class. Our instructor only says "partner", not husband. Even the couples will correct themselves and adjust their language to "partner." I guess I don't feel bad about it or anything, since we are taking the class in one of the gay-friendliest little cities in this whole big country, not to mention in a state where I am legally married to my wife. If you're uncomfortable with "partner," move out. I don't sense any discomfort from any of the other couples in the class so maybe I'm just being paranoid. I am, after all, the only female partner in the room!

9 comments:

beans said...

You tell em' sister!!

Congrats--I am glad to hear things are progressing well . . .and that you learned the finer points of dry soap. It always scared me . . .

Anonymous said...

I'd be sensitive to that kind of thing too but I think more and more even straight people are calling their significant others their partners.

I can't believe you only have six weeks left!

Melody said...

You are so close now!

tbean said...

6 weeks? Yowza!

sandra said...

i did find being a lesbian couple in childbirth class to be interesting... some people were like 'meh whatever' and some people were almost unsure how to talk to us...

anyway, 6 weeks!!! wow!!!

giggleblue said...

i worry about the whole dynamic when thinking about taking the pregnancy and breast feeding classes. i'm happy to hear that they seem to be pretty accepting!

Anonymous said...

Dude. According to your LC, I'm somewhat of a dude. My best-bet sure-fire way to burp the unburpable babe is to sit babe on my lap, not like a puppy. Like a babydoll. Hold it with one hand under the armpits and slap it heartily on the back with the other. Works like a charm.

I don't think of it as six weeks, my due-date buddies. I think of it as 3-8 weeks. Due dates are illusions.

Anonymous said...

Just from my experience with feeding and burping three children...your burp position is a matter of what feels comfortable to you. I could never get mine to burp holding them on my lap. It always seemed to work better with them on the shoulder, with their arms up not down at their sides.

Unknown said...

6 weeks to go, oh my!!!