mush-brain and raw pork

Manamonia. That's something I've been saying a lot lately. I think I picked it up when I was a kid - my big sister Michal would say it all the time. Now I say it all the time. Those habits die hard I guess.

My brain is all a-mush. I mean it. My thinking is foggy, my processing of information is slow, and my memory! OH my memory. It's awful! I've started thinking of going to see my doctor. Maybe I have a tumor. Maybe a parasite. Maybe I'm....pregnant!

Eeep.

Yes, I remember mush-brain when I was pregnant with Plava. This is far, far worse though. I really feel quite dumb. I mean, today I was talking with my sister, Michal, and she was asking me if I had received my birthday present that she had sent a long while ago. I said I hadn't, but honestly, I had to really think hard to check every corner of my brain in case the memory was tucked away somewhere unexpected. No, I was right. It must be stuck in the mail.

My mom always used to joke about something she was told about having kids. It was something about loosing a quarter of your brain with every child you have. She has four, so I guess she's out of luck. :) I, on the other hand, feel as if I'm working at 20% right now and am only pregnant with number 2!!

I keep thinking I should try and exercise my brain somehow. But how? If anyone has any ideas, books to recommend, or advice to toss my way, I'd greatly appreciate it.

It has been so ridiculously hot around here for the past few days. Having been due with Plava in August, I thought that summers were generally miserable for pregnant women who were really far along. I didn't realize that at 20 weeks (21 on Saturday!) I'd be as miserable as I was then! Poor Plava has been dealing with a less patient mama, and has been quite irritable herself. Sweet still, and full of life, but she's certainly had her moments of whining and rolling around on the floor in protest to.....what?

A few nights ago, our star sleeper struggled most of the night to stay asleep. It was so hot in her room, and ours for that matter, that she kept waking up and groggily crying "Mamaaaaa". In I'd go, wipe her down with a wet cloth, leave the cloth on her back, and say goodnight yet again. Eventually she did fall asleep for a 4 hour stretch, only to wake up at 5:30 and come join us in our bed.

So yesterday evening I was determined to figure out a way to cool her room down, at least a little!! We don't have any air conditioning units, so fans and creativity were all that were at my disposal. I thought to myself, wouldn't holding something cold in front of the fan give off a cooler wind? I decided to try out my theory, so up the stairs I went with two zip lock bags of frozen, raw pork. This pork had been lingering around my fridge since months and months ago when I decided that pork and I were going to "take a break". But who needed fresh meat? As long as it was frozen, that should do the trick!

So there I stood, in my pajamas, right in front of the fan, holding two baggies of frozen, raw pork up, and trying to see if the wind was any cooler. For the record, it didn't really work. There was a little cool air coming from the pork, but mostly just hot air being blown around the room. Sigh.

In the end, Plava slept better than the night before. Then today was a little wee bit cooler! I was quite relieved. Tomorrow is supposed to be even cooler too, as the cloudy sky this evening promised. So let's hope for a great new day!