Vanity?

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I don't consider myself a vain person--for good and for bad. I usually look in the mirror while brushing my teeth in the morning and not again the rest of the day (again...for good and for bad).

But after a really stressful couple of weeks and the mounting bloated feeling of pregnancy (no waist and no major bump to rub in compensation), I started to feel like I might need to treat myself to some tender loving care...to feel pretty. Because, I don't.

And that is when I realized how lax I had really become. My hairdresser told me I hadn't been there since November. And when I treated myself to a massage (yes, I did.), Tati reminded me I hadn't had one in two years. (She also told me that my back was full of knots and my skin dry as scales.) And while I know there are people who have never had a massage in their life, others have one weekly. And I think I deserve to be somewhere in between.

The good news? I woke up feeling slightly less hormonal (okay, cranky) this morning, I decided that the pampering yesterday was very helpful, indeed. So herein lies my new list of "small ways that I must take care of myself during the remainder of my pregnancy":

1. Put cream on expanding belly every night--even if Georgia insists on putting the stuff in gobs all over herself (hair included), too. No matter if we both sleep like fried eggs under the covers. Here is what I used in my first pregnancy. It's cheap. And it works (stretch marks).
2. Before shower use a natural brush on bare dry skin in circular motions to "de-scale." Can I tell you this really works wonders for dry skin and circulation? I used to do it.
3. Drink more water. The doctor tells me my urine should be colorless. It isn't. I am a bit lazy to go to the bathroom even more than I already do. But it is important.
4. Walk. Walk. Walk. I am still pretty good about this. I don't know if I will make 18 kilometers the week I give birth like last time....but if I can walk around the neighborhood several times, I'll be happy.
5. Stretch. I am not teaching anymore. I am not stretching anymore. I'm tight all over. I'm thinking of finding a toddler yoga video and enlisting my daughter. What else can we do at 6:30 am? It really is much better than watching Sponge Bob again.

Now if I can just do those five things and, perhaps, find my "cave woman self" inside the salon now and again, I'll be good to go.

Vain? Maybe a little.