Weekend/ Pregnancy/ Life Update

• It's been a while since I posted. Lots of things going on, including a rapid resubmission of my grant proposal. Honestly, I have never worked so hard on something (and in such a short period of time). It was quite the whirlwind, and I'm quite glad it's over, to be honest. 
• I did a short postdoc for one year while I was waiting for Alex to finish his PhD. The person I worked for, unfortunately, didn't get tenure. Her lab is closing (actually, has already closed). I was hopeful that a grad student in the lab would be able to complete a few experiments I had left behind, but he couldn't. He actually spent a significant amount of time trying to replicate experiments I had done, and was unable to. His actions made my old boss questions my results, and she basically said she wouldn't publish my work unless he could get things to work. This means that my entire year I spent there just flew out the window. I'm so frustrated by the situation, it makes me want to quit academics altogether (I'm not, but it's how I feel). I am so done with being dependent on people for my own success. 
• All of the 8 faculty hired in my department this year? Men. Distribution of postdocs in my department? 50% female, 50% male. Don't you think 4 of the faculty should have been women?
• Anecdotal evidence, but worth thinking about: all the men I know who are looking for funding receive it very easily (first grant submission). All of the women I know who apply for funding have several submissions to several sources and most don't get it. 
• My comments I received back on my first grant submission were incredibly frustrating. They included things like "Her research is too much the same as her PhD" (not true); "the lab she is in is not experienced in what she wants to do" (also, not true); and Reviewer 1: "this is the worst training plan I have ever read" (I highly doubt that); or Reviewer 3: "this is the BEST training plan I have ever read". None of the comments had anything to do with my actual research proposal. I am hopeful for the second submission.
• Prenatal yoga ended two weeks ago. I was actually quite sad to have it end. I feel like the women I met in that class are really wonderful. I enjoyed the mindfulness and the yoga and I enjoyed the community so much. We are trying to keep a little community together, and I am hopeful. We did a four mile walk on Friday night, and it was so great to see everyone. We even had one mom join us with her 3 week old baby (oh my god, so tiny!). We got to see her breastfeed, which was actually really educational. I feel weird looking at women when they breastfeed, but I also really want to know how/what they're doing. Thankfully, most moms are super open and happy to answer my questions. 
• Since the end of yoga, the marathon grant renewal, and the beginning of my third trimester, my back had been bothering me. It's sometimes in the middle of my back, sometimes in my "upper butt". I've taken to swimming more often and that seems to help. I've also noticed that my hips are wider apart, and sometimes I walk trying to walk as if my legs were closer together. Who knew you had to completely change the way you walk as you progress in pregnancy?
• The kiddo is moving more often, and seems to move a similar times each day - especially right before bed and maybe around 2 or 3 in the morning. Sometimes he moves so much that I can see it on the outside of my stomach. What a weird feeling! I haven't been able to time it well so that Alex can feel him. He's felt him a couple times, but not that often. I just can't predict his movement!
• I've found that I can't stay in one position for long. Like sitting - I have to make sure I move around often and I can't stay in front of the computer for very long. Walking and standing are fine, but I'm a lot slower than I was pre-pregnancy, which frustrates my husband to no end :) I also take more time to "ramp up". My body is stiffer and less responsive than it has been. All of this seems to be OK, though. I still feel pretty good, I'm sleeping pretty well, and I'm just trying to take each day as it comes. I do, however, look forward to the day when I can have a margarita and lay on my tummy again!
• This past weekend, we bought some baby things off craigslist. We found a crib and a changing table/dresser and I think those things will really work well for us. Alex was kind enough to do some moving of a lot of things in the second bedroom, so now things are more accessible and I can start setting things up more comfortably for the kiddo.
• We are still stuck on names. I think naming a kid is really, really hard! Thankfully, we still have some time!
• I am 31 weeks now, 9 weeks left to go. Time is getting shorter and shorter, and my physical abilities are getting to be less and less. We are heading to my parents house this coming weekend, and it will likely be the last trip down to Oxnard before the baby comes. Nearly every weekend in Sept, we have some sort of class for infant care or childbirth. Then, after that, its the October waiting game! Crazy right?