Only just back from Alaska and they're off again. Who wants to stay by themselves for a week, especially being 36 weeks pregnant?
44. Last Trip to Williamsburg
(July/Aug, 2013)
July 29 – I’m in Williamsburg
again while Mister is at another conference in Philadelphia Alaska
for two days before Mister went off for another week to a conference at Bren
Mawr. Kate spent a dreary night alone in their townhome, and then drove to Williamsburg on Sunday
afternoon after a delightful Thai lunch with her Vietnamese friend, Hannah. It
was essential to be with other
people. If she must sleep by herself, at least this cozy room at the Mortte’s made
Mister’s absence less obvious.
And each
day was busy. Kate had plans: morning with Jennifer Mortte (the Mortte’s son
and daughter-in-law had both attended Hillsdale with Kate and Mister),
afternoon with Mrs. Mortte, a nap (probably), and evening games with Jennifer
and her husband. She would be in Williamsburg
for 4 nights, and each day was full up with fun visiting and necessary resting.
Kate looked down at her belly, now
huge and tight against the T-shirt she favored for her pajamas. It bulged on one
side, then bounced and jiggled and bulged on the other side. Kate laughed,
making it shake and bounce even more. She wrote, Baby is moving a LOT these days, and I
actually really enjoy feeling it—much more, now that it’s obviously the baby
and nothing else! It’s such a fun unique feeling. I wish I could share it more
easily.
The next
day, Kate met Jennifer and her two daughters at the James
River , just a minute or two down the street from their house. It
was warm and sunny, and the water was cool, a perfect day to swim—at least for
someone who was nearly nine months pregnant! Her general feeling for the last
couple months was cast as “in favor” of cold water dunking. She rarely got to
indulge herself and had to restrain herself from instantly splashing into the
water the moment they arrived. They picnicked on the sand and Kate took the
two-year-old Eva into the water while Jennifer watched her baby play in the
sand.
“Let’s play
crocodiles!” Kate suggested.
Eva’s eyes
grew wide, and she grinned. “You’re the daddy crocodile and I can be the mommy
crocodile!” Yes. Very important to establish that.
“Okay. Do
you know what crocodiles do?”
“What?” Eva
whispered, not sure if she wanted to find out,
Kate
grinned, “They roar and show all their teeth when their hungry! And I’m hungry…” Kate showed her teeth and
gave an intimidating roar and thrashed about in the water.
Eva roared
and showed her teeth. They both roared at each other. Then, naturally, they settled
on a location for their crocodile house, taking special care with the kitchen
and the bedrooms, roaring all the while and ignoring the obvious suggestion
that such hungry crocodiles would probably have found something to eat in their
kitchen.
It was such
fun, but when Kate got home, she hastily drank some water, dried off, and went
to bed. Her last thought as she drifted off was, I’m sooo tired. How on earth am I going to care for a baby? But
when she woke, she felt refreshed and remembered (with some measure of relief) what
so many people had told her: “By the time you have a two-year-old, you’ll have
two years of experience...they start out much easier.”
Kate
returned home Thursday night, spending one more night alone before Mister’s
return on Friday. She called Mrs. Mortte when she arrived, and duly reassured
her that she hadn’t gone into labor on the drive. “Thanks again,” she said
sincerely, “it’s so wonderful having you close by. It’s a real home away from
home, and especially nice for me when Mister is gone.”
“Anytime! We love having you!”
Mrs. Mortte replied with enthusiasm. “And we can’t wait to meet Baby Mueller—let
us know when we can come up and see you after he’s born!”
After
they hung up, this last comment haunted Kate for some time. After he’s born...! I’m sure he’ll have to
be born sometime. But for the life of me, I feel as though I’ve always been
pregnant and I always will be!
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