Photo Documentary?

I feel like I need to do a photo documentary for my OB/GYN as to *why* bedrest (even modified) does not work for my family.

This really occurred to me last night when I was letting the dogs out at midnight.  Everyone else in my house had been asleep for at least 2-3 hours.  That makes sense, they are all in some state of feeling poorly.

So, I (at 32 weeks pregnant) scamper down the stairs with my 85 pound dog trying to knock me over and lead the charge to the door.  The dogs have to take turns doing their outside business, because if left to their own devices, they think they are Spy Dogs, and have to wander the neighborhood looking for Evil Bunnies and other criminals.   So, Tova goes outside, and I head downstairs to shut off the lights that were left on in the office (Problem #1).  In the office, the blow-up bed from LAST weekend is still in the floor, stuff is cluttered and not put away. (Problem #2)

I turned on the living room light, and saw the state of the downstairs living room (Problem #3).  It was un-vacuumed, there are small socks scattering the floor, dog toys everywhere, couches still have not been put back, and it is overall messy.  Ugh!  I could not fix all of that at midnight, so I picked up what I could and took it to the laundry room. That worked, as I wanted the check on laundry loads anyway. My darling teenager decided she wanted to work on laundry this weekend.  We have gone over how the washer and such work many times.  I could handle that she did not do large loads of laundry.  That is okay.  However, the part I had a problem with was the fact that I could barely walk **INTO** the laundry room because containers of laundry had gone downstairs and not been sorted (Problem #4).  This was not entirely her doing.  So, standing like a sumo wrestler (The belly is bulky enough that I can't bend at the waist if I want to breath or not end up face first into whatever I am bending over, and ending up face first in a pile of dirty laundry is NOT my idea of fun.....if it was chocolate cake, I would reconsider.), I sorted the laundry that had been left scattered about.  Got loads switched out, switched out the dogs, and took the clean laundry upstairs.  Put the now empty hampers in the rooms they belong in, and went to let the other dog in.  When I was quietly putting the hamper in our room, hubby woke up and asked me what was wrong?  Really.....that is a trick question at midnight when I am seeing the state of the house.

In a summary, what was wrong is my house is a wreck from 2-4 weeks of modified bed rest, and Mother's Day weekend filled with sick people.  The guinea pig cage smells foul enough that it makes me sick to smell it., but the child is too sick to clean it and I am allergic.  The lawn needs to be mowed asap as the yard people are coming Wednesday, the kitchen is a mess, the office is a mess, the craft room is a mess, the bathrooms all need to be cleaned again because of the sick people and potential germ spreading, the laundry is way behind, recycling needs to go out, stuff in the garage needs to be broken down for recycling, the foyer needs to be de-wintered, the crib needs to be built, and the dogs need a bath.

I am so overwhelmed I am not sure where to begin.

I started dishes, and the belly got in the way, but I got a good amount done. I figure I will start in the kitchen and work my way out from there.

So, Dear Doctor, modified or full bed rest is for people who have maids.  It does not work in the real world where your kids get sick and have homework or activities.  It does not work when your hubby works 40+ hours a week and the bed rest stuff has him so stressed *he* gets sick also.  It just does not work.  How about duct tape?  Would **THAT** keep the baby where she is supposed to be for the time being?  It would be easier than any variety of bed rest.

So, in the spirit of not pissing off my doctors, or stressing out my hubby, I will do some mild cleaning today, and not go crazy, even if my OCD is saying "CLEAN IT ALL OR BURN IT ON THE DRIVEWAY!!!!" I am sure a pregnant woman, cackling while burning stuff in the driveway, and swearing would not alarm my neighbors at all! Suuuuuuuuure!