PROTEIN
Want a good excuse to stuff your face with excessive amounts of protein? Become pregnant with multiples! I am so. sick. of. eating. And particularly, because in the last few days I have tried to increase my protein intake to be at the higher end of the recommended 110-155 grams per day, I am so. sick. of. eating. protein. Seriously. It is a constant quest, and I feel so stuffed. So in addition to actually having a big ole belly, now I also feel like a sick stuffed turkey 24/7. It's no fun. I don't think I was made to consume so much darn food.
POOLS
Julian loves to swim. He grew up swimming. Kara grew up sitting on the edge of the pool while everyone else swam... well at least for the first two seasons of swim lessons when she was young. But that's because she is a
highly sensitive person. (check to see if you are!)
Anyway, swimming is great once you reach whale-like proportions. There is a saltwater pool in our neighborhood! The saltwater eliminates the chlorine-eating aspect of pool going experiences and helps whales to float, as well. The other wonderful thing about this pool is that it is outdoors; this means that the water temperature is actually warmer than the air temperature, which means that Kara will actually get into the pool and swim :)
Kara went today to swim, but the pool was full of rugrats. Ugh. Stupid kids.
PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
It's official! Kara has no paid maternity benefits!
I work for a city government. They are supposed to offer good benefits, right? HA HA HA.
Not only does our vacation time accrue at a lower rate than the private sector (in my experience), but we also have no real maternity benefits. The only way to get paid time off is if you sign up and pay into a privately run long term disability (LTD) plan. You must sign up before you become pregnant, or the LTD company will deny you - this is where I am... no room for unexpected pregnancies here in this city!
But, even if you are eligible to receive LTD payment during maternity leave, the amount of payment is dependent on a waiting period + your EDD (estimated due date). Which means that the earlier your baby arrives, the less you are eligible to receive. The maximum payment for a vaginal delivery is 66% of your normal pay for 6 weeks if your baby is born 2 days after its EDD. If your baby is born premature at 34 weeks or prior, not only are you a worried mama, but you also would not get ANY of your maternity pay 'benefit'!!!!
I'm sorry for the rant, but the principle of this just pisses me off. The fact that my employer contracts with a private company to manage maternity payments in a skewed fashion is immoral. The overarching fact that no employer in this country (US) is guaranteed / required by law to give paid maternity and paternity leave is just wrong.
In our situation, we're lucky that we can 'make do' without it, and I'll be quitting my job b/c child care costs would outweigh benefits of working for this employer in the future. However, what about everyone else who can't just 'muddle through'?! GRRRRRRR.... our country's lack of well developed, broadly implemented social support systems drives me up the wall.
And with that, I'm off to do some yoga! (and eat more protein...)
