Time to Indulge

Throughout this pregnancy, I've been told countless times: indulge.

Indulge yourself while you can.

Well, I'm going to do just that on Friday. I'm going for a, what's sure-to-be, a luxurious, 50-minute pregnancy massage at the Elmwood Spa- a very she-she spa in downtown Toronto. It's the sort of place where you'd find the Ladies who Lunch set.

And I don't feel one once of guilt because I'm not paying for it (I have a gift certificate I received from my best friend a year ago - Thanks Janice) and I need it now. I have purposely held off and saved this gift certificate for so long, waiting for the right time to use it. Now I have the perfect occasion - if there ever was one - to set foot in this glorious spa.

The brochure describes this pregnancy massage (that retails for $95) as one that:

"Minimizes the discomforts that occur during pregnancy with a massage that relieves fluid retention and pressure due to weight gain, while encouraging health circulation and promoting restful sleep patterns."

Well, at this stage of the game, 37 weeks, I can certainly use this healing massage.

I've decided to take a rest day today because though I feel fine and mobile, I'm still not fully recovered from Sunday's 5K...ah, such is the case when I'm now carrying almost 25 pounds of extra weight. The muscles in my pelvic region still feel a bit stressed and I can feel the small muscles deep within my groin that could use a day-off. Yesterday's light, no-pace, easy 30-minute session on the elliptical and a nice, gentle Hatha yoga class helped a bit, but I know my body will benefit from a day of rest.

Yesterday I had my 37-week appointment. Baby Max is a wiggler and has a good, strong heartbeat. His head has started to descend down further into my nether regions, but Angel, one of my midwives said, he's still got some time to bake in there. At this juncture, Baby Max is probably about 5.5 pounds - still a little small. However, my midwives say that if I carry to full term then, he could be a seven-pounder at birth. That's fine by me.

Bake on Baby Max. Bake on.