Today's Non-Labor-Inducing Activities

So like I said, we're trying to plan fun activities for every day that keep me busy and walking and prevent me from sitting on my couch, staring at my stomach, and waiting for the baby to come out. (One site on natural induction methods recommended visualizing a flower opening, and I can assure you all that that didn't work either, so I'm trying physical activities rather than mental ones.)

Today, Mom, Murray and I went to the hospital for a non-stress test. Everything is okay and the baby is doing well still. Then Mom and I dropped Murray off at work and went out to find some good walking activities. Shopping is always a good idea, so we headed over to the Riverwoods where we shopped around, and also decided to get manicures (note: manicures are not known to induce labor, but we felt we deserved it).

We had originally planned to go to Salt Lake with Murray's mom Lynette, but the road conditions deteriorated really quickly, so the three of us decided to go bowling instead. We figured that bowling might just be the trick to inducing labor, and if it was, we could patent it. Or at least start up a pregnancy bowling alley called Prego Lanes.

I really absolutely loved the bowling, even though my performance was a disgrace. My first game, I bowled a 44 and my second game a 56 (note that there was at least improvement). It's a good thing that we had Lynette there to help us out with pointers and tips. The first time I went to an American bowling alley, I thought, "Wow! This is, like, a RETRO bowling alley, with huge balls with holes in them and everything! Just like in the movies!" The second time I went to an American bowling alley, I thought, "Goodness gracious! Another retro bowling alley with holes in the balls!" I eventually learned that in Canada, we have 5-pin bowling, which is quite different from the more traditional American style. Our balls are much smaller (and certainly have no holes!), the pins are smaller, there are only five of them, and my mom and I swear that you're supposed to get three turns to try and knock them all down instead of just two.

At least no one cared about what the scores were. We all had a fantastic time and did a lot of laughing. And I may not have ever gotten a strike, but at least I got a spare once. Oh, and on the scoreboard, my name was listed as Selma. At least when my poor scores came in, I had plausible deniability. They weren't attached to MY name.

Unfortunately, after an hour or so of poorly hucking a ball down the lanes (I could only manage to shuffle up to the line each time, and I certainly couldn't bend much when releasing the ball), my water didn't break and labor pains didn't start. There's always hope for tonight, right? If I go into labor before tomorrow morning, I still plan on attributing it to the bowling. Otherwise, we've got to find something else to try tomorrow. Bouncing on a trampoline? Springboard diving?

(The master, with perfect form.)

(Ootsie, who was a much better bowler than me.)