The Cat Lady Cometh

Forgive me, WMEs, for I have sinned. It's been three weeks since Zero Nutrition Thursday and, for the most part, I have been a very, very good pregnant mama; but, today the lure of chocolate glazed doughnuts and a decaf cafe au lait from Dunkin Donuts was too strong for me to resist.

Lest you think I'm just a hyper-indulgent weakling with the willpower of sloth, or that I have finally plunged to the depths of weird pregnancy cravings (which, in fact, is partly true since I am neither a chocolate person, a coffee person nor a doughnut person...but, I digress...), today's doughnut and coffee extravaganza is brought to you by The Cat Lady, aka my child's paternal grandmother.

She is coming for an overnight visit this weekend to attend my baby shower on Sunday. Oh joy! 24 hours of "house arrest" because "Mom won't be up for that..." - no matter what "that" would happen to be - and, of course, our mission is all about her. What do you get when you mix cabin fever, passive-aggressive manipulation and martyrdom, a thick, stuck-on layer of fur and dander from eight cats and an on-edge baby daddy? A general ill-at-ease feeling...all on a weekend that is supposed to be about celebrating the little soul growing within my womb, and maybe even celebrating the fact that I am joyfully incubating the little darling. I deserved those doughnuts and that coffee, n'est ce pas?

The last straw broke on Wednesday night when baby daddy shared the news with Cat Lady that paternal grandfather's wife, Kent, is coming into town to also attend the shower: "oooh, ummm, oooh, huh, hmmm...well, I guess I can adapt to anything..." Never mind that Cat Lady and paternal grandfather have been divorced for 37 years, and that he has been remarried since 1992, and that there have been many family occasions where both Cat Lady and Kent have been together and have interacted quite cordially. Never mind, too, that the shower is supposed to be about ME and my baby, and that Kent and I are pretty close, and that I am thrilled she will be here. As if it's all about her. Sigh.

Pray for my sanity this weekend. There will be wine at the baby shower, so it is highly possible that my next entry will actually warrant the award of a WMP for abuse of substances that are much stronger and more harmful than a sugary, fat-laden chocolate doughnut and decaf coffee.