False Alarm

Well, 4 days overdue now...still hanging in there so to speak. :) Last Saturday we had a bit of a false alarm and we ended up in hospital being monitored for a couple of hours. Fortunately (or unfortunately) nothing came of it. Eldon said I would look back on these pics and be glad for the record...I suppose he is right but they aren't very complimentary!

In other exciting news....Mom and Dad arrive today in about 4 1/2 hours! Woo hoo!

4 days to go!!!!!

Oh my word. Yes, it has finally sunk in, 4 days to go. Which means 1-14 days to go actually. But it feels very close now. I had a midwife appointment today and she told me the baby is settled into the pelvis now, so can't be far away. The nesting has hit now finally...I'm studying, scrapbooking, and getting Mom and Dad's room prepared. Oh yeah, and making cinnamon rolls. You should see the stack of dishes in my kitchen...unfortunately the nesting instinct hasn't carried over to the dishes yet. (My least favorite chore!) I'm so happy to have a little more energy suddenly so I'm trying to make the most of it! ;) Hopefully by this time next week, I'll be having a sleepless night and not only because Mom and Dad will be here tomorrow!

Well, I probably won't post again until the baby comes...can't be certain, but I wouldn't hold your breath waiting!

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes!

Visitors etc...

We've had a full house for a couple of days which as been fun! Emily Westphal is still with us for another week and we had Helena Bruce and Angela Guy up from south of Perth area for the weekend. They were just coming in from a few weeks on Mt. Elizabeth station where they were helping with the muster. They leave today to go back to Perth. We had a relaxing weekend and somehow ended up back at Ivanhoe cafe for lunch on Sunday! Needless to say, it is a pretty nice place to go.

Left to right: Helena, Angela and Emily

Another picture of the Robertsons

Eldon and I....38 wks now. Ok, so I had to redeem myself after that terrible belly picture!!

Nappies

I just thought this was so cute, all my nappies hanging in a row...had to share it with you!

Waddle, waddle......

Waddle, waddle, whack, whack

Tell me how long will this week last

Brain keeps stopping, there ain't no dropping,

Tell me how long will this thing last?

Waddle, waddle, flop, flop,

Just want to see this baby drop,

I'm here waiting and it's hesitating,

Tell me just when will this thing drop?

Sung to the tune of Trickle trickle splash splash by Manhattan Transfer just in case you weren't aware.....

So I guess you can tell how I'm feeling right now: Huge, heavy, and ready to be done! 36 weeks today so only 4 to go hopefully. (I'm keep optimistic!) I've had numerous people comment on my pregnant waddle now...anyone have a spare wheelbarrow? I'll try to get a picture posted soon. I'm a bit camera shy right now.

I've started my second week off work now....it feels great to be done! I'm not getting much accomplished at home yet....one day at a time I guess. I wish that whole "nesting" thing would hit cause I have so much I could be doing! Anyway, I definitely getting enough sleep which I'm told is a good thing. I sleep intermittently at night and during the day....just preparing I guess. :)

The excitement is setting in now...the anxiety a little bit...but mostly I just want to get this show on the road! I'm ready to know what we are having and see him/her and all that. I know Eldon feels the same way. Anyway, this is old news to those of you who've had a baby already so you can sympathise with us! We are definitely on the countdown. (I can't promise the next post won't be "the raspberry leaf tea worked...")

Baby update...

Well, here we are in the middle of May and I haven't done a proper post for almost a month. Time flies when you're having fun! :) I'm 31 weeks now and feeling pretty good. Getting tired again and when I come home from work I just collapse on the couch until Eldon gets home. It's really not helping me get my study done! Anyway, you know how you go through phases of questions when you are pregnant, "how far along are you" and "do you know what you're having" and "my, are you sure you're only having one?" Well....I'll tell you what stage I'm at now..."when are you going to finish work"????? And that is a big question...I am feeling so good right now that I just can't make a decision yet. I'm torn between working until I'm ready to quit for that little bit extra money and staying at home studying because I need to get it done. I'm still working at least 3 full days a week and some weeks I work the other two days for a few hours. I have a very understanding boss and she is pretty happy to let me choose when to work. So my answer is "I don't know!!!" :) There is a joke going around right now that I'll just work right up until I go into labour and then they'll just divert my phone into the delivery room. Doctors can come and pile things on the bed and surely it'll keep my mind off the pain, right? Yeah, right....likely. :)

Anyway, we are definitely on the countdown...60 days to go I see on my little calendar. 9 weeks to go and counting. Mom and Dad have booked their tickets to come over and that makes it more final and more exciting as well! Can't wait for them to get here. I'm in denial about all the things I need to order online before the baby comes...nappies, nursing bras, I have a list somewhere a mile long. If only I could find it....

In other exciting news, we are having our annual "special meetings week." The brother workers from Perth arrived on Monday, Peter Doecke and Brett Rundle. The sisters from SA/NT arrived Monday night on the bus, Linda Larson and Rowanne Winnum (sp?). We've had Rowanne here for 2 nights and are getting Brett tonight for 2 nights. Our little Wed. study meeting might just be a very big meeting tonight so we'll have to kerb our usual sermons. :) Sunday is the actual special meeting and then they all fly to Darwin on Monday. We are really enjoying them!

Well, better make this it....need to get the room ready for Brett.

Love, Sarah

Virtual Baby Shower!

Well, thanks to my innovative mother and sister, I did get a baby shower after all! Mom set up her laptop in the kitchen/dining room and dialed me up on Skype so that everyone could see me and talk to me. It was very fun! Thanks to everyone that came and made me feel so special! Pictures are on my mom's blog http://www.sandrasblackboard.blogspot.com if you want to see.

Dear Diary...

Well, back from Darwin as you can see in the previous post. The trip wasn't long enough or relaxed enough and we both feel like we still need a break! (By we, I mean Eldon and I...the baby obviously has no idea what is going on outside it's little cave.) I've discovered the baby likes chocolate (I'm sure this is not a new concept) and I find myself snacking on chocolate just to feel the baby move around...terrible I know! Somehow in the last few weeks I went from eating because I had to, to eating because I just had to if you know what I mean! It's a nice change from feeling yucky and not wanting to eat, but I'm sure I've put on more kilos in the last 2 weeks than I have the whole rest of the pregnancy. They say the best way to prevent stretch marks (as if I had a choice) is to gain weight consistently throughout the pregnancy so that the skin has time to get used to the new size. Well, so much for that theory...I'm making up for lost time it seems. I've provided you with a photo in the previous post of my "blossoming" (people are so kind to describe it like this) baby body so I won't make you suffer through it again in this post. While we were in Darwin, I discovered full-length mirrors in our hotel room and much to my dismay, I saw my belly for the first time straight on. If dismay wasn't bad enough, the terror of seeing my equally growing hips and thighs was enough to considering cancelling the trip right then to return to my un-full-length mirrored house in Kununurra. That might seem very harsh on myself, so I promise to you that I don't have any issues with my body, but I have vowed to myself that after the birth I will work on being in better shape for the next one.

In other, more positive news, I have found a cot set which I really love and it's kind of set a theme for me as far as the baby's room goes. I already told myself with our limited space and our capacity as renters that we couldn't decorate. But unfortunately, I just loved this set which we found in Darwin, and have decided that I'll be as practical as I can but still have a few cute things to go ga-ga over. Here's a picture of the bumper which attaches to the front inside the cot:

Isn't it just adorable?!! It's obviously a frog theme, but has snails and dragonflies as well. This seems mostly green, but the back is yellow with blue, green and orange plaid. It came with sheets (which are blue gingham with little frogs and snails), quilt, thermal blanket (which I'm sure we'll use heaps...), bumper thing, and pillowcase. It is mostly green, yellow and blue, but has accents of orange, purple and turquoise, so I'm pretty happy with it for either a boy or a girl. There are a dozen accessories that go with it, but I had to stop myself somewhere! :) If we have a girl I think I'll just get a few orange and purple things which will make it slightly more girly. Anyway, we can use it again for the next one whether it's the same sex as the first or not, how's that for my practical brain thinking, Shauna? We ended up buying a bouncer which has a green, yellow and blue theme as well, so I guess it's frogs for us...too late to turn back now!

Ok, better end this before it gets too lengthy. Eldon will be home soon and we need to do some major grocery shopping...back from Darwin and nothing to eat!

Darwin Trip and update

We are back from our quick trip to Darwin and we are wishing that we had another few days away. But first, a quick update on the baby. I had another scan on Wednesday last week and then a Drs appt on Thursday. Scan went well; got a very good picture of the face (amazing!!). Still don't know if it's a boy or girl so don't ask! :) It also looks like my placenta has started moving, so it is good news all around. It looks like we don't have to go to Darwin (barring any other complications from now on) for the birth which will be much easier. I was told to give it another 4 weeks of "rest" before I started doing any exercise or "strenuous" activity....I think by that time (I'll be 30 weeks) I won't feel like doing much anyway! :) I can barely bend over to put on my shoes so I think my yoga days are past. I meant to look for some slip-on shoes in Darwin, but ran out of time. We did get the major things accomplished in Darwin though, baby shopping!! Here are some pics from our trip:

Mode of transportation: We planned our trip around one of Eldon's work planes going up for some servicing in Darwin so that we could save a bit on air fares and also have some room for freight on the way home.

Eldon putting our "freight" in the plane in Kununurra.

Dodging storms and showers on the way there.

My very own handsome pilot!

View over Darwin city and suburbs as we cross Darwin Harbour on our way in.

Our rental car (tiny Hundai Getz) loaded to the max with baby stuff and Eldon stuffing his face with KFC!

Me....25 weeks 6 days....ever expanding in more than the belly

Just the two of us still

The workers in Darwin, Linda and Rowanne.

We had a lovely time in Darwin even if it was too quick. The workers are having a mission there for the first time in several years, so it was really good to get the gospel meeting on Sunday evening. They are coming down for our special meetings in May so that is t

he next thing to look forward to. Darwin baby shopping proved to be pretty sparse but at least they have one baby store and the likes of Kmart and Big W (like Walmart) so we did end up with most of the things we need. Now we just have to wait for them to get back to Kununurra. We loaded up the Airvan which we flew up in, but it has so stay in Darwin for a week or so for servicing, so we flew home on the jet. Hopefully all our stuff will arrive safely in one piece when the plane is returned to Kununurra!

Baby news

Today was a first....first time Eldon felt the baby move!!! Now he can enjoy it with me! We were laying in bed this morning having been woken up early by Eldon's work mobile ringing a dozen times (common occurrence), with me partially on my side and partially on my back to stretch my legs (my legs ache so bad in the mornings) and he/she gave Eldon a real good kick (good on you, baby!). It was very cool. After that he could feel all the little movements so I think he knows what he's feeling for now. I have to say feeling the baby move is a very neat part of pregnancy, possibly the neatest.

In other news...it's about time for a new car. You'd think once we replace every moving part at least once that it would be just like a new car, but I guess it doesn't work that way. The newest problem is a leak somewhere in the power steering lines. Unfortunately, we can't just drive it without the power steering because somewhere something dies a horrible, screaming death when the pump keeps running dry. Back to "Major's Mobile Fix-its" I guess. Fingers crossed it is something easy, not like Singapore ants (when we had to replace all the electrics in the dash because the jolly things ate everything) or the water pump (quick, fill it up, drive it round to Don's before it all leaks out again)..... We are very grateful to our friends here who keep us on the road...Don knows our car so well, he could probably tell us how to fix it over the phone!

Well, Happy Easter weekend everyone. Over here we get Friday and Monday off as well (not that it matters as I'm not working anyway) and hopefully Eldon will take at least one of those days off. We don't have any plans to go anywhere...we are hoping to go to Darwin in a couple weekends for a long, romantic weekend (the last one probably for a long time!!!!).

Hope you are all well!

Dear Diary #2

Work is getting harder and harder....and that is after a week off! I must be deficient in something, so off to the lab I go. The lab lady and I are good friends now...can't imagine why. I've gotten pretty good at this whole needle thing...I only grimace a little and I always take something to eat with me. Maybe my goal of being able to give blood one day will come true after all!

After a disappointing week, I'm feeling much better. The doctor I was going to see in Darwin is fully booked so I can't have him and that was devastating to me in my precarious state. However, Eldon and I have agreed that we will still go to Darwin for a short holiday and some shopping just because we need it...Woohoo! Something to look forward to! I'll have another scan at the beginning of April and then see a specialist in Kununurra after that. Hopefully by then we'll know what's going on, whether I'm "normal" or not ( I'll probably never be normal again!!!).
If we do end up going to Darwin, I'll just have to be content with seeing whoever is available for me.

In other news, I've ordered another trial pack of nappies (diapers). I think I've finally decided which ones I'm getting and they are very cute!!! http://www.babybeehinds.com.au/ for anyone who wants to check them out. I've ordered natural and purple colours at the moment until we find out what we are having...then they have some really awesome pink ones if we have a girl. Eldon doesn't understand why I get so excited about cloth nappies! They are just so darn cute. (Ask me in 5 months time if I still think so).


Well, that's about it...not much going on....just waiting waiting and more waiting for our next scan. Hope you are all well!

Diary of a First-Time Pregnant Lady

I've been told I should start writing down some of my "first-time pregnant" thoughts (as I'll most likely forget come this time tomorrow) and what better way to do it than to share it with you?!! (That was a warning for some not to read on ...)

So, what does it feel like to be pregnant for the first time? Well, you could say I'm looking forward to the time at the end when suddenly I have a little munchkin (on the outside) and my already-fuzzy brain miraculously forgets all the fears, anxieties, aches and pains of the last 9 months so that I'll feel like doing it all again one day! Ok, so it's not that bad....The thought of actually carrying something ALIVE inside me is kind of cool!!

I think the thing I like best is the way Eldon carries on, all smoogy and cuddly...he'll kill me when he sees this blog. :) He doesn't have to experience the way my new-found sack of potatoes hangs to one side at night or the way I freak out when I wake up and find myself lying on my back. He has been very good to me in many ways though...like being somewhat understanding of my sudden affection for pillows (he keeps a tight hold on his during the night and then I steal it in the morning after he's gone to work) and coming home from work only to find me crashed out on the couch sound asleep. He doesn't complain about having to make dinner sometimes because his wife doesn't feel like anything and nothing sounds good. (So he makes himselft a nice big juicy steak and I have a pot of yogurt). All in all, I think he's taking it all very well.

He talks to the baby and tries to "jiggle" IT awake so that he might feel it moving. (I say IT because we are keeping it a surprise and we have a bet going...he calls it one thing and I call it the other just get get him going!) Unfortunately for him, he hasn't felt it yet...the movements are still infrequent. I've woken him up in the middle of the night a couple times when I can feel it moving, but so far he's been unlucky.

I'm his "Lady of Leisure" now as I have taken a month off work on "rest" because of complications which I will call minor until the doctors tell me otherwise. I'm still in my first week of "rest" and am going a little stir crazy, but I'm trying to get myself into a routine which means I actually wake up in the morning so that I can sleep at night. Eldon's coming home soon for lunch so I guess I better have something ready to eat. That's my job now, providing food for both my babies and keeping the house clean (oh yeah, and finishing my study).

Signing off....

Pregnant Belly

17 weeks....not really showing yet, but wanting to pretend anyway.....

....21 weeks...whoa, Mama! Be careful what you wish for!