Baby Shower

I am so happy.... Today was my last day at work. I enjoyed working for the Canadian Diabetes Association (www.diabetes.ca) and all the people in the Saskatoon office are great but I am ready to relax at home. I just want to sleep when I am tired and get up when I feel like it not when my alarm dictates. I am really hoping to have a week of rest until baby comes but you never know when these things happen. I realize that when the baby arrives I won't have much sleep time so I am really looking forward to the next week of rest and relaxation.

Quite a few people are asking when we will have a baby shower. My mother has volunteered to host it at her house. I am just going to wait to see how we are all feeling before we set a date. I think we have everything we need for the first few weeks. On facebook I posted pictures of some of the stuff we already have including a crib, swing, changing table, and an exersauser. We also have some newborn sleepers and blankets. Since we don't know if we will have a boy or girl we don't have any cute gender specific outfits yet.

We also have some newborn cloth diapers. We are excited to use cloth diapers with our little one. I have talked to many others about using them and read about them on the internet and everyone insists that it is not much work and quality diapers can prevent many of the blow-ups that disposables have. I am looking forward to using the Motherease one size diapers once the baby is a bit bigger. Information on these diapers can be found at:

http://www.motherease.com/database/scripts/store_products.pl?TopCat=3&SecCat=1&SID=ed8cb474734dd7134aae8015eb675464&Loc=CA

I would also like to try some of the All in one Diapers. These diapers are more expensive but come with a cover. These can be viewed at:

http://www.motherease.com/database/scripts/store_products.pl?TopCat=3&SecCat=3&SID=ed8cb474734dd7134aae8015eb675464&Loc=CA

I ordered the introductory offer so I can try one out but would love to get some more. I read somewhere that if you have 24 diapers you will do laundry every 2-3 days. The Motherease diapers can be purchase from the Motherease website (www.motherease.com) or in Saskatoon at Cravings Maternity and Baby Boutique (on 8th St.).

Maternity Leave

My maternity leave starts on Wednesday!!! I am so excited and ready. I went tonight to visit Ryan and Wendy's baby. He was born on the 3rd of August. He is so tiny and it is hard to believe that I will be holding MY own baby in just a few short weeks.

Hospital

Yesterday we went to the Royal University Hospital for a slide show tour. A labour and delivery nurse showed us pictures of what will happen once we arrive at the hospital to have a baby. She started out talking about when to come to the hospital and what doors to enter and then showed us pictures of all four of the rooms that I will be in. Assessment room, room for early labour, delivery room and recovery room. I didn't realize that as a woman is giving birth in the hospital she has to move to so many different rooms??!!?? I just thought you went to the hospital and focused on having the baby not moving from room to room! How odd...

The second part of the evening was lead by an anesthesiologist. At RUH they have about 4,000 births each year. The anesthesiologist said that he does between 2,500 and 3,000 epidurals each year. I had no idea it was that common. On Monday I had false labour pains now I have a better idea of what I am getting myself into. I know false labour pains and the real thing will be different but before Monday I really didn't have a clue of what I would feel like when I go into labour.

Saturday Evening

So no new photos for a while. My purse was stolen on Wednesday and in it was my camera :( I went through the whole process of canceling cards and ordering new ones. Quite a stressful ordeal. I didn't realize how much I kept in my purse until I started missing items. I went to mail a letter and realized that my stamps were in the purse. Then I went to put on some lipstick only to realize that it was in my purse. What an annoyance!!!

Anyways... It is late Saturday night and we are just relaxing at home. I am 35 weeks and today the baby dropped. I could really feel a difference in the baby's position. I felt uncomfortable all day. It was difficult to walk and I could feel lots of pressure on my bladder. I also felt really hungry. I guess the baby moved and left more room for my stomach :)

I am reading Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. I am reading natural birth stories. It is really empowering to read the stories of women who had a natural birth that was a positive experience. In our society today it is hard to find these stories. Pregnant women are often told of all the medical interventions that are available and are lead to believe that childbirth is a painful experience that needs all the pain relief that can be offered. I cannot believe that since I went 9 months of carefully watching what went into my body that I am now going to allow all these drugs and medications to enter my system. It just doesn't make sense to me. I am not saying that I am turning my back on modern medicine, only that I will try my hardest to have a natural birth and if my life or the baby's life is in trouble then I will be in the hospital and all the latest medical interventions will be there waiting for me.

Update

On Friday Basil's new family drove up from Edmonton to pick him up. I got an update from them and he is settling in nicely. Archie and Yogi adapted surprisingly well to his leaving. On the long weekend all three dogs were separated and Archie had some troubles adjusting to life without his buddies so I didn't think he would be o.k. with Basil leaving. But sometimes things just work out...

I booked my maternity photo shoot today. I have the most awesome photographer, Melina Perron. You can check out some of her work at: http://melinaperronphotography.blogspot.com/ After the baby is born we are going to get family photos as well. I am really excited about the shoot especially since I will have a ton of great photos to scrapbook.

Tomorrow I am meeting with my doula, Carly. Many people have asked me, "What is a doula?" Well.. The word has come to refer to "a woman experienced in childbirth who provides continuous physical, emotional, and informational support to the mother before, during and just after childbirth." (Klaus, Kennell and Klaus, Mothering the Mother) So basically Carly is there to support me through the birth and help me have a positive experience. Carly is just starting her training as a doula but she is so knowledgeable and I am learning so much from her.