Awake at 4 a.m!!

Well I fell asleep at 8 pm in the evening ... Iain had popped out to find our neighbour Chris, to talk about something to do with the flats I guess, when he returned he didn't think I needed waking ... so I missed the last meal today, missed my Met dose, missed rehydrating after a long day in Cambridge and oh my Goodness did I feel rough when I woke up at midnight! I also missed checking my dinner sugar levels. 

Iain was nicely coming to bed ... as if I can sleep through from 8 pm ... to the following day! 

OMG

Well it's not his fault, don't get me wrong - he's not my keeper, and I'm responsible for myself, but I was so tired .. SO, so tired, I fell asleep, and it does seem he has no idea, despite the last 7 months about how seriously I need to regulate my sugars and hydration. The baby exhausts me now. Not all the time, I think I manage very well. But sometimes it's too much. specially if I have spent the day out (all day) - my sugars and insulin tend to suffer. It was a hot day today too. 

So now I can't sleep. Bummer. 

Iain played relaxation stuff for me and did his Marvin voice for the birth affirmations! Made me laugh and helped me relax. I listened for ages even after he fell asleep, but I can't sleep now.

Actually the relaxation and hypnobirthing practice is going very well, and Iain is a big help in this.  

So let me tell you about what I did yesterday in Cambridge:

I was ready ahead of time to get my bus for a change LOL - and the bus took FOREVER to get to Cambridge. Mamma and Abba called in the morning wanting to meet up as they were out and about in Cambridge and wanted to see me before Yoga, in the end just saw them for a minute before going in. They planned to meet me in Nandos after yoga. 

Yoga itself was very good, relaxing, calming and I felt in balance again afterwards. It was a low intensity class really because of the heat, and that is what I needed anyway. Mamma was waiting outside, she met Shima and Emma, which was good. 

Emma has SPD now and I'm worried about her as she doesn't know a lot about it, and I think that is not so good, as I'd rather have help if I get SPD ... Anyway, will ask later. I told her what I knew and asked her to Google the pelvic floor stuff in case it helps. Of course, not having SPD myself, I don't really know. 

Anyway we retrieved Abba who was waiting at Nandos and went to EAT instead as Nandos really does make my gut hurt and it was feeling bad anyway. Actually I wanted to go to Organic 8 but Mamma said Abba doesn't like it (??? when did he eat there?) - what I really needed was a proper meal, but they weren't keen on the place and so I didn't push it. I had yummy Beef teriyaki soup, and a Diet Coke. I thought I'd pop over to Waterstones, look up Gowri Motha's Gentle First Year for advice on avoiding allergies and intolerances in babies (there wasn't much that was relevant - it's a good book though in many ways!) and then get the bus home - get home by 3:30, ish. You know. 

Well I read a LOT at Waterstones, had to miss the bus and then kill time (getting hungrier and hungrier) - went to Borders, got a great book for Iain to read to the baby - Daddy's Lullaby - it brought a tear to my eye its so sweet. Iain loves it, he read it to the bump and the baby moved about when Iain sang the lullaby bit. I wanted him to have a song for the baby too - I sing to the baby all the time, and am sure I will do when he's here. 

I got a few more books - a book on ice lollys, they look like fun! I can make stuff that is acceptable for me to eat, and can make pretty things too, should make up for a lot! I bought the baby This little Baby, and the Baby Signing book (first one) so that we can think about the signs ourselves and see if we can cope! Plus I got the last (or penultimate ... depending on his arrival) Junior Pregnancy and Birth magazine before the baby comes!!

I was looking up the food intolerance and allergy stuff and found out quite a lot. For me, and as far as I can tell to keep Baby safe and avoid what happened to Iain and Dougs ... or a similar reaction, I just need to do a few things, always tying in my own intolerances and nutritional needs, and keeping a balanced nutritious diet in place ... It's a LOT to take into account, and I need to give up dairy for myself (it's really making me ill - I was wrong, that baby did not take away my lactose issues). This has the added benefit of there being no cows milk sugars in my system when the baby gets here. I may continue with some cheese - as long as the baby stays off cows milk/milk not from me for a year or so, he should be able to avoid developing a milk protein allergy. It's unlikely the small amounts of milk protein travelling through my breast milk to him (via cheese) will cause an allergy to develop - if he gets sensitised from elsewhere then that tiny amount can effect him. Same with eggs, tomatoes, wheat - as long as he avoids exposure before he can tolerate the foods, he should be ok. So I just need to be vigilant and give him foods at the right times and watch him, and he should be able to eat everything, or if he can't, we should know. I am happy with that. 

My probiotic tablets and having the cheese I DO eat plus Miso soup should help boost my immunity and food tolerance as well as his. Seems this is far more effective than me cutting stuff out. 

I am planning on cutting out or at least really cutting back on wheat same time as the lactose. I have not noticed wheat helping me at all, and Louise as well as Anushe swear giving it up helped them. Wheat stuff makes my sugars too high for a small amount anyway. No good. 

Ordering the big furniture!!

I got the Dwell stuff ordered on Friday the 11th, after much deliberation. We chose our wardrobe and a shoe cabinet with a mirror front. 

I was ready to order the Moffii Oberon cradle with the spiral frame and OMG catastrophe - they aren't doing that frame now, the cradle itself is now in its second generation ... and the frame is now a wooden one OMG I cried and cried and cried - it really felt like the baby will have NOTHING nice ... which of course is not true. He will have all nice things, and just what he needs, and the cradle is still the best, and the frame we are getting now is more versatile, portable, reusable and sustainable (eco-friendly too), so all over, it IS the best choice, and despite being pregnant I am not irrational .... I accept the situation is not bad at all. I ordered the cradle too. Plus sheets and all that. We are all set.

[Since then there has been a delay in shipment - cradle should get to us by end of August ... oooooh ... hope it all works out!! China and the floods are the problem .... poor Chinese manufacturers have managed to make our baby's crib even with the water, bless them. Moffii's service is very reassuring - he updated me and pre-empted me from sending him hysterical hormone-fuelled emails by keeping me in the loop, and he's also said he'll send me an extra mattress/sheets - which does help. Iain's parents have paid for it all, which is a load of our minds!]

 We went to Ware on the 12th, Saturday and ordered the sofa. It was a nice shop really, the chaps who work there were easy going matter of fact types, they let us get on with it, gave us fabric swatches, offered to show us other sofas in the same fabric as any of our 'maybes'. We went through the swatches impatiently bus systematically, and narrowed it down immediately. Being particular has advantages! The list was down to 2 by the end of the process, and our hearts went out to the one we chose - we liked the other one in our minds, but didn't love it, want it - and our final choice we think is practical, we think we love it, we think we want it in our home. 

So all is well. Just gotta wait for it all to come.

Can't believe the changes!!

Hi All

Obviously I have been too busy to post much, well, I have been too tired too. It seems ridiculous - literally the MINUTE I hit 30 weeks enormous fatigue set in. Not all day, just often enough to mean I just about get back up before am down again. Last night, following on from yesterday being a slow, miserable, sad day for me (darned hormones, darned sugar levels the day before, darned consequences!!!) I was pretty miserable. Pretty sad. Talking to Iain helped, and realising I DID achieve a lot yesterday even though I didn't leave the house was a good thing. (I shopped, for Baby and Mummy essentials,  sorted out the birthing pool ... I've done my bit now, am hoping the pool will arrive - the stockist in Holland should send it to Tanyapa once she's paid for it, and it should arrive at their place in time for them to bring it over to me. I did the accounts for June/July, and made some rough calculations for the next 7 months - I think we might be ok in the end, I need to stay focused. Maybe if we keep the balance right we can let go of Green Meany [the car] when the baby is about 5-6 months old and move up to a Skyline as planned ... maybe we wont have to and can just do the LPG conversion on Greeny. I'm glad the Skyline will do ... we just need to find one in the right colour which is a good car. I also called the council waste disposal people and asked about the brown bins for food waste and they are sending us one they say. Good. I wonder what will go in our normal bin now if we can recycle everything .... just disposable nappies I guess. And non-recyclable stuff. Plus I did a whole lot of the baby's laundry and it all came out looking brilliant.)

Iain really helped. He gave me a really nice bedtime massage, we put the hypnobirthing music on and he made up stuff to say - hypnobirthey stuff! It was great, he is very good at it, and he did a special voice ... sounds like HAL ... lol!!! I slept well, which makes a change from the night before! 

So I guess my strategy has to be keep the sugar levels down. I got careless on Sunday and suffered for it. My gut is also less tolerant now of many things. the obvious problems are back - I was teetering on nausea, was a gas bucket, and had lactosey-pains over the last day or so. And indigestion is threatening! So being careful is my only option, huh? 

I didn't walk at all yesterday, but did a fair bit of laundry and housework, I was active - just in very small chunks. More activity!!! That's the way. 

There are big changes in the flat too. The bedroom is almost done I guess. The big changes - wardrobe and mirrored cabinet - are in place. Am waiting for the baby's changing table - Richard & Birgit have it (it was Katie's). A lot of things are looking more plausible - the shelves that we're getting for the bedroom walls, the pegs to hang things on - they are all selected, we just have to get the rest of the place ready before we can get the shelves/pegs and put them up.

Should be nice in the end. 

Iain is putting in a new door to the kitchen soon, with glass panels. The baby will be able to see us in the kitchen, and we can see him from the kitchen, if need be. Also more light will be able to be shared between the lounge and kitchen, which will be good. 

The kitchen itself will soon have another cabinet, above the fridge, and I'm going to keep the chemicals there, out of reach. Under the sink can have all the non-toxic but big stuff - supplies! Am glad. Maybe the nappy pail will go there too, am not sure. 

When Iain's Mum gets here in a few weeks, we'll send the table and chairs back to Redgrave and get the sideboard and Grandma Midgley's table. Am hoping Baby's cradle will also have arrived and we would therefore know what's what in our lounge! 

We're ready to get rid of the coffee tables with wheels ... the big old shelves are going to move next to the TV to serve as media/phone shelves + Virgin Media box shelf. There will be room for some books still, so it should be ok. The Ikea shelves will move to the wall that's on the kitchen side, and should take up very little room - leaving space for the baby's stuff. Maybe a toy chest or something. 

Our sofa should come soon too. Am hoping everything will look nice together, and that there will be a huge space in the middle of the room for the birthing pool! 

Iain will strip and varnish the two wooden chairs and probably the 'heirloom' 50p  b/f chair from Mamma & Abba's place [it's just a wooden chair my Grandmother picked up for 50p at a charit shop when my Mum was expecting - we've all been breastfed on it, even Brishti]. The three chairs should look nice in the end when they are done. They are all we'll have apart from the new sofa, possibly the futon, and the bean bag! 

Should be good though. Nice stuff, nice room, nice flat (inside!). 

Right now he is working on the doors in the flat, and once they are all done the place will look transformed, I am sure. The 'Narnia Cupboard' and hall carpeting is next on the list ... and what he has to do is petty simple, so I think we'll manage. Hmmm ... good thing we have very little on in August...  apart from my showers but Iain does not have to do anything in advance for them. He can do DIY stuff! 

First ever BH contractions?

Well, we went to see NK and everyone else at Cherry Hinton as planned today. I had porridge for breakfast with Iain - I had a half portion, but still, by lunchtime sugars were still at the limit. We took NK out for a wander and it was lovely. 

Then we had Peyaju and lunch (rice and dhaal for me, Iain had keema too). And I was worried later as my sugars went up again. 

I had forgotten my Metformin - I thought we were going home right after lunch. 

We didn't - we went to the Vue and saw Prince Caspian - which we loved, but I was hungry too and so had peanut M&Ms as the least risky item available at the Vue. So then at least the sugars didn't go up, but 2 hours later they hadn't really gone down. Back at home I crashed - I was feeling the high levels, I was grumpy, sad, disappointed, a bit worried - not much, two readings under those circumstances .... could have been a lot worse. 

I slept for I guess 3 hours. So went without food for far too long ... almost 6 hours by the time I ate something and I was suffering a bit by then. Iain had let me sleep (when will he learn!!!) which really messed me up as it took all of the next day to actually get back to some kind of normal. I missed the meal, which was bad, specially after eating 3 meals that dod not work for me. Then because I slept all evening I could not sleep at night - not till about 4 am or 4:30. I had to get up and listen to podcasts and spend time on SoulCysters. 

It was while being up all night and before that, late in the evening that I had the contractions. So many of them! Then I realised some were BH and some were just the baby rolling to one side of me, with all his weight. Phew! 

Actually the first lot - not sure if they were practice surges or the baby - started when we got home, before I crashed. I had pain too. Muscles all tensed and bunched up, and was suffering because of the lactose intake. A bad combination, I had to have Iain's help to breathe and calm down and relax. We put on a hypnobirthing visualisation and it worked. I slept after that. 

Alls well that ends well, but I gotta watch it with the food and relax more. 

A Mummy's work is never done ... baby's not even here yet!!

Hmm. Mummyhood is a long, l o n g slog. Have been sorting through his newborn clothes. OMG he has a lot!!! 

I have a lot of laundry to do .... And folding, and now that I've seen Katie's handiwork ... I have ironing too! 

I THINK and hope his newborn stuff will fit into the two drawers I have allocated to him. 

His future-clothes will definitely have to be in boxes on the shelves as planned. Phew. 

I catalogued and sorted his clothes ... haven't made it through his 4-12 month load (a drawer & 2 bags!!!) from Katie yet. 

I'll get there. 

Elizabeth visited today. I had a good day actually. Iain cooked me breakfast, and I woke up happy after visiting Katie last night so it was good to be up and about. I went to the market and bought loads of yummy fruit and the veg I need for the week. Might get more veg on Wed, probably wont have to. I carried two big bags back, stopped for a breather every now and then, but managed very well, did not struggle even up the hill. Am proud of my fitness. The baby has given me a lot. He may well have given me more life than I have given him. It's a humbling thought, and I will always be grateful to him for it. 

It was so nice to see Elizabeth - I walked to the station to collect her too! I did my whole hour of walking before lunch!!! 

I cooked a spicy beef thing in the pressure cooker with swede in it, served with organic salad and a home made balsamic vinaigrette, and some fruit salad I made (pineapple, grapes, cherries - my new favourite combo) - and you know, eating lower carb meals isn't so bad when its that fresh and nice. No leftovers. Am pleased. Heated up food sucks (mainly). 

We hung out and chatted and caught up. Then we sorted some clothes and I showed Elizabeth the new stuff I bought him. She wanted to see them OMG I am so lucky today!!! 

My favourite is his 'coming home from hospital' outfit - beautiful, just in case we do have him in hospital ... I'd like the outfit to look forward to. 

Now I'm trying to get organised and have been focusing on getting the birthing pool. We've picked the La Bassine and I expected to get it from the UK supplier. They have a good website, interesting and everything ... however I am underwhelmed, even a bit miffed at their customer service. I am getting replies ok, and answers to my query ... can I buy it now, can I use it a few times etc etc ... but the answers about supply are a bit short ... I realise now after a few near-monosyllabic messages that they don't have any pools in stock till mid-Sept, and the Tres Tria Co-Sleeping solution I want to order too is not in stock till they dunno when ... No good really. I am not interested in shopping with them if it's so hard to find out when, why, how and what they are doing about it .... So I have ordered the Tres Tria from the US site. It should be with us soon - within 10 days. 

Bummer ... but there you go, am petrified now I won't have the Tres Tria pillow ... OR the pool ... Am hoping things will arrive ok. 

As for the pool, I have one long shot - I don't read Dutch but the Holland supplier of La Bassine appear to have them in stock ... if they can get one to Tanyapa before the 29th, she can bring it to me. Or presumably they can ship it right to me. 

Oh what trauma.

How many times do I have to say 'Don't upset the pregnant lady ... it's not nice.'

Visited Katie, Tim & the boys

We went to see Iain's cousin Katie and her husband Tim tonight - to collect the hand-me-downs she'd put aside for me. We had SUCH a lovely time. The boys were still up - Pat is 3 and a half and George is 2 and a half and they loved their presents. We'd taken stickers for the older boys and a book in the shape of a tractor (about a tractor) for George, and a pack of that magic painting stuff from Crayola for Pat. Of course I then had to read the book to George 3 times, but it was fun. Pat proceeded to paint with his present and made a very wet mess on the table ... they both stuck stickers on themselves, on me, on their parents. I got plenty of cuddles and both boys wanted to sit on my lap a lot. It was very nice. Katie had a real yummy spread laid out and we tucked in, oh so yummy! I was pleased as was hungry. I had eaten breakfast (late, I wasn't hungry earlier) and had eaten my afternoon meal when Iain got home (with him) and so this was just my third meal. Sugars were fine though. I guess there will be 3 meal days and 5 meal days (and even 8 meal days LOL sometimes). 

The better my sugar levels the easier it is to function, and the less often I need to eat - that tells me how good my insulin levels are. I really do think my IR is all they found in the lab results and the GD is a load of hooey. 

Anyway, brought all the stuff home, got home late and crashed. Had a look at the stuff the next morning and OMG - WOW Katie put it all together so nicely - everything is clean, pressed and organised. I don't have to do anything! Man, that girl can do laundry!!!! 

Am so touched, she really made it nice for me. 

There are useful things like breast pads and bottles, and a breast pump too - so a few less things for me to buy. When the time comes I can use Katie's pump and see how I feel. And I can trial her bottles before making my decision on bottles and stuff. A stopgap before I have to ship in the glass Dr Browns. 

She's a real star that girl. And she had useful advice for me - 

Her birthing position of choice is all fours leaning against a chair as well - I can see that would really work very well. Nice one! 

Also - I'll be on my knees a lot - find a comfy surface!

She did say just listen to midwife, pant when she says to, push when she says to - she knows what she's doing. I will keep that in mind, and keep an open mind - I don't know how my baby's birth will go after all. 

Katie said after a few months they just sterilised the bottles in hot water in an ice cream box, it's not a big deal. 

She looked great really, so did Tim. The boys are just gorgeous! Am so happy about it all. 

29 weeks and the 5th day comes to a close ... I have new hair ... I am the baby's mummy!

Here I am, almost 30 weeks pregnant - I will hit 30 weeks this weekend. I've lost some weight - some fat at any rate. I have the amazing shrinking boobs ... bizarre. My weight is basically stable. The ultrasound on Tuesday revealed that the baby is almost one and a half kilogrammes in weight. Well done him!!! And I have managed not to put on a kilogramme in the last month ... I have managed to stay reasonably stable, oscillating around 80.5 - 80.7 kg, which is what they want. 

First time they weighed me in early pregnancy I was 70 kg, and they wanted me to put on no more than 15-20 at the most ... then when the GD thing happened, all of a sudden it was, Oh, you need to not put on more than 12 kg if you can help it! (WTF???!!!) 

So at 80 kg about 6 weeks ago ... I was told I only had 2 kg to play around with ... I know who's going to provide the sanctioned 2 kg ... not me!!! Young Midgley would make me very happy if he ends up a healthy 3.7-4.2 kg baby. 

The diebetic team in the antenatal clinic want me to lose weight while the baby gains weight ... Nice!!! 

Way to pile it on the poor pregnant lady. Hmmpph. 

Anyway, the absence of junk in my diet now is having the desired effect. Good thing I love beans and can follow a food plan!!! I'm definitely less tubby, and the baby is just the right size according to the scan, so it is very gratifying - I can see it working in every way. 

Darned hard work though! 

I had my haircut today, as you can see, so now do I look like someone's Mummy? 

My little one moves about a lot all day now. Getting a bit more intrusive - I can't just let him move and carry on with what I'm doing sometimes now, he is that distracting! 

Here I am wondering if he will look like me. Haven't really thought about that very much ... assumed he will look like Iain. Of course, he may well have my hair .... maybe we can match ... Lol!!! 

I decided at the salon today that Baby Midgley is DEFINITELY not going to Cuts by Carlo like his Dad and Grandfather ... don't think I could stand to have his hair butchered thus. He'll go to Anderson's with me ... Costs about the same for a kid as far as I can see. 

29 weeks and a half!

So here I am, feeling fit and well and strong after a very good Aqua yoga class, and lunch with my mother. Went salsa dancing with Iain last night in Hitchin (Becca was there looking gorgeous). Iain found it hard to focus - he is worn out with all he has to do, poor lamb. He's a good sport though and we enjoyed dancing to the music in the end. 

The Isle of Wight trip ... or 'Don't Go to Ryde' lol

So Chris and I made our way to the Isle of Wight this Sunday (13th). We met at Kings Cross, went on to Victoria, found the coach bit we needed to get to, found a Starbucks, loaded up on Frappuccinos (mmmm Dark mocha light) and got our coach. Trip to Portsmouth was great. We had good chats on the coach and were very comfy. The train in Portsmouth which took us to the catamaran was good too. The Catamaran was a bit underwhelming but we got to Ryde, nice and excited. Ready to visit Quarr Abbey. Chris was hoping to go on a retreat there some day. 

Er... Ryde's kinda crappy ... it's kinda chock full of ugly buildings, and we couldn't really get to the sea or nature or anything, most bits we actually got near were cordoned off. The tranquility we found was within our selves ... and we did find it, so no loss really, but we had hoped for a real nature around us moment ... we knew we couldn't have that all day, but a little while maybe... 

There was a 'fete' at the Abbey - and not a monk in sight!

OK, there were loads of kids milling about ready to perform something and a few tables with  old people selling tatt ... er ... this was no fete! 

We walked to the 'ruins' - a nice walk, saw pigs and sheeps, all very nice. The ruins looked great too ... but were inaccessible - a big rusty chain and padlock on the gate! Barbed wire! Sheep on the inside!! OMG. 

So we walked the other way to get to the beach. No such luck. Eventually we reached a dead end, we could see the water, and some great boats, but couldn't reach any of it - cordoned off. We did sit on a bench and chat, was nice. Then had a nice lunch at the pub nearby. Then back we went to Ryde, and found a small patch of beach, for another chat. We had decided to get the Hovercraft back to Portsmouth. We did and it was the best thing we did! It was brilliant. 

I did have a moment when we got to Portsmouth .... I found some amazing ice cream and wanted some. A LOT. But I chose not to have it. If I still want it later, we can go back to Portsmouth and have it - LOL! 

We met up with Chris's sister Amanda and her partner Judith, they are lovely, we had a brilliant time with them. They were meeting a whole load of friends as it was someone's birthday, and we tagged along and it was all very pleasant. Chris' sister loves him and is very, very proud of him, and he is so sweet in how he wants to hang out with her! It was nice to see them connect, they clearly wanted to. Was nice to be there. 

We spent the night at their place - with their 3 cats!!! Chris got relegated to the tv room actually WITH the cats! I think he X-Box 360-d his way through the early hours in the end. I of course totally got the spare room with the huge comfy bed and slept like a log which contains a littler log! 

Amanda and Judith also have one of the loveliest bathrooms I have ever seen, and it was very nice having a shower there the next day. We made our way into Portsmouth again later that morning, to Guns Quays and spent the day walking about from eating place to eating place eating and drinking depending on the time (we stuck to my food schedule) and watched Kung Fu Panda which I found inspirational! (I'm a warrior too Po, and I'll never give up either.)

My sugars were kinda high after breakfast as I had forgotten the night dose of Metformin (DOH) the previous night, and had also forgotten the breakfast dose. AND I HAD PORRIDGE!!! WITH BANANA!!!!

Dear oh Dear. 

Spent the day bringing it all down again and it worked. No problems. 

There was another food incident - we bought Cheese Strings for me to eat in the cinema and also on the coach ... and euuurrgghhhh there was fungus inside!!! So we took it back, Chris dealt with it for me. Bleaghhh. 

We went to the C0-Op before getting on the coach, and got low carb cheesy twisty things, houmous, and water, AND CHEESE STRINGS! I was determined to not let my demons get the better of me - I don't want to be scared of Cheese String. Haunted by the fungus boogey-man. 

It was fine! Ate fine, travelled fine, felt fine - managed to keep my sugars ok. 

Best thing was, Chris and I both got a lot out of the time together, away from life and everything in it, and we both came away I think stronger in ourselves, a bit re-charged, which is good as we each have so much to do. So much ahead. 

Am very glad I had that time away. 

My Birthday celebrations - my party, my day out in London and the Concert!

27 Weeks and 3 Days!

Here's my big 'ol belly now, almost at the 3rd trimester ... or has it already begun???? 

I'm definitely more tired, my back is easily achey ... baby has started moving more, I can feel him in more parts of my tummy. things are moving along. 

Means more work! I have to keep up, for his sake as well as mine and Iain's. Am tired of working so hard, but that's not really very helpful. No point feeling that way and there will not be LESS work and less effort involved in the years to come!!! Pregnancy, I am sure, is a piece of cake compared to parenting. 

Lets see, the joys of 27 weeks - my son is alive and well and making his presence known to everyone else. People notice my bump. Some people have even felt him move, or even seen him move. People say I look well and fit, even Abba has noticed and he's hardly perceptive! That is great motivation. 

Oatcakes taste great, that's a really good UP!! 

On the downside - am exhausted. A lot of the 'plans' on the to-do list have to take a back seat now because a) I don't care about shopping much at the best of times, I only care about taking care of myself and little one right now, and feel I should just do that. If the chores, housework and simple things like reorganising furniture can fit in with exercise ... then well and good. But really, everything else can wait. b) I realise the baby doesn't care at all about the flat, and the best thing I can do for him is work as hard as I can for his birth. If that is all I can train for, and focus on, then so be it. He WILL care if he has a bad one!!

I don't think I have been able to do as much as I wanted to ... but I do think I have done a load more than anyone else expected. And I am doing very well in this pregnancy, even by my own standards. I'd like to step it up though. 

Question is, do I have enough energy and drive to eat right, exercise and practice the hypnobirthing for 13 more weeks?????