I didn't sleep very well last night- physically uncomfortable, but I also kept worrying about whether Leah was moving or not (she's been a bit quieter lately- poor little bug is running out of room!), so this morning when I *finally* decided to get up to have some sugar- uhh, breakfast- to get her moving, I got some pretty intense back pain the *second* I stood up, out of bed.  That turned into some lower abdomen cramping, as well.  Manageable, but certainly uncomfortable.  Since then, the general crampy feeling has not really passed, and I've had two *loose* bm's (sorry, tmi.)  Oh, and the apple turnovers that I had for breakfast got Leah to dance around in there for a while, so all seems good in that department, also (crazy, psycho pregnant brain at the very end of pregnant, grr.)  I'm hoping this doesn't let up!  Maybe this is the onset of early labour?  Eek, I'm trying not to get overly excited and just lay low and see what happens.  Marcin is about to leave for work, shortly, but of course he can leave there as soon as I need him to, so he's very much "on call" for the day.  

I hope this is it! 

40w today- Leah's due date.

I'm 39w6d today.  Tomorrow is my due date!  For a few days there, it looked like Leah might come early, but today- nada, groan.  Perhaps she'll come tomorrow- on her due date?!  I was born on my due date, so here's hoping!  

Anywho, last night was nice.  Patrick and Ashley AGAIN surprised me with lunch (yummy! spicy chicken w/ rice and potatoes!  I think Pat was just trying to induce labour with the spiciness since he guessed that Leah would come today, on the 17th), and then Marcin and I went out to dinner, at the Pickle Barrel at Yonge & Eglinton.  Nothing terribly fancy, of course, but it was a nice dinner and I'm glad that he and I were able to get out on our own.  We also went into Sugar Mountain to buy some lollipops (to pack in the hospital bag!  Yum, chupa chups!), and I ended up getting a hazelnut galaxy bar (wow, amazing!) and some licorice flavoured altoids- if you think it's gross, shush you!  I learned to appreciate licorice when I worked there!  =P  While we were there we noticed that the staff a) was not talking to customers, b) barely said a word to me (and they recognized me, too!), c) had the back door open, and d) had a bunch of food and a drink sitting on the counter.  All of these things are WAAAY against store policy, so I decided tell Debby (since she's super unlucky with staff members and I feel that if they're dumb enough to keep on chatting amongst themselves when they know that Debby's friend...WHO USED TO MANAGE THE STORE is in there and didn't change what they were doing, well, they deserve to be "told on"!)  Today Debby text messaged me to tell me that they're claiming that I'm lying.  Ha.  Of course, she knows that I'm not (I have NOTHING to gain by lying!) and decided to put up a "now hiring" sign to "scare them" and discourage this sort of behaviour.  Hehe.  The thought of that made me giggle.  Wow, I got waaaaay off topic.  Uhmm, right.  So, we went to SM, to dinner, and then we were going to go to the movies, but Marcin was a bit tired so we just hopped into Indigo instead and Marcin bought me a baby care book- it's written by two doctors over at the hospital for sick children (in Toronto) and I like that it has a very Canadian, pro-breastfeeding. pro-make-your-own-mind-up-about-diapers sort of stance.  Also, it's not an overwhelming read like most of the baby books I flipped through- a lot of photographs and nice, glossy paper.  We drove back home after that and called it a night.  10-something and we were pooped!  Man, we're getting old!  =)

This morning we got up and had breakfast, dressed, etc.  Marcin is on day shifts from now on, so he has work at noon.  Before then, though, we drove over to Kiddie Proofers (a baby/child safety store) to get our convertible car seat professionally installed ($40 for the service but WOW, what piece of mind!  The car seat does NOT BUDGE out of its place.  I refuse to be part of the "90% of carseats are installed incorrectly statistic!")- anywho, they were still closed.  Since they were opening in 15 mins or so, we quickly drove up to Shoppers Drug Mart to buy some odds n' ends- and Marcin decided to pick up the Braun ThermoScan ear thermometer (it was on a price freeze @ $15 cheaper!  Score!)  Also, as part of the week deals or what-not, we got $30 worth of gift certificates for multiple/whichever restaurant with our purchase!  Mind you, they expire Feb 8th or so- but still!  We need to make sure to treat ourselves before then!  Oh, and since Marcin wanted to use his optimum points for the purchase, we needed to buy a certain amount so I threw in a gossip mag and a Reader's Digest for the hospital bag, also!  (Now I just need to remember NOT to read the thing until we're there!)  Phew!  So, yes, busy busy bees.  At this point we went back to the Kiddie Proofers place.  They installed our car seat after a short wait since we didn't have an appointment.  The lady there was a bit condescending to me- I guess they see a young person, pregnant, and think that I can't possibly know ANYTHING to do with ANYTHING baby-related.  Pfft.  She was trying to tell me that OUR carseat (which she did not see, btw!) was only 20 lbs rear-facing, when I *know* that it is up to 35 lbs (and 65 lbs forward-facing)- I didn't argue with her, of course- what's the point.  It's just hilarious how she was telling ME about MY CARSEAT that *I* spent a long time researching, yada yada, to make sure that I had something that was safe (and could keep our baby in the much-safer rear-facing positing for as long as possible!)  In any case, I didn't let it get to me.  Not really, anyways- although I'm glad Marcin picked up on it and mentioned it on the way home.  So yeah... he drove me home and got his stuff for work (all of this excitement before 11 AM, if you can believe it!) and then left.  

My day, since then, has been pretty productive!  Mind you, I'm exhausted because of it, *but* I managed to put away two baskets of laundry, dust EVERYTHING, and clean up the wires situation behind my desk!  It looks AMAZING now.  I am so glad it's taken care of!!!  With both Marcin and Nuno at work it's been a pretty quiet day- just my mom and I (and Neo our cat / Dexter our hamster)  Speaking of Neo- yesterday he LEARNED how to (or decided he'd start, I should say) jump(ing) inside Leah's crib and napping in there!  Part of me is all "NO WAY!  It's the baby's crib!" and the other part is just like "wow...that is so friggin cute"- the second part has, so far, won out and let him sleep in there =\  I figure she'll have to come in contact with him sooner-or-later AND also, she won't be sleeping in there for a long, long time- and once she does a) she'll be supervised ALL THE TIME or b) the door will be closed and Neo will be OUTSIDE the room.  So I'm not too worried.  I think that he thinks that this is some sort of elaborate cat bed for him, or something.  He even snuggled up to my brestFriend pillow that I currently have in there and a teddy bear that Arwen picked up for Leah!  Hehe.  

So that's my day so far.  Perhaps, if I'm up to it later, I'll straighten out the hospital bag although most of the things that need to make their way into there have slowly been making their way in... so we're mostly done.  And then call it a night, I guess.  I'll probably stay up and wait for Marcin, as is usually the case on week-ends.  We'll see. 

Tomorrow- Sus and Arwen are coming over since it's Susana's week-end with Arwen and she asked if we'd be home... of COURSE!  Besides Labour & Delivery, where ELSE would I be?!  =P  I love the company, not to mention that I *love* spending time with my niece, so I'm really looking forward to it!  

Okay, definitely rambling.  I'm going to go and settle in front of the tv now.  My mom's ironing in the living room, anyways, so I should at least keep her company.  Oh, one last thing.  I think I'm going to make my entries FRIENDS-ONLY once Leah gets here.  I just started thinking about how anyone could just read what I write... and it's not like I'm writing anything terribly important (or like I'd be very choosy about who to add, if an add were requested!), but once she's here, I just think I'd like to know WHO is reading my entries, that's all.  That, and then I could put up pics of her without being all weirded out- ooh, the internetz.  Okay, toodles.

39w4d today.  Still pregnant.  

I feel like it's going to happen *soon* but besides the mucus plug/bloody show situation and the fact that I'm 2 cm dilated (as of Tuesday afternoon), not much else seems to be going on.  

I was looking around my room today and noticed a lot of things that I'd like to do before the baby comes- the wires hanging behind my desk have been driving me insane for MONTHS but I've managed to push them out of my head- but now, I have this unreasonable NEED that they be taken care of -as soon as possible-  also, this whole place needs a good dusting (and I mean tops of bookcases and that sort of thing.)  Perhaps when Marcin gets in today I can ask him to push the desk forward for me so that I can have a good go at those wires and wipe everything down and tape those suckers down, also.  Everything is feeling so crowded, all-of-a-sudden, which makes sense since I went from having my own room with closet to living in a room with two other people (even if one of them isn't here yet- she has lots of stuff!) and no closet to stash things in.  Perhaps I'll go through some things today and try to stash them in the living room closet, since I know there's some extra room in there (random bag of cd-rs and dvd-rs- I'm lookin' at you!)  

The days just seem to drag on when no one else is at home.  I have no energy (not to mention the fact that it's cold out) to go outside and walk around- the short walk up to Eglinton nearly killed me the other day!  It certainly took *much* longer than normal!  

We have very few groceries in the house and some things just downright gross me out, so I have to be creative when planning my lunches.  Today, for example, I'm going to have some canned tuna fish with a little bit of mayo on crackers, some yoghurt, and possibly a peanut butter and jam sandwich on the last two pieces of sliced bread, toasted.  I can't seem to get enough of pb&j these days- I think, over the years, I had just forgot how good they went together!  In any case, we're out of chocolate milk, running out of sliced bread, have no NutriGrain bars, and are generally low/out of a few other staples of mine- so a trip to the grocery store *is* in order.  Perhaps that's another thing we can do this evening.  

Marcin is working days this week-end; that is- if Leah isn't here yet and he's working AT ALL.  The cool thing about him working days- and now having a car- is that he doesn't have to go to bed super early since he doesn't start work until NOON on Saturday.... so, maybe, I can convince him to go to The Keg with me for that steak I had last time (yummy- with scallops and shrimp!)  I could drool just at the thought of it.  We might as well make a date night out of it, now that I think of it- and head to the movies to watch something!  I have gift certificates that I can't get any use of as of... soon!  So, if Leah wants to come today/tomorrow- great!  But if not, then her daddy and I can have one last "us" [only] day.  Yup, the more I think about it, the more that sounds like a plan. 

Tomorrow was the day that I guessed she'd be born.  I suppose it's still possible, but the fact that I've experienced no *real* labour symptoms, I'm not going to hold my breath.  And, really, it'd be nice if she were born on the 22nd- just two months short of her daddy and my 5th anniversary!  =)

Okay, I'm rambling- and all of that talk of food, earlier, is making me hungry!  Time to get Neo out of the bed (he's all tucked in under the duvet- it's adorable) and make up the bed... and then time to chow down on something and find something to do that'll kill a few hours before Marcin and the rest of the family get home!  Perhaps some organizing, perhaps some tv, perhaps a nap- but probably a combination of all three!  

Still no contractions- or, I should say, very infrequent BH contractions- some mildly painful, others just uncomfortable.  BUT, last night, after watching American Idol and eating some ice cream *yum* I lost what I think was probably *most* of my mucus plug!  It was slightly bloody- all the better!  Sorry if that's too much info.  I know that this doesn't really *mean* anything, but I'm hoping that maybe Leah will grace us with her presence a few days early, anyways- she's due on Sunday!  I can't believe how close we are to all of this... I am so excited!  =)

Anyways, today is coooold out- or so I hear.  I have no plans of leaving my warm house.  Marcin brought me shortbread cookies and gossip magazines yesterday and I've eaten/read all of them, already, so perhaps I'll busy myself with finishing up the hospital bag, soon.  We might need it shortly!  With my birth plan finished (I made some finishing touches last night) I'm feeling really prepared for this!

Had my appointment with Dr. Melchior today. 

First exciting news of the day- I've lost one pound since last week (believe me, I can afford to lose a few more than one!)  My blood pressure was "normal" which is awesome, Leah's heart rate was good, she's a good-sized baby, and all that good stuff.  Also, she's sitting low in my pelvis.  The doctor asked me whether I wanted to have a cervical check and I agreed that I did- so after an uncomfortable/somewhat painful check I find out that- woohoo- I'm already 2 cm dilated!  Yay!  I guess all these uncomfortable BH contractions are not for nothin'!  =)

I was warned that cervical checks could = some bleeding, and had some when I got home, but minimal- and it's already stopped.  Leah is kickin' around pretty good, atm.  I'm so excited that she'll be here, soon!  I mean, at most, in a couple weeks she'll be here- this is definitely happening soon!  My next appointment is the 20th (next Tuesday), but I'm hoping that she comes before then!  Keep your fingers crossed for me!  

Uhmm.  I also finished my birth plan, and am feeling pretty prepared for her!  Tomorrow and the next day are supposed to be the two coldest days of the season, so far, so maybe she can come on Friday?!  Hehe... that's when Dr. Melchior is on-call at the hospital and would be able to deliver her, so it'd be a best case scenario.  I guess we'll just have to wait and see!  

So I'm in my 40th week of pregnancy- due on Sunday.  The time has just floooown by.  I have my first cervical check at my doctor's appointment tomorrow, so I'll finally know what (if anything!) my cervix has been up to!  Hopefully there's *some* progress... if only, so there'll be less to thin/dilate once things *really* start going.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed. 

In other news, the diaper sprayer / XL wetbag / BabyLegs that Marcin ordered finally arrived today!  Yay!  I was so super excited by the package.  If I knew anything on how to install the sprayer, it'd be done already, but I think I'll just be patient and wait for either Marcin or my super-handy mom to work on it once they get in from work. 

What else...?  Oh yes.  Arwen had her first "at her dad's" week-end this week-end and from all accounts, it was a successful week-end.  Susana came over and we went to dinner at Pickle Barrel (had the most amazing lobster/spinach/artichoke dip ever!  Yum) and then we went to go watch "The Unborn"... acting was "okay" at best, but there were some pretty seriously scary (or, should I say, MAKES YOU JUMP) moments.  Surprisingly, I've been sleeping okay since then... hehe... (the crazy pregnant woman that I am going to go see THE UNBORN... silly, silly me.)  So that was fun. 

And now... Patrick and Ashley are on their way over to my place and they're bringing me lunch!  Who could ask for better friends?!  =P  And... it's going to be a really nice banquet burger (that is almost making me drool at the thought of it!)  Yummy!  

Anywho, I think I hear them coming, so I'm going to run!  

So the good news about being up at ungodly hours is that boredom generally leads to things getting done (especially since it was MUCH too early to plop myself down, in front of the television!)  I am happy to announce that I *finally* finished all the required documents for my maternity leave application (mind you, it took 4+ hours to do!)  About time, huh?!  And, because I decided to call in just to double check some things, I found out that I can just tell them all the info via telephone and save the postage stamp (and the mailing time!)  Now they just need to get my ex-boss to cooperate and send in my ROE (since he hasn't been cooperating with me!) and then presto, application will be processed.  I wonder if I'll be able to get anything- I hope so.  In any case, we'll see.  It's officially out of my hands now.  *IF* I qualify for something, little as it may be, all I have to do from here on in is update the EDD with Leah's ACTUAL birth date.  That's it!  I am feeling very good about this... =)

Anywho, because of my busy morning (starting at 1:30 AM!) I still have not attempted a nap... but I think I will.  Conditions are perfect... it's snowing HEAVILY outside... the sky is GRAY/blah.  If it were sunny out I'd never be able to sleep, but this might actually work!  

Oh, and my *stepmother* (I guess- in any case, my father's wife) tricked me into answering her phone call today by calling our house with a private number.  She, apparently, wants to talk to me about some "news" but face-to-face.  I do not like this woman... ...for many reasons, but especially because she'd call the house with a blocked number so that I could not properly screen the call (it's my right, darnnit!  I shouldn't have to speak to people that only aggravate me and bring on more stress to my life!)  I've not yet decided whether I will meet her tomorrow (she normally drives to my house and asks that I come out and sit in the car to talk to her) or just ignore the call- and ALL private number calls on both cell and house line.  The only thing that might make me meet her is the possibility that she may have news regarding my paternal grandmother.  My grandma lives in Germany and, last I heard, was in hospital with some depression issues and such... since no one on my dad's side of the family bothers to update his adult kids on goings-ons with her, I never hear news about her unless it's from this woman... I'm thinking if anything happened with her, she should have just told me on the phone, though, no?  I dunno.  My life is so much less stressful when these people aren't in it.  I really wish she'd just give up and leave me alone... I'm VERY pregnant, with little patience, and tired to boot- can't she just leave me alone?!  (( My mom's only fault is that she raised me to be overly-polite and I could never speak my mind to this woman... sigh ))

Later today, after a nap and a shower- if the weather is still BLAH maybe it'll encourage me to write up my birth plan or finish packing the hospital bag- who knows!  Today's just turning out to be one of those RANDOM, RANDOM DAYS!  

Have I mentioned how much Neo, my cat, ADORES crinkly paper?!  If he had to choose between cat treats or crinkly paper, I'm almost sure the paper would win!  Bizarro!  
 

It's 5AM.  Marcin's alarm just went off and he'll be up for work shortly.  I, on the other hand, have been up since 1:30!  I got up because I was having some mildly uncomfortable braxton hicks contractions, then I went pee, ate a piece of bread and drank some water... turned the light off... could not sleep.  Turned the light back on and read for about an hour.  During this time, started to get REALLY bad heartburn.  Gross.  So, even though I am currently exhausted, I am unable to sleep.  And, at this point, it's pointless to try right now since Marcin will be up and about very soon.  

To put on the to-do list: NAP!  

(And, as I write this, I can hear Marcin's breathing slowing... he's drifting off to sleep again, I think he probably just pressed SNOOZE on his alarm... and my cat is fast asleep at his feet, also.  I'm jealous.)

So, yeah, Leah... whenever you wanna make an appearance, mama's ready for you!  I'd much rather be up with a newborn than up because of heartburn and braxton hicks!  

In other baby-related news, I got an e-mail from the WeeCare company (or something like that) stating that our order has been shipped!  Woohoo!  That means that our diaper sprayer, XL wetbag, and another pair of babyLegs are ON ROUTE from BC!  Expected delivery date is this Friday, so I can't wait!  I'll have to be very careful to hear the door, I guess- I really wouldn't want to miss the knock on the door and then have to travel to heck-knows-where to pick up the package.

But... if we *did* have to travel to heck-knows-where it'd be a lot easier since... Marcin's car is all ready to go!  The mechanic gave it a clean bill of health yesterday- emissions/Drive Clean test passed, and all!  He has a few things on his to-do list that are car-related, still, like getting his sticker (he has a temporary one, atm)/registration and swinging by the mechanic to pay him some more money... but then it's just "install car seat" and we're ready for some serious baby action!  It is such a relief!  He really has done good!  In other car-drama news, though, he has been unable to contact the guy who sold him the car to discuss the rest of the payment on the car because his first message to the guy stated that the car DID NOT pass the emissions test and that he would like to discuss it, etc., etc.  The guy probably thinks that he wants to go back on the deal (he doesn't) and isn't answering so that he can keep the money that has already been paid out.  So... the guy is losing out.  All he wants to do is pay him some more money... not the full amount that was still due because the guy misled him and it led to him having to pay for a LOT more things/fixes than he originally thought, BUT fair is fair and he agreed to pay up to a certain point once the car passed the emissions test, and it has (within the agreed upon amount.)  In any case, the car is legally his- his name is on the ownership paperwork and he has documents confirming transfer of ownership from the other guy to him.  He has insurance already, and has already done some fix-up work on the car and it is running well, so really it's the other guy's loss- and Marcin saves a few hundred dollars in the process.  Silly people being afraid to pick up a phone and figure out what's really going on (instead of just avoiding phone calls for seemingly no reason!)

So that's what's new here.  I plan on doing NOTHING today.  NADA, ZIP, ZILCH.  I've been so tired lately that if I even get around to calling back friends that have tried to contact me as of late, it'll be a miracle.  Honestly, my energy levels are at zero.  I might stay in bed a while longer (since my cat is all nestled up against my leg and I'd hate to disturb his royal highness!), perhaps I'll watch a movie on my laptop and then, slowly, start my day.  Slooooowly.

38w0d - the start of the 39th week!  I am super excited to know that I'll get to see Leah any day now (and, at most, three weeks from now!)  I decided the other day that I really DON'T need a Braun Thermoscan ear thermometer for her- we have, like, three "regular" thermometers lying around... and if anything, and the need for one arises, the closest pharmacy is just under a ten minute WALK away, so we can always pop out and get one.  So, aside from the thermometer, my long exhaustive list of things that needed to be purchased for her arrival is down to just one thing- decorative wall hangings!  Marcin and I seem to disagree on this issue- I want something to hang over her crib/changing table and he doesn't think it's safe.  I did see some nice cloth (read: light, unlikely to cause damage at all on anything- especially baby- if it fell down...which is already unlikely) decorative pieces (of ladybugs!  and dragon flies!  in pink -and- green!) at a store in Thornhill (where we bought our UppaBaby stroller a couple months back) but it IS a little bit out of the way so I don't know if we'll be able to get them in time for her birth, or not.  I've also been looking at eBay, on occasion, because sometimes there are some really nice things on there- but so far nothing can compare to the ones at DearBorn Baby (the Thornhill store.)  We'll see what happens.  Soon enough, it'll be the LAST thing on my mind... ...but until she gets here, my mind wanders and I obsess about every. little. thing. that I want FOR her.  I highly doubt she'll care whether there's something on the wall over her crib or not, but I really want her to look back at her "nursery...corner" (in our room) and think 'my mom and dad (& co.) got me all these things because they were SO excited for my arrival.'  I'm being a crazy pregnant woman, aren't I?

Anyways, last night was fun.  Marcin and I got invited to my friend Lauren's place (by her mother, Denise) for dinner and a board game night.  He decided to attend even though it was going to seriously cut into his sleep time (he worked until 11 yesterday, and then went straight to the mechanic with his dad for their noon appointment- got home around 1:30-2:00)  Anywho, for background info- I met Lauren through her mother who was a teacher at my high school.  Her older brother, David, I met at my high school as he was one year my senior.  Her other/middle brother, Graham, was in my grade and transferred to our school in the 12th grade- I ended up dating him for a very rollercoaster-y and dramatic 6 months in our OAC *grade 13 in Canada before it was taken out a few years back/university prep* year.  

Of course, ALL of these characters were in attendance at one point or another over the course of the evening.  I'm not going to lie and say that it wasn't awkward at all, because I definitely could have done without his (Graham's) presence there (for a more relaxed evening, anyways) but, at the same time, it wasn't the horrible nightmare that it could have been in the past.  I really think pregnancy- not to mention Marcin who is incomparable to anyone in my past- puts a new perspective on everything, and I think I took it all in stride.  I DO think it's strange that despite the personal issues that their family has with him (sometimes this means that they RARELY see him, from what I hear) he is ALWAYS present at these get-togethers at their house (when I'm there!)  Early on following the break-up between he and I (his choice), I *know* that they did this on purpose (especially his mom!) to see if she could just put us back in the same room together...sorta thing.  That can't possibly be her intentions these days, I don't think!  I mean, I'm pregnant... due ANY DAY NOW... and I'm bringing along my partner of almost 5 years (whom they all seem to really like- hard not to like him, really.)  Perhaps this time it was just a coincidence... 

In any case, the evening was fun.  She made some really tasty asian food- she was, after all, my culinary/culinary management teacher and AMAZING at all things culinary- which I could have easily had seconds and thirds of, we watched 'Tropic Thunder' which isn't really my style but everyone else seemed to enjoy and I know that Marcin had been looking forward to seeing, and then we played Scattergories.  I love that game!  For some reason, I was suffering from a serious case of brain-dead-ness and didn't do nearly as well as I would have liked.  My creative juices were/are running low, and I'm easily distracted (so when I'm about to think of something I *know* will be really good, and then someone speaks out and says something aloud, the thought is as good as gone.)  After the game, Lauren drove Marcin to work (he started at midnight) and her friend Vanessa (the only other non-McMullan/Gallacher in attendance) and I home.  In any case, I'm glad I went.  Denise (I call her "McMullan" or McMum, normally- so it's very weird even writing down her first name) is *quite* the character and she's always fun to see, and I'm honoured that she'd even do this for us since normally she doesn't like to organize such things!

Anyways, I'm not sure what's on the agenda for today.  There's a bunch of options.  My friend/ex boss Debby invited me out for dinner as she is working at the Toronto store today.  I haven't gotten back to her.  Tania called and left a message wondering if she could stop by with the kids- Dominic and Alexia- today as she'll be in Toronto.  I haven't gotten back to her.  Susana said she may drop by with Arwen depending on whether Mark was driving down here from Ajax today, or not, and if so- we could all go catch a movie- and I'm still waiting to hear from her on this.  And I'd also be quite content (if Sus, Arwen don't come down) to just head over to the movies with Marcin (and my mom?) since I haven't gone in a while, LOVE going, and have some gift certificates that I probably won't get a chance to use for a long, long time after Leah gets here.  I want to check in with Marcin and see how his night was, first, and see what/if anything he's up to.  If he wants to just stay in and hang out around here, I think I'd be okay with that, too.  These days, even just putting on "regular" clothes is tiring! 

So we'll see.

This will be a *slow* week, I think.  With my mom and Marcin back on their regular, non-holiday Mon-Fri schedules, I'm home alone from about 7 or 7:30 AM until 5:00ish every day.  And then, in the evening, it's just the three of us as Nuno is in Cuba for the week.  Hopefully I'll hear back from Mary Ann or Ryan (from my last job) so that I can take care of all the outstanding documents for the mat. leave application that I filled out a short while back.  Better yet, hopefully I'll get the Record of Employment I require in the mail!  It's so frustrating knowing that I have a limited amount of 'free' (read: before baby) time left and these people have taken their SWEET time getting these things done.  In any case, I've downloaded the application to OFFICIALLY request the ROE through government means and will have that sent out by the end of the week if they haven't sent me a paper copy by then.  I also need to sort out all of the hours worked mess- that is just a headache waiting to happen but we'll see how it goes... 

Oh yeah, I also have an appointment at Dr. Melchior's tomorrow.  I don't know what to expect at this appointment since I forgot to ask last time but I'm sure it'll be a lot more of the my blood pressure and hb / weight gain / urine for sugar and protein / fundal height / baby's position /  baby's heartbeat... pretty standard stuff.  I don't know if she does cervical checks at all before you're due- I'm a bit curious and, again, forgot to ask... but I'm not entirely sure whether I'd WANT a check or not, so I'll just go with the flow and do whatever is her standard practice.  Speaking of, somehow I didn't finish packing my bag OR write a birth plan before New Year's.  Whoops.  The bag I'll try to do today (although, I'm going to be honest and say that it's half-packed and the other half can be done relatively quickly in the case of labour starting....and it might actually serve as a good distraction! ...so I'm not *too* worried if I don't get to it) and the birth plan- well, I'm going to ask my doctor if she thinks they get looked at, what-have-you, and just bring notes to this appointment about questions I may have about hospital policies that will affect entries in my birth plan... and then decide from there whether to write one or not.  In any case, I've been pretty clear (I think) with Marcin about what I want / don't want / prefer when it comes to labour and delivery and I'm confident that he can be my advocate when I'm in a lot of pain and not thinking straight.  

So that's that.  Last minute, unimportant things that I still need (or want, I should say) to do-- sterilize pacifiers / bottle teets ...just in case they become necessary in a *real* emergency (although our house will be formula free!) and I also want to start looking at the best place to get birth announcements (with photos) done so that it's one less thing to worry about once Leah's get here!  

Ooh, Susana- my sister in law- just called and confirmed that she and Arwen *are* going to spend the day with us, afterall- and they'll be here in about an hour's time so I should get ready!  Perhaps we'll convince them to go to the movies afterall (to watch "The Tale of Despereaux") or maybe just hang around here... we'll see.  In any case, I need to go!  Sorry for all the rambling- I'm sure anyone on my friend's list is already used to this sort of thing, from me, but still- sometimes the rambling goes overboard... 

Our New Years' celebrations turned out okay- Mark, Sus, and Arwen ended up coming over (and staying over) and Marcin's parents and older brother did, too.  It was Jakub's first time at the house and the first time he got to meet Mark, Sus, Arwen and my mom, so it was nice.  All in all, things were a bit awkward at times but not too bad.  Arwen is getting to be sooo ridiculously cute/smart.  She has really taken to Marcin lately and appointed him official bedtime story reader on New Year's Eve.  He loved that.  Close to midnight, Marcin drove his family home.  I tagged along in his dad's van (his dad was drinking and he wasn't so that he could get them home safe!)  We called a cab when we got to their place to take us BACK to our place... and the wait was killer.  So, something like 15 minutes (maybe 20) before midnight his dad decided that he trusted Marcin enough to TAKE THE VAN (weird!) home so that we could get here in time for midnight.  Well, we didn't.  We were at a red light at Keele St. and Eglinton St. W. at the stroke of midnight- which, honestly, was perfectly fine by me (I still got my New Year's kiss in!)  Marcin's car was having some "start-up" issues earlier in the day which his dad and him worked on the following day (the 1st), so he spent a bit of his time back and forth from our house to theirs on New Year's Day (also, he had to deliver his dad's van back!)  I spent the day mostly at home with my mom, Sus, and Arwen.  Mark and Nuno were here, too, but mostly kept to themselves until Mark left to go home.  Nuno mostly preoccupied himself with packing, then, since he left for Cuba at 6 AM today (lucky guy!) 

Anywho, I'm sidetracking here.  New Year's Day was fairly uneventful but it was nice to have them around, regardless.  Right as Sus and Arwen were getting ready to go home we had some unexpected visitors- McMullan and Lauren (McMullan was a teacher of mine in highschool -AND- she's also the mother of my ex-boyfriend... Lauren is her daughter whom I befriended during the time I dated her brother)  Anywho, they came by with a present for me (an awesome book called "The Mom Book"!) and to invite us to their house tomorrow for a board-game night!  =)  I'm actually really excited for this because I loooooove board games.  Yes, I'm a nerd.  It's okay- I've come to terms with it!  =)  Marcin is going to join me for this board game night even though he'll surely be exhausted... (he's working midnight tonight until noon tomorrow! ...and then starts back at midnight!)

Today, Marcin had the day off and so we started the day with checking to see if his car would start- it did!  Then he took me for my first drive in it (woohoo) and we were bad and went through the McDonald's drive-thru for McD's breakfast (which I hate to admit that I LOVE!)  It was delicious.  Drool.  We then headed to the Canadian Tire auto area to get his oil changed and to do the Drive Clean emissions test.  Anywho, long story short- he failed!  He's a little peeved, needless to say, because the guy he bought it from said it would pass, yada yada, and now it didn't.  He has an appointment with his dad's mechanic tomorrow after his shift so hopefully we have some good news coming our way soon!  He needs to get the thing registered and he can't do that without passing the emissions test!  He also needs some sort of safety certificate but hopefully his dad's mechanic can get that sorted, too.  THEN, and only then, will the car be considered "legally driveable" and we can get down to the business of installing Leah's car seat and all that fun stuff!  

Speaking of, Marcin and I also went to Baby On The Hip today!  We picked out a Dekor Plus diaper pail which I love!  We don't plan on buying the refill things for it and just using the wetbag, but since it COMES with some refills, those will be nice for the first week or so when she's in disposables... ...and even for the first few loads of cloth diapers!  Je suis tres excited!  =)  It was a bit expensive but Marcin... well, he's amazing.  He really hasn't spared any cost on anything baby-related at all, and always gives me what I want.  I am so lucky.  

Especially since... ....he bought the Beco Butterfly II baby carrier!  In the black/Asian character print that I liked, too!  I was sorta in between choosing the Beco or the Ergo but leaning more towards the Beco for aesthetic reasons- so glad he agreed!  He also says the Beco was more comfortable for him-- AND the straps are more adjustable so we probably wouldn't have to buy the strap elongated-thingies that we would have with the Ergo.  Oh yes, and even though the price tag was a bit steep, the infant insert was already included, so that was a BIG plus.  I am so excited about it.  I will be watching the dvd on it tomorrow, for sure!  =)

Uhmm. 

Oh yes.  Today has been the most uncomfortable pregnancy day to date!  I had some bad back pain when we were walking around waiting for the car to be ready at the shop.  This pain turned into some really crampy feelings that were quite uncomfortable... they went away, slowly, when I sat down.  This happened a few more times throughout the day, although it was very inconsistent...  I was starting to think "uh oh, this may be it!" but it's been a pretty uneventful night since, so I think we're okay.  (Although, and possibly TMI, but I think I've been slowly losing my mucus plug for a few days/a week or so now!  I know it regenerates and all so it doesn't really mean TOO much, but I also feel like it means that things ARE happening down there... ...especially when I notice it more on these crampy/not-so-fun days)

Really, I think that's it in the way of updates for now.

I am almost 100% certain that I am missing 245452345234 things (funny, those are all "2345"s!) that I wanted to update on but this is the best I'm gonna be able to do for this time of night.  I'm 37w6d today (Saturday!) -or- in my 38th week... and I can't believe that tomorrow is already going to be the start of my 39th week.  CRAZINESS.  And here I was thinking these last few weeks would go by SLOW!  

Happy 2009 to all of  you!  

Marcin didn't come straight home from work yesterday.  Instead, he went out and BOUGHT A CAR?!!!  Part of me would have liked to  know about this BEFORE he showed up at home with it, but the other part of me thinks it's kind of cute that he was so nervous about "when the baby comes!" and the fact that we didn't know HOW we'd get home from the hospital-kind-of-thing.  I mean, afterall, babies are not always born in the evening or week-end when his DAD could come and pick us up!  Anyways, it's an older, used car but apparently in decent enough shape (I haven't really had a good look at it, yet, to be honest since he got home after-dark) and he got a good enough deal on it.  Tonight he's going to go try and register it / do the emissions test / get plates... that sort of thing.  And then it needs a good inner/outer cleaning AND of course... we need to correctly install our car seat!  We won't be using it for day-to-day things- mostly just baby-related things (appointments, visiting relatives when it's too cold out for the bus/stroller, etc.) or grocery shopping (so that we can go to a BETTER No Frills than the one up the street which is kinda gross- AND so that we don't have to spend cab money!)  I'm actually a bit excited about it.  

Marcin used to be "not so good" with money management (in my opinion- and in reality he wasn't terrible at it), BUT since we got pregnant, he's gotten much better at it- his reasoning is always baby-centred and I know that he wants what is genuinely in the best interest of our little girl.  He's so cute- I think I'll keep him!

Anywho, today Ashley's coming over and we're supposed to hang out and then in the evening I'm meeting Lina and Slevin (or Justin?  It's weird calling him Justin since he was my English Media teachers in highschool- aka "Mr. Slevin") for wings/what-not at the St. Louis Bar & Grill over by Yonge & Eglinton.  I'd take the opportunity to visit Debby while i'm in the area... ...but she's still in Newfoundland.  Hope she's having a good trip!  On the topic of friends and stuff- I'm feeling the crunch of trying to see everyone in the next week or two so that I don't have to venture too far from close as we get closer and closer to Leah's due date.  Tommy and his girlfriend, Erin, came over yesterday although Erin left after 15 minutes to go to work.  Michal (Mehow!) and I spoke on the phone for nearly an hour yesterday morning, also- he's in town while he's in between jobs, but he's leaving to go back to Germany at the end of January, so hopefully I'll get to see him and Victoria before then- and maybe they'll even be able to meet Leah!  We'll see!  So yeah, lots of things to do and lots of people to see, for shizzle.

New Year's this year is probably going to suck since my brother doesn't want to come spend it down here and I really don't want to head all the way up to Ajax (again)!  I hope he changes his mind before then, but if not- looks like it'll be a quiet, very uneventful night for us (especially if my mom decides to go up to Ajax.)  Also, now that my niece, Arwen, knows what's up I'll share on here.... my brother and sister-in-law are getting separated and he's moving out in a matter of days.  Arwen is actually excited at the idea of having "two homes" and "two bedrooms" and "two sets of toys" sort of thing- I guess that's how they presented the idea to her, being 5 and all.  I don't think she realizes that 'sleepovers at dad's' will mean that mom is not there... but hopefully, she'll adjust well enough.  I know both of her parents want the absolute best for her, so I want nothing more than for her to be one of those lucky kids who can still have the best of both worlds- mom AND dad- and not see divorce as the devastating thing that it CAN BE in some families.  It's hard for me since he's my older brother that I've always looked up to... and she's one of my (if not "my") best friend(s).  Family issues are tricky issues.  Hopefully next Christmas everyone will be civil enough with one another that we can still do a big, joint Christmas so that Leah can enjoy both her uncle and auntie (because I'll always refer to her in that way) AND her cousin, Arwen... all in one place... kind of thing.  That's what I'm hoping, but we'll see.  I won't get into the issues surrounding the separation because it'll induce a big headache in me.

BTW- and on a totally unrelated matter- I *did* remember to call that baby store yesterday (Baby on the Hip) and Marcin and I are going to make a trip there on Friday (since he doesn't work- woohoo!) and get the carrier and diaper pail.  I'm tres excited- I love that place, they have super neat products!

I should get going- don't want to rush and be still in towels from the shower when Ashley gets here!  I'm sure I'll post later in the week (heck, maybe even tomorrow!)

Oh- and I wish I loved anything (I'm not talking about people here!) as much as my cat loves crinkly paper.  He goes bananas over that stuff.

I did NOT have a good night, last night.  I waited for Marcin to get home from work (past midnight) which wasn't a big deal at all since I wasn't tired.  We were probably in bed, asleep, by 1 AM -at the latest- and then I was up at 4:30 feeling all crampy and gross.  Went to the bathroom twice between 4:30 and 5:30, had some bread with nutella in bed that Marcin brought me, and stayed awake until 6:45ish when I passed out until 8:30.  Not enough sleep, grr.   Mostly these BH contractions are just getting uncomfortable.  Also, and possibly TMI, but I -again- have loose stools (great), so I'm trying to eat toast/bananas/rice/etc... this is made more difficult by the fact that I have 1.5 cartons of chocolate milk (my favourite!) in the fridge AND my mom made lasagna yesterday... and there's a whole tray of it sitting in the fridge.  At first I was like "uh oh" because diarrhea can be a sign of impending labour... but I'm thinking now that I may just have some sort of temporary stomach bug or something.  Last time I had this and called TeleHealth Ontario they just told me to keep eating the things I was already eating and drink lots of water (which I'm already doing) so hopefully this will pass.  In a week's time, I have an appointment with Dr. Melchior anyways, so I can always ask her then if the problem hasn't resolved itself.  

So... no one told me that the "waiting game" would be so tough.  It doesn't help that I wake up with swollen hands and feet every morning (surprisingly my hands weren't too bad this morning- a first in at least two weeks' time!), and I don't feel like going out much!  I'm glad that I have understanding friends who are willing to come to me.  Like yesterday- Noreen came to visit!  It was sooo much fun!  =)  We mostly just hung out and talked, she showed me some video things online and we played DS... she also brought me a blanket, a sleeper and a snuggly/sleepsack sort of thing for Leah.  All VERY cute.  And here I was thinking I was done with the receiving baby clothes (and as a result, what I thought was the LAST load was done earlier this past week-end!  You know, since Christmas was over with and all, I just didn't expect to get anything else!)  Anywho, having Noreen over was super fun.  She's added her guess to the "when will baby Leah be born?" calendar- she says January 23rd (a day after her birthday), and she's hoping for that because she's coming back into town for the 24th and wants to be able to meet her then!  I have a feeling she WILL be here by then... then again, who knows?!  The latest will be the 27th, in any case.  I can't believe it's just a few short short weeks away!  

Today Tom might come over... he sent me a text asking about it yesterday but then really didn't get back to me when I said "suuuure!"  If he does, I can expect him around lunchtime, so that'll be nice to have some lunch company.  And tomorrow, Ashley is coming over (Patrick is currently in Portugal!  Lucky!) at lunchtime to hang out, also.  It'll be nice to see her... and, in both cases, I have their presents still sitting under the tree, so it'll be nice to be able to give them those!  

I have to also find time in the next few days to do all of my to-do list items... the baby carrier one might have to happen tonight!  I'll call the store we were planning on going to, to see what their holiday hours are like this week, and I might as well ask what kind of stock they have in and also pricing (I'm hoping for sales, but who knows!)  My mom decided yesterday that *she* would pay for the baby carrier because she "didn't get [me] anything for the baby shower".... uhhh, right.  How about paying for HALF of my diaper stash?!  That's like $300+ right there.  Not to mention odds and ends that she's picked up throughout the course of this pregnancy (baby hamper, all the baby detergent for clothes, and some free & clear stuff for the baby's diapers, CLOTHES for baby, maternity clothes for me, etc., etc.)  I have been so lucky to have her around... in any case, I don't think Marcin will *allow* her to pay for the baby carrier.  I'm still not sure which we'll end up with- the Beco Butterfly II or the Ergo- I've heard good things about both (both in functionality, comfort, and accommodating both Marcin's size and ME!)  Hopefully "Baby on the Hip" (the store we're planning to get it at) will allow us to try them on.... (I can't foresee going to early doctor's appointments with Leah a) without a car (and therefore her in her car seat, safely), or b) in a stroller on a city bus... in JANUARY/FEBRUARY/etc.  I think I'll attempt the stroller on bus thing on non-peak hours a few months in... until then, it's usage will mostly be around the house and in the neighbourhood!  This carrier is our last BIG important purchase.... ....I feel like I've said that before, on here.  Hmm.  Also, perhaps while I'm downtown, we can get a look at diaper pails- we STILL don't have one of those!  Eep.

Marcin got me this lap pillow/tray thing for Christmas and man, is it ever useful!  I couldn't have comfortable typed all this with my laptop on my chest like I was doing before (when I'm in bed as I am atm and not at my desk)-- I feel like the laptop is too far away on my lap (especially with my big belly in the way) and I can't imagine balancing it *on* my belly.  Don't want to overheat, afterall.  So yeah, this thing is awesome!  It also has an area that holds cups/cans/etc. for mealtimes!  Super neat-o.

So that's what's been going on... obviously I have nothing to update about for today because my day hasn't *really* started yet.  As soon as I'm done surfin' the net for a little while, I'll get up, make my bed (trying NOT to disturb the sleeping feline, of course), have [another] breakfast.... probably something exciting like TOAST (and chocolate milk!), take a shower/get dressed... and then probably plop myself in front of the tv for some uninterrupted tv viewing for an hour or two... that is, unless Tommy decides to come over and shows up before then- which would be fine, too.  Busy, busy day.  Haha.  Oh, and I have to call that store again (and possibly leave the house to meet Marcin somewhere AROUND the store to GO to the store later on this afternoon.  We'll see.)  I feel like even though I've mentioned it a bunch... I'll still, somehow, end up forgetting to do that.  Sigh.  I've come to terms with the current state of my brain..... 

I'm 37 weeks pregnant today- and in my 38th week as of tomorrow!  That means.... I'm technically full-term, wee!  So, Leah will *probably* be here in three weeks... and, at the latest, she'll be here in four weeks!  (My doctor induces at 41w, I think- which I think I'll be okay with if I go until that point)  The last few days have been tiring- I've been sleeping poorly, waking up with swollen feet and hands (that sometimes barely go down before nighttime and they start to swell again!) and sometimes a numbness/pain in my hands, too.  Not fun.  BUT, again, I've had it so easy that I feel like a whiner for complaining, so I'll try not to.  

I don't have an appointment with the OB until January 5th because of all the holiday craziness.  I'm excited to see how things are... I find out the results of the Group B Strep test at that appointment, and maybe she'll even do a cervix check, although I'm not sure exactly- until now I've had ZERO cervical checks (which I'm okay with!)... I am a bit curious, though, if anything is going on *down there*... 

Leah's been very active!  Today she was snuggling up to my ribs, and I could see her all jumpy on the OPPOSITE side of my belly.  Silly baby girl.  My mom gets a kick out of seeing this.  I'm so excited to meet her!  A little nervous, sure, but not nearly as *scared* as I imagined I would be... 

I've been made a "maintainer" of the january2009baby community- and I just successfully updated the HAPPY BIRTHDAY list (for all the mommies whose babies have decided to make early appearances!) and got such a feeling of accomplishment doing this!  =)  Yay, I understand the internetz! =)

In other news, Noreen- my roommate at Queen's University in Kingston, ON- is coming by to hang for a little while today!  I am so excited!  =)  I haven't seen her in a year and a half, so it'll be nice to just catch up (and also nice that she is coming all the way over HERE to see me- I don't feel like going out, much, these days); my friend Tom also contacted me yesterday so hopefully he'll make an appearance sometime this week!  

Marcin and I are going out this week to look at baby carriers- we plan on getting an ERGO carrier or a BECO Butterfly II carrier- we'll see, I'm going to look at birth announcement ideas online, mail out my mat. leave required documentation, write up a birth plan, finish packing the half-packed hospital bag, and sterilize Leah's pacis and teethers (which we may or may not end up using)... I plan on having all of this done before the end of the year... (more to-do lists!)

And, speaking of- wow- when did the new year sneak up on us?!  It's 2009 in just a few short days- craziness.  What a year it'll be!  New Year's Eve will probably just be spent quietly at home with family, this year.  I'm hoping Mark, Sus, and Arwen can come and join us (and that we can go see that new Tales of Despereaux movie on New Year's Day!), especially since Nuno is going to Cuba on Friday for a week- it'll be nice to have some family time... 

Okay, so my thoughts are scattered and I'm sure I'm missing a bazillion things, but my mom is currently cookin' a lasagna and the smell is driving me mad- it smells sooooo good, I can't help but drool (nice, eh?)-- so, I *need* to go now... 

 ...but MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone!  Hope this holiday season was a joyous time for you and your families!  =)  Hopefully 2009 will be a good year for you all, also- filled with health, happiness, and a little excitement, too (I know I'm getting my fair share of excitement this new year!)

Marcin and I spent Christmas Eve with his parents, brothers, and Grayce (Jakub's girlfriend).  It was a casual, family dinner and with fun present-opening.  Marcin, like usual, bought me a bunch of things (he's much too sweet!) and we also received a few things for Leah, including some ridiculously cute clothes, a (space saver) highchair/booster (so neat!), and even a little hand-rattle from my friend, Sara.  One of Marcin's gifts to me was a GAP (as in "kids" or "baby") gift card that I'm excited to spend on her... I'll probably wait until next summer or next winter, though, when she isn't growing AS quickly and for special summertime/holiday moments!  Eep!  This Christmas it really dawned on me that this time next year- and, boy oh boy, does time ever go by quickly these days?!- we'll have another place set at the table and a new, special little person celebrating with us.  It's really exciting. 

Anywho, Christmas day, Marcin and I went up to Ajax to spend Christmas with my side of the family at my brother and sister-in-law's house.  It went better than I could have expected.  Arwen was in a good mood, got TONS of stuff (enough that we were able to build a PRESENT-FORT out of her presents, before she opened them) and was just a pleasure to be around.  We ended up staying there until yesterday evening, although we hadn't planned on it and didn't even bring a change of clothes!  We mostly hung around the house and stuff, did some minor boxing day shopping- but nothing too crazy.  (Leah got some more sleepers in a size that I felt we needed some more in, and some mittens!)

I'm still on the look-out for a nice baby carrier.  I'm considering the BECO II or the ERGO, although there's so very few places in Toronto that sells these that I don't know  how much luck we'll have.  Susana (my SIL) has already offered that we could use the SNUGLI she had with Arwen, if we want, so there's always that, as a back-up.  We also need to go get Leah an ear thermometer at SDM- we got a $25 off thingy so that'll help with the outrageous cost!  =|

Anywho, that was our Christmas this year... I'm sure I had more things to write but I forget (and my bro just called)

Toodles!

I tag the following eight:

marty_stach 
lizziey 
anasilanishtar 
heronymo 
useyourvoice 
jmadden89 
scared4thedogs 
toastytoots 
 

So, apparently I don't know too many people on here- need more people on friends list, for sure!  

I'm not even sure if some of these people even check their LJs, still.

It's 9:19 AM.  I've been up since 4:30 AM.  Gross.

I -finally- sent in an online application for maternity leave.  Things have been so busy lately, and I still haven't received my ROE (record of employment) from FirstMed so I decided to wait a little... but today, looking at the Service Canada site, I realized that you may not qualify if you wait for more than 4 weeks from the date you last worked... and this week- will be the fourth week.  

Anyways, long story short, I sent the application in but I need to find out from someone- anyone!- when I can expect the ROE to come in so that I can get all of that sorted.  I think I'm going to try different avenues and just get the Employment Insurance people to get it for me.  I'm a tad disappointed in FirstMed and their delay in getting these out (c'mon, people, it's the holidays!)  Also, there's a part where you have to fill in EVERY WEEK that you made more than $0 but less than $225.  Since I got paid BIWEEKLY at both and am not sure how the hours broke down for those weeks, I'm not sure how to go about that- so another call into the Service Canada Centre is in order, no doubt.  This is so stressful.  You'd think they'd just make the application a bit easier for VERY pregnant people such as myself.  

Next step, then, is getting all the documentation sent in, as well as my "short weeks" (weeks making less than $225) information and then once I figure out if I'll even qualify for the program, I can look at the student loans situation and try to delay them for a while.  I don't have much money to my name, at the moment, and need it to last... for a long, long time (and I don't want to have to rely on Marcin for money for random, day-to-day things, also.  He's already taking on ALL babycare expenses, rent, and all the other odds n' ends.  Sigh.  I'm so glad to have him.)

We finished our Christmas shopping, more or less, yesterday.  I say more or less because he still wants to get his dad something else.... but if we don't, it's not like there won't be something for him under the tree from us...kind of thing.  Today I'm wrapping it all and *hopefully* will feel up to finishing my Christmas cards (no one's getting cards from me on time, this year!)  I also need to drop off Debby's gift at Sugar Mountain.  Today preferably, although it'll probably end up being a tomorrow thing.  My goodness, I just don't have the energy for basic things these days.  Craziness-craziness.  

Totally off-topic but my feet have gotten to swelling so much that I couldn't even fit them in my HUGE astronaut-looking winter boots yesterday.  I had to squeeze them in WITHOUT THE LINER PART!  Mind you, they were comfortable enough, although my feet got super sweaty in them and just generally...gross.  My hands are usually swollen (and sometimes numb... and usually painful) in the mornings, also.  Gotta love pregnancy. 

Anywho, gotta run.  Lots of things to do.  Since the mat. leave app was such a huge deal this morning, I am feeling accomplished (even if, really, I accomplished very little)  at this point, if I find the energy to SHOWER today, it'll be a good day (gross, I know.)

Marcin came home today (with a new, AWESOME haircut, btw) and decided to order our diaper sprayer, an XL bummis wet bag, AND another pair of babylegs!  I am sooo excited!  Now I just need the *actual* pail... and that's one less (or two less, actually... the BLs were just nice!) things I need to worry about before Leah gets here.  I don't think they're going to send it out until January 5th because of the holidays... but, in any case, it'll give me something to look forward to in the mail!  =)  Also, I'm excited that we bought our BumGenius 3.0s when we did-- because they've gone UP in price (from $21.75/dipe to $23.95/dipe... that kind of difference adds up when you buy 30!)-- woohoo.

Also, just realized that Barack Obama will officially be the US prez on January 20th-- that's just around Leah's due date-- and while we're Canadian and all, I still think it'd be really cool if she were born around that time... I mean, it's history in the making!  How exciting!  

Uhm.  Okay, that's all I have for right now.  Takes so little to excite me these days (and it also takes so little to upset me, gah.)

Had an appointment with Dr. Melchior yesterday.  My blood pressure and weight gain are okay (although to me the weight gain seems excessive...), my belly/fundal height is measuring 37 weeks and Leah's heart rate and position are good.  Yesterday was also the day of the dreaded "group B strep" test-- which turned out NOT TOO BAD afterall; I was allowed to do the swabs myself.  Dr. Melchior (although, really, how can she know?!) doesn't think Leah will come before her due date... except that a) she's already really low, b) I have some pressure *down there* regularly, c) my belly is measuring a bit big, d) and I was a "born on my due date" baby!  Of course, none of these things mean that she'll come early... but I don't see how any of these things (except the fact that MOST first time moms go overdue) will mean that I will, too.  In any case, she is now guessing that Leah will be 7lbs...but nearly 8lbs- up from her initial guesstimate of a 7.5 lbs baby.  What next?  A guesstimate of an 8lbs+ baby?!  Eek!  Our next appointment is on January 5th due to the holidays... and I came home with the # for the L&D floor *just in case* something happens before then... 

Who knows?  My niece (Arwen) *did* guess she'd be born on January 1st!  Hehehe... and this is the same five-year-old who *guessed* I had "a daughter in my tummy" even before she knew I was pregnant, so...?!  =D  

In any case, today is 35w5d already and "the time" is fast approaching... so much to do, still!  I still have to purchase some last minute baby things (diaper sprayer, an XL wetbag, etc.), write a birth plan, pack the rest of the things in the hospital bag (although this process has, thankfully, been started!), and look into all the mat. leave benefits stuff... and that's aside from all the regular, hectic holiday things- buy presents (STILL not done), wrap presents, buy a sweater that I FIT into properly for XMas, SEND OUT XMAS CARDS (to be done today... if it ever stops snowing!)  Phew. 

In other news (sorta) Marcin and I went XMas shopping yesterday.  The kiddos in our life have been done for a few days, now, but he decided we should get some little things for our family and closest friends.  In any case, we're nowhere near done- although we did manage to cross a few names off of our list yesterday, so that was good.  He also found an awesome coat at GAP for himself that was marked at $118.00 and he ended up paying $62.00 AFTER TAX for... so that was nice.  I liked seeing him buy something for himself since it's been ALL BABY things for months now and he's been working so hard.... but c'est la vie, I suppose.   That's what happens when two people start a little family!  I can't believe we'll be our own little family... wow... I also, for some reason, am really looking forward to being able to celebrate our 5th anniversary with our baby girl, in March.  Wow.  We've certainly come a long way....