In which we are in Week 27

Here is my as-yet-unfinished-and-sadly-being-added-to-all-the-time list of

THINGS THAT SHOULD NOT BE SAID TO PREGNANT WOMEN

1. "Are you having twins?"
2. "So how overdue are you?"
3. "Are you bigger than you should be?"
4. "Wow, you must be getting ready to give birth to a three-year-old."
5. "I can even tell you're pregnant from behind now!"
6. "You must be a lot bigger with this one than your last one."
7. "I told that girl that you only LOOK 8 months pregnant. Because you know. You're only 6 months pregnant. But you LOOK 8 months. Right?"
8. "Why would you plan your babies for the summer?"
9. "Is it normal to be that big already?"
10. "Not much longer, I bet!" Particularly heinous to say when one is not yet 40 weeks pregnant.
11. "Wow. Just wow."
12. "Again? Already?"

 

Anyone else have any that they'd like to add???

 

 

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You are now 27 weeks pregnant (or in your 28th week if that's how you prefer to count it).

Now that you're approaching the final stage of pregnancy -- your third trimester -- your baby is really starting to grow and fill the available space in your uterus. She can now open and close her eyes, sleeps and wakes at regular intervals, and may suck a finger or thumb. Although they're still immature, your baby's lungs will function with some medical help, if she's born prematurely.

Your baby now weighs nearly 2 pounds/ 875 grams and measures 14.5 inches/ 36.6 centimetres from head to toe. Her eyes open and close, she sleeps and wakes at regular intervals and she may suck a finger or thumb.

Sweet dreams, little baby! Some experts believe that babies begin to dream by the 28th week. What do they dream about? No one knows for certain but the brain is active this week as well. The characteristic grooves on the brain's surface start to appear and more brain tissue develops.

Chalk up any rhythmic movement you may be feeling to a case of the hiccups, which are common this week and throughout the pregnancy. Your baby has them but is breathing in amniotic fluid rather than air. A paper bag can't cure her hiccups, obviously, but an episode usually lasts only momentarily. The sensation for you may be strange but not unpleasant.

Since your uterus is now up near your rib cage, you may now find yourself short of breath if you haven't already. Starting now and continuing through the last three months of pregnancy, you may be plagued by leg cramps, hemorrhoids, varicose veins and an itchy abdomen. 

 

 

In which this is the MAX AMOUNT OF FUN

On Saturday night, I went to Olive Garden with "the girls". There were many moments of blog-worthiness but one stood out to me in particular: the flair of our perky waitress.

Our waitress was Kelly. On her right side, she bore her name tag. On the left, she had a button about the size of my palm. At the bottom it read FUN-O-METER. At the top, there was a curved scale with three colour blocks - on the left was MIN, centre was MID and on the right was MAX. There was an arrow in the middle so that one could indicate the exact level of fun.

This brought up some issues for me. For instance, who determines the status of the FUN-O-METER?

1. Is it self-determined? For instance, does Kelly indicate by her arrow how much fun she thinks you're having because she's your waitress? Does she just get to arbitrarily say "I think I'm so perky and fun that you must be having the MAX AMOUNT OF FUN right now"?
2. Or is it self-indicative? Kelly herself is having THE MAX AMOUNT OF FUN POSSIBLE by waiting tables on a Saturday night at Olive Garden with four women that don't drink booze? If this is the case, I need to have a chat with her about the overstatement of her flair. Surely there are things more fun than this. Like pushing Q-Tips too far into your ears.
3. Is it determined by your patrons? Do I get to say "Hey, Kelly. I'm actually not having the MAX AMOUNT OF FUN possible. Would you please move your arrow on down to mid-fun? If you perky-it-up a bit, I may be induced to have more fun. But I'll let you know when that occurs. Let's step it up. And bring more free bread."
4. Or is it determined by one's boss? As in, her manager doesn't think her tables look like they're having enough fun so, as punishment, he moves her arrow down to min fun until we laugh a bit more? Then as a reward for our laughter, she gets to slowly be moved up to MAX FUN. This is likely some infernal idea from those vapid books with titles like "How to Make Employees at the Olive Garden Feel Rewarded Without Actually Paying Them a Living Wage".

I also didn't know if this was the new "thing" for Olive Garden? I haven't been in a while (I have a lively horror of Olive Garden due to a traumatic experience years ago) so I was surprised by it. It's possible that Kelly just likes her piece of flair and wanted to wear it herself, without any corporate edict. In which case, I would know she is not someone that I could share a laugh with because she has not, in fact, seen Office Space and is therefore unable to understand the snide tones of "Where are your pieces of flair?" and is missing the irony of this entire question.

 

 

 

In which we return from holiday

We are home! We had a great holiday. We were at Christina Lake in the Interior (Kootenay/Boundary region, for those in know...about thirty minutes west of Castlegar). It's supposedly the warmest lake in Canada but it sure wasn't warm this week! That's the fun of going in the off-season. The cabin was dirt cheap and no crowds but you can't really pleasure-swim. Instead, you clench your teeth and then just fling yourself off the end of the dock, come up screaming, shrieking and sputtering that it's bloody cold  before scampering back up the ladder to do it all over again because your life jacket-clad toddler is shrieking "AGAIN!" with such delight.

Let me do a bit of a recap...

On Thursday, Brian called with the bad news that day that our computer had broken (the power/battery was irreparable) and that the shop can't repair it for less than it would cost for a new computer. Bummer on that.  We just bought it a year ago but it was used so it's actually older than that. We decided just to let it go and figure it out when we got back from holiday. We did our packing and organising on Wednesday so Brian was just doing the food and the loading up on Thursday. I left work early and we drove out to Abbotsford to spend the evening with my parents. We had a great night. We ended up taking Anne to a local dairy on the Sumas prairie for her first taste of ice cream. They had these little baby cones and she had it clutched in her pudgy paw as she learned how to lick an ice cream. It was hysterical.  My dad got a bit teary and said how happy he was that he's here for so many of her "firsts". Then we played on the playground for a bit before heading back to their place for a sleepover.

We took off on Friday for the drive. I was prepared for a stop every hour or two because of Anne. She's a great little traveller but she's only been in the car for 2 hours at a time and this was a 5-6 hour drive. But she just hunkered down in her car seat, looking at books and  chattering away until we got to Princeton. Then we went for a walk along the river and let her throw rocks into the water for a half hour. She was thrilled and we ate lunch. As soon as we got back in the car, she konked out for almost three hours! We had planned a stop in Osoyoos but she was sleeping so we just kept going. We clicked through all of the towns until we arrived and then she woke up. Craziness. It was a tremendously beautiful drive, through the mountains so lots of "real driving" - up mountains, down mountains, around and around. Our mouths hung open for most of the drive, we never turned on music and I didn't even crack open a book! We just looked around!

The place where we stayed was a rented cabin on the lakefront. As I said, it's off season until Canada Day so we had the place to ourselves for a quarter of the price, which is nice. The place we stayed was actually owned by a group of about 20 families that bought it 18 years ago. They set up a campground for themselves with year-round trailers that remain as their cabins, then cleared an area to rent out 10 spots for other campers and rent out the two cabins on site. They have spent every summer together and their kids all grew up together. They couldn't afford property alone so they just banded together and now they are even making money on it! We chatted with "The Owners" every now and again throughout the week. They were very nice and easy going. I think they were happy to see a young family and everyone wanted to play with Annie. There was one guy that was a scout for an NHL team so that was cool. Another guy had a mutt named Sadie that would fetch tennis balls out of the water. You launch the ball and she'd run down the dock, do a belly flop into the water and then swim out with the ball to do it all over again. The first time that Anne saw this, she almost took flight she was so excited. Then every morning, Rick came over with Sadie to throw the ball in the water; he loved watching Anne get so excited, laugh and dance over the silly dog.

The cabin was clean as a pin and filled with 70s decor like scratchy plaid chesterfields and harvest-gold appliances. No complaints here! It was also HUGE!

We brought all of our food with us so it was actually a pretty reasonable holiday. We just BBQ'd every night. We had the place pretty much to ourselves which was nice. We played in the water and in the sand all week. Brian went golfing a couple of times. My parents came out on Father's Day for the night. Annie was very happy to have her "Papa" and "Ganny" there and we all enjoyed the time together. Then we had a couple days just us before Mandy and Adam stopped on their way back from Crawford Bay to pitch a tent and spend a couple of days with us. We played a lot of games and spent our entire time outside. Every morning, Anne woke up at 6 AM, too excited to sleep.

There are few places that I find as restful as a lake. So when you put a lake in the middle of the mountains with a forest all around, it's ideal! It was incredibly beautiful and pristine, clean and quiet. We would have liked to rent a boat and go for a ski but it was too expensive, the water was too cold and I am far too pregnant to water ski, evidently.

It was a great holiday with lots of special moments and memories. Annie loved the water even though it was so cold. She seemed so happy just to be with all of her favourite people and have all of this s-p-a-c-e to run around and be outdoors. We had lot of good conversations and laughs as well. It was over too soon.

We drove back on Friday and again (bragging mummy alert!) she travelled better than us. She fell asleep just after 2 hours in the car but only slept 20 minutes before we had to stop for lunch (no other stops ahead). She woke up, ate her lunch and then just enjoyed the rest of the drive. We never actually took her out to stretch her legs as we thought she'd fall back asleep if we just let her be. She never did fall back asleep but she was so happy, it didn't really bother me. We stopped again to let her out for a play in Princeton (more rock throwing in the water). She had been in the car almost 4 straight hours! Then we drove the rest of the way home. She slept for about 45 minutes around Chilliwack to Vancouver but the traffic woke her up. Quite a rude return to the city.

Then when we got home, we discovered our modem was on the fritz. Which, because we have VOIP, meant to telephone! No computer, no internet connection and no telephone. HORRORS! Particularly because we don't' have a cell phone, we were stranded. It was a very crazy evening as I tried to get ahold of friends (I was supposed to meet some girlfriends in Seattle), find a pay phone (evidently they don't exist any longer...) and/or fix the stupid modem. We were out of luck. I ended up abandoning Brian and Anne on Saturday to drive to Seattle with Mandy to meet our respective friends, leaving him with about 68 loads of laundry and the rest of the unpacking to complete (poor guy). Mans and I had a great drive there and back together and I enjoyed my overnight trip with the girls. There was far too much laughter and silliness but also good conversations. I love girlfriends.

We arrived back on Sunday night and I was reunited with Brian and the wee girl. I was surprised by how much I had missed them but after having them all to myself for a whole week, I guess that's expected. I collapsed into bed by 9 (I had gone to bed at about 3 and woken up around 7:30 that morning) and now am back at work, in email hell.

It's nice to be back home, in our own beds in particular. But I certainly enjoyed our holidays. I didn't necessarily need more time at the lake but just more time with Brian and Annie. Is there a way you can get paid and have great benefits plus the social side of work without having to actually GO TO WORK?

So now we need to buy a new computer today or tomorrow, get the modem fixed and then hopefully reprogram our phone. Sorry if you've been trying to email or call us - we're practically on a desert island right now.

Of course, with no computer that means no pictures just yet. We have a ton of good photos so I'll do a proper photo blog as soon as possible as well.

 

 

In which I am everywhere but nowhere

• Yet another survey that ranks Vancouver as the best place in the world to live. And two other Canadian cities also made the cut.
• The message of purity and modesty is best portrayed by stamping it on the butt of your pants. That'll show those junior high boys that true love waits!
• Who says married people don't have sex? We just have to schedule it. But is it romance or just an exercise in goal-setting? Either way, I've got an idea for a birthday present...
• Raise a glass to your health. As long as it's red wine.
• My new favourite female comedienne is Sarah Haskins, solely on the basis of her "Target: Women" TV spots. The yoghurt one features my favourite line: "You know, those women with the "I have my master's but then I got married!" look." Or there's the wedding shows.
• I called it. CTV (on behalf of TSN) picked up the HNIC song. Matter of time until the rest of the crew heads over. CBC, it's been nice knowing you. *mumbles something about elitist Toronto know-it-alls*
• I'm so thankful for this apology to victims of the residential school decisions.
• A great essay on joy and "always imagining the worst that could happen" from William Young.
• This really sums up why Obama won (and will win).
• I've been recently introduced to a Christian run global coalition, Stop the Traffik, to end human trafficking. This is the type of stuff that makes you proud to be a Christian, too.
• Here are 10 ways to be missional in the 'burbs. Food for my thought, given my recent possibility arising of a long-term return.

 

 

In which Anne is the target market

I just finished a very interesting book called "Buy, Buy, Baby: How Consumer Culture Manipulates Parents and Harms Young Minds" by Susan Gregory Thomas.

As most of you know, we tend to over-think stuff.  And as a result, we do some stuff that can be seen as weird to most folks (like no consumer debt, no cell phones, driving vehicles we don't necessarily love because to us "the best vehicle is the one that's paid for", no video games, not overextending ourselves so that we feel "so busy" all the time etc.). Let alone the "weird stuff" we do in parenting! Stuff like exclusive breastfeeding, co-sleeping, baby-slinging, no television in the house, no "brand items" (like Baby Gap t-shirts), minimal character-driven baby stuff (like a baby room that looks like Thomas the Tank Engine barfed in it), no daycare if we can manage it (prefer baby-sitters in a home environment instead), likely no preschool until age 4, no Baby Einstein, lots of outdoor time yada yada yada.

It makes us look like restrictive crazies!  And really we're not. Most Some people even consider us rather normal.  After all, I still shop at Walmart now and again. So my convictions only go so far...

A lot of our decisions arose out of those long, lazy conversations we were privileged to have before we had kids. We were together for 7 years, married for 5, before we had kids. So we had a lot of time during the pregnancy in particular as we were in a time of transition in our lives to really talk and pray and think about what kind of home and family we wanted.

It was rather instinctual. We looked back on what we loved most about our childhoods and how our parents raised us and then just tried to do that. Our parents didn't overspend. We didn't watch TV.  "Stuff" was never the big thing; family was. We went outside a lot instead of going to the mall. We ate at home instead of "out".  So we decided that we didn't want to buy into this whole "you need stuff to be happy" mindset that we saw around us. Some of it was practical (like we just couldn't afford it!) and others were idealistic. Most of it was gut-stuff. We just didn't like how some of that stuff made us feel so we didn't do it. For instance, I hated when I saw a kid's entire world was everything "Dora". Plus it started to bug me when we shopped for baby stuff that almost everything had a character on it. Can't you just get a stroller these days without Curious George butting in? (And what baby needs a luxury stroller with GPS nav? I ask you.)

So I saw this book at the library and picked it up. It's a few years old now, I think.  Honestly, it's one of the few research-heavy, nonfiction books I've actually ever finished. I'm a literature girl to the core but I like some non-fiction like stuff on church matters, scripture, theology, biographies (especially trashy royal ones about Diana) and so on. But this kind of parenting stuff I've never really been too into (again, kind of not liking the 'business' of baby-lore). I pretty much read Dr. Sears stuff and that was it. But I devoured this book and read probably 2/3 of it out loud to Brian! Lucky dog.

I think most of us know how marketers target kids (to our eternal frustration as parents). Things like putting the Froot Loops on the bottom shelf, eye-level for 2 year olds and so on.  Plus I've always considered myself more saavy than the average consumer about marketing because, well, I am a marketer.  That's what I do for a living. I've done marketing for almost 8 years now in a professional capacity. I studied it. i read about it. I read the trade mags and know the lingo.  

And yet I was surprised.  Surprised by my own naitivete regarding the targeting, work and science behind creating a "cradle-to-grave consumer". Basically, as soon as babies can register an image, in the industry, they become a consumer. I felt like the blinders were torn from my eyes as I saw the massive machine behind the most innocuous things that surround our kids, the strategy behind the things we consider "normal". Forget Eisenhower military-industrial-complex; make way for the baby-industrial-complex!

Things like the death of Doing Nothing, spare time and focused play for children, the trajectory that resulted in how we got here, the characteristics of a generational void that we are trying to fill through our children, the myth of educational/learning toys and so on.  One item that particularly interested me was the phenomenon of Kids Getting Older Younger (age compression, a concept not unfamiliar to any watcher of a daytime soap). Babies used to be kids under 2, toddlers were 2-4, preschoolers were 4-5 and so on. Now preschoolers are considered 24 months and up, 1 year olds are toddlers and so on. Parents take 6 year olds to see Star Wars.

When she was describing the motivators of Gen-X parents, I occasionally got a little nervous. She was reading my mail.  I could see us and all of our friends in these stories. Who knew we could be so easily found out? Turns out that the only thing we really have in common as a group is TV and shopping - but that's enough.

The frenetic pace of being a child today seems exhausting to me. No wonder they're all in a mild-coma by age 8, content to play video games and unable to cope with being bored. The research here is staggering and interesting. I think the thing that I appreciated it is that it is very objective. The author is an investigative journalist and doesn't include her own perspectives or recommendations really until the last chapter.

It made me think about our society and culture, the things we just swallow without even thinking, the millions of ways that we open up the door to our kids without thought or concern for marketers to stream in.

The other interesting thing was not just that these things are kind of a big lie - they don't make your kids smarter or better adjusted or read earlier or better behaved - but they are actually harming kids.  Let alone, as a Christian, I have issues with the message that shopping fixes everything and toys/books/electronics are a fitting substitute for family. Totally not our values.

I remember my mother telling me that kids learn just by living life as part of the family. She taught me so much with Anne:

• like if she's playing happily by herself, chatting away or "reading" to let her be.
• And not to "entertain" her all the time.
• And try to pick toys that are "90% kid, 10% toy" so she has to use her imagination. 
• And, trust me, toys that make noise are more trouble than they're worth.
• Just tuck her into your life - take her shopping, to the tire shop, have her help clean and cook, learning to be part of a family instead of somehow a part from it.
• And spend lots of time outside just letting her run.
• And don't let her watch TV.
• And why bother with that Baby Einstein crap? 
• And playtime is important.
• And really, she's still just a baby so don't try to make her older than she is. Let her play with baby toys not 3 year old toys.

Turns out my parents are very smart people.

That's exactly what the experts now say. Who knew they were so ahead of our time?

I have a list of books that I like to recommend to people with kids. I think I may add this one to it. It was that interesting and startling.

 

 

 

In which Brian gets some advice at the tire shop

Brian and Anne went to go get our tire looked at yesterday (it had two nails in it and needed a patch). While they were there waiting, they had a very interesting conversation with a guy there, out of the middle of nowhere. The guy just wandered into the shop and decided to talk with them and then left. Maybe Brian entertained an angel unawares?

Guy (gruff, grizzled, unkempt): I got somethin' to tell ya.

Brian: All right. What's going on?

Guy: If that little girl of yours ever gets offered drugs, you tell her not to "just say no". "Just say no" doesn't work. She needs to just say "I got my own dealer" and then they'll leave her alone. That's the ticket. "I got my own dealer" and she's home free.

Brian (wondering where this came from): Well, thanks for the advice....

Guy: And another thing. If you get cold sores, put your own ear wax on it. That'll cure it.

Brian (now wondering if he's on a candid camera show): Well...thanks.

Guy: And another thing. Don't ever lie to her. Kids know when you lie. So don't lie to her. Just tell her what's true.

Brian: I certainly agree with you.

Guy: Okay. That's it.

Exits stage right.

 

In which I admit to hoping

Well, as the Daily Show calls it, the "long, slow, arduous, Bataan-death-march to the White House" just crossed a big milestone. We are very happy with the outcome. As Jordon Cooper said, "I know I shouldn't feel this way and like all Presidential candidates, he will be forced to make compromises that will make me question what I was thinking today but today this this is what I feel.  I hope he wins.  I know Hillary gave a great speech last night but a Obama/Edwards ticket would be amazing."

I would love to see Edwards as his running mate. Brian may lose faith in him if he choose Hillary but I don't feel quite the same way. I think she's got guts, she's proven herself in this race and a lot of people voted for her. I'd be okay with it. I just like John and Elizabeth Edwards. And how much would I love to see Michelle Obama as First Lady? She rawks.

I also have hope that this will be a bit better race for the White House than the last two - hopefully a bit more civil, anyway. I also like John McCain even though I don't agree with a lot of his policies. It's going to be fun.

In which I am absolutely horrified

Once again, the CBC has shown that they are completely and utterly out of touch with the average Canadian. This is practically our national anthem, the soundtrack of every Saturday night. And if they replace it with some lame Nickleback tune or sketchy song by a winner of Canadian Idol...so help me... And $10 says that TSN is already on the phone, securing the rights.

Well, Don Cherry better watch his back. They're comin' for him next...

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Last play for Hockey Night in Canada theme song?
EDMONTON (CBC) - One of this country's most familiar tunes may have been heard on CBC-TV for the last time Wednesday night when the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins and won the 2008 Stanley Cup.

The Toronto agency representing the composer of the theme tune for Hockey Night in Canada says the CBC has declined to enter into a new licensing agreement for the song for next NHL season.

A news release posted on the website of Copyright Music & Visuals quotes company president John Ciccone as saying the CBC's licence agreement for the hockey theme song ended with the Stanley Cup final.
The CBC "has advised the composer, owner and administrator of the musical composition that it is not prepared to enter into a new licence agreement with respect to the use of the theme," the release says.
The CBC had no immediate comment Thursday.
The familiar theme music for Hockey Night in Canada was written in 1968 by Dolores Claman, who was raised in Vancouver.
In the news release, Claman expresses her disappointment that her song will no longer be heard in homes across Canada during hockey season.
"I am saddened by the decision of the CBC to drop the Hockey Night in Canada theme after our lengthy history together. I nevertheless respect its right to move in a new direction," she says.
Copyright Music & Visuals says it had offered the CBC a chance to renew its licence to use her song on terms that were "virtually identical to those that have existed for the past decade." Each use of the song in the past has cost the broadcaster about $500, the company says.
A lawsuit filed against the CBC in late 2004 by Claman alleging that the broadcaster was overusing the Hockey Night in Canada theme has not been settled.
Copyright Music & Visuals says the litigation hasn't interfered with the CBC's use of music, nor was settlement of the suit a condition for the proposed new licensing agreement.

In which we are in Week 24

There are definitely differences between your first and your second. For instance, when I was pregnant with Anne, I had all this time to really think and meditate about parenthood, to pray and make efforts to get my stuff together, to talk about parenting and philosophies and ideals. With this pregnancy, even if I have that time, I am usually collapsed on the couch, trying to achieve a state known as "mild coma" in our house (right between sleep and awake where you're just pleasantly there but not). There are other differences like my sheer exhaustion with this pregnancy - not sure if it's a combination of being a bit older, having a VERY active toddler, working full time plus having a side job and just the general upheaval of our life right now but baby, I'm exhausted ALL THE TIME. Even when I am up and good, I could, at a moment's notice, fall asleep. Another thing was that I got bigger way earlier. Now I've caught up and am pretty much where I was with Anne in size but man, I got pregnant and it was like memory foam - my uterus just pooched out and I looked pregnant right from the get-go.

But here is the stuff I really like about the second time around:

• I'm much more aware that I am pregnant with a person this time. Because last time, I had no clue what I was getting at the end (just some ubiquitous baby, I suppose).  Now I know that there is a living, breathing person with a personality and soul and life at the other end. Because I have Anne there every day, staring me in the face (usually tooting evidently - see a previous post for context on that one), I know that I am having a real live person not just some baby. And that makes me very excited. We have so much fun with Anne and her little autonomous self, that I'm excited to meet our newest wee one, to learn from them and see them develop. Such a privilege.
• As a result, I feel a lot more excitement. I know what I'm getting at the other end and boy, is it fabulous. I am so excited to meet this baby and start life together, to see their personality develop, to hold them and love them just like we did with Anne.
• So I spend a lot of time chatting with the baby this time. I may not have time to philosophize about life and parenting to myself, but I talk to this wee baby all day long, praying as we go through our busy days. It's nice that they are with just me for a while as I feel very bonded very early. We talk about watermelons and walruses (walrusi?), cabbages and kings as I go through my day. It's not profound but we enjoy it.
• I noticed the first movements when I was just 14 weeks pregnant because I knew what it was. THAT was fun.
• I pray a lot while I'm on the go. Toddlers don't allow a ton of time for "quiet time" so I've perfected the art of praying on the go. I feel that this kid is perhaps even more bathed in prayer because even though it isn't focused prayer, it's constant.
• I have no fears or worries about childbirth. Sure, it's hard work but I managed to give birth naturally to a nearly 9 pound baby that was sideways and sunny-side up last time. I'm sure I'll manage again. And really, you can do anything for a day.
• I feel very relaxed about a baby in the house. I know and love breastfeeding and don't anticipate much issue there. I know a bit more about what to do, how to do it etc. It's not the vast wilderness of "I have never done this and I'm freaked out" that it was the first time.
• Maybe I'm just a bit more confident this time around?
• I know what's going on with my body and the baby most of the time. I feel more aware of everything and so more relaxed about any changes in my body or habits or self. No alarm bells or panicked visits to pregnancy books and websites. It's cool.
• I don't have a thought about 'stuff'. We have everything we need from cribs to slings to car seats and toys. The only unknown is whether or not we need to buy boy clothes. But if we have a girl, we are HOOKED UP.
• Another big difference is how I wish it would go faster. I remember really enjoying pregnancy a lot and almost wanting it to be even longer with Anne. I still enjoy pregnancy and feel very sexy and whole and womanly but I'm ready for it to be going faster - I want to have this baby! I'm ready for our family to grow, I'm ready to meet them. I'm so excited for the result that sometimes it's hard to go through the process this time.
• I dig pregnancy body. What's not to love about the one time in your life that you don't have to suck in!
• And I'm just really excited for the baby stage again. People always told me it went so fast and IT DID. I feel like Anne crawled for about a day and a half. It just flew by. I look at pictures of her when she was just a chubby baby, unable to lift her head, tucked into bed with me or breastfeeding and I can't believe it was over so fast. I love every stage and it does get more fun with every stage, but I'm also looking forward to breastfeeding again, curled up froggy baby legs, snuggling up in the sling as we go through our day, breastfed-diapers (toddler diapers are NO FUN) and just the general "firsts" that are coming.

---

Your fetus weighs more than 1.3 pounds/ 600 grams. Though she still has little body fat and her skin is thin and fragile, she's now well-proportioned. Her brain is growing rapidly, and she is starting to fill the space in your uterus. From crown to heel she could measure 11.8 inches / 30 centimetres. If you went into labour at this time, however, many obstetricians and midwives would make every effort to halt the progress of premature labour to enable your baby to continue maturing.


You may be noticing faint, red or brown streaks known as striae or stretch marks on your abdomen, hips and breasts. While creams won't erase them, wearing a supportive bra may help prevent or minimise them on your breasts. They are very common at this stage of the pregnancy -- about 90 per cent of women get them. After you've given birth, the reddish or brown pigmentation in the stretch marks gradually fades, and the streaks become lighter than the surrounding skin.

 

In which sometimes you just gotta dance

We had a "state of the finances" talk tonight. The details aren't that important but, suffice to say, we had to talk some turkey about budget, tighten the belt in a few spots and recognise the fact that we are trying to pay for a graduate degree out of pocket. We're not where we'd like to be but we're still very thankful. After an hour, we were both a little discouraged.

I went over to the cd player (yes, we still have one) and put on Anne Murray. Then I pulled our Anne into the living room. And we danced uproariously, swinging in wide circles and dipping with great unction to "Danny's Song". Brian was wiping up the counters after supper and generally busy yet he couldn't help but laugh as we danced and swung around the room, singing "Even though we ain't got money...I'm so in love with you, honey....Everything will be a chain of looooo-ooooove...and in the morning, when I rise, I wipe a tear of joy from my eye...that tells me everything's gonna be all right" very loudly and VERY off-key.

Eventually he came out and joined us so we had a little dance party in the living room, singing about our finances and how we had love, laughing with abandon at our girl and giving each other significant looks at the line "I think I'm gonna have a son". 

Then Anne got bored and left so we just slow danced in the middle of the living room, dish towels still clutched in our hands while Anne hollered down the hall that she had to potty, perfectly happy to dance just a bit longer together again.

 

In which I can't help but laugh sometimes

Anne's language has taken a complete uptick. She is now experiencing a new frustration. The old frustration was "I can't make myself understood." The new frustration is: "I am understood but I'm not getting my way."

For instance, today she informed Brian in no uncertain terms of her following requirements: "Call Gunkle. Call Gunkle. And wanna play. Wanna play. And puppy. And Papa. Call. Please please please please. Thank you."

Subjects, predicates, nouns, verbs. I know fourteen year olds that can't make their demands so clearly known.

Over and over.

Ever tried to reason with a toddler?

Most of the time, I manage to be pretty consistent as a parent. I manage to keep the rules the same, no matter where we are or when we are there. Anne is a pretty easy kid because she has a lot of routine and consistency in her life. When she tries monkey business like bossing or whining etc., we're pretty good about laying down the law, cognizant that you don't create a great kid in day and nor do you wreck them in a day.

But every once in a while, I can't help but laugh.

Anne has been teething her two-year molars this week which means "all hands on deck but only if your hands are Mummy's". So I've been run off my feet with a clingy little monkey that is always holding her teeth and saying "All done" to the hurting, unable to even go to the bathroom without "Mumma...Mumma!" Then on Saturday, she pitched off a play structure, head-first. She only fell about 8 inches off a step but since her centre of gravity is so high, she landed right on her head. (I have a theory: Cats land on their feet. Toddlers land on their heads.) She had a nasty bump and bruise along with a good fright. All week, she's been rather...well...whiny. I don't mind much as I recognise she's dealing with a lot lately so I'm rather forgiving. But after a week, my patience is wearing thin, my back is aching from carrying her around and I'm ready to echo her sentiments "All done"....and reclaim my private bathroom time.

So tonight at supper, she doesn't want to eat anything. And every single sentence starts with "I want" except she doesn't want any food, just wants to play. "I wanna play. I wanna play. I wanna play. IwannaplayIwannaplayIwannaplay." After trying everything to get some food in the child, I finally say "Enough whining or you go to your room." in my very best "Mummy-is-in-charge-and-I-will-not-be-bossed-by-a-toddler" voice.

And she stares up at me with her big, blue eyes, round as saucers then slowly and methodically...farts. Loud and long. For a sustained period.All while staring unblinking up at me. Then she gives me this huge grin, all teeth out, like "WHO'S MAD NOW?"

I almost crawled under the table I laughed so hard.

So much for that discipline moment.