The One About My Friend's New Arrival...

My friend J, that I know from my previous job was pregnant when I switched jobs back in May.  Well, she was due on 4th October, and guess what... she actually had him on her due date!  Her first son was only a day early.  So she's done very well both times.  Last weekend M and I went to visit her and her family, to catch up and to meet the little one.

I had a long cuddle with little J, until I had to move to visit the loo!  He fell asleep in my arms as he had just been fed when we got there and he seemed quite comfortable lying on my bump.  He kept it nice and warm for me!  He woke up about an hour and a half later and I had a second cuddle, and this time because he was wriggling about my baby in my bump started kicking too!  It was very strange, but nice too :)

In other news the nursery is in process of being put together.  The room was emptied last weekend, ready for the plasterers this weekend.  Then it'll need painting, then the carpet.  And its all got to be done by 28th Nov as thats when the baby furniture is being delivered!  Oh and if you're wondering, all the stuff out of the baby's room is now in the dining room, completely chockablock, and I can't get at anything!

M has practically finished the bannister, there wasn't one there before and the stairs were completely open, which is fine for us as we've been used to it, but visitors never felt too safe.  Anyway there are just a couple of spindles to go in, and the varnishing to do but its very nearly there.  Oh and I remembered to take before and after photos, so that'll be something else I will report on soon!

This weekend M is taking me away for the weekend as it's my 30th next Wednesday.  He thought it would be nice for us to go away one last time before the baby arrives, especially as we haven't been away since getting stranded in Madeira a year ago April.  We're off to the Lake District, and I intend to take lots of lovely photos, and write a long blog post that is about something other than baby!

The One About Bump Week 24...

Just another quick update with a bump picture.  We've been quite bad at doing this every week, but I'm sure every couple of weeks will keep an adequate record :)

I've been for my 24 week check up with the midwife this week, and she is happy with my progress.  The swollen ankles aren't a sign of anything untoward like pre-eclampsia which is a relief!  And actually my blood pressure was on the slightly low side, which is what it normally is anyway!

I even had my bump measured, but not around the middle like I thought but from top to bottom!  And apparently the size is spot on, so all my worries about my bump not being very big were all for nothing (that was a couple of weeks ago though)!  Recently I've been feeling like a bit of a frump, especially with wearing Marks clothes which don't really flatter a pregnant bump.  So I've been for a visit at the shop I mentioned before, Jojo Maman Bebe and bought some proper maternity clothes and a winter coat.  I had such a lovely time, the ladies were all really helpful and I came out with a smile on my face.  So next time we have a bump photo shoot I'll put one of my new tops on :)

The One About my Best Friends 30th...

My best friend S turned 30 at the end of September, and even though she and her husband live in London they came up for the weekend and we all went for Sunday lunch with her family, in a lovely local pub in Plumley, called The Golden Pheasant.  It was a set price for a three course meal which was fab!  We got to catch up with S's parents and her brother & sister-in-las and her little niece F who I haven't seen since she was about 6 weeks old!  She is now nearly three I think.

S & her niece F

S & her husband R

I had leek and potato soup to start which was really yummy, and filling too :) then a carvery for the main course, which after the soup I had trouble finishing!  I managed to find room for my dessert of chocolate fudge cake with ice-cream though!

After dinner a cake was brought out that had been made specially for S's birthday in London, and brought up by her husband for the day.  After the huge three course meal we'd had no-one could fit the cake in, so we all took a piece home.

Even though it was the last weekend in September it was a lovely day so we all went and sat outside, so that F could have a run around, and we had some photos.  IT was incredibly stifling in the pub so it was good to get out into the fresh air.

Of course I had a picture done with S and her birthday balloon, and my bump, where I was 21 weeks gone at the time.

The One About the Scrap Room Floor...

One of the reasons for my lack of scrapping is because I haven't been able to get to my scrap room, as the floor was being sanded, then varnished.  You'll all be pleased to know it has now been finished and I'm slowly starting to put things away in the shelves and drawers (more photos to follow once I have it all set up!)

In other news I am now 23 weeks and 6 days through the pregnancy.  Ankles are still swollen, but the midwife has today assured me that it is perfectly normal, so I'll just have to put up with it!  Otherwise everything is fine, and my bump is growing at the right rate :)

The One About Ten TV Shows....

So it's the tenth of the month and I thought this month I would share my favourite TV shows at the moment (but not in any particular order):

1 Strictly Come Dancing - how could you not love all those sparkly outfits!  Although I could do without Bruce he drives me mad!

2 Spooks - with so many twists in the story it always keeps me interested - although sometimes I do need it explaining to me!



3 Downton Abbey - any historical drama that comes on and I'm in.  I don't know why I love it because I know I couldn't live like they do, with the women not having jobs and just looking for a husband, but I'm impressed with the way the two younger sisters are wanting to be useful now that the war is on.

4 Strikeback - One to watch from Sky, with the idea for the first series coming from a book by Chris Ryan.  A secret division on the army (a bit like MI6) but they go off into far off countries to try to stop terrorist attacks.  Oh and its just got even better as there seems to be a mole in their camp!

5 Glee - Watching this makes me want to join a dance troop or something (although perhaps after baby is born, I'm not up to anything too energetic at the moment!) And it never fails to cheer me up.

6 Waterloo Road - I've been a keen fan of this right from the very first episode and have watched all the changes of head teachers.  I don't think its as good as when Jill  Halfpenny was in it though - that was the best series.

7 Holby City - This has been going that long that I can't even remember if it was originally a spin off from Casualty (although I have long ago gone off Casualty).  The underlying stories in it and particularly good, especially the one about the plastics department at the moment.  I try not to watch it when I eat my dinner though as there is always gory operating table bits in it!

8 CSI Miami - yes I know that sometimes M says the storyline is a little bit unbelievable & some of the science that they do in the lab isn't true to life, but it keeps me hooked right to the end as I never guess who's done it!

9 Castle - this is our bedtime TV show, and at the moment one 40minute episode can last three days because I fall asleep!  It's about a crime writer shadowing a police woman, and all the murders that they solve.

10 Fringe - two parallel worlds and lots of strange happenings!

It seems I'm spending a lot of time in the TV at the moment, keeping my ankles up and generally not doing very much at all.  Whoever said that you get your energy back in the second trimester was telling porkies!

The One About Names of First Pets.....

A couple of weeks ago M & I were watching All Star Mr & Mrs with Fern and Philip.  You know the one with famous couples that have to answer questions about each other.  Well one of the questions was 'what was the name of your partners first pet?' And this sparked off a whole conversation that lasted all evening.

Well I remembered that M's cats were called Frank & Toby, but M couldn't remember what my cats were called that we had when I was younger.  He was able to name the ones that are still at my mum's now, but then thats easy because we see them every couple of weeks, and anyway they weren't the first pet.  My sister and I got a kitten each when I was about 6 and she was 4.

So then we started a guessing game.  M likes guessing games, particularly if you give clues.  So after a few clues, he got the names of my sisters kitten, 'Poppy.'  But the name of my kitten was far more tricky, there weren't actually many clues you could give.  So this is where the story came out about how we came up with the names for our kittens.  My sister named hers after a character on the Playbus.  So then I decided to name my kitten after a TV character too.  Mine was a boy kitten, which may have helped give you a clue with guessing the name, and bearing in mind I was 6 in 1987/88, that would give you an idea of what TV programmes we would have been watching.  Then, then name started with an 'M', and he was named after a dragon..... in Puddle Lane.

Well needless to say M never guessed the name of the kitten because after doing a search on the internet it turned out that the dragon in Puddle Lane is called Toby! (How weird is that, as that was the name of M's cat), so the name of my kitten was 'Muffin' - gold star if you got it.  And since that evening, I now have no idea where the name came from?

This story was written as part os Sian's storytelling Sunday, (a day late, sorry) so make sure you pop over to read all the other stories!