Week 38 was one of the most magical weeks yet! The snow was falling continuously around us, putting us in the middle of a winter wonderland. They were saying we got up to 100cm of snow in some parts of town during "Snowmageddon". Much of the city shut down for safety, so Chris and I stayed inside and enjoyed the snowy blizzard while drinking lots of hot chocolate and watching people ski through our parking lot.
We did venture out into the snow though for my family's traditional 'Tree Hunt', and that was quite the adventure! On our way to find the tree farm (the first one was closed, so we had to go to another), we got a little turned around and ended up in a ditch at the same time my brother ended up in a ditch. I joked about how it was good I had brought some snacks along (cupcakes), in case we had been stranded for a while... Chris was not finding the humour in the situation. :)
Since we had driven separately from my family, we were debating whether we should wait for them to try and pull us out (my dad has a nice big, new truck), or if we should just call CAA. We ended up calling CAA, because my dad was having issues pulling my brother out, so while Chris called, I got Sawyer out of the back of the Santa Fe (or Santa 'Sleigh', as Chris likes to call it) and took him into the snow to play. While Sawyer pranced about and buried his head in the snow, a black truck came slowly down the road and pulled up behind us. A super nice man got out and offered to pull us out of the ditch, just like someone did for him the day before. (I like this "Pay it Forward" vibe). He pulled us out so quickly, and wouldn't even take one of the cupcakes I offered! Maybe he had heard I wasn't usually a good baker...
Here is a little video of us waiting for rescue!
We met up with the rest of my family at the tree farm that we eventually found, only to discover that there were no paths through their tree lot, so off we trekked, through snow that was often up to our knees. It was very difficult, and I found that I tired quite easily. Chris was a little concerned that I would go into labour any second, so I made sure to take little breaks to relax and catch my breath. Since we already had a tree, we just went along for the trip. My mother sadly did not find a tree she liked at this farm, so they decided to go on to another farm when we headed back home. We all had brought our dogs, and they had a great time tearing through the snow after each other, so that was good. :)
One great thing about snow, is that it encourages you to make really yummy, comfort foods. I decided to try a new recipe for a soup I had never made before, and I am so happy with how it turned out! I made hearty Baked Potato soup that I finished off with a nice dollop of sour cream on top. It coated my tummy and made Muppet sing, I tell ya! ;) It was very simple, but tasted like it took all day to make. I will definitely be making this again! Yum!
At 38 weeks, Muppet was the length of a leek and is continuing to plump up. My body has started to feel the weight of this little baby, as I'm having a really hard time sleeping now due to soreness in my hips and legs, and some stronger, more frequent braxton hicks contractions. Boo! :( It's crazy how much heavier Muppet seems, even though I'm still weighing the same. Another crazy thing is how emotional I got when I received my Milk calendar in the mail. In my memory, my mom always had the Milk calendar and would write down our appointments and activities in it all the time, and to me, that was the official "Mom" calendar. To see it in the mailbox really woke me up to the reality that I will be a mother soon too. It's funny how such random things can trigger real strong memories and feelings.
Our maternity photos are also complete, so we have to go and pick them up! Yvonne sent me the low resolution previews of the pictures, so I thought I'd post a few for those wondering how they turned out. We absolutely love them and can't wait to print some!
Warning, there is some major boob-age in some of the photos!
My book choice this week is 'Owl at Home' by Arnold Lobel, written in 1975. If you've ever read my much neglected old blog (which I no longer write on), you may remember me talking about this book. It has to be one of my earliest favourites from my childhood, and encouraged me to try making tea from my tears. Confused? Well, one of the chapters in Owl at Home is called 'Tear-Water Tea', in which the main character, Owl, decides to make some tea out of his tears. He sits down and begins to think of very sad things, like chairs with broken legs, songs that cannot be sung as the words have been forgotten, books that cannot be read as pages were ripped out or mornings that nobody saw because everyone was sleeping. He then collects his tear drops in his kettle and once full, he puts the kettle on the stove to boil for tea. I thought this was a genius idea, and tried collecting my tears in a cup so I could drink them. Sadly, I was not able to collect many tears, but I did take a sip and found my "tea" to be quite salty, but like Owl says, "It tastes a little bit salty, but tear-water tea is always very good."
There are many hilarious chapters starring the very confused, but adorable Owl that will capture any child's imagination. Here are some sample pages from some other chapters in this book.
This is from 'Strange Bumps', where Owl becomes frightened and confused by the two bumps at the end of his bed.
This is from 'The Guest', in which Owl invites winter into his house to get warm.
It is an old book, but one that will forever be in my heart and on my bookshelf. I hope it will find it's way onto yours!
Week 37 was probably one of the slowest weeks I've had in a long time. I spent most of that week cleaning, cooking, making stuffies and just taking little breaks to rest. If it wasn't for my cold, many times I would forget I was pregnant, until I try rolling over in bed. :) I have found that the weight seems to have lifted, so to speak, as I think I must be getting used to carrying around this big belly now. My back has been pretty good lately, and my swelling isn't too crazy either, so I'm having a great ol' time! People ask all the time if I just "can't wait" for the baby to come, and honestly, I'm still very happy being pregnant, so there truly is no rush. Of course I'm excited to actually have the baby here with us, but until it's ready, I'll continue to enjoy being pregnant.
One of the exciting things that has happened for us during week 37 was the purchase of blinds for our front bay window! We have lived in our house for 5 years without any window treatments, probably putting on free shows for our neighbours (and we wonder why they always seem to be moving in and out). We went with a faux wood slat style blind, and I must say, they really look great! Chris also put them in all by himself! He has become quite the handyman lately! He put up a light fixture, fixed our toilet, installed a new thermostat and now has shown talent in window dressing. ;) Thanks for being such a big help honey! <3
We have started our Christmas shopping too, which is actually going pretty well, though I have no idea what to buy Chris for Christmas. The hardest thing is not to buy everything we see for the baby! I know that it won't even realize that it's getting presents, and well, it already has a nursery brimming with new things thanks to friends and family, so there isn't much point, but I have gotten a few things- like this matching bib, change pad and burp cloths from 'baby momo' on Etsy. I just could not resist the bee pattern!
I am also planning on making Muppet's first stocking for Christmas, if I have time...so Muppet, stay in a little longer! :)
An important trip we try to make each week is visiting the dog park, so Sawyer can have some fun meeting new friends and being free to poop to his heart's content. :) We can't wait to bring little Muppet to see all the different kinds of doggies, and see his/her reaction to puppy kisses. Our last visit was great, though very chilly. I'm glad we went when we did though, because the snow started coming down hard and still hasn't stopped!
Here is a little video of us at the dog park, filmed by Chris. Enjoy!
I am so excited about the snow we are getting! It feels so magical to be sitting indoors by our window, drinking hot chocolate and enjoying the lights on tree. I cannot wait to share all of this with Muppet! <3
At 37 weeks, Muppet is considered full term! That means, in most cases, Muppet could be born safely at any time! Eek! Muppet is about the size of a small watermelon, which is something I've been waiting for, as people always say when you are pregnant, "You look like you have a watermelon under your shirt!" :) Now I can say, "I do!". Muppet has me craving a lot of chocolate milk and hot chocolate lately, and I hope it stops soon, because chocolate seems to be a major trigger for heartburn for me. But, I just can't stop. Mmmm....chocolate....
My book of the week is 'Alligator Pie', written by Canadian author and poet Dennis Lee. This has to be one of my favourites as a child. I remember spending countless hours engrossed in the illustrations, devouring the rhymes and repeating the poem Alligator Pie in a sing-song voice around the house. Dennis Lee also wrote 'Jelly Belly' which I also loved, and wrote the lyrics for the Fraggle Rock theme song! I had no idea! This collection of poems is fun for all ages, as the rhymes are quirky and often downright crazy! I remember how each time I picked that book up, I would discover something new to catch my attention.
