thistle epistles

Tomorrow I will reach 39 weeks!  So far no real indications that baby is on the way out, though I have had some sporadic Braxton Hicks (always a fun experience).  Mainly I am just very uncomfortable - still dealing with a LOT of pain in my hips and back, struggling to sleep at night, finding the weather way too warm for my liking, and suffering from fairly severe allergies.  I am very, very grateful for the opportunity to relax and get lots and lots of rest.  We've had a quiet week and I know I made the right decision to back off on being out-and-about so much when I did, because I'm just not up to much of anything anymore!

I am also thankful that David has successfully made it through not only his final exams, but has also had all of his final-year discourses sustained!  So he's had a well-deserved bit of a brain break this week.  We have enjoyed playing croquet together in the sunshine in the garden and I am definitely getting better by the day!  Today I actually won the game in ONE turn!  And we have enjoyed relaxing and watching the World Cup together as well. . . again, a chance for me to rest and have my aching back massaged while we watch the game.  :)

My wonderful husband found time to inflate the birth pool which is now in the corner of our living room.  He was tuckered out after pumping it up by hand!

And then he decided to take a less-than-flattering shot of me from inside the pool: this should be known as the "Baby Bump Monster" photo because I just look. . . overwhelming from that angle!

David has been going through a "nesting" phase himself, I think.  He's convinced that baby is not permitted to come until the house is properly clean and organized.  He's been brilliant about tidying up the place bit by bit while I rest!

I have a rose bush in my back garden that I didn't even know existed until it started blooming last week.  Every day it has a new bloom on it!  They look amazing and they smell gorgeous!  I "haz a happi" (as David would say) every time I walk out the door and see them.  Here's some photos, starting with the first bloom:

What the bush looked like at that point:

What it looks like as of yesterday:

Today there were even more blooms - and still more buds to open!  But I haven't gotten any more photos yet.