Thumb Twiddling

I really thought last Saturday was it. I woke up feeling pretty good, but by 9:30 am, I was nauseated and having lots of contractions and cramps. I called and put my mom on stand-by. And about 8pm, they fizzled out. I still thought we could be having a baby early this week. But here I am, twiddling my thumbs. Waiting. So to fill the time, I'll shoot some goings-on bullets.

~At my appointment this week, my B.P. is down and everything looks good. I have to go in for a U/S next Tuesday to check on his size (measuring 8 lbs. 13 oz. at 37 weeks), and the plan is to induce Thursday/Friday. (From my understanding- because of the OB's who are on call then- since my baby's can be stinkers). So I will hopefully get to spend at least part of Monday (check in day) to part of Thursday at the fair, if baby doesn't decide to come on his own. I'm 40 weeks today. I at least want enough time to eat a gyro.

~ I need to try to fix a pair of maternity jeans, because they will hide my enormous ankles. I have never felt so big and swollen and downright scary before, and the startled stares of random children when I've been out on errands has done nothing to help.

~ I can almost always tell when Kimberly is going to visit, because it's usually right when I'm thinking I should put up a new post. : ) How do you do that?

~ The house has stayed in a relatively clean state. I've been able to keep up with the general cleaning, even when that meant getting up at 10:30 Sunday night because I was wide awake and mopping the kitchen/dining room, and dusting the main floor. Today I'll be doing the bathrooms and vacuuming upstairs. Hopefully that, combined with laundry, grocery shopping and Chinese for supper will bring baby.

~ Sunday was a 1st birthday party for my in the process of being adopted nephew. (my brother and his wife. Bethany is also due with their first bio baby shortly after me.)

Beans was more than happy to spend as much of the party as possible, sitting on my brothers tractor.

~ B. went and filled the gas cans in the big van. One tipped and dumped a good 2-3 gallons in the back. Anyone know how to get the smell out? 

~ One of the best investments we've made: field guides. They are in use by my curious children nearly everyday, especially Biscuit. He loves looking up bugs, and then bringing me the book after he's found the picture, to have me read what it is. They are sitting in an old chamber-pot, if you happen to be admiring the "bowl" (which no-joke, I accidentally added an "e" to and wrote bowel...)

~All the school books have arrived and are neatly stowed away on the school bookcase

~ The garden is still thriving. Note to Self:  I need to make pesto today.

~While making room in the freezer the other day, I found the leftover peaches I'd frozen over the last 2 years. Just enough to make a batch of jam, and clear some space.

~ One of the feature categories this year at the fair is children's canning. Honey did about 90% of it, and is thrilled to enter her jam this year. (I helped her with the rolling boil 1 minute stirring, and put the rack in the water and took the jars out. She's not quite tall enough, and I didn't want to risk her getting burned)

~ And since hopefully I will get to do at least a few days of the fair, we've been busy getting everything ready. All of my canning is labeled and ready. Tomato Soup; apple-sauce; venison; cream of mushroom soup base; and 4 different jams, plus Honey's.

~ The fact that I have done almost no canning this year is still kind of frustrating, but there's nothing I can do about it now, so there you are.

~ Having pretty much everything ready to take to the fair almost a week in advance is kind of a strange feeling. I might actually be in bed before midnight on Sunday!

~ The 3 older kidlets are entering flowers this year. I asked B. to pick up some ginger-ale on his way home last Saturday (nausea day) and being the smart man that he is, (and having picked up on my obsessive label reading ways) he got me the good stuff with real ginger and sugar.  I saved the bottles so we can quickly find their flowers at the fair. (best specimen class)

~ I decided to get a jump start on Muffins birthday gift, so I can enter it. I stayed up way too late last night to finish the outside, hence the crummy lighting. A fold up dollhouse, that will be home to a peg doll Ingalls family. She LOVES the my first Little House books, so I based this (roughly) on the drawings. I think I might be detail crazy. And I'm really excited to hit the publish button so I can start working on the inside while littles are still sleeping.

Rats, they're up. Guess I'll make some pumpkin-chip muffins for breakfast. I've been kind of obsessed with them. And orange juice. I can't get enough.

Talk at ya later! (And thanks for all the prayers!)