I am exhausted but completely happy. I never knew happiness could give you so much energy.

I've been doing stretches and sitting forward positions all evening to try and help this baby move. I don't expect miracles but hopefully the baby will get the idea and decide to turn anterior before I commence labour. I've spent the night watching cooking shows on all fours and sitting in odd positions. I can't say it's comfortable but I'm sure it's better than a 42 hour labour. I'm terrified of needing an epidural and having to give in to a cascade of intervention. I had a beautifully empowering natural birth with Henry. I want that feeling of strength and achievement once again. Surely it's not too much to ask for.

She was Sanyo-oriented,
He was Rank-Arena bred,
A faulty tube led to their meeting:
'Watch with me a while,' she said...

O happy hour of Bugs and Daffy,
Sylvester and Tweety-pie!
Blue remembered hills of childhood
Where each seeks the other's eye!

Right between the Carol Burnett
And the David Nixon Show
They fell in love, and shared a Samboy,
Crunching in the afterglow.

Fortune smiled between commercials,
Dreams were swapped and, futures planned,
They bravely faced the Midweek Movie:
(NRC) The Mummy's Hand.

But the course of true etcetera,
Etcetera - their first falling-out
Took place over Candid Camera
(She had fancied Twist and Shout.)

Reconciliation ushered
In by Cheezels, they sat late,
Smiling at The Many Faces
of Dick Emery - and Fate.

At Epilogue, before that evening's
Nervous clergyman, they swore
To be ever-faithful to each other
Till next they met - in World of War.

Why oh why did I plan for a Christmas baby? Christmas is stressful enough without being pregnant and getting ready to bring life into the world.

Absolutely loving this book rght now. I was aware of the many of the facts he uses to smash the obstinate myths but it's an absorbing potrait of how people are controlled by the myths they are force fed.

And so it begins. The next stage of parenting. It's a strange period where children can occupy themselves for longer than 10 minutes and make you laugh with a witty joke before coming home with questions that you stumble over and can't find the right answer to. Your children also bring home the newsletter. For those of you who don't know what the newsletter is, I'll enlighten you as I received my first newsletter today. The newsletter is what is handed out in every school, junior sports club and early learning class across the country. The newsletter comes with a pleading sigh about supporting the organisations that support you and you always feel guilty whenever you dismiss the newsletter. It's like you have no right to be the club if you can't at least buy a Christmas cake to keep it going. Although it is quite strange to be consuming food, high calorie food to keep your child's workshops going when you have already paid your fees.

All the newsletters have the same selection of lamingtons [I swear to God the world is bought and sold in lamingtons], mince pies and Christmas cakes that nobody eats. All of these items are double the price then they are in the shops. I am yet to know the difference between a store bought mince pie and an helping hand mince pie but it equates to about an extra $4.
The problem is that you have to choose something. You have to buy something even if it appears that the organisations is breezing along without a care in the world. But what do you choose to get fat on? I can use this raffle as an excuse and blame pregnancy cravings but I wonder about the ones I'll be looking through in 5 years time. I'm pretty certain I won't be pregnant then.

The funny thing about all of this is that it really is a milestone of sorts. It's the start of school life for your child. When you first give birth school feels like a millennium away. It feels like something that doesn't even touch you and then all of sudden you find you're packing lunches, sifting through bags and dealing with discarded lunches. My days of doing such tasks are only just beginning and I suspect there is many years ahead. But I can't help but think 'what happened to my baby?','where did all that time go?' I'll know how special it is the next time around.