Counting down...

Ok, so we are counting down weeks now with only 4 to go. Belly is very round and baby still jiggling... frequently - It's the sideway stretches that stop me in my tracks...geez. The body is certainly feeling older this time around... feeling like a grandma bear when I rise from the bed in the morning (which takes a few good minutes of delicate manoeuvring to ensure the least amount of groaning and pangs) have to say though that I've sought help from an Osteo and that has been great - apparently this alignment will help with a better (shorter?) birth... worth a go I say! For a few months now I have been sporting some rather sexy cankles! Oh my lord... I still look down (usually in the afternoon) and am taken aback at the enormity of my ankles, feet and toes - they don't look like mine! I was chatting with a friend the other day and explaining this recent cankle phenomena and likened my toes to little chipolata's, he suggested that perhaps they were a little more like chipola"toes" - ha (good one Col!). Anyway basically I'm feeling very pregnant... My fairly regular Braxton Hicks contractions (which have been happening since 16 weeks) are happening daily and I have a theory that perhaps each one of these takes one off in labour? I know I'm dreaming but it's working for me!

We had some gorgeous belly pics taken with Marley by the amazing Jayne (Bright Eyes Photograpy) so I'll post some up when I get them. Really glad I did that this time around.

I haven't posted since our holiday in Adelaide (slack I know). We had a great time and of course didn't get to catch up with everyone, but Marley got to hang out with some buddies and cousins and it was a lovely little holiday.

Marley's first football match and we can count on the lovely Gaynor to corrupt my son and have him barracking for the Crowes! There were even Crowes members who were offering Marley snake lollies each time Crowes got a goal - Oh man... poor saints - they were robbed of our support!

Mars & Maddie hanging out...

Monkey's on a swing...

Hugs for his little buddy Lindon...

Stories with Aunty Kaz and the adorable Miss Bonnie...

While visiting Karen in Adelaide Marley got acquainted with the families new pets - some guinea pigs. I don't think I can recall Marley sitting still for so long - he held these little creatures with awe - marvelling at their twitchy noses and fluffy fur. I began to think it might be a cool thing to get him a guinea pig when baby comes so he has his own little creature to nurture... so I kept entertaining the thought until our return home - by which stage Mike was in South America on his work trip. During our first phonecall with Dad I told Mike about the guinea pig experience and how it might be cool to get one for Marley, he replied "I just ate one of those!" You What??? Yes apparently guinea pigs are the thing to eat in South America. Good lord - My son is besotted by them and my husband is eating them. Needless to say I've abandoned the idea for now - too traumatic especially when you are pregnant - along with the visions of Mike sneaking into the backyard to cook up our fury pet. May re-visit the idea somewhere down the track.

It was a long 5 weeks without Mike but his time in Ecuador and Chile were fantastic - he came back with some great footage and amazing photos of these gorgeous people. We are so damn privileged in this part of the world and we have so much. As life rolls on and the experiences come and go (challenging, scary, exciting, neutral or otherwise) my gratitude grows for all that I am blessed with and the very simplest things... A sunny day and sharing a cuppa with someone I love has to top my satisfaction list!

"Buddhism for Mothers" continues to be such a great read and full of what I seem to need - wisdom, laughter and simplicity. I recently read the appendix about mothering a newborn which filled me with memories, some sweet and some sad - and I'm about to do it all over again! The author regards mothering as spiritual practice...

"On one level, this questions seems absurd. Nothing could be further from the regimented march of a formal retreat that the disheveled dance of motherhood. The books on my bedside table used to be about pursuing awakening in the Himalayas. Now they're about preventing awakening in the middle of the night. There's a diaper change table where my alter used to be; my zafus and zabutons have been requisitioned to cushion Skye's play area... I'm on the phone with Skye on my hip, ordering baby proof plates for the electrical outlets as I eat cold veggie potstickers with my fingers straight from the cardboard box and rub fresh spit-up into the floor with one socked foot. It's hard to find the moment even to tell myself that this is a spiritual path - I'm too busy looking for Skye's other mitten...

Could there be any better way to get my nose rubbed in the truth of impermanence than to love a child in a jagged, careless world?..."

So, the next chapter of the Amos family is imminent and accompanying the waiting are feelings of jubilence, a little fear, nervousness and excitement. Life is good and my wish for you is that yours is too. Take care friends and I'll post again soon.

Love & Magic

Beans xxx