Jo's bridal shower and hen night

Cowgirl Jessie, Pocahontas Kate and Pageant Queen Jo
All dressed up

Enjoying the Champers

Everyone at the bridal shower

Last weekend I went upto Birmingham for Jo's hen do.
We started with a bridal shower on Saturday afternoon, playing a few games, having lunch together and opening a couple of bottles of champagne.
In the evening we went out in Birmingham, up Broad Street. Have to say I felt a little uncomfortable being preggers, as it is quite noisy and rough, but it was fine in the restaurant that we went to, and I left afterwards rather than going on to a bar.
We all dressed up in fancy dress with an 'American' theme, as Jo is moving to America.

Another Freecycle Bargain

We've already found some pretty good free stuff for the baby on Freecycle (cot/baby chair/ v pillow) and on Thursday evening I just thought I'd check to see if there were any reusable nappies available. Funnily enough, some had been posted up just an hour before (they very rarely appear on freecycle as they hold their value quite well on ebay).
So I emailed the lady who was offering them, and asked if they were still available. She lived nearby and so on Friday night Luke went to pick them up, as I was on my way to Birmingham. I got a text from him, saying it was a birth-to-potty kit, there were LOADS of nappies, plus extras and all branded, worth about £300! Most of the nappies are still in their packaging, as it's a birth to potty kit and she hadn't got on well with them with her baby. It's a real blessing and I'm very thankful.

29 weeks

Well time is flying! So far I've put on 10kg. I'm now receiving daily comments that my bump is getting bigger, I have to say I don't get bored of hearing it though - it is. My belly button innie is nearly an outie. This morning I had my first kick in the ribs, twice, from the baby. He or she is wriggling around alot more, and it's quite comical watching my whole belly move as a result, particularly when I'm sitting still. I've also felt some body parts when the baby comes near to the surface - is that a head or a bottom? A hand or a foot? Most nights I find it hard to get comfortable, and then have to get up for nature calls at least 2 or 3 times in the night, I think the record is 5, so all in all not sleeping well. But I'm having nice dreams so I think that's a good sign that subconsciously I'm feeling good about the pregnancy and life in general at the moment. Last week I bought a book called 'Bonding with your bump' by Miriam Stoppard. It talks quite a lot about how beginning the bonding process before the baby is born can really help calm a newborn baby.

A trip to the Isle of Wight

Luke and I have had a week off work, and so used the opportunity to take a trip across the Solent, on what will probably be our last break away together before the baby arrives.

We stayed at a small hotel/B&B called Sandown Manor, which was actually in Yaverland rather than Sandown. Unfortunately, due to the poor weather (leftover gales/rain from hurricane Danny) we weren't able to use their outdoor pool, or spend much time on the beach. We still enjoyed ourselves with lots of trips out, relaxing afternoon naps in our hotel room, and reminising over the 'round the island' cycle route that we did 2 years ago.

Highlights included a visit to a Vineyard, with complementary wine tasting, a trip to a garlic farm with complementary garlic tasting (!), the Isle of Wight zoo, strolling along Shanklin promenade, visiting Shanklin chine at sunset and dining at The Steamer Inn, where the food was lovely and the atmosphere great. Oh and the breakfasts at the hotel were pretty good too!