Baby book anyone?

I am keen to buy a baby book. Given that this is our first, I have no clue as to what kind of information to note down so I like the idea of having a book to follow and fill out. I think I will probably make a blurb book as well with lots of photos etc. Has anyone seen anything sweet that is NOT pastel teddy bears etc? I have found this site that makes some recommendations. The image above looks quite nice and seems to have great reviews based on that it is a little creative without being too "scrap-booky" (I can't scrap book, I have neither the time, talent or interest) but I was thinking of something a little more modern and simple. Any ideas?

Happy Oz Day

No movement in the trenches so I don't think we'll be having an Australia Day baby. Mr k and I were pretty keen to have a bubba on this day because we love the idea of having a public holiday on your birthday. Mr k has had to go into work to finish off as much as he can so he can have a couple of weeks off when the bub finally makes its debut. We spent the morning eating avocado on toast and watching bad tv. I must say I am feeling a bit knackered today. Last week our ob mentioned we might want to think about inducing and asked us to come back yesterday to see where we were at. He didn't mention it at the time (possibly not to alarm us as first time parents) but he was a little concerned as to how big the bub was measuring. However at yesterday's appointment, the measurements were smaller and he explained that this was more what he was expecting. Due to PSD, I have been rather uncomfortable and he said we could induce so as to spare me more discomfort but mr k and I decided unless it was for the benefit of the bub, I was quite happy to sit on the couch and wait it out. Pretty boring but I'll get some box sets...you know life is pretty good when that is your biggest dilemma!

Photo is from a fishing trip mr k did earlier this year. I love the colour of the water. We live very close to the beach but due to PSD, I haven't been able to keep up my daily walks on the sand and I really miss it.

Donating instead of spending

I got the heads up on this great baby/child shopping site today. There are some great bargains and before I knew it my shopping cart was up to about $250 and I was shopping conservatively. I stopped for a moment surprised by how quickly it had added up. Due to my income being changed since going on maternity leave, I've started giving more thought to purchases. I started thinking about the Queensland floods and how there is even an initiative for giving underwear. I thought "I really don't need another muslin cloth when people don't even have underwear."
So I deleted all the items and I am going to make a donation to the relief fund. Sometimes I worry a little about whether the money that is donated actually goes to the cause. Years ago I used to sponsor a child but the amount of marketing letters and admin that was sent to me used to make me concerned. I have a background in media and knew how much all that glossy printing and expertise cost. I wondered how much of my money was going to the actual people in need and how much was going to admin costs. I do know that this is necessary to keep these organisations going but I have always preferred direct action, to do rather than just give money. I think the Baked Relief effort is awesome. From "adopting" a family to cook for to making yummy treats for the volunteers, it is literally love and support in action. I also like the trend of the media reporting all the wonderful things the Australian public is doing to help one another, from Baked relief to showing images of homemade signs of thanks.

just because I love the prawns and needed to share

One of the weirder things to happen during this pregnancy is my dislike of prawns. Prawns have traditionally been one of my favourite foods but when I got pregnant until my eight month, I was completely off them. One of my favourite ways to serve them is with a mango salsa. It is very quick and easy and everyone seems to love it.

Dice up a fresh mango, fresh avocado, chop up some coriander, red chilli (to your heat requirements), red onion and top with a squeeze of lemon juice and cooked prawns. TO. DIE. FOR.

more pics

For some reason I couldn't add all the photos in the last post, so here are some more.

baby shower

I had my baby shower this weekend. It was great fun and I was absolutely spoilt by my very generous friends. The food was glorious and I am so glad my appetite has come back!
Below are a few pics. I went for a bit of a aqua, red and pink theme. We don't know what we are having so I tried to cover all bases. I hung a variety of poms-poms above the table and used inspiration from Inchmark and downloaded some printables from ruff anders to create drink labels etc. That is my crafty effort for the next five years! We played baby bingo which was a nice opportunity to give some little presents. People wrote notes of advice and put them into nappies so that when I have an "interesting day" I will have a special stash of nappies with words of advice stashed into them. My bestie also organised everyone to make some kind of origami animal and she is going to turn them into a mobile for the bub. We also organised a henna artist to come and either henna people (or to do the design in glitter for those not wanting a longer lasting look). I had my belly done and given that I think I will give birth sooner rather than later, my midwives will have a nice illustration to look at!
My to-do list is getting smaller and I am hoping I have at least week left to cross them all off.

more cute stuff

Can you tell I am not sleeping?

Anyway some cute modern baby bedding and on sale at $119. Australian owned and organic.
From here

nursery

I am a bit over the whole decal movement but these are very charming. Head to 41orchard.com (they're Australian too!)

I'm still here

I am still here and still pregnant. Work was overwhelming which it always has been but working at the half the pace (and half the hours) I normally keep meant that I was pretty exhausted most days. The wonderful fabled second trimester lasted about a month for me. Having said that, third trimester hasn't been great. I have had pelvic girdle pain and Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction. Ouch, was not nice at all!! Silly me waited until I could barely walk before realising this wasn't normal. Went and saw a physio who specialised in pregnancy and got a tubi grip and a huge velcro support belly belt which gave some good relief. I am very grateful for being pregnant and looking forward to meeting this little bub but I must say, pregnancy has not been a blissful state for me. It has been hard work. Since being on holidays, life has been a little easier and now I am in the final countdown. I am due very early Feb but bub measuring three weeks ahead at this point...not in weight but in length!! Our last couple of ultrasounds with our ob has shown our little one has massive amounts of hair. Both mr k and I were born bald and remained so until at least 6 months so this is a very cute surprise. Next weekend I will be having my baby shower. Mum is having at her place but I have been organising it. In Australia there is not a strong tradition for baby showers but I thought it would be a good excuse to have a nice lunch and see everyone before I enter babyland. I love the blog of inchmark and have used her ideas as inspiration. I can't wait!!
I'll post some images soon.