Happy Mother's Day.

Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms out there. We're still here and still pregnant, despite several predictions for a Mom's Day delivery. Today we officially reach 35 weeks gestation. Only two more weeks until Miss Thing is officially term. Tomorrow I go for an OB check and we'll see how this week has progressed things. We almost made a trip to the hospital on Thursday. I was having contractions every 4.5 minutes starting around 5 p.m. and for most of the evening. Only about half of them were really painful, which made me wonder if they were "real" labor or not. In the end, I tried to go to sleep around 11 p.m. and when I woke in the morning they had subsided. Since then, I tend to start contracting in the afternoon and do so consistently until I go to bed but when I awake the next morning they are gone again.

We had a really great, restful weekend. I went to a few baby boutiques on Saturday morning to get a few things I wanted but did not have. J and Z ran errands and came home around lunch time. After we all napped away the afternoon we met up with J's mom for a Mother's Day dinner. When we got home, it was just about Z's bed time, but a bunch of the neighborhood kids (6, 5, 5, 4, and 3) were outside playing while the parents talked. It had been ages since I'd seen some of them so we stayed out for an hour while the kids rode bikes and trikes.

This morning we got up and went to Mass. Then we went to brunch at my sister's house, followed by a few hours in the pool. Z was exhausted from a late bedtime, early rising, and all the swimming. He napped from 1:15 until J woke him at 3:45. I fell asleep watching the baseball game at some point during that time. Then this evening we went to dinner with some good friends at one of our favorite places. Afterward, J, Z, the Wondermutt, and I went for a short walk (just over half a mile). But it was the first time I'd done that in ages. I didn't wear myself out, but I think it was just long enough for legs that aren't very well used as of late. Plus, the heat was starting to get to me by the time we arrived home.

Overall, it's been a lot of fun this past week getting out of the house. I wear myself out a lot faster than I expect. I think I've napped almost every afternoon since I was allowed up from bed. But the strength and stamina are returning little by little.

Tomorrow, Z starts his swimming refresher lesson with Infant Swimming Resource. As much as he's been in the pool these past few weeks, he's not swimming like we know he can. He's developed a phobia of putting his face in the water so we'll see if Ms. M. can help him overcome it and swim like he has the past two summers. For a kid who swam well before he walked at all, it is a strange development. If you're not familiar with the ISR program and you have young children (as young as 6 months), I cannot say enough good things about their program.

So now, we go on with the week. For now, no news is good news. I know posting is slower now that I'm not confined to bed, but if we head to the hospital, I'll be sure to get at least a short line out to you all here.