Most of this month was practice for labor, I think. It seemed to start with that and then end with the expectation that I was going to give birth, sometime 'soon'. In the middle was a delightful baby shower, and this last month of the pregnancy really is the hardest.

I did manage to distract myself some with the Handspring Visor my Dad gave me, which has proven very fun and useful. Also John's managed to figure out ways to distract me as we go along. Those have helped.

While I'd been prepared for all new parents to really have sleep deprivation, but very few people had really indicated or emphasized that the mom in the last month has a lot of reason to lose sleep. So while most of the folks I'd talked to (admittedly 90% of the people I talk to are guys) had said that one should catch up on sleep before the birth, none of them had mentioned that for the mom, it's nearly impossible.

So I'm battling all the temporary aches and pains and new things that are happening just for this last stretch. Everything from emotional messes to swollen hands, from figuring out how to let go of work to getting something done anyway, from all the extra weight to lots of practice contractions. It's all pointing towards 'soon'...

Just how soon is anyone's guess.

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