Bump!!!
I think that I have let you all know the big news….I’m about 9 weeks pregnant!!! Baby is due around the 23rd of March 2008 (Easter Sunday)! It came as a bit of a shock, but now that we’re over that we are very excited! And terrified! It’s such a big responsibility bringing a little life into this world! I’ve always wanted children though, as most of you know...I’ve been broody since I was about 2!! Steven loves children too and he can’t wait to be a dad! He’ll make a wonderful dad! He’s so patient and kind…you should see him with the little boy that he looks after…he truly is amazing, and is adored by the boy! As you probably know, Steven is going to University to do a 3 year film studies course, starting this September and will still be doing a few shifts a week in his current job…somehow we’ll make it! He has quite a substantial student loan (we can get an additional loan once the baby’s born), and it seems like (even though I’m still South African) I will probably be entitled to 39 weeks of maternity allowance (at £112 per week!!!) plus of course we will get a pretty minimal child benefit (£17 a week) and if I continue working I will get Working Tax Credits which just means I won’t pay very much tax…which will help! If we get to a point where Steven needs to work full time he can put his course on hold after his first year (about May 2008) for a year or two and then continue when things are more settled. But I’m sure he won’t need to!
As you know, I quit my job before I found out I was pregnant and finished at the beginning of this month. At the moment I am just working on the farm and trying to work out what we’re going to do, where we can afford to live, etc as the mobile home is not ideal to bring up a child in as it gets very cold and damp especially in the winter, and I don’t know if I’d be able to make a fair contribution to the farm through my pregnancy and while I’m working.
I have been employed by a wonderful family (I start officially at the beginning of September) who have 3 kids and a fourth on the way. They live about 20 minutes away on a farm of their own and are very outdoorsy and fun! The kids are absolutely adorable and the parents are involved in starting up an alternative school (Steiner inspired), which I’d really be interested in learning more about. It’s a great method for all children and as most of you know I’ve been drawn to it from the moment I heard about it 4 years ago. It teaches more creative and life skills rather then forcing children to read, write and do math by a certain age. Each kid is treated individually according to their abilities. They get to plant veggie gardens and do practical, fun things. There’s a serious need for more such schools in Cornwall!
Back to my baby (nicknamed Petal)…she/he is about 4 centimetres long and has just starting moving, though I won’t feel anything for ages. Petals heart has been fully developed and beating at about 180 beats a minute (double mine at the mo) for the last 3 weeks! Petal’s brain is 4 times the size it was 4 weeks ago and his/her digestive and nervous system are busy developing. He/she already has little hands and feet and the face is now complete, even with primitive milk teeth….it’s so amazing!! I can’t wait for my first scan! The midwife was here on Wednesday. Her name is Rosie and she seems lovely. She took my blood to test for any blood conditions (sickle cell, thalassaemia), to see if I’m anaemic, see if I’m rubella immune and to see my blood group. I haven’t been feeling too bad, I feel like I’m putting on weight already, my sense of smell is heightened and I feel a little queasy at mealtimes so am having a few small meals rather than one big, rich one. Oh and I’m really tired and emotional. I seem fine for a few days and then I burst into tears for no apparent reason and worry about the future and whether I’ll be a good enough mom. But I believe this is all perfectly normal, what with all the hormones going haywire. I have started practising yoga at home again, which is really good for during pregnancy and for relaxing and breathing properly, and seems to help the emotions. Everyone around us has been really supportive and offered us all kinds of hand me downs (looks like we won’t have to spend much). Stevens family are very excited, his mom has been bugging me about having a baby for ages!! Aah! I’m getting all maternal now and would love to start making up a room for Petal!! I’ve decided to go with the modern towelling nappies, they’re quite nifty and easy to use, and more ecological. Apparently 70 000 tons of nappy waste (disposables) goes into Cornwalls landfill sites every year!!!! Although I’ll probably use disposables for the first week or two until I get into the swing of things.
Steven and I will have been married for a year at the end of September, time flies yet I feel like I’ve known him for a lifetime. And I love him as much as ever (if not more), and feel terrible when I get crabby and take it out on him. But he’s so wonderful, he understands what’s going on and just gives me lots of love and comfort.
Steven and I have been doing lots of talking and it seems like we may move into his employers attic in the next few months (which is really modern and comfy) until closer to the time the baby is born, when we’ll have to start looking at renting our own 2 bedroomed flat/house. It would be convenient for him there as he’d still be able to work enough hours, and see me enough, and he could travel to University easily enough. It’ll be at least 30 minutes to work for me then, but that’s ok because I only start at 9.30 anyway. It will take the pressure off having to do 2 days of farm work in exchange for our accommodation (although I’ll miss it soooo much!), but I don’t know that we’d be able to handle it with all that’s on our plate right now!
I’m starting 3 diploma level part time courses next month….One is a Foundation Yoga course, which lasts 10 months (2 afternoons a month), I could eventually follow it with a Teacher Training course. I’d love to teach childrens yoga…maybe even introduce it to the schools in Cornwall as is fast becoming a trend in London. It’s very beneficial for concentration, relaxation, correct posture, etc.
The second is a diploma in Anatomy, Physiology and Holistic Massage which will be one evening a week for a year, where I will learn about the body and the different muscle groups, etc and the basics of reflexology, aromatherapy, reiki, Indian Head massage, Swedish massage, stone therapy, etc. After the year I could either do another year and specialise in one of them or do another more in-depth complementary therapy course.
Both of these courses are fine with me being pregnant and in fact say they welcome it because it gets students to look at how they would treat people in my condition, etc. The yoga lady said it would be lovely to bring baby along once she/he is born!
The third course is to a web-design course. I do love computers and I’m very quick at figuring out things, and when I start a business in the future I want to be able to design my own website, as it is expensive to get it done. Most things are sold and advertised on the internet these days, and I think this course might tweak the little bit of creativity I have. Who knows, maybe I’ll love it and become a freelance web designer for local companies. It’s one evening a week for only 15 weeks, so I don’t think I’ll be overdoing it!
In November it will be 10 years since I left the Exclusive Brethren. It still hurts not to have much to do with the family, and I miss them more often than they think I do, but I choose to celebrate 10 years of freedom! I do not regret my choices, although I wish they hadn’t hurt my family! It is an unfortunate consequence, but was obviously not my intention to cause pain! I live in the hope that Petal will someday know her granny and aunties and uncles and cousins!!
The Alpaca’s have been having babies…they are so adorable! 5 in all, I think over the last month or so. One was a bit premature and the owner had to bottle feed him as he couldn’t stand up for the first few days. He’s still a bit wobbly now, but much stronger and suckling from his mum! He’s super friendly as he’s had so much human contact, which is not always a good thing, because as he gets older he may develop ‘berserk alpaca syndrome’, which is where he can’t distinguish between alpaca and human and he may jump up at us and tackle us and spit and kick as he would with his play mates, and could really hurt someone. So we’re trying not to pet him too much, but he’s so cute- it’s really hard!
We haven’t been too affected by this latest foot and mouth scare as the outbreak was far away, but it does prevent us from taking the animals to any agricultural shows, or people from bringing their alpaca’s over here for matings, etc. People love the alpacas at shows. Julie sells some of her animals and alpaca training equipment so it is good advertising for her. Their fleece is similar to cashmere and worth quite a bit. They get sheered once a year and look so skinny and naked afterwards, it’s hilarious, poor creatures. I do love being around so many animals!! Check out Julie’s website if you’re interested http://www.carthveanalpacas.com/
The weather has been shocking…really not much of a summer! Although it’s not cold, but it just seems to rain constantly! We had some really good weather in April and it seems like that was our sunshine…if I’d known I’d have taken better advantage of it! I have been reassured that it’s freakish weather and we normally do have a pretty good summer in Cornwall (as I experienced last year). Hopefully some more sun to come, as this rain kind of gets to me sometimes and makes me feel rather disheartened. All the freaky weather worldwide seems to be proof that global warming is happening and we need to play our part to help slow it down...if only just for my sake:-)...I NEED SUNSHINE!!!
Last Monday (13th) was 10 years since my dad died of a malignant brain tumour. How quickly time flies! He was such a good, gentle, kind man…I wish I’d known him better. I like to think that if he were still around, he’d open his arms to me, regardless of my life choices.
As you know, I quit my job before I found out I was pregnant and finished at the beginning of this month. At the moment I am just working on the farm and trying to work out what we’re going to do, where we can afford to live, etc as the mobile home is not ideal to bring up a child in as it gets very cold and damp especially in the winter, and I don’t know if I’d be able to make a fair contribution to the farm through my pregnancy and while I’m working.
I have been employed by a wonderful family (I start officially at the beginning of September) who have 3 kids and a fourth on the way. They live about 20 minutes away on a farm of their own and are very outdoorsy and fun! The kids are absolutely adorable and the parents are involved in starting up an alternative school (Steiner inspired), which I’d really be interested in learning more about. It’s a great method for all children and as most of you know I’ve been drawn to it from the moment I heard about it 4 years ago. It teaches more creative and life skills rather then forcing children to read, write and do math by a certain age. Each kid is treated individually according to their abilities. They get to plant veggie gardens and do practical, fun things. There’s a serious need for more such schools in Cornwall!
Back to my baby (nicknamed Petal)…she/he is about 4 centimetres long and has just starting moving, though I won’t feel anything for ages. Petals heart has been fully developed and beating at about 180 beats a minute (double mine at the mo) for the last 3 weeks! Petal’s brain is 4 times the size it was 4 weeks ago and his/her digestive and nervous system are busy developing. He/she already has little hands and feet and the face is now complete, even with primitive milk teeth….it’s so amazing!! I can’t wait for my first scan! The midwife was here on Wednesday. Her name is Rosie and she seems lovely. She took my blood to test for any blood conditions (sickle cell, thalassaemia), to see if I’m anaemic, see if I’m rubella immune and to see my blood group. I haven’t been feeling too bad, I feel like I’m putting on weight already, my sense of smell is heightened and I feel a little queasy at mealtimes so am having a few small meals rather than one big, rich one. Oh and I’m really tired and emotional. I seem fine for a few days and then I burst into tears for no apparent reason and worry about the future and whether I’ll be a good enough mom. But I believe this is all perfectly normal, what with all the hormones going haywire. I have started practising yoga at home again, which is really good for during pregnancy and for relaxing and breathing properly, and seems to help the emotions. Everyone around us has been really supportive and offered us all kinds of hand me downs (looks like we won’t have to spend much). Stevens family are very excited, his mom has been bugging me about having a baby for ages!! Aah! I’m getting all maternal now and would love to start making up a room for Petal!! I’ve decided to go with the modern towelling nappies, they’re quite nifty and easy to use, and more ecological. Apparently 70 000 tons of nappy waste (disposables) goes into Cornwalls landfill sites every year!!!! Although I’ll probably use disposables for the first week or two until I get into the swing of things.
Steven and I will have been married for a year at the end of September, time flies yet I feel like I’ve known him for a lifetime. And I love him as much as ever (if not more), and feel terrible when I get crabby and take it out on him. But he’s so wonderful, he understands what’s going on and just gives me lots of love and comfort.
Steven and I have been doing lots of talking and it seems like we may move into his employers attic in the next few months (which is really modern and comfy) until closer to the time the baby is born, when we’ll have to start looking at renting our own 2 bedroomed flat/house. It would be convenient for him there as he’d still be able to work enough hours, and see me enough, and he could travel to University easily enough. It’ll be at least 30 minutes to work for me then, but that’s ok because I only start at 9.30 anyway. It will take the pressure off having to do 2 days of farm work in exchange for our accommodation (although I’ll miss it soooo much!), but I don’t know that we’d be able to handle it with all that’s on our plate right now!
I’m starting 3 diploma level part time courses next month….One is a Foundation Yoga course, which lasts 10 months (2 afternoons a month), I could eventually follow it with a Teacher Training course. I’d love to teach childrens yoga…maybe even introduce it to the schools in Cornwall as is fast becoming a trend in London. It’s very beneficial for concentration, relaxation, correct posture, etc.
The second is a diploma in Anatomy, Physiology and Holistic Massage which will be one evening a week for a year, where I will learn about the body and the different muscle groups, etc and the basics of reflexology, aromatherapy, reiki, Indian Head massage, Swedish massage, stone therapy, etc. After the year I could either do another year and specialise in one of them or do another more in-depth complementary therapy course.
Both of these courses are fine with me being pregnant and in fact say they welcome it because it gets students to look at how they would treat people in my condition, etc. The yoga lady said it would be lovely to bring baby along once she/he is born!
The third course is to a web-design course. I do love computers and I’m very quick at figuring out things, and when I start a business in the future I want to be able to design my own website, as it is expensive to get it done. Most things are sold and advertised on the internet these days, and I think this course might tweak the little bit of creativity I have. Who knows, maybe I’ll love it and become a freelance web designer for local companies. It’s one evening a week for only 15 weeks, so I don’t think I’ll be overdoing it!
In November it will be 10 years since I left the Exclusive Brethren. It still hurts not to have much to do with the family, and I miss them more often than they think I do, but I choose to celebrate 10 years of freedom! I do not regret my choices, although I wish they hadn’t hurt my family! It is an unfortunate consequence, but was obviously not my intention to cause pain! I live in the hope that Petal will someday know her granny and aunties and uncles and cousins!!
The Alpaca’s have been having babies…they are so adorable! 5 in all, I think over the last month or so. One was a bit premature and the owner had to bottle feed him as he couldn’t stand up for the first few days. He’s still a bit wobbly now, but much stronger and suckling from his mum! He’s super friendly as he’s had so much human contact, which is not always a good thing, because as he gets older he may develop ‘berserk alpaca syndrome’, which is where he can’t distinguish between alpaca and human and he may jump up at us and tackle us and spit and kick as he would with his play mates, and could really hurt someone. So we’re trying not to pet him too much, but he’s so cute- it’s really hard!
We haven’t been too affected by this latest foot and mouth scare as the outbreak was far away, but it does prevent us from taking the animals to any agricultural shows, or people from bringing their alpaca’s over here for matings, etc. People love the alpacas at shows. Julie sells some of her animals and alpaca training equipment so it is good advertising for her. Their fleece is similar to cashmere and worth quite a bit. They get sheered once a year and look so skinny and naked afterwards, it’s hilarious, poor creatures. I do love being around so many animals!! Check out Julie’s website if you’re interested http://www.carthveanalpacas.com/
The weather has been shocking…really not much of a summer! Although it’s not cold, but it just seems to rain constantly! We had some really good weather in April and it seems like that was our sunshine…if I’d known I’d have taken better advantage of it! I have been reassured that it’s freakish weather and we normally do have a pretty good summer in Cornwall (as I experienced last year). Hopefully some more sun to come, as this rain kind of gets to me sometimes and makes me feel rather disheartened. All the freaky weather worldwide seems to be proof that global warming is happening and we need to play our part to help slow it down...if only just for my sake:-)...I NEED SUNSHINE!!!
Last Monday (13th) was 10 years since my dad died of a malignant brain tumour. How quickly time flies! He was such a good, gentle, kind man…I wish I’d known him better. I like to think that if he were still around, he’d open his arms to me, regardless of my life choices.
Well, cherry bye and lots of love to you folks...sorry that blogging has replaced emailing! xxx
Watch this space for petals scan picture and my bump photo's (when I get one)!!
posted by The Wandering Fairy @ 7:37 pm
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