count down

we have entered the final countdown... to our baby boy's arrival!

time has really flown by, it was only yesterday that we found out that we were expecting, that i was so proud of how big my bump was and then it got bigger... and bigger... my bump is so large now that it really could win against the watermelons in a fresh produce competition!

i am so excited - not only about our baby's arrival but about the actual act of birthing him. i know, it sounds crazy but it's true. i have always wanted a natural birth, completely natural with no meds. yes, no pain medication. just natural pain management and everything happening as it was designed to.

we were really lucky in discovering genesis clinic, a natural birthing centre or active birth unit. the funny thing is that nico had discovered genesis way before we even started thinking of having babies - i saved the link on delicious in the beginning of july 2009 and i am quite sure that nico had found the site before that. then we completely forgot about the whole thing by the time we were actually pregnant. thankfully we were reminded about it by my sister, who's friend was going to birth there. i remember driving around the suburbs with my sister in a bid to get my little nephew to fall asleep - all whilst chatting about pregnancy and babies.

being at a place that you're comfortable with is so important for labour. i love the atmosphere at genesis. i love the beautiful treed suburb. i'm looking forward to birthing in an environment where natural birth is accepted as the norm and where i'll have freedom to move about and birth the way it feels most natural to me.

there is so much excitement, and yet we are so relaxed. baby's room is ready, the bags have been packed and have been in the car since thursday. things are progressing well between baby and i. his head has been down and engaged nicely, i have been dilating with practice runs of contractions for a week now. we are actually totally prepared, even bored with nothing to do after months of shopping and trying to get everything done in time.

and now it's only a matter of time...

32 weeks

we saw our midwife phindi today... always exciting to get an update on our little guy! he's growing nicely, and is measuring slightly bigger than his age. it's the first time he's not spot on growth with weeks! he's been head down for some time, and today we found out that his head is engaged. apparently a good thing & nothing to worry about in terms of premature labour.

i am so proud of our little man! he's really done well throughout the pregnancy, and somehow seems to know exactly what to do.

such exciting times ahead of us!

managing...

would you believe that i have found something else to take up even more of my time? yes, that's right... i am studying again. that after i vowed never ever to do anything that smelt like studying when i completed my honours!
i have registered for an IT project management course through the university of johannesburg. i am hoping that this will assist me in my current role through providing a formal methodology to managing my rather informal initiatives. "initiative" is the name given to projects run outside of the project management way of working, managed and worked on solely by a business analyst or set of them. which means that i often perform the role of both project manager and business analyst on my proje... erm... initiatives.
project management is a life skill that may be applied in absolutely any situation, something i believe will never be outdated. that's my story and i'm sticking to it.
i do have times of doubt and regret. especially as i spend long weekends, public holidays, weekends, and all my spare time in front of my textbooks and case study homework. urgh. all i hold on to is that this will benefit me not only in the future but soon. very soon...

we've come a long way, baby

cellphones have changed the way we interact with each other and the world around us. we can no longer imagine the days when we weren't in constant contact and communication. when the only way of speaking to someone telephonically was to wait for them to get home or to the office... my, how will we be communicating in 5 or 10 year's time?

Via: Cell Phones

i'm not ignoring you

and it's not that i don't have anything to blog about... it's just finding the time to put thought to screen inbetween the 50 million other things i want / have to do. in actual fact i have tons of draft posts patiently waiting for completion.

postured whilst driving to work...

helpful hints to beat the freeze

it's friday. it's july. it's freezing cold here in joburg! and i have been hectically busy, so much so that i haven't even been formulating any draft blog posts since my last post...

if you, like me, are trying to find ways to survive the winter chills you may enjoy and appreciate georgina guedes' article on "10 ways to beat the freeze" over at news24.

some of my favourite tips are:

• earn a hot bath
• warm your fingers, do a good deed
• expand your mind
• wear your woolies

but to be honest, they're all so good it's difficult to choose!

economics

it seems everyone is tightening their belts in some way or other these days. some companies find innovative ways of cutting down on expenses whilst keeping on their staff, others are forced to lay-off employees to survive...

i have been contracting / consulting my whole career. the risk has never really bothered me, i have always believed that God does and always will provide for me. and He always has. so, when i was faced with the opportunity to interview for a permanent position at the company that i had been consulting at since july 2008, in the beginning of the year i decided to see where it led. turns out it eventually led to me being offered a permanent position, who knew... since consulting jobs seem to be few and far between, i actually like working at the company, and it's in God's plan for me, i said "yes!" (after much internal debate, prayer, and discussions with friends and family). my first day as a permanent employee was 1 May, worker's day (a public holiday) ironically enough. to be honest though, nothing much has changed. i'm still working on the same project, the work pressures and stresses are the same, hours are longer than they should be now and again, but at least i don't have the added pressure of having to find another contract. and i really do enjoy my job.

a few eggs may have been sacrificed, but i believe that the benefits outweigh the shortcomings in the long run...