Six weeks to go?!

Time continues to fly by.  I think before we know it this baby will be here.  I don't expect to necessarily have the baby early but the next few weeks will disappear before we know it.

I am officially done work.  I am not feeling too bad, but work was getting more difficult.  I could, and maybe will still do an occasional treatment in the next couple of weeks (if anyone calls), but it will be a very casual, client by client decision.

I have been busy working on getting clothes washed and organized.  I have been whittling away at the shopping list of things to get before the baby arrives and the list is getting shorter and shorter.  However, it seems that every time I leave the house I come home with $60 or $70 worth of stuff.

We had maternity photos taken last week, and after a week of rain we did have a lovely sunny day to do some outdoor shots.  Unfortunately, one of our locations, the Zoo, was really muddy with lots of puddles, so we were a bit limited in our selection of spots to shoot.  We got to see one of the photos as a sneak peek, and it looks great.  I can't wait to see the rest.  I am also looking forward to some newborn photos once our little one arrives. 

At 34 weeks pregnant, I think my biggest complaints are decreasing sleep quality and foot pain.  I really expected to have more back pain by this point, but I feel like my foot pain usually causes me to rest before my back does.  I am feeling like most of my shoes are getting snug and I am wondering if it would be worth investing in a good pair of supportive sandals.  I feel like my running shoes still fit pretty well, and allow me to be on my feet longer, but it's getting trickier to get down to tie them....and who wants to be stuck wearing runners in the summer.

I had a prenatal appointment this morning and as usual everything is looking good.  The doctor is pleased with my blood pressure, weight gain (I have gained around 30lbs!  eek), and the measurement of my tummy.  At my last few appointments, the doctor has figured the baby's head is down, and with all the hiccups I feel down in my lower tummy, I would agree.  I also have been getting a lot of pushing/pressure/stretching in my right side, that I am pretty sure is caused by little feet.  I wouldn't call it painful, but there are times it startles me, and occasionally it catches a rib which is not very nice.  My next appointment is in two weeks then after that I will see her every week until the baby decides to make an appearance!

Maternity and Newborn Photos

My due date is August 9th.  It might seem like a long ways off, but we are already thinking about maternity photos.  Contrary to what most people might think, Jay is not doing them!  He wants to be in some of them, so we are hiring Renditure Photography to do some maternity and newborn photos for us.  It is going to be a unique experience, especially for Jay (I believe), to be on the opposite side of the camera.

We met with Amanda this morning to discuss what we are looking for.  We aren't exactly sure, but since I will be pregnant in the summer, we are hoping to do some outdoor photos sometime in mid-June.  We are thinking of doing some photos at the Forestry Farm as well as maybe The Boffin's Club/Innovation Place. 

Amanda said that she often will do a maternity shoot and then do newborn photos as well, as one package.  It sounds like a good option.  She said she usually recommends having the newborn photos done within 14 days after the baby is born, because the baby is sleepier and more flexible during that time frame.  She has the basement of her house transformed into her photography studio and has lots of backgrounds/props/lighting/etc to make for some excellent newborn photos.  Unfortunately Jay wouldn't be able to be in them because their house is not accessible, but we all know that baby Finkbeiner is going to be the star of the show anyway :)

I don't get it

Today we went to the Mendel Art Gallery to check out the display they have on exhibit until September.  It is a collection of 40 photos by Courtney Milne.  If you have never heard of him, he is a photographer from the Saskatoon area who passed away last year.  He had traveled all over the world taking photos for various magazines and published a few photo books during his career. 

The exhibit at the Mendel showcases his 'Pool Project'.  Over 10 years, he spent time photographing the reflections in the pool in their backyard during the different seasons and came away with some amazing shots.  It is hard to believe that some of them are even photographs.  The colours are so vibrant, and some look quite abstract, but they are so beautiful.  I would love to hang them in our house!  I would highly recommend a trip down to check out the Courtney Milne exhibit before it ends around the middle of September.

The part I don't get is the 'art' in their other galleries.  I will admit that I know nothing about art.  I love a beautiful painting.  I don't even mind abstract paintings.  But when there are scribbles that are framed with descriptions talking about how 'clearly this is a depiction of a broken bed, which symbolizes the contrast between life and death' or something of that nature, I find it hard not to scoff.  Or when we walk by not one, but TWO gigantic old tarps hung on the wall.  I commented about how we have some tarps at home that we could bring to the art gallery to hang up.  I was mostly joking, but again, after reading the description that stated that these were indeed old tarps used to hold down loads on big trucks.  The artist took and dirtied them to make the creases and patches on them stand out more.  Uhhhh.....again, I don't get art.