THREE P'S in a POD!

In VERY EXCITING NEWS, yesterday Emily came over to play "official photographer" in our 36 week photo shoot.  We'd been wanting to do this belly bump session for quite some time now, but the winter holidays and other commitments led to some scheduling conflicts.   We were also convinced that our pictures had to be done outside and our current living situation doesn't really promote public displays of affection!  With the fear of Baby P announcing her arrival far too early, Emily suggested an indoor location instead - OUR APARTMENT.  Although skeptical at first, the photos turned out BEAUTIFUL and our darling photog made magic happen within four small walls.

Here are some pictures from our special picture-taking event!  A big thank you to our dear GEMILY for capturing such sweetness in every click.  We will adore these moments for years to come. XOXO

Sleepless Dreams?

I'm pretty sure they are impossible.  With sleep comes dreams.......right?  So although I believe I haven't slept a WINK all week long, I must have gotten some shut-eye to accompany the following bizarre dreams......

*  Floating a bicycle to the top of a cliff where a famous rock and roll legend lived.  The house was a mansion and servants were everywhere.  From there, we were directed onward to the Great Wall of China!

*  Organizing a bank robbery with one of my current students.  I seemed to enjoy the entire planning process - not having a single fear of "getting into trouble".  This would be the COMPLETE opposite of who this goody-two-shoes actually is.  

*  Getting attacked by a seal.  A seal who was chasing me around and whacking me with his tail.  Why was he so angry with me?  WHO KNOWS?!  I had played fetch with him for 3 hours already!  What more could he ask of someone who is terrified of sea creatures?

There have been at least a dozen more dreams with the same WAY-OUT-THERE storyline but I can't seem to remember them at this moment.  Regardless, last night I slept straight from 8:30 p.m. until 2 a.m.!!!!  I am throwing a celebratory tea party when Phil wakes up!  THIS IS BIG NEWS!!!!!

HOORAY for the weekend :)  It is much easier to recover from bouts of breathlessness when you're on the couch than when you're at the front of the classroom!!!  Sitting in our warm and cozy living room is pretty good, too.  For REALS - it's starting to get LEGIT COLD here ;)

New Year, New Hallway Bulletin Board!

For the last two days, I have kept myself busy with this arts & crafts project!  Our new unit is human body systems (circulatory, respiratory, nervous, and digestive) and I had a vision for this display long before the winter holiday.  Don't you think my kiddo's make the CUTEST organs?!  All 84 of my students signed their name on the yellow stars as they pledged to become more organized in semester two.

Cheers to biology, ORGANIZATION, resolutions, A's & C's, WONDERFUL KIDS and LEARNING!!!!!!

WELCOME BACK TO GRADE 6!!!!

"Over the holidays I saw two pitbulls in my garden!!!!"

"I like butter.  Don't judge me.  I just LOVE IT!"

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!  Wait, I mean.....HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!"

Their innocence just gets me.

Teaching is the BEST!!!!

Hungry and Tired - 100% of the Time!

THIS is 35 WEEKS!!!!! (Said in an "American Idol / Ryan Seacrest" manner).

Back to school we go!!!!

My January Calendar.

I just took a look at the "iCal" on my Macbook. 

Maybe I have four things on it. 

And maybe those 4 things include the start date of The Biggest Loser, The Bachelor and American Idol, along with the release date of Justin Bieber's acoustic album. 

Are you smiling?  Because I am!

Can you believe it?!

The light bulbs in our apartment building have a tendency to blow out or - on the very odd occasion - shatter to pieces.  Because of this, we decided to remove the light bulbs above Baby P's crib completely - just in case.

Well, a few hours after we did this, Phil was going into the kitchen.  He turned on the lights and BAM!  One of the light bulbs exploded and glass fell to the ground.

WEIRD, RIGHT?!  This would be the second time that this has happened in THREE YEARS!  And it happened on the very day we took safety precautions in the nursery.  

So - guess what we are doing today?

Investing our money in some (ah-hem THIRTY!) quality halogen light bulbs - one for each light in the house.  Rumour is they can survive the power surges that seem to happen daily.......

Whatever it takes to keep our wee babe SAFE! :)

Baby P's Night Light.

It's as though it came straight from a fairy tale. 

IF YOU WERE HERE FOR (DECAF) TEA.

*  Driving in Kuwait.  Remember I told you that it was my turn to "practice" driving last Friday morning?  Well - I did.  For over two hours.  And during this time, I only encountered TWO drivers reversing on the highway - in our lane.  ONLY TWO.  Not bad, right?!

*  On Christmas Day I had a spontaneous freak-out (these have become common) about Baby P's name.  We really thought we had secured the perfect one.  But then something came over me and we're on the hunt once again.  Either way, y'all will be kept out of the loop until she's born!  SOMETHING must be left to a surprise :)  

*  Saturday afternoon I went for lunch at a colleague's house.  Phil was supposed to join me as well, but he got stuck waiting around the house for a delivery.  Steve subbed in for him and the two of us enjoyed a delicious Iranian feast!  The family who hosted us is of the Baha'i faith and it was really sweet of them to read a beautiful prayer about pregnancy after our meal.  I also met another new mama at the event who has an eight month old son.  Phil and I hope to have dinner her and her husband at the end of this month!   

*  Back to deliveries.  They are the worst.  I won't re-hash the frustrations that we faced, but LET ME TELL YOU - I couldn't be happier that not a SINGLE thing more must be delivered to this flat. 

*  On Sunday we went for our 34 week appointment.  Everything is going as planned and Baby P decided NOT to play camera shy!  We got to see her sweet little face without an elbow, hand, or finger in the way.  She weighs 4.6 pounds right now, which the doctor says is "a few days small" but nothing to be worried about it.  We return to the doctor in two weeks!  Woweee - time is FLYING!

*  We've watched THREE movies in the last few days - Big Miracle, The Trouble with the Curve, and 10 Years!  GO US!  Perhaps we will get to a few more before the holidays are over.....

*  Car shopping has been an on-going activity for us this break.  Phil has gone out with different people to look at renting and buying both new and used cars.  After many back and forth's, we've decided to purchase a NEW CAR!!!  It will be our first "big" purchase together (ever!) which makes it extra exciting!!!  We should be cruising around in our new vehicle by next Tuesday or Wednesday.  I will save any more details until I can get a good picture! :)

*  The nesting continues at the Parkinson residence.  The guest room and nursery are ALMOST finished and we have rearranged the living room to be more cozy and functional.  I love it.  With each job we get done, the better I feel.  My hubby has been working non-stop to make sure we are 100% ready for Baby P's arrival.  He's the GREATEST!  

*  Emily and Shannon are back early from their trip!!!  This means EXTRA, UNEXPECTED quality time before school starts up again.  HOORAY!

*  I have had many people ask me how I am feeling lately.  I have to admit - the last few days (or week...) has been a bit tougher than before.  The lack of sleep continues and the throbbing back/ribcage-area pain is picking up like something fierce!  This morning I was up at 4 a.m. - first because I was achy.  Then because my nose decided to bleed.  And then because my stomach was growling!  Phil woke up to rub my back (told ya he was the greatest!), but I left the room eventually so that he could actually get some quality rest.  I hope he can sleep for as long as possible today!!!

Now I shall leave you with something hilarious.  To thank Phil for all of his sweetness, I decided to be a little sweet myself and bake both chocolate chip muffins and banana loaf.  I even doubled the recipe so I could freeze some treats for busy times ahead (thanks for the tips, pregnancy books!).  Well, let's just say that pregnancy brain/over-tiredness kicked in and instead of getting 24 delicious chocolate chip muffins, I ended up with 24 HOCKEY PUCKS.  I forgot to add the baking powder.  BAH!  This led to an embarrassing sob session in my cute, pastel-coloured, cupcake apron.  I have since re-grouped and have my fingers crossed for a banana loaf that we can actually EAT.  AY AY AY!

Three more days of vacation until school resumes!  We have a long to-do list for today but one of them is washing all of Baby P's tiny clothes.  I can't wait to see Phil's genuine excitement while he sorts, washes, and hangs them all to dry!!!  It will be PRICELESS.   

WELCOME YEAR 2013 :)

Wishing you and your family a year filled with happiness, good health, new opportunities, and many INCREDIBLE MOMENTS!!!!!!!!

Love,
The Parkinson's
XOXO 

P.S.  We made it to midnight!!!!!!!