The start of maternity leave

I officially finished work on Friday in preparation for our new arrival. At 36.5 weeks pregnant, I was definitely ready to stop work. Certain things do become trickier the bigger you get, such as sitting close enough to the desk to type and see the screen; eating your lunch without leaving crumbs on your belly; not to mention the actual concentration required to work whilst being repeatedly kicked in the ribs, struggling to breathe and ignoring baby hiccups. It was also taking me increasingly longer to reach the office each morning - in my pre-pregnant state I could power walk from the station to the office in approximately 15 minutes, but come Friday it was taking me at least 23.

Anyway, I no longer need to think about work, I am free to 'nest', and rest. That has been the most common piece of advice I've been given, "make sure you rest as this will be your last chance for 18 years", or variations of that. I guess I will take things a bit slower, but also I have some big plans for the next three weeks:

• Finish the Merry Christmas bunting
• Make the baby a stocking
• Bulk cook meals for freezing so we can eat well once baby arrives
• Make felt decorations to hang from the dresser
• Undertake some Christmas baking

The nursery is basically ready, so apart from the usual cleaning and general readying, we are quite prepared in that department.

What a great time to be on maternity leave - I'm going to be baking and crafting whilst listening to Christmas music, how brilliant is that?! I'll try and wait until December 1st before putting the first Christmas album on...