It has been a bit depressing around here lately, as I continue sick and weak and largely unequal to keeping the house in order. To cheer myself up, here is a list of the things I would love to be doing:

-thoroughly dust, vacuum, and tidy the living room. This would involve washing the curtains, getting behind all of the furniture, and deep into the nook under the stairs that has become a storage dump.

-air, dust, and re-decorate the bedroom. I want to order vintage book plates of wild flowers from etsy to hang on the wall, get a new cover for our comforter, and more shelves to store the books that are currently taking up one of my laundry baskets.

-cook pizza and other treats for my dear husband, who has been so loving, patient, and helpful. He has not been eating well, since anything that produces smells is intolerable to me most of the time, and I can't wait to make it up to him!

-re-decorate the seasons table for Lent -- I am a little ashamed to admit that Baby Jesus is still the centerpiece (surrounded by much clutter...)!

-get back into my knitting projects. I bought yarn to make gifts for a few friends who are expecting babies in the spring and summer, and have not made much progress at all! And now I want to knit for my own little one as well. Before I got sick, I was hosting a weekly craft night with a few of my friends, and it was so great to have a little community for creative work. It will be so wonderful to get back to it!

That is quite enough to be getting on with, I think! And soon, soon, I will start actually doing some of it!

I have sat down to update this blog too many times to count over the past...two months? But something always prevents me from posting. First the Christmas rush, with our wonderful, wonderful trip to Massachusetts kept me in the moment, and this past month I have been struggling with morning sickness which, while not nearly as bad as during my first pregnancy, has not been very fun.

So, yes, I am nine weeks pregnant, due at the end of September.

I am happy, of course. This is the fulfillment of months of longing for another child. But at the moment I am tired and sick and not able to run my home or care for my husband and Daniel as I would like. I am working hard to accept my limitations and do what I can, and looking forward to when I can do more.

We went for our first appointment at the birth center a week ago and met the midwife we are going to be primarily working with this time. Her name is Kelly, and she is actually a student midwife under the supervision of Lisa, who supervised at Daniel's birth as well. Kelsey, who birthed D. was very young and not a mother herself, but Kelly has three teenage children of her own, and has been a doula, childbirth educator, and prenatal exercise instructor for years. I loved Kelsey, and trusted her completely, but I am happy to take advantage of Kelly's experience this time.

I am tentatively planning a home birth this time, possibly a water birth, although we will see how things feel a little closer to the event.

We have another appointment with Kelly on March 1, when we will hopefully hear the baby's heart beat for the first time. I can hardly wait!