32 Weeks & Counting - A Time to Be Thankful

Today I am 32 weeks and 1 day. The other day I had the strange realization that I cannot quite remember what my "normal" body feels like. I don't really know what to expect in terms of losing weight after Flash is born, but I am curious to see how quickly I lose some of the other side effects of this pregnancy, like the heartburn and the always-out-of-breath feeling. I have entered the awkward stage of feeling very large and cumbersome; it is hard to bend, roll over, get up or down very quickly, or even sit in certain positions. I basically feel like a beached whale a lot and I'm told that I've started waddling. Ha! I still say I don't mind all of this because I am just so thrilled to have this opportunity to be pregnant. But that doesn't mean that I won't enjoy being able to roll over in bed on my own without having to ask Paul to push me :)

I had intended to post about some other things this past week, but unfortunately the week took a bit of a sad turn. On Monday, we learned that a co-worker and friend of Paul's was killed rather suddenly. I won't go into detail on this blog, but the death occurred under tragic and horrific circumstances which made it all the more traumatic for Paul and the rest of his department. I did not know the deceased very well, although we had socialized at department functions in the past. Nevertheless, the department is like one large extended family, and seeing the grief and shock that her death inflicted on my husband and others was difficult to witness. The funeral services were Saturday (at our church) and drew a considerable crowd. The outpouring of support from the community and surrounding areas was truly amazing. Paul was occupied most of the day as part of the honor guard and an officer of the department. I volunteered with some of the other spouses and friends of the department, preparing and organizing the food, tending to the needs of the family, and assisting visitors and those who were attending in an official capacity. By the time we got home yesterday, we were both physically and emotionally exhausted.

In light of that, and the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, I am feeling rather reflective. Several of my friends on Facebook have been posting daily thankfulness updates since the start of November.  While I never jumped on that bandwagon, I would like to list some things I am feeling especially thankful for this week:

1. My husband. He has been so supportive and patient and loving throughout these past several months. I could not ask for a better partner in life and I feel so lucky and blessed to be his wife. He will make a wonderful father and I look forward to seeing him in that role very soon.
2. My job. It is stressful and busy at times, but I do enjoy the actual work that I do. And I am so thankful to have a job when so many are struggling to find one. I also work with a lot of great people whose support and caring really did help me through the infertility treatments. I cannot imagine how difficult it would be to undergo IVF in secret for fear of losing my job.
3. My neighbors. We have really great neighbors. I saw several of them this weekend at the funeral. Some had known the deceased personally and others were there simply to drop off a tray of baked goods or to offer their assistance in other ways. On Friday when I got home, there was a Noah's Ark gift bag sitting on the bench outside our door. It was a baby gift from one of our newest neighbors, a couple just down the street. When Paul is on shift and something goes wrong at the house, I always know that I can call one of the neighbors and someone will come help me. If we are out of town and a package is delivered to the house, one of the neighbors will stick it inside our garage or take it back to their house until we get home so that it doesn't get rained or or damaged. Neighbors like this are a treasure and I am so thankful to have them in our lives.

I have many, many more things to be thankful for this season. But those are just a few that have come to my attention over these past several days.