Can I have Another? Piece of Chocolate Cake?

Yes, two Crowded House song titles in one week. You would prefer I use Prism song titles? Didn’t think so.

OK, two weeks off work has been great. I mean, I’m looking at a year, so counting the weeks is not so interesting at this point, but because I am huge and I ache and I don’t want to spend any more money, I’m not doing much at the moment. I’m resting (because everyone advises me to rest) and eating (because resting is exhausting) and cooking (because can after can of pineapple can hurt me, I’m certain) and tidying up after myself (I’ve assessed this carefully and I don’t think it’s ‘nesting’. For example this morning I had a bath. While the water was running, I stared at the tub and thought: Hmm. There’s cat hair and dust around the sides of the tub. Well, I guess we haven’t cleaned it since we moved in. Then I took off my clothes and got in) and watching television (today I actually watched The View. Sandra Bernhardt still frightens me) and reading the internet. (I’ve become fascinated with someone else’s pregnancy: this woman, who is having days a lot like mine of late. Last week when I landed at her blog – don’t remember how -I read all her archives and was awestruck by her story, spirit and grace. Now I’m almost as excited to see her baby as my own!)

And that’s it! That’s all I’m doing! With an exception here and there. Like a trip to the mailbox. Or to the doctor. Or to visit a friend’s cute baby.

On Wednesday, I went to my prenatal group appointment. Me and the doctor and the nurse cold-kicked it for a while and they told me that one woman was in labour at that moment; one other woman was still pregnant and the other 4 from the group had had their babies. Two were early, two were on time. Boy did I feel like a slacker. Then three of the babies came to the group – a week & a bit old, each of them – and they were so lovely. Two girls and one boy. Three completely different labour stories. It was interesting to see people (the adults) that I have only known since week 16 of our pregnancies. Each woman had a little less chin than she had 2 weeks ago. Oh, and a lot less belly, too. Especially compared to this startling appendage:

Incidentally, I cannot recommend enough the squishy yoga ball for late pregnancy. At this time, it is the only comfortable seating in the house. It embraces my bottom like the couch, chair, bed and glider do not.

Oh yes, atop the ball is the cake referenced earlier. I made this cake today, just so I’d have something to eat for Beverly Hills, 90210, but things went south when I started on the icing. I chose an icing recipe that called for 3.5 cups of icing sugar (!) but neglected to notice this until I had already mixed all the other ingredients. So it was kind of a mushy, buttery mess, as I added brown sugar (close, but not quite), granulated (a long shot, to be sure) and then finally just dosed it the hell up with more cocoa, which made it spreadable and palatable but not nearly as good as it might have been. It’s a little crunchy, on account of the non-icing sugar sugar.

After I had a piece, I thought: The babby could come tomorrow. (also, tomorrow is the 17th. It would fucking rule if the babby was born on the 17th. It would make my life.) And then this could be birthday cake! But then I thought: well, it’s kind of rude to eat someone’s birthday cake before that someone is even born. But then I thought: babies can’t eat cake or chocolate anyway. And plus, I’m the mother and I make the rules. So I had another piece.