Photo Shoot

As part of my baby shower gift, my friend Danielle offered to come over and do some photos of my bump. She's done it for a couple of other friends and she had some really good ideas.

So, this morning she came over and we took loads of photos. Here are my favourites:

Bedroom

Last night, we put together the baby glider. I thought it would be a good idea to check there were no parts missing from it (seen as it was bought here). Pen put it together and sure enough the two screws that are needed to hold the metal bars in place for the chair weren't in the box. We decided to leave it set up anyway and I'll buy the screws this week.

As with everything new, both the cats were intrigued. I put a towel into the chair (over the material seat cover) and let Socks have a go and then Pepsi. They both enjoyed the gliding for about 5 minutes and then jumped out. It's good to get them used to these things before the baby comes along as they've both seen it and tried it and are no longer interested! Since they both had a go in it, neither of them have been near it. I did manage to get a good photo of Socks in it though:



Yesterday, we also rearranged the bedroom to accommodate the cot. It was a bit of a nightmare because there's not much room to move and our bed is so huge and heavy (it's solid wood)! We finally managed to get it sorted though and it seems to work ok. The cot is right next to the bed (which is what I wanted) and it's directly underneath the air conditioner which means the air doesn't blow on the cot, it blows over it. For the first time since we moved in we can actually get into our wardrobes easily too, which is an added bonus.

Anyway, photo isn't great, but it gives you an idea. See below:

Interesting sights

On our way home from Asiana, driving down the OMR (Old Mahabalipuram Road) we saw some interesting sights (as you normally do in India). Unfortunately, the pictures aren't great because we were driving and our car is really dirty so some of the pictures aren't very clear. There are a few I wanted to include anyway.

There was a bike with a big metal trunk on the back:



A man carrying a saw on the back of a motorbike:



This is something you see a lot of in Chennai. Even though there is a new law about wearing helmets on motorbikes, people don't wear them, they carry them - how ridiculous! Yeah, that's going to protect you when you get knocked off your bike!



Men on the back of a truck.



Man on the back of a truck. Doesn't he look comfortable?

Our relaxing day

This morning I was up early; I cleaned for a while and then woke Penri at 10.30 a.m. Last night we had discussed going to a hotel today so I could swim and Pen could get a massage. I asked him if he still wanted to do that and even though he was tired, he said ok, mainly because I think he knew how much I wanted to swim.

I phoned Asiana Hotel and booked him in for a 90 minute sport massage and then told him we had to be there at 1.30 p.m. We left home at about 12 p.m as it takes about an hour to drive there from our house. We actually made it in really good time and were there just before 1 o'clock. Pen decided he was going to have a swim before his massage.

The pool (see below) was cold, but once you got in it was ok. The weather wasn't great today - there wasn't much sun and it was raining on and off, but I didn't mind. While Penri had his massage I relaxed by the pool, enjoyed some spring rolls and milkshake and read my book.





Looking at the view from the roof of the hotel (on one side) you wouldn't know you were in India. It's just all green and there are no people or buildings about.



From the other side, you can see the road and some buildings.





We called at Pizza Hut on the way home to have some dinner. It was a nice change. Overall it was a really relaxing day and by the time we got home after 5 o'clock, I was exhausted and had to go for a nap!

Getting ready ...

In preparation for the baby coming, I am becoming a complete cleaning freak! I'm told by my friends it's called 'nesting'. I woke up this morning and just had to clean! I've been like this for a couple of weeks now and I'm hoping it's going to stop soon because it is really very tiring sweeping, mopping and cleaning all the time! I even think about it as I'm falling to sleep (maybe that's why it takes me so long to nod off!)

Anyway, with this in mind, I decided last week that I should give up the hire of my piano. Mainly because I very, very rarely play it; secondly because we can save the monthly hire charges (although it's not that expensive); and finally because I know once the baby comes I will have even less time than I do now. So, I spoke to my friend Chelle, who I knew was looking to hire a piano and she was only too happy to take over the rental of it.

We both went to the music shop on Wednesday to see the manager, who is always so polite and accommodating. I explained I wanted to give up the hire and Chelle wanted to take it over. He was very nice about it and said it wouldn't be a problem and we filled out all the paperwork there and then. He asked when we wanted it moved and I told him Friday (yesterday). We agreed they would pick the piano up from me between 9 and 10 in the morning and take it straight to Chelle's house.

So, yesterday morning, I got up early and spent an hour playing on the piano which I haven't played properly for months, then I took a couple of photos (see below) and waited for the delivery guys to come.



When they still hadn't arrived at 12 p.m I texted Chelle and asked her if she wanted to chase it up. I had no plans for the day, so I wasn't too worried about when they came but I knew her mum and brother had just arrived from England and I didn't know if she was planning on going out anywhere. Anyway, she called the manager of the music shop and then he called me. He told me they'd only just left the shop and would be with me by 12.30. Sure enough, they arrived at 12.30 and it took them all of five minutes to load the piano onto the trolley and take it out. I was very sad to see it go, but I know it's the right thing to do. What's the point of it sitting there gathering dust?!

Last night, I was really tired but didn't get to bed till about 11 p.m. I told Penri to wake me up a bit later on, which he did ... at 4 a.m. He asked me if I wanted a drink of orange juice, to which I replied, I would love one. He then told me to get up and we'd go and get one. I whined a bit saying I didn't want to wake up, but he said 'come on, wake up', so I did. When I walked in the lounge, I was completely surprised ... he had put the cot together!! It looks lovely and it was such a nice surprise. I told him he should've woken me to help him, but he said he wanted to do it. I am so happy! Preparations are now well underway for our new arrival.

The reason for the mosquito net on the top is to keep the cats out. I'm sure Pepsi would think it was a new bed just for her!



Now we just have to figure out how to fit it in our bedroom around all our other furniture.

Baby Beethoven

After searching several baby shops in Chennai (including Mothercare), I finally found a cot mobile that I liked. All the ones I had seen were either really badly made, brands I'd never heard of or really drab looking. There were two in Mothercare, which were very sweet but very plain. There were no bright colours and nothing that encouraged me to buy them. Then in 'The Baby Shop', I came across this Fisher Price Rainforest mobile. It has a little nightlight, leaves which open and close and the animals are really bright and colourful. It also plays classical music - Bach, Mozart and Beethoven to be exact (as well as rainforest sounds).

I thought it would be really nice to start playing the different tunes to my bump so that he or she could get used to the routine of hearing the music at bedtime. So, every night for the past week I have laid down in bed, put the mobile next to my tummy and played through each of the three composers. I also use this time to apply my cocoa butter cream, which not only helps for stretchmarks, but the baby seems to like the massage.

It's very strange - every time I put Beethoven on (no matter what order I play the different composers in), the bump starts going crazy and the baby moves and kicks and really responds to the music. He/she seems to love it.

I'm curious whether it will work. Will the baby associate this music with getting ready to calm down and go to sleep? Only time will tell.

Gwen's Baby Shower - 15.03.08

We held Gwen's Baby Shower last Saturday. She isn't due till June but Erika (who hosted it) is going away in April and obviously I'm due in April so it made sense to do the shower early. It was at Erika's house and I helped organise the decorations and games. I took a few photos (see below).

When everyone arrived there was a small pack of shower games including a list of anagrams, match the celebrity picture with their baby and the baby bingo that we played at my shower. It was really funny because everyone came in and sat down and started working on their quizzes.





The buffet



Opening gifts:




























Another quiz:

Pet Passport Pic?

The V-E-T made a housecall the other day to give Pepsi and Socks their rabies injections. We had arranged that he would come at 4.30 p.m and I knew that I would have to keep Pepsi out of our bedroom before that time because as soon as the doorbell rings, she hides underneath our bed. It is so low to the floor that there is no way of getting her out. So, I deliberately didn't feed the cats in the morning and by lunchtime they were going crazy for food. I waited till about 3.15 and then called them into the kitchen for their late breakfast. They both came running in!

While they were eating, I blocked our bedroom door with a suitcase and shut it tightly closed so there was no way of her getting in. As soon as she finished eating, Pepsi went to go back in the bedroom and realised something was up. She got a bit freaked out and was just sat at the bedroom door crying. I stayed in the lounge and played X-Box and kept trying to call her away from the door, but she wouldn't budge.

An hour later (at 4.15) the doorbell rang and Pepsi made a run for the spare bedroom. I let the vet in and called Penri out of the bedroom to help me. He went and found Pepsi (cowering at the back of the wardrobe in the spare room). He got her out and held her while the vet went to do the injection. She went beserk! She freaked and managed to escape Penri's grasp and was hissing and scrambling to get away (and this was before the vet even touched her)! Pen got hold of her again and covered her face with a towel while the vet gave her the injection. It took a matter of seconds. All that fuss!!

When he was done, Penri put her on the floor and she ran for cover in our bedroom (I had opened the door so she could go back to the safety of under the bed)! Socks, who witnessed all of this from her sleeping place in the office, was still laid there when Pen went over and picked her up. He held her while the vet did her injection and all she did was cry a small meow and that was it. He put her down and she walked back to her sleeping place.

For two sisters - they are so completely different!

After the injections, the vet talked to us about the procedure for getting certification for rabies vaccinations and the paperwork we will need for when we leave Chennai. He looked at the pet passports and seemed surprised there were no pictures in them. He told us we had to stick two photos in each - a picture of the front of them and a side profile picture. Oh yes, and it has to be on a plain background. Well, anyone who has cats will know how hard it is to get a decent photo as they don't hold still for long enough.

I managed to get one of Pepsi but it really looks like a mug shot -



It's no good because it doesn't show the whole of the front of her (and it's not on completely plain background). I tried taking pictures of Socks, but on every single one she has her eyes closed. If only I could have got in front of her when I took this photo ...



























There was a bird on the windowsill and she sat on the sofa looking out of the window for nearly an hour without moving. Even when I went up to her to try and get a photo - she didn't flinch. Unfortunately, the background was wrong and I couldn't get in front of her enough to get a decent photo.

Oh well, I will keep trying!

MGM Beach Resort - 08.03.08

On Saturday 8th March, Penri had a team building day with all his colleagues down in Mahabalipuram at MGM Beach Resort. On Friday evening, he asked me if I wanted to go with him and we could spend Saturday night at the resort. I'd never been there before, but looking on the Internet, it looked ok, so I agreed. I thought it would be nice to get away for a couple of days and I could go swimming and chill out while he was working.

We set off very early on Saturday morning (about 5 a.m) in order to miss the craziness of Chennai traffic and so Pen could be there ready to start at 9 a.m. When we arrived there, it was still dark outside. We went into reception and it looked like there was no-one around. Then we realised, the receptionist was asleep on the sofa. Pen literally had to shout at him three or four times to wake him up. He explained he had a conference at the resort and we wanted a room for Saturday night. He negotiated to be able to go into the room immediately (as it was already Saturday morning). The guy kicked up a bit of a fuss saying check-in time was at 12 p.m. Penri told him he was bringing 40 guys there for a conference and surely the hotel could be a bit flexible. I was very impressed with his negotiating skills and we managed to get a room straight away.

We had to wait while the receptionist went to wake up the other guy so he could carry our bags to our room. As soon as we got in, Pen went for a nap (as we still hadn't been to sleep at all on Friday night). His conference was due to start at 9 and there was a bus bringing all his guys from Tidel Park to the resort (which was due to leave at 8.15 a.m). He called Rams (one of his colleagues) at 10 to 9 to see where they all were and she told him they hadn't even left Tidel Park yet and most of the guys weren't there!! Pen was furious as it's quite a drive from Tidel (a good 40 minutes) and there he was, ready in his suit and they hadn't even managed to get to the bus yet!

The bus finally left Tidel Park at 9.20 and they all arrived at the resort just after 10. By which time, Pen was all set up in the conference room and I was sitting having breakfast. I had looked at the buffet, but it didn't appeal to me at all. I asked the waiter for just toast and tea. The resort is not like Fisherman's Cove, GRT Temple Bay or even Ideal Beach; it's very much an Indian orientated resort. The menu is mostly curry and the few items that were Western were Indianised.

Anyway, to give you an idea of what I mean - when I went to get my toast from the buffet, the waiter picked up a bun with his hand and passed it to me (in my hand). I was kind of a bit shocked and took it dumbfoundedly. He then picked up two pieces of bread (again with his bare hand) and put them in the toaster. I just stood watching. He told me to sit down and he would bring my breakfast over. Having seen the lunch menu (of curry), I knew I had to eat something as I wouldn't be eating much at lunchtime.

On a very positive note, the view was really nice. As I was sat at the table - this was what I could see ...



I had my breakfast and paid my Rs.40 (which is about 50 pence) then went back to the room to change. It was only 10.20 but it was already very hot. I put on my swimsuit (which was hilarious as it no longer fits properly and I had to stretch it every way possible to make it fit), then I threw on some comfy clothes and went out with my camera. I took some photos of the beach and the resort, which you can see below. It actually looks very nice in the pictures, and apart from the food, it was ok. The room was very basic, but it was clean and comfortable enough. Anyway, here are the pictures:

The beach







After I finished taking pictures, I was so hot that I went for a swim. There were a few other people in and around the pool so I wrapped my towel around me and went right up to the edge of the pool and sat on the side, then I subtly slid in to the pool whilst dropping my towel. It was very well done and I was pleased no-one caught a glimpse of my overstretched swimsuit. It was all going so well as once I was in the water no-one could see me anyway and my towel was right next to the steps ready for when I wanted to get out. Then, one of the men working by the pool, picked up my towel and laid it on the bed. I just watched in horror as I realised I would have to get out the pool and walk over to my bed before I could reach for the towel to cover myself up!

I only swam for about 20 minutes, but it was really, really nice and refreshing in the heat. I got out and got to my towel and then laid on the sunbed (under the umbrella) wrapped in my towel to dry off a bit. I went back to the room and put all my stuff down and then tried to figure out where to dry my towel. I decided to put it outside on the porch area. I opened the front door, bent down and laid my towel there and as I stood up I heard a click behind me. The door had shut and locked and there I was in my swimsuit (with my towel) and nothing else - not even a pair of flip-flops. I wrapped myself in my towel again and walked back to the pool. I asked one of the guys to call reception for me as I couldn't go myself. He told me to wait by my room door, which I did and luckily within 5 minutes they had come to let me in. He then gave me a lecture about every time I leave the room, to take my key with me. I did try and explain that I wasn't going to leave the room, I was just putting my towel out to dry and he just smiled and said 'In future, take your key with you'. He was very nice about it.

I showered and changed and then Pen called to see if I wanted to join him and his colleagues for lunch. It was all curries and spicy things. I ended up eating a bit of soup with some naan bread. I was so relieved that I had taken a box of Ferrero Rocher and some shortbread with me (just in case) as it kept me going. After lunch, they were doing team building games, so I sat in and watched and helped a bit too. It was interesting and fun to watch and I enjoyed it. Most of the games were sensible things like - which companies are these logos from and questions about brand and figures. The last game though (which was organised by one of Pen's team members) was CRAZY!

Each team had to drink 5 litres of water and see who could do it the fastest. They had to line up and each person could only drink once. When they put the bottle back on the table, that was their turn over and the next person had to step forward and drink (a bit like a relay race). My goodness, you should have seen how competitive they were - it was crazy!! Some people managed to drink a whole litre in one go!! The team with the best score was 5 litres in 2 minutes 47 seconds. Pretty impressive! I could never do it - I would be so rubbish at it cause I can only sip my drinks! The funny thing is before they started the game, they all got psyched up for it and were outside jogging on the spot, going to the bathroom and mentally preparing themselves. Craziness!

Anyway, I think a good time was had by all.

Oh, I have two more photos to put in. As we were leaving I saw the lake next to the car park (which I hadn't seen before because it was so dark when we arrived).



I just had to attach this photo also. Only in India! This is the shower in our room. See where the plug socket is for the heater!

Baby Bump - 34 weeks

Tatjana took lots of pictures of my bump at the baby shower - so here I am at 34 weeks! Not long to go now!

Baby Shower 05.03.08

I had my baby shower on Wednesday last week (I'm sorry it's taken me so long to put the photos on my blogsite). It was a really nice experience for me as I've never been to a baby shower before and so many lovely people came along to share the experience. I was overwhelmed by the beautiful gifts I received and would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who spent time and money choosing us gifts. I really appreciate your kindness.

I have only just finished my 'Thank You' cards today and need to give them out this week. I would post them, but due to so many people not receiving their invites to the shower, I think hand delivering them is a better idea.

Anyway, I have some nice photos to put on here from the shower. It was held downstairs in Sparky's and Rebekah made it look really nice with tablecloths and hanging balloons, bibs and babygros (or onesies as they're called in America). Although the lighting is not so good in this picture, it's the only one I have that shows the decorations.



One of the buffet tables:



The cake (which Pam sent from Asiana):



The guests
Me and Rose



Natalie and Elizabeth



Me and Gwen



Patty



Me and Christine



Dalina, Stephanie, Jo and Louis



Me and Chelle


























Dalina and her gorgeous baby boy, Louis



Me and Tatjana



And finally, Penri's favourite photo from the shower