Pregnancy thoughts, random as always

• As of today I am 39 weeks pregnant. The reality of that is only starting to hit me now. When I went in to see my chiropractor this past week, she looked at me wide-eyed and said, "This baby has dropped!" and then after feeling my spine and doing a quick adjustment, she said "Your body is definitely ready to have this baby." I was so encouraged! If that weren't enough, she then said "Book an appointment for next week, just in case, but I suspect you'll have had your baby by then."
• My father-in-law is hoping I have the baby on Friday, his birthday (also my adorable nephew's 2nd birthday). I told him not to pressure me! I am still guessing I will have the baby on the 18th. My sister says the 15th. Patrick, ever the pragmatist, says the 16, my actual due date. In his words, "Unlike guessing the gender, which is arbitrary, there is an actual indication WHEN this is going to happen! Why not go with the median date?" Much to my chagrin, he said the same thing last time, and Noah was indeed born on his due date.
• I am looking around my house right now and thinking, not only do I need a little more TIME, but also a little more energy! I have had several people generously offer to come clean our house either now, or while I'm in the hospital. While this is lovely, they have no idea what they're getting themselves into! There are piles of STUFF everywhere that it is going to take at least a day of just TIDYING before we can embark on any real deep cleaning.

• God bless that dear husband of mine, though. He furiously tidied and arranged things, and even decorated the nook in our room where the baby's bassinette is this Saturday past. Oh, and he installed our infant car seat. This makes me realize that Being Open to Life (and, y'know, wanting more kids!) may require us to buy a bigger vehicle pretty soon. It is cramped in there now with only two kids to tow around.
• I think I am definitely ready to go feast on Indian food at the Taj Mahal with my mom; it's a date we set when I think I was only 20 weeks. I call it Operation: Spice the Baby Out! I also managed to find a ridiculously good deal on groupon.com for this, so we will literally feast ($65 worth of food for only $29). Before you think we're selfish for excluding our husbands from this engagement, I assure you, neither Patrick nor my father want anything to do with curry. Crazy, right?
• Patrick and I had what was likely to be our last date in a long time last night this Friday past. We went out for Greek food and had the sweetest waitress in the world. Given that I have been a magnet for unpleasant or sort of rude comments about my baby this time around, I was overjoyed to be waited on by a woman who literally told us as we were leaving, "I am so excited for you guys!"

Oh yes, and I am having oodles of Braxton-Hicks contractions these days. Even tonight, we ate dinner with complete strangers, to me at least, who Patrick knew through work. While the meal was going on, one of the people (the woman, naturally, and thus more aware of these things) looked at me and saw my face screwed up into some weird expression, apparently, because she stopped herself mid-sentence and said "Are you okay? Are you in labour?!"

I never had such strong sensations when I was at this stage in my pregnancy with Noah. I went from feeling nothing (labour-wise, that is) to waking up with an IV of pitocin in my arm and full-on active labour with only about a minute between each earth-quaking contraction. God willing, this won't be an event I will have to repeat.

I will keep you posted though, friends. That is, unless the baby comes before I get a chance to blog about the next stage. (Come to think of it, that sounds pretty good).