Here's the newest development: now I know he's kicking for sure. For one thing, the little knocks in my belly are unmistakably something moving around (not gas.) And also, when I look at my stomach, I can see little ripples and bumps moving!!! This is unbelievably exciting and it adds a bit of fun to the whole escapade. Every time I'd feel him kick and see the stomach move in tandem, I just started laughing. It feels like I get to play with him in an indirect way. Of course he's not really aware of it, but it feels like we're actually sharing an experience for the first time. This is what makes aches and body pillows and getting really full, really fast, worth it!

I'm back on the road this week and the guys can definitely see I'm pregnant now. Reminding them that this changes things is a bit harder... like making sure I get food NOW!!!! They tend to let lunchtime be a bit lazy, but not anymore. There's no putting lunch off for an hour these days. And the touring is generally more tiring, but all in all it's not too bad. I'm sure at the end of March (my final days) I will be quite ready to be done with it, but I'm surviving okay. Most of the husband's friends think I'm crazy, but what am I supposed to do? We've got a mortgage to pay and I can't just sit around for six months straight - sitting around for the last three sounds like quite enough. I'm planning on getting a book on knitting, some needles and yarn when I get home and pick up the knitting hobby I started ten years ago. Baby hats, booties and blankets here I come!!!

Lastly I just want to say that pee on public toilets is really a pain now. I've always been proud of my "hover-" I could get an inch or two above the seat and aim right in the bowl - but now, I've got to sit. Pregnant lady ain't doing no hovering. Nope. So I've got to grit my teeth, grab toilet paper and wipe down the seat and hope that the medical knowledge that urine is sterile will sustain me. Amen.