It's my second last week of work before mat leave and I'm off sick. About which I do feel a little guilty, but what can you do? At dinner on Friday night I started to notice a slight tickle in my throat and within two hours I was completely gone.
On Sunday I was feeling better already, and got up (though admittedly late) on Monday morning with every intention of going to work. I was half way there before I realised what an idiot I was being, and turned around and came home. Just as well because by Monday afternoon I felt completely like crap again. And aside from anything else I do hate it when other people bring their nasty germs into work and spread them around.
On the upside for the weekend, I did complete a second draft of that story I wrote for uni - the one I thought maybe wasn't worth continuing with - and I'm pretty happy with it now (did most of that on Sunday). Which is just as well since my deadline was for this coming Sunday, and I still have to finalise the other assignment too, although I think it's mostly okay as is.
This is particularly good because I've been starting to feel quite stressed lately about all my self-imposed deadlines. In my head I need to have everything done not just before the baby comes, but before I go on maternity leave (ie Thursday next week). Everything being: the story & paper for uni; a clean house (ha!) and clean and tidy bedroom - my plan being not to get out of bed (this time) in the first days after the baby's born just because someone (say the midwife) is coming over*; all the baby clothes dug out of boxes, washed and placed in drawers (I've done some of this, but I'm sure there must be another box somewhere); the two boxes of stuff that came out of the hallway closet recently (before we had shelves put in) either repatriated with the closet or thrown/given away; the last year or so of filing done, and our financial books got up to date, so that we can do next year's taxes easily and simply early in the new financial year.
There's probably more, but that is a good portion of it.** And you know what, the filing/book-keeping stuff is still stressing me, but the rest of it not so much. Maybe it's because I'm sick and so I just don't care, but I think it's because I've got the uni stuff under control, and that was the main worry. And especially that I'm relatively happy with the story which a week ago I thought might be unworkably bad.
I'd still like to do all those other things, and in addition I'd like to finish a different story and submit it to Literary Mama's 'Desiring Motherhood' issue (deadline is the end of June), but you know what? Most of it probably won't happen. Because the fact is my 'before mat leave' deadline, while somewhat aribitary (chances are the baby won't come for another four or more weeks after that), was also sort of real. In fact it's still nearly two weeks away, but already I am incapable of doing a lot of that stuff - especially anything involving bending/lifting - even filing - without a lot of the belly pain I mentioned. Plus there's the fact that Chris may be away the Sunday-Monday after I go on mat leave, and will be away the following weekend.
But right now I think that's all okay. As long as the filing/bookkeeping gets done (and I must admit that is a big if) everything else will be okay. In fact, I'm rather over getting ready now. If it weren't for the fact that of course I don't want my baby to be premature, I'd be hoping for contractions to start any minute. I am beyond ready.
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*Which isn't to say I won't get out of bed at all, just that last time I missed out on naps I could have had, because I felt the insane need to be up and dressed just because someone might be coming over.
**Of course there's more: I haven't written out a birth plan or bought a baby book yet (or indeed seen one that I would be remotely willing to use), I haven't got a present ready for Liam to celebrate the birth of 'his' baby, I haven't even called the woman I've been meaning to talk to about a refresher in hypnobirthing/calm birthing... there's heaps more.
