Week 39

Almost there, phew!!
The time when we first learnt about the baby seems so far away now. I was lucky to have a smooth pregnancy (no cravings, no sickness and no complications at all) and was joking around saying "it's not actually 9 months you carry the baby in your womb, only the last two months count when the baby goes beyond 1 kilo or so". But now I definitely can say that the last few weeks felt like a century!! No wonder why you hear your mums say so.
I was trying to think of similar experiences (such as taking a test you've studied really hard or the last few miles of along trip) but each lacks at least one dimension.
Anxiety, excitement and fear.. Mostly for the unknown..
When will the labour start? How will I understand? Will it be very painful? Will there be any complications? Is the baby healthy? Whom does he look like? and so on..
You only have a view on the possibilities and need to prepare yourself for everything. As you cannot change it all you need to do is being calm and thinking positive:)

Maternity Leave

This is the second week of my maternity leave. Yesterday, we (me and my hubby) both felt as if two weeks have passed! Don't worry, it's not that I'm bored or something like this, but I realised that there is exactly a good reason (many good reasons!) to offer time off to pregnant women towards the end of their pregnancy.
Although I spent last week quite effectively (getting more organised with the baby stuff), as everything is in slow motion, you do not get things completed as quickly as you want. You need to bin all of your pre-maternity time notion before you make a plan. Say you will do your weekly grocery shopping. You should account for the time to dress up (especially when it's very cold and feel the urge to wear thermals), to tie your boots, to get into the car, the loo breaks, to bend and get the items you dropped (either simply from your hand or by causing them to fall with a slight touch of your bump!). I really hate it when I have to bend and get something from the floor.
Last year when I saw Canan's husband tieing her boots (it was about a week before their baby's arrival), I thought that it was cool and perceived his behaviour as a nice gesture. Now, I realise that it's actually a necessity. My hubby has been doing it for more than a month even without me asking him.
Anyway, me getting heavier and grumpier each day, it was more than high time to stop working. But I think I'll miss being at work, particularly my colleagues. (not the daily three hour driving though!) It will be my longest break since I started to work some 13 years ago and I'll try to enjoy it as much as I can.

Here are some pictures with my maternity leave celebration flowers. Unfortunately, I do not have one in the office. Thank you for all your contribution to our bundle of joy!

Counting Down

Time flies.. Starting to feel 100% pregnant (backache, pelvic pain, breathlessness, leg cramps, waddling, tiny bladder, sleepless nights..), I lost my motivation to write. I know, it's not only about joy and happiness, there'll be hard times as well. But, I did not want to reflect my pregnancy blues here. Anyway, I give up, I think I'm back again:)
During the last weeks, we had our antenatal classes (once a week for 5 weeks). It was good to be among people who were going through similar circumstances. We had two lovely midwifes who responded to our silly questions with patience. Although you continuously read about what to expect, it's much more satisfying when somebody who has been part of the system tells about it. The most exciting and informative class was with the hospital tour. If everything goes according to the plan, I'll be delivering my baby at Glasgow Southern General Hospital. The labour ward was built recently and has brand new delivery rooms with up-to-date equipment. It looked well organised, clean and fresh. Considering that labour can last more than 24 hours (first and second stages), it's a relief to know that you will have some space (I'm not sure if you'd be really aware of it during the contractions though!!). I'll soon be adding some hospital pictures taken by my hubby.
In the mean time, we are almost finished with the baby shopping. Thanks God! I'll be telling all about my shopping experience under a separate topic. Boring for people who do not need to do it but quite useful for new beginners:)
These last weeks have also been the most progressive ones for the bump. Gaining at least 250gr s each week, it's become even difficult to turn from one side to the other in bed.
It's not difficult to identify me in the office as well. In addition to my occasional loud sneezes, now I have deep sighs after long hours of sitting. Not long to go, only a week is left before I start my maternity leave. Not long just a couple of months ago, I thought that I could have worked until the delivery day if only I did not have to drive from Glasgow to Edinburgh. But now I'm counting the days. I definitely prefer to spend more time lying down (not necessarrily sleeping), it's not that I don't enjoy work.














1) By the end of an antenatal class
2) Hospital Tour: Delivery room with a Birthing Pool
3) Hospital Tour: Delivery room

Glasgow Queen's Park in Snow

It was only the first week of freezing temperatures and did not want to miss this year's snow. We did not know that it was there to stay for much longer by that time, at least more than we wanted it to be!
As you can see I am trying to make my bump more visible as if it's not that obvious!!
The swans remind me of Ankara Kugulu Park (Swan Park in Ankara).
My husband moaned all through the park realising that he could have sledged if only he had brought one!
PS: Photos are in reverse chronological order.

X-mas Lunch

I haven't had the opportunity to mention about my recent cooking adventures here yet; but getting prepared for the xmas lunch was mostly due to my new enthusiasm for trying new recipes (recipes are not new, they are just new to me:)).
We did not have any guests, so I was quite relaxed for the menu. I decided to go with a turkey leg. I know there's nothing fancy about roasting a turkey leg; but as it was my first attempt to cook turkey it was exciting for both of us. Maybe, one day we'll have the whole family together and I'll be cooking a whole turkey:)
Anyway, here comes the menu (not quite a festive food but it's healthy and yummy:)):
- Roasted Turkey Leg
- Rice with Pine nuts & Currants (Ic Pilav without the chicken liver as it's not good for me at the moment)
- Celeriac cooked in olive oil
- Stuffed vine leaves (OK, I won't be lying to you, this was readily made and frozen by my mum and all I had to do was cooking it)
-Chocolate soufflé (Here comes another confession it was readily made by Gu:) You do not expect me to cook every single item from scratch, right!)
At least, I have some evidence within the pictures.

Simple Joys of Pregnancy

Although you get bigger and bigger everyday after this many weeks (it's around 27th now), you don't always feel or think that everybody looking at you sees a pregnant woman. Maybe at some point, you get used to the feeling so much that the pregnant you becomes the normal and you do not feel any different. Anyway, despite my bump, I still try to squeeze in between the cars and realise all of a sudden that cannot fit in anymore or still try to keep my pace on the stairs and feel dizzy when I get to my desk (which is just on the first floor!)

I might well extend the below instances later on, but as you will notice it's all about people's courtesy and I am the lucky one:)

- Being let into the toilets whilst cleaning is in progress and everbody else is being diverted to toilets on another floor.

- Shopping and not carrying any bags (special thanks to my hubby)

- Moving offices but not carrying a single leverarch yourself (special thanks to my colleagues)

- Travelling with four luggages and carrying only your purse (special thanks to my hubby)

-Being offered a table at coffee shops when it was actually packed. (thanks to the nice couple)

Winter Fest Glasgow

December became one of my favourite months in this country. Although it's cold and miserable most of the time, the spirit of the season warms you. Christmas decorations, late night shoppings, colourful gift sets and people hurrying for shopping... It must be difficult for people, who live in places where the normal closing time of the shops is 10pm, to grasp the joy of late night shopping (extended shopping hours from 6pm to 8pm). It's not that I'm a shopaholic looking forward to longer hours of shopping, but more like enjoying and sharing the excitement.

In addition to the Christmas decorations, George Square of Glasgow had another attraction: Winter Fest!

It's either the child in me or simply me loving funfairs and colourful lights, I can still get excited and be happy. I can hear some of you saying "soon you'll have enough of places like this". Maybe it's true, but this time it was fun for just the two of us with some warm mulled wine (mine was non-alcoholic).

Anyway, you can join the joyride with the video below.