Tomorrow is my daughter-in-law's due date. That means every time a message chimes on my phone, I run to grab it, hoping for news. And then I'm disappointed when it turns out to be my youngest son, asking where the scissors are.
Boy-in-Black is not really a boy anymore, but a full-grown man although his favourite colour is still black. He and his wife BlondeChef live about 15 minutes away from us. My husband and I stopped there Friday night to see the baby's room. Everything is all set: the crib, a chest of drawers with a changing table, a rocking chair, and a bookcase filled with children's books. It's an exceptionally cute room because they've chosen Miyazaki's Totoro as their theme. BlondeChef's sister even made a mobile with knitted Totoros that will dangle above the baby.
BlondeChef is tall, so even though her belly is huge, she still looks great. She and Boy-in-Black were nestled on their couch, with their little dog Webster and Tilly the cat. BlondeChef began her maternity leave two weeks ago, and she's enjoyed the time off.
"I'm no longer on my feet all day long," she said. "Besides, it's the first time I haven't worked since I was seventeen. It's been nice to relax."
Of course, everyone is getting impatient to meet the new baby, who has not shown any signs of emerging.
"It's weird," said BlondeChef. "It's like getting ready for a marathon, but no one gives you the start date. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe next week ...."
Boy-in-Black laughed. "It'll be like someone waking you up in the middle of the night, saying, 'Okay, time to go run a marathon. Start running, right now.'"
Exactly.
And in the meantime, I'm sleeping with my phone next to my bed, ready for the call.
Boy-in-Black is not really a boy anymore, but a full-grown man although his favourite colour is still black. He and his wife BlondeChef live about 15 minutes away from us. My husband and I stopped there Friday night to see the baby's room. Everything is all set: the crib, a chest of drawers with a changing table, a rocking chair, and a bookcase filled with children's books. It's an exceptionally cute room because they've chosen Miyazaki's Totoro as their theme. BlondeChef's sister even made a mobile with knitted Totoros that will dangle above the baby.
BlondeChef is tall, so even though her belly is huge, she still looks great. She and Boy-in-Black were nestled on their couch, with their little dog Webster and Tilly the cat. BlondeChef began her maternity leave two weeks ago, and she's enjoyed the time off.
"I'm no longer on my feet all day long," she said. "Besides, it's the first time I haven't worked since I was seventeen. It's been nice to relax."
Of course, everyone is getting impatient to meet the new baby, who has not shown any signs of emerging.
"It's weird," said BlondeChef. "It's like getting ready for a marathon, but no one gives you the start date. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe next week ...."
Boy-in-Black laughed. "It'll be like someone waking you up in the middle of the night, saying, 'Okay, time to go run a marathon. Start running, right now.'"
Exactly.
And in the meantime, I'm sleeping with my phone next to my bed, ready for the call.
