I know it is almost May and I am just getting out the March newsletter. I have been busy with work, the house, growing a human, etc. I feel good, but I did stop going to Tae Kwon Do the middle of this month. It was too hard to kick and I was getting contractions quite a bit during class. The baby is also really pressing up under my ribs making it difficult to breathe. I am still going to my yoga classes, but each week I notice differences in the way I feel and the way I move. Oddly enough, I may not be able to comfortably do a pose one week, but I can do it then next. I am just trying to go with the flow and not get too hung up with my limitations. We started going to birth class this month. The class is taught by a nurse from the Kona Hospital. The class is taught at her house which is near the airport so we don't get home until 10:00 pm. I am usually in bed between 8:30 and 9:00.

     Todd went to the state wrestling tournament on Oahu the first weekend of this month. Although, they did not place in the top ten as they were striving for, the team did very well. They placed 14th in the state as a team and had 2nd, 4th and 5th place individual champions. While in Honolulu, the wrestling team looks forward to shopping at the Ala Moana mall. Todd asked if I wanted anything from the mall since there was a tea store and some baby stores. I said tea would be great and if he saw anything he wanted for the baby to buy it. I got a tea and he bought the baby some cute little toys. He also bought the baby a color wireless video baby monitor with night vision. I guess every father needs to buy the only high tech gadget associated with babies. The monitor is cool and he was quite excited about it. Everyone that comes over is treated to a demonstration. Todd puts the monitor under the bed so you can look at the dust bunnies without having to turn on the light. This is some useful technology. It will help with our covert dust bunny sweeping. While Todd was away, Jodi and I went to the movie, Volve, at the Aloha Theater. I was never to a movie there and it is a quaint old style theater. You can take in your own treats and you aren't frisked like at a large cinema. I never experienced it before, but the movie got stuck twice and the bulb burned through the film. I think Jodi and I were the youngest people in the theater. The movie had subtitles and was a cast of mostly women. I suppose it was not a big teenage weekend date movie.

     For my birthday, Todd gave me some fantastic gifts. I have been wanting to be able to soak in a comfortable tub since I am getting larger each day with this baby. Our bathtub is very old so it small and the back of the tub is not sloped at all. Therefore, trying to relax in the tub is impossible. Todd got a huge plastic tub from our friend Charlie and placed it on our lanai. He surrounded it with a bamboo screen and lined the outside edge of the tub with bamboo. He decorated the whole area with birds of paradise, ferns and other flowers. He filled the tub with hot water with a hose from our laundry room and I had my first relaxing, absolutely wonderful bubble bath in Hawaii. There was a gentle tradewind and I could still see the ocean through the bamboo screen. It was so nice. He also bought me an extremely yummy ice-cream cake that said, Happy Birthday Mom to Be. I also got a very sweet card and a beautiful lei. We then went out to the Ke'ei Cafe for dinner. Although they messed up my dinner, it was still a fun evening. Our Canadian guests were also at the cafe and gave me a nice card, gift and flowers. One of the waitresses thought we just got married.

     All of our Canadian guests left this month. They said they had a great time. Unfortunately some stormy weather caused them delays getting home, but they did arrive safely. We had a couple, Miriam and Yon, from California stay with us for a week. Thank you so much for the baby clothes. We also had family from Ohio. The two boys loved the lizards and bugs as most boys do. However, the one son got a terrible sun burn on the backs of his hands so that slowed him down for the remainder of his vacation. If you a fair skinned and kicking around in the ocean on a boogie board, make sure you put sun block on the backs of your hands!

     If my birthday gifts weren't enough, Todd gave me a surprise baby shower. Todd had help from Jodi, Crystal, Mike and Grace. Jodi baked a ton of treats and made a sausage and egg caserole. Crystal made meatballs, got the party gifts, ran the baby games. Grace was the inviter. Todd had been cleaning the house and farm for weeks. He told me that he was nesting and since I get more stupid each day with this pregnancy, I believed him. He even cleaned all of the woodwork in the house (and we have a ton in this house) one morning starting at 3:00 am since he doesn't sleep. He decorated the lanai with monstera leaves, birds of paradise and coconuts. He said that he was trying it out for when we have the baby and he was going to decorate for the celebration. Again, dumb pregnant chick (me) believed him. By some strange chance, my Saturday yoga class was canceled. Todd and I went out for breakfast at Denny's and then went to look at carseats at Walmart. It all just worked out perfectly. We arrived and the co-ed baby shower was in full swing. I think having men and alcohol at a baby shower made it lots of fun. The men were very intent with the baby games, especially the make the baby out of dough game and the see how many safety pins you can pick out of a bowl of rice with your eyes closed game. Charlie won the safety pin game and picked the garden gnome as his gift. Todd ended up diapering the gnome as practice and I have that event recorded. It was a great party. Thank you, mahalo nui loa, to everyone that helped and came to the party. Oh and we had lots of dogs at the party. I must say that my baby shower was the most fun and memorable I have ever attended. A special thank you to the father to be! I love you honey.

     Congratulations to our friends, Anna and Kale on the birth of their baby girl, Isabella, on March 28. The birth went well and Anna and Isabella are doing great. Kale even stopped by at my baby shower. He couldn't stay, but it was very nice that they were thinking of us so soon after Isabella's birthday. Todd's parents arrive April 16. I told Todd I was good for our baby to be born any day except April Fool's day and April 14 since I scheduled a hair cut appointment. Todd told me that lots of women go into labor at the hair salon because they are trying to get that last hair cut in before the baby arrives. We will see...