I have about 7 weeks left until my due date and I'm feeling the effects of the pregnancy. Life hasn't slowed down at all since vacation. If anything, it has sped up. I keep trying to pace myself so I wouldn't get so wiped out, but sometimes it's impossible not to get caught up in things, to make commitments, to keep plowing on. Of course, our work never stops.
The Monday night after we came back from vacation, I was given a baby shower. I am thankful for the sweet ladies who came and blessed us with gifts to prepare for the baby's arrival.
We have a couple who came to help us out with our work for a couple of months. They're a great couple and doing a great job. We're glad they're here. Besides showing them around and introducing them to people, we took them with us to a place outside of the city with my language teacher and her husband. My language teacher was born and raised there and she had promised to take me there. I was eager because she has told me so many stories. I have to tell you that the area is beeeeyoutiful!! It took us two hours to get there by bus and then ferry. We walked along the sea in such beautiful, breezy weather with mountains towering in the distance, and then took a minibus to her tiny village, just 15 minutes away.
Her tiny, picturesque village is nestled in a gorgeous forest full of enormous cedars and pines on the side of a mountain with a small, shining lake in a narrow valley nearby. It is famous for the hot springs and many from all over the region come there to ease their aches and pains. I have never seen such a true-blue village with cute little inns, cobblestone roads, flowers blooming everywhere, friendly people smiling and waving. The weather there was so cool with the breezes coming down the mountains and the trees keeping everything cool.
We saw the hot springs and heard a legend surrounding it. The story goes like this: hundred years ago, a blind person (I heard man and I heard woman so I don't know which) came to the hot springs, felt the water for the first time, began to splash the water on his face and rubbing his eyes. Then as he walked away, his sight was restored. Thus, many people (including my language teacher) believe the water special powers. If you wanted to get married or get pregnant, you came here to secure your luck. If your stomach hurt or if you had other ailments, you came here to get healed. The history surrounding the hot springs date back to the Roman Empire when the Romans were controlling the region. The Romans developed baths on the hot springs and apparently, the buildings we saw were built by the Romans and still standing. I'm skeptical about that, though. I'm not sure the buildings we saw were 2,000 years old because they were in perfect condition. It could've been that the village kept the buildings up and reinforced them over the years.
My language teacher is very well-known there as she spent her whole life there. We stopped and visited with her relatives, enjoying the shade from trees laden with fruit and drinking whatever they served us. She is probably related to half of the village; she has so many cousins living there. Some of her relatives are Deaf so many of other other relatives know sign language. It was amazing to visit with such sweet, hospitable people and life there is definitely a lot slower and relaxed, away from the frenetic pace of the city.
On Saturday, I got to spend time with a dear friend from the States who was passing through and stopped over in Istanbul to sightsee and see me. There's nothing like a visit with a good friend you haven't seen in a long while. Today, G is currently picking up other friends at the airport. They are his old coworker from G's architecture firm and his wife. They will be staying with us for a few days and we're really looking forward to spending time with them. They are bringing a suitcase full of requested items, treats, and presents for the baby from G's old office :-) So thankful for everyone's generosity!
I guess I'm starting to count down the weeks and days til Baby Baby comes. I'm getting more weary from carrying the extra load, especially since I walk everywhere. Yesterday, I was pushing A in the stroller up and down some hills (on sidewalks paved with stones so it's not as smooth as concrete sidewalks) and my destination had a long steep hill leading up to it. I made it up but was sweating and winded from pushing A, the extra baby weight, and the heat. I made it inside the building, A took off to mingle with the other kids, and when I took the stairs down into the basement, the most horrible leg cramps seized my calves. It took a while to massage the cramps out and it left me sore for the rest of the day and even this morning, the soreness is still lingering. I never had leg cramps with A and even the leg cramps I did get in this pregnancy were mostly at night and always quickly eased within seconds.
So, the weariness, leg cramps, and the uncomfortable nights are making me start counting down to my due date. I still cherish the time I have left to carry Baby Baby because she's all mine and is always with me...until she is born and I have to share her and watch her grow up and away from me.
Okay, I'm done with that bit of sentimentality. I'm looking forward to a great week ahead with friends and great weather. I hope your week goes well!
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