Its has not been a long time since we wrote last, but a lot has happened in the last 10days...
The biggest news (that may be new to some of you) is that Paul was offered an amazing job in Calgary working with Enviros Wilderness School Association as a Residential Youth Worker. It's dream job that will having him planning, organizing and taking youth at risk on weekly trips into the mountains! He starts March 1st, so that means that we are leaving the Island and making the journey back to the other side of the Rocky Mountains. We are currently keeping busying getting everything ready to go, finishing up our jobs here and are very excited to be coming home after over 9 months of living, traveling and working in BC. It is sounding like we will be able to start the trek this coming Wednesday (the 23rd) and most likely be back in Calgary for Friday or Saturday!
Its going to be sad to leave the Island, but there is a strong feeling that this is the right time and the right thing for us to be doing. I thought that I may feel sad or disappointed to put so many months of adventuring, beautiful places, and living life on a whim behind us and go back to a more settled in life in the city, however it couldn't be any different. I (and Paul as well) am (are) very excited to start this new chapter and take on a different kind of adventure. It's going to be really amazing to see all of our friends and family again, be back in our house, and be able to enjoy the many wonders of the Rockies again - we have missed all of these things greatly. I think I am going to miss the quiet times where I can do yoga, mediate and focus inwards to myself and the Baby, but really hope to keep up these practices when back at home. I think that it just may be as much as an adjustment coming back to people, distractions and the Calgary buzz as it was when I came out here to the solitude and calm!
In the process of getting ready to come home we have to say goodbye to a really amazing Midwife, who has been an amazing support for the past few months. It is really to bad that she will not be there for the rest of the process! Hopefully I will be able to create just as good of a relationship with the Midwives back in Calgary! The timing is all going to work out perfectly so that I will see the Calgary Midwives one month and day since seeing Jen, and then I start the Centering Pregnancy Program (and information and support group with women at the same gestational stage as me) on the 17th of March. It pretty much couldn't have worked out any smoother.
One thing that isnt going smoothing in the whole coming back process is dealing with Alberta Health Care.... While we were in the city late this fall, I contacted Alberta Health Care to make sure that out of province Midwifery would be covered; Midwife care is stated on their web site as being "fully covered" and I was told over the phone that it would not be an issue, a note was placed on my account stating that I would be out of the province and was assured that with this note the charge would have no problem going through. Unfortunately, I am now getting a totally different story; the note is still on my account but they are adamant that no one would of ever told me that out of province care would be covered, since it is not. Which is crazy, every other "fully covered" cost (hospital visits...) are covered out of province and there is no indication anywhere that is it not. Anyways, it means that I have spent the last few days wasting hours of time being transferred between departments and playing phone tag with Patient Concerns Officers (who don't seems very concerned about their patients) trying to get answers and hopefully convince them that they should cover the cost since that was what I was told originally... I have a feeling its going to take a while to actually make any progress (if any is possible at all), so we'll have to cover the cost for now and hope for the best!
23 weeks.
Toes are gone, my (L) Wal-Mart pants are getting tight, and I have gained 20 pounds.
I am able to feel Baby moving much more now and have started to keep track of when I feel the quickening to try to get an idea of Baby active times. So far the only time that baby is really consistent with is 8am - I have been waking up to Baby wiggling kicking pretty much every day for the last few weeks!
