The Cactus Blooms

The cactus bloomed! It opened in the night, a few nights ago. The flower is closed now, but still attached to the cactus for the time being. It is looking withered and droopy. We did get some pictures of it right after it bloomed, though! How very exciting! There are more on the flickr page.
I'm winding down my obligations at work, to take my maternity leave. I have about a half day of work later this week, and a small work party to attend for a fellow mom-to-be, and then next week I don't go to work at all! I'm set to receive a home visit from the midwife today, which should tell me a bit more about where we're at in regard to when the wee one will make its appearance. So far, the conclusion is 2 - 3 more weeks. I'm feeling great, and the house is ready - even more ready than I had hoped (yay Charley!!!). I only need to live a life of luxury for the next 14-21 days - this is my only job. I plan to nap, walk, swim, do yoga, cook yummy food, run a few last minute errands, read books, enjoy the casa, and begin slowing down. Since Charley has work for about the next two weeks (we just found out the other day) we won't be hanging out together much during the day, but he's really excited about this job and he'll be there when I need him. I don't think I'm approaching this time as tapping-my-fingers-waiting as many people suggest, although, of course, I am very excited to get the the grand finale of baby-on-the-outside.
Today is Charley's birthday, and I'm going to make cupcakes to share with some friends. We started the day off with some rain! Hooray! It is humid, but quite cool outside, with the possibility of more rain on the way.
This weekend we will celebrate summer with our friends at the annual Pond Party - probably one of my last major social functions of the summer. We're also planning a brunch wtih Becky and Rachel to celebrate all the July birthdays. Charley and I are definately taking this time to enjoy some things we won't really be getting to for a few weeks once the baby is born - namely, movies. We saw Hellboy 2 the other night, and I was diggin' it! I'm excited to see Mr. Del Toro's version of The Hobbit. I think the only other worthy director might have been M. Night Shalaman, but Del Toro is a good fit. ( I hope! ) We also saw Get Smart last week, which was amusing, but not as funny as you know Steve Carell can be. I hope they don't try to turn him into a Steve Martin - Carell is funny with all the lampooning.
The blog got a facelift... what do you think? I hope that the links (which are now to the right) are easier to use. I have pared them down to things I check often, if not daily, and suggest you do the same.