58.

That's how many days are left before Z Baby's due date rolls around.

Whoa. That's not very many.

We're trying to get things in order around these parts and make sure we're as prepared as possible - preferably prior April 11 in case she decides to make her grand entrance early! (A very real concern in the back of my mind given that 2 of my best friends have had their babies quite a bit in advance of their due date . . . as in like, the nursery isn't set up, no hospital bags are packed, still planning to work for at least six more weeks kind of early.)

Besides making sure the apartment is all prepared and my life is thoroughly organized, there's also that little detail of getting our child from her cozy little residence in my womb to out here in the real world where I can tickle her toes and pinch her fat rolls - as opposed to her fun little current games of kicking my ribs and punching my bladder.

So in our effort to get prepared for that little journey, we started a childbirth/baby care/breast feeding class last night. It's composed of four sessions, each 2 1/2 hours long, taught by a local doula, with us and three other couples in the class. Beyond the need for a few vocabulary clarifications (like when Eric leaned over to ask me, "Is parto Portuguese for birth?", thereby confirming that he hadn't spent much time reading the information I gave him so that he'd be caught up on the vocabulary that he otherwise probably wouldn't know), we did pretty well catching everything. And in Eric's defense, I suppose he doesn't have quite as much time during the day to study this stuff like I do - something about a pesky little job and bringing home a specific pork product and the whole reason we're here and blah, blah, blah . . .

We really like the doula a lot and stayed after class yesterday to talk about using her services. The deal is only sweetened by the fact that she lived in the US for 17 years (from age 6 - 23) and is completely fluent in English. In fact, she did her doula training there, so English is her first language from the technical birth/labor side of things. Given that I can completely see myself wanting my back rubbed and someone fetching me ice chips at the same time, and that there is a real strong possibility my feeble Portuguese abilities might abandon me with the onset of the first real strong contraction, having the additional support of a bilingual doula could be beneficial (for both me and Hubby!) on several fronts.

So, time ticks away. We try to get ready. But for now I go and figure out if there is anything I can take for a bad cold. I've underestimated my need for breathing . . .