I'm going to be pregnant forever, but that's not necessarily a bad thing

Well, still pregnant over here. I've had tons of contractions that are a mite too painful to be called Braxton-Hicks, but nowhere near intense enough to be considered real, but they're sporadic and clearly not signs of actual labor. Seems like this kid is settling in for the long haul.

And I think that maybe I'm ok with that. All weekend, she was super-squirmy , which I love. If I didn't know better, I'd swear she's responding to me when I rub my belly in the general vicinity of her bottom or when I speak to her. Plus, she's big enough now that the rolling of my belly is visible from across the room. I love feeling and watching her move, even when she's head-butting my cervix.

Plus, M has kicked up the love for baby Dep (yes, she still calls her that). First thing every morning, she comes into our room and kisses the baby hello. This is something I didn't teach her to do, because frankly, I think it's kind of creepy (in an endearing kind of way). She also tickles and hugs my belly, and keeps telling Dep that it's time to come out. It's super-cute, and I fear that this devotion will end as soon as Dep is a real, crying human being who is taking Mommy's attention.

And finally, the longer this kid stays in, the longer we have to brainstorm names for her. Right now, we have three names on the list, each of which we loved at one point but are no longer that crazy about. I keep hoping that a fit of inspiration will strike and we'll come up with the perfect name -- classic, lovely, normal-ish, and with lots of nickname possibilities so that she can choose what she wants to be called someday. But seeing as The Boy's top choices still include such gems as Winifred, Penelope, Esme and Gwendolyn, I don't see any new names coming down the pike that we'll agree on. (not that there's anything wrong with these names. They're perfectly fine for anyone who is not my kid). And in fairness, I should point out that I'm attracted to my fair share of strange names -- for a while, I was trying to convince The Boy that Aiofe (pronouce Ee-fa) was a perfectly reasonable middle name.