first things first

The first of July.

The first day of the weekend for me, using up my last days of annual leave here and there.

Later brings with it the first massage in a while, finally using up the last of my birthday vouchers and hopefully a little relaxation too.

Then, tonight, a dinner with good friends for the first time in a while. In fact I think the last time we saw them we were in the early days of pregnancy where we knew but no-one else did, so they may be a little shocked at my progress! They have also bought and moved into their first house since we last met so there will be plenty of catching up to do.

This feels like it is the first day of quite a significant month. With maternity leave due to start later this month, it is the the beginning of around 12 months off work. We have been very lucky that I will be able to take a year off, but it is also the first time I won't have had some kind of paid employment since I was about seventeen! This week has been one filled with a real sense of having a very final deadline to work towards but I have made good progress and am hoping my last few days in work will now be fairly gentle and focused on tying up loose ends, and I anticipate a lot of sorting of the paperwork I seem to accumulate on an hourly basis!

It could, also, just possibly, be the first month that we become a family of four (including the dog of course!). With a due date in early August, and a baby that is still very much doing somersaults, showing no sign of being head down or settling into position, it is unlikely at the moment, but there is that possibility and what a thought it is! The Husband suggested that we might, perhaps, possibly, want to start thinking about packing the hospital bags this weekend, and it seems like that could well be a sensible plan.

July also brings with it our wedding anniversary, and it is the first time we won't be going away for a week, having moved our holiday to June so that we could travel a little further afield without worry that we were too far from home. We do both have the week off, and have booked a trip for a few days to celebrate, but only 30 minutes from the hospital!!

So July seems to bring a lot of lovely firsts. It is always a lovely month for us, with celebrations and holidays, lots of different annual traditions and occasions with friends and family that seem to fall over the next few weeks too. I hope your month ahead has some days to look forward to and some loveliness along the way.