Third trimester!

I'm happy to say Oscar has reached another milestone, the third trimester! We hit 6 months on Saturday (Aug 9) and 27 weeks on Sunday, so by all methods of counting we've officially started trimester number 3. Every day he grows in the womb gives him a better chance of meeting us on the outside when he is born, so we're grateful for how well he has done so far. He continues to have a strong heartbeat at our check ups (we're going in to the midwife every 2 weeks), and has been getting more and more active. He seems to like music (especially Elvis!) and hearing me talk about him, and he's also pretty responsive if Alice is crying.

We had a meeting last week with the staff at Canuck Place, our local children's hospice. Their role is to help us coordinate and plan Oscar's care, as well as to support us as a family. They help with the birth and care plans, including sharing information with all the doctors/nurses etc. They also offer counselling and support services, as well as support after Oscar is born. They help with everything from memory making (handprints/footprints) to coordinating home supports if Oscar can come home with us. The nurse we met was very compassionate and knowledgeable, and we feel very lucky to have them as a resource. Next week we meet again with the doctors at Children's hospital. We also have another ultrasound to check Oscar's growth (and sneak another peek at him!).

Oscar is not the only one who has been keeping busy. Peter's parents arrived for a visit July 21, and we just finished a lovely three weeks with them in town. We got to do a lot of fun touristy things (including the new sea to sky gondola in Squamish- highly recommended!) and had a wonderful time visiting with them. Alice was especially pleased to have "Nanna-grandpa" around, and was showing off all her favourite toys and games.

Since arriving home from Taiwan, Emma has jumped right back into her dragonboat training. She and her team leave for the Club Crew World Championships in Italy on Aug 26, so the last push is on as they prepare!

We're looking forward to more time with friends and family as the summer winds down. As always, thank you for all your support and for letting us share Oscar with you. It has been such a blessing to be able to tell his story to so many people, no matter how short it may be.

Love Jill, Peter, Emma, Alice and Oscar