December 14

I've been thinking about having the baby nonstop these days but today I was particularly anxious. I can just tell it's going to be born pretty soon and I've been trying to mentally prepare myself but I don't know if I really can completely.

Kaede and Sango said that when I'm going into labor my contractions will be longer and closer together. I've been timing them every time they happen for the last couple of days. For the most part, they've been fairly regular. Occasionally one will be a bit longer or one will come a little sooner than before but it's never been consistent. Even still, each time I expect something different and I brace myself. Another sign is that my water will break and I've been anticipating that too but nothing has happened…yet.

In addition to keeping track of my symptoms today, I've hardly been able to sit still. I just feel like I need to be doing something to distract myself. Sango mentioned to me a few days ago that she did this as well and it's called nesting. Regardless of what it's called, I just felt like I couldn't sit down.

So I went back and forth around the house cleaning. I swept and mopped the floors, I dusted, and I made sure everything was in its correct place. I also deep cleaned the baby's room. I wanted everything to be perfect and clean and ready for when it arrives. I even picked out the first set of clothes for it to wear once it's born.

Inuyasha sat on the couch watching me go back and forth across the house and finally he grabbed my hand and pulled me to sit with him. "Kagome, you need to relax."

"I know, but it's so hard." I sighed. "I'm sorry, I know this is probably not making you feel any better."

Inuyasha has also been growing increasingly anxious. He's been watching me like a hawk for any changes. He's also constantly asking me if I'm okay and if I need anything. However, I now wondered if watching me run back and forth across the house has been making him feel worse.

"No, not at all, honey," he said as he kissed me. "I just want you to be as calm and relaxed as possible. There's no use in you already being all riled up when the baby comes."

"You're right. It's just been so hard for me to calm down lately. Giving birth to the baby has been all I can think about."

"I understand, I feel the same way. How about we play some games? It might help."

So we played some Uno, Scrabble, and Sorry for a while. Inuyasha is so competitive sometimes it's unbelievable. He won four out of five Uno games and did so much gloating I was ready to put the subjugation beads back on him. But I got my revenge during Scrabble. At one point he started to become desperate and put down "FU" as a word.

"That's not a word," I said.

"Yes, it is."

"Then what does it mean?"

"It's short for fuck you."

I rolled my eyes. "That doesn't count."

"Where in the rules does it say you can't use abbreviations?"

So I pulled out the rule book. "All words labeled as a part of speech (including those listed of foreign origin, and as archaic, obsolete, colloquial, slang, etc.) are permitted with the exception of the following: words always capitalized, abbreviations," I have him a pointed look, "prefixes and suffixes standing alone, words requiring a hyphen or an apostrophe."

Inuyasha sighed. "I hate this game."

"I'll take back that double word score," I replied triumphantly.

But Inuyasha got his revenge when he won Sorry so he completely forgot about the Scrabble thing and gloated again.

After we got tired of playing, we just ended up cuddling on the couch under a blanket feeling the baby move inside me.

"It feels like it's doing flips in there," Inuyasha said.

"It's nearly constant at this point," I replied. "Sometimes it feels like the baby is going to bust out."

Inuyasha leaned down and kissed my stomach. "Don't worry, little one. You'll be out soon and mommy and daddy will finally get to hold you."

"I can't wait," I said. "I'm so excited to hold the baby and kiss it and see what it looks like."

"Me too," Inuyasha said thoughtfully. "You know, sometimes I think back to nine months ago and feel like it's so crazy how we're only a few days away now. We really had no idea what we were getting into back then."

I laughed a bit. "You've got that right. But, you know? I wouldn't have wanted any other man by my side through it all."

He returned my smile and hugged me a bit closer to him. "And I wouldn't have wanted to do this with any other woman."

I ran my fingers through his soft hair. "Things are going to be completely different from now on." He put his forehead to mine and I gazed into his gold eyes. "Are you ready?"

He pressed a kiss to my lips. "More than ready."