8 weeks to go until L Day!

Well I am now 32 weeks pregnant, 32!!! That means only 8 weeks to go assuming he comes on time.

 I can't believe how fast it has flown by so far.  Everyone told me it goes so slowly but for me it's zipping past faster than I can actually believe and I keep having 'Oh my God, I'm having a baby' moments. 

At this stage now we are pretty much ready for his arrival, we are just waiting for his cot and pram to be delivered at the start of June but everything else is in place for him which is getting me ridiculously excited.   I have even washed all his clothes and bedding ready.

As the birth looms ever closer I have to honestly say that 'the fear' is slowly starting to creep in.  They are all ridiculous fears too such as what if I'm not a good mum and really don't know what to do with him when he crys.  Completely stupid but thankfully Ant is very supportive and talks me through any worries or apprehensions I do have and so far nothing has overwhelmed me (touch wood), although there is still plenty of time for that.  

All in all though I'm actually quite looking forward to the birth, it's the last thing my body and mind has to battle through before I get to see and cuddle my baby boy.  What can be more rewarding than that?
I'm also intrigued to see just how strong I really am.  My dream labour involves me staying nice and calm and composed all the way through in the hope that this will make everything a bit quicker and easier but only time will tell I suppose.  I also really really want to do it completely naturally to prove everyone who keeps telling me 'nobody does it naturally' wrong.  But like I said it all depends on how strong I actually am when it comes down to it.

The thing that worries me most is going to the hospital to have him, I would much rather have him in the comfort of my own home, purely because I feel the hustle and bustle and chaos of a delivery ward may make me anxious and panic unnecessarily, so I am packing some good ear plugs and my iPod in my hospital bag to help drown out the screamers.  Speaking of hospital bags I should probably start thinking about getting one together. 
 

The plan is, if all goes smoothly, that I will be having a completely natural water birth at the hospital and hopefully get to bring my little baby boy home as soon after that as possible.

Any hints and tips for what to take with me to hospital, tricks on staying calm etc would be very much appreciated!