Fields of Gold; Daniel Ricciardo

Bahrein Testing

Being almost 27 weeks pregnant in the hot Bahrein weather isn't as fun as I hoped. It's about 25 degrees which isn't even that extreme, but coming from the cold weather in Europe I'm having some trouble adjusting. But right now we're in the hotel room which is airconditioned and I let my mind wander back to the days leading up to today.

After the post launch party in New York we came home that Sunday.
We had a few days to finish the nursery and our Next2Me cot was delivered so Daniel really wanted to attach it to our bed. The next morning I asked him to put it away for now as it made it a lot harder to get out of bed and with the frequency I have to get up to pee during the night I really need to be able to get out quickly. Especially now I'm still somewhat mobile.
It's very easy to attach it again, so it can even wait until peanut is born.

We had another check with dr Dubois and again everything was perfect. She did another scan, even though she didn't need to.
I guess that is one of the perks of being a 'patient' or client at a private clinic. They always have enough time for you and if they feel like it they just do another scan.
So we have some more pictures of peanut, also in 3D which was amazing to see. His cheeks are filling up a bit and he definitely has the plump lips of his dad.

We could see him yawning and moving around. I also felt those movements really well. Right now Daniel is able to feel it every time and he enjoys it every single time. He's already such a proud daddy, still convinced about having a girl.
After only 2 days at home we left for Milton Keynes.
It was pretty amazing getting a tour through this building,

I've been inside the MTC a few times, but this one is even more breath taking.
Maybe I'm biased as this team gave Daniel this amazing opportunity to come back home and show what he can do.
He has spent numerous hours on the simulator, collecting as much data as he can, while I've been meeting up with the media department to discuss the videos we're going to make.

We want to do something fun, but also something that's safe. We can't actually have our two drivers get hurt while they are supposed to race.
In the end we come up with some fun ideas. The first video will be a music interpretive dance.
We will record that one in Bahrein, in between testing and the raceweekend so it can be put online on the Thursday.

While we're in the UK we are lucky enough to be able to visit Bri and Jenna who I haven't seen since the wedding. Only on FaceTime so they were absolutely shocked when they saw the bump. Also because we hardly see them, we agreed to let them feel peanut when he was moving.
It actually made Jenna, one of the toughest women I know, tear up.
"Oh Skylar, this is so bizarre, there's actually a little human in there and I can't see him but I can feel him."

As Michael came with us to the UK to keep working with Daniel, him and Jenna got a chance to catch up. But eventually as Jenna still doesn't want to make things official, Michael decided to call it quits. He really likes her, but he also wants to have a proper relationship, something Jenna might never want.
Lewis is also in the UK, getting his time on the sim in the Mercedes HQ.
I'm actually meeting him tonight as today George is going to do some testing and Daniel is also busy.

We meet up at my old house, which is now Jenna's house, at least we will be able to talk freely without fans swarming around.
I get there first and I'm actually feeling a bit nervous, will it be awkward or will it be as if we saw each other yesterday.
There's a knock on the door, so I wipe of my clammy hands on my leggings and open the door.

There's the man I really want to call one of my best friends again, he's looking great as ever. His braids a bit longer than the last time we saw each other, but his smile is still gorgeous and wide.
His eyes sparkle when he sees me and before I realize it, I'm pressed against his toned body. He smells divine and I feel safe and loved in his arms.