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1 more day till (further) proof of God's love is in my arms instead of my belly.

1 more sleep, or rather, attempt at sleep till the witching hour of departing for the hospital.

1 more day of family life as two, before three!

A Quote & A Compliment

I was texting with my friend Bobbi last night about my pregnancy (she is due shortly after me with her 2nd) and she said, "It seems to be the slowest, fastest time ever." The quote was fitting. For the longest time it felt like pregnancy lasted forever, and we had plenty of time to get it together before le bebe arrives. Now, we literally have three days till he is here and it feels nothing short of surreal. Where did the time go? How is it possible we only have a few days left?

God willing I will get to enjoy a minimum of one more pregnancy after this. But regardless of the future, I can say with all honesty that this has been an amazing pregnancy. I have enjoyed every minute. Despite many negative events transpiring while I was pregnant that got me upset, my pregnancy itself has been nothing short of miraculous. I honestly didn't know if I'd ever be able to have a baby, so this easy pregnancy has been such a praised blessing.

People keep asking me if I am excited. I feel guilty for this, but I feel kind of strange about the entire thing. On the one hand, I do have some first-timer nerves. On the other, I like having him to myself inside my belly. Perhaps since his birth is so organized and because there is no element of true surprise (for which I am thankful!), I feel more like I am in the eye of the storm; we don't know what lies ahead but we do know it will be difficult and very cool. I am terribly excited to meet him and I know the joy to come is beyond my current comprehension. It could be that I am in denial, I'm not sure. I think people expect me to be either ecstatic or a complete wreck with nerves. I am ecstatic but because this has been such a terrific pregnancy I am in no rush to get it over with. Does that make any sense?

And vaguely along those lines, my dad asked me last night if I am scared. I replied, 'No.' I mean, on some level I guess I have some sense of terror (LOL) but really I am feeling calm. My dad bestowed upon me one of the best compliments Ive ever been given. He said, "That's my girl! I always thought you would've made an excellent settler. You know how to keep your wits about you." Now, I don't know if that last part is true but the people who have settled land have always fascinated me and I am thrilled by the comparison!

Manufacturers, Listen Up!

With the consensus being that crib bumpers are very dangerous and raise the risk of SIDS, I am very confused as to why manufacturers put them in bedding sets. We were told at the hospital that the baby needs to stay in our room for 6 months to be safe. So, I asked if the bumpers are to be used when baby is older, such as a pre-toddler, for their comfort. I was told, unequivocally, NO. In fact, they said older babies and toddlers shouldn't have them in cribs because they can use them to launch themselves out while climbing. Gee, that's great.

So what the heck? I've got this beautiful bedding that wasn't cheap, and I can't use 25% of what I paid for. I think the manufacturers need to get with the program. They could include either a breathable bumper in a coordinating color, or an extra sheet, AKA something useful. What a waste of money!

Randomness

I had my final ultrasound and NST this morning. Here are some shots of le bebe:





Baby gave me a run for my money and wasn't very active, but with an extremely high heartbeat during the NST so the nurse had to stay with me and get me some juice. So stressful! He had to make the last visit memorable, I think!

They are estimating his weight to be about 7.5 pounds. This means I only have one week left to try to fatten him up. Turns out I didn't gain any weight in the past week despite the added eating. I am holding strong at 17 pounds. I also got to see his little face in high resolution (I saved my tears of joy for the car, ha!) They think he won't have much, if any, hair. I really wanted a baby with troll hair but he was so precious looking I think I am OK with baldness.

I washed alllll his clothes yesterday. I started to put it away but Rob came home sick so my day ended basically right then. I also put the linens in his bassinet and crib. My to-do list is getting shorter and shorter. Slowly but surely.... My goal is to have everything done by the weekend so Rob and I can relax. Oh, and get this! Rob says to me, "I got invited to Hurricane Harbor this weekend (a water park.)" He was actually hoping I would say for him to go! He must be out of his mind. If I went into labor on my own I wouldn't even be able to call him because obviously you don't keep your phone on you on a waterslide. Not to mention, it is our last weekend together and my feelings were hurt he wanted to spend his day with co-workers. Whatever.

I don't want to end this post on a sad note so I will just say that I was so thrilled and excited to see my little man. Of course I'm partial but I thought he was beautiful!

My Belly Is An Alien Cone!

Again, these pictures are for my records, mostly. Sorry if they creep anybody out-my brothers are both appalled at the mere sight. Rob and I just laugh and laugh and laugh some more at the way my stomach distorts when I try to lift my body from a laying-down position using what used to be my abs (yes, I'm pretending like I've seen my abs in the last few years. For those of you who know me IRL, play along! Ha!) Please excuse the picture where I look possessed. I tried to edit them the best I could, but again, these are for me. Oh! And I don't know what's up with the picture where the shadow makes it look like I have a mustache but I promise I don't, LOL!

NSTs

This post is really for myself. I just wanted photo documentation of me having one of my weekly NSTs so I would always remember how thankful I am for modern medicine and the ability to carry a child to term, two things I hope to never forget or take for granted!

37 Weeks

(Don't mind the BRIGHT PINK activity center. It's a much-appreciated hand me down!)
(P.S. Rob likes when I include a photo that is "up close." )

How Far Along: 37 Weeks.

Size of baby: Watermelon. How fitting considering it looks like I'm smuggling one everywhere I go!

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I didn't weigh myself out of fear for what the number would read. I'm realllllly re-thinking that stoopid idea to try to fatten my baby up...

Maternity Clothes: Oh yeah!

Gender: A beloved son!

Movement: He is still nice and busy in there. I love it! I was talking with a friend this week telling her how all cheesiness factor aside, pregnancy truly is a miracle. She adeptly replied, "It's the biggest trip you can't possibly describe!"

Sleep: I am now up to a minimum of two pee breaks per night. Ugh. Oh well.

What I miss: Nothing, really, seeing as I am in the home stretch! I only have nine more days left from here!

Cravings: I made my way back to chicken wings. No surprise there! Having them once was enough, though. None of this second trimester business of eating them three times in one week! Special shout out to Chili's for sending me a coupon for a free molten cake! Ha! Thankfully Rob ate half!

Symptoms: A BIG baby belly!

Best Moment this week: I had my first (and likely only) internal exam as well as the Strep B swab. Both were non-events. Yay! When you're pregnant people like to tell you lots of horror stories but they really only took a matter of seconds and were not painful in the least. Awkward? Yes, totally, but not painful. Bonus: they were over literally within seconds.

Interesting...

My aunt saw my on Skype today and started to cry, telling me I look the best I have ever looked. So, I had Rob take my picture. Call me vain like that! Anyhow, here I am:



And darnit if I don't feel pretty, too!

Yikes!

Less than two weeks and baby will be here. I'm still unprepared. Well, I take that back. I decided to work on organizing our papers and financial affairs before tackling the nursery. I want my ducks in a row in the event something were to happen to me. I'm not trying to be morbid, just realistic that I am having surgery and have a blood clotting disorder. If something did happen, Rob would be so stressed that the very last thing he would need is to deal with financial chaos, too.

I did buy special soap so that hopefully tomorrow I can start on organizing and inventorying. Rob has plans tonight to play softball and tomorrow he is meeting a friend for their "accountability" meeting so that leaves me two days and nights with no excuses for why things are not getting accomplished. Next week I have to go to the DMV and afterwards I don't want to do anything except relax before baby arrives. Rob also works Saturday so really I have three days. Everyone please send vibes that I can get my act together. No time like the present!

And for those of you interested, here is a glimpse of the nursery bedding:

I Thought I Was Losing My Mind!

Three weeks ago my kid flipped breach. NBD since I'm having a c/s. In the middle of the night I was woken up by an extreme pain. It hurt so bad I literally sat straight up in bed.

I looked at my stomach and I could see that my baby was in a transverse position. I've always, always said I am not one of those women who can accurately tell you where baby is positioned, which parts are which, etc. Because of this I wasn't 100% confident and thought maybe I was losing my mind. He seemed very intent on whatever he was doing in there so I switched positions hoping it would help him or encourage him to keep on moving.

Lo, I went for my weekly ultrasound this morning and the tech confirmed that he was now head down, "ready, locked and loaded." My belly looks entirely different, too. If I lay flat and use what used to be my abs to raise my body, it looks like an alien cone. I saw the doctor just yesterday and he was nowhere near being in position and in a matter of a few hours, he went and did "his thing." And dayum if it didn't hurt! Good thing this wimp isn't birthing him traditionally!