Wordless Wednesday

37 weeks and 1 day

How far along? 37 weeks & 1 day

Weight gain? Very slightly under 40 pounds.  Apparently, I'm very good at gaining weight during pregnancy.

Stretch marks? It saddens me to say that they have finally gotten me.  They are very faint and few and only on the left side of my stomach under my belly button.  I know the real test will be seeing how many stretch marks I have gotten once my belly deflates.

Sleep: OMG, sleep has been amazing lately.  It must be due to the change of weather here, nights have been really cool and dipping into the 40s.  I get up once, maybe twice to use the potty, but have no trouble falling right back to sleep.  Thor must be sleeping better, too, because he is back to only getting me up around 4:45-5am when it's time for us to get up anyways. 

Best moment this week: Dave and I had a really nice low-key weekend at home.  He cooked some amazing meals, I did some baking, got a couple of nice long walks with Thor, and we did a lot of cleaning, organizing, yard work, and only had to run a couple of errands. 

Pumpkin Spice cookies.  Awesome & only uses two ingrediants.

Movement: Still a wiggle worm! I can see almost all of the movements through my shirt now, too.  Dave has been able see her move and he calls her our little alien.

Food commentary:  Nothing very special to report in this department. 

Labor Signs: More BH contractions!  Lots more.  Other than that, nothing really exciting, unfortunately.

Belly Button in or out? Slowly getting flatter! Yay.  It has also gotten really sensitive and itchy lately.  I truly think my skin is stretched to the limit, but yet Olivia is continuing to fatten up, so the belly keeps on growing.

What I miss:  I miss not having to take breaks when putting on socks and shoes. *SIGH*

What I am looking forward to: Dave is going to be coming to my doctor's appointments from now on! Yay.  So I'm looking forward to him being there with me this Tuesday.  We have a couple of questions about after-birth procedures done on the baby so we will be able to ask those then. 

Weekly Wisdom: Be patient!!!  I'm getting way too anxious about going into labor already, and in reality I could be storked up for another 4-plus weeks.  I'm really working on relaxing, enjoying uninterrupted nights of sleep, spending quality time with Dave and family, reading, leisurely walks, and taking long baths.  Things I know will go away temporarily once Olivia is here.

Weekly WTF:  My car broke down!!!  Usually Dave and I carpool to work, but it was on the day of my doctor's appointment so we had to drive separately.  Dave left for work before me and when I went to get in my car to leave it wouldn't start.  What also made this event even more fun was the fact that Dave forgot his phone at home.  So I cried, a lot.  Then I called my mother in law and she had my father in law come over and fix the car right up.  I am very very very lucky that we have family so close and that Reese knew exactly what to do for the car.  It was a battery issue, but he was able to jump it enough to get it running for the rest of the day.  Dave has since replaced the battery so we are hoping that is the cars only problem.

Nesting madness:   Bassinet was put up and all of the linens for it have been washed and ready to go.  Dave put together the dining room table my parents gave us.  We finally bought the comforter and pillows for the bed in Olivia's room.  I cleaned out both of our cars of all dog hair and drool so that baby can actually ride in either car.

Milestones: I am now in the 37th week of pregnancy, which means that if baby were born now, she would be considered full term! Huge deal in my book.  I turned 37 weeks, and in my mind, my job as an incubator was complete. :)  No rush though...lol, but seriously baby...you are allowed to come out now. 

Cuteness Overload

I was sitting in Olivia's room today, as I have found myself doing more and more lately, and I became overwhelmed with the amount of cuteness in her room!  We have been given and bought some of the cutest things for our little girl.  All things baby are adorable, in my opinion,  but I wanted to share some of my favorite things in her room.

Olivia's first Christmas ornament

I also found a Thor ornament :)

Her little shoe collection. So precious&little!

Winter hat! My mom and I looked everywhere for a cute winter hat for newborn pictures we are planning on taking.  That was a surprisingly difficult task here in central Texas.

Friends of ours sent us this adorable diaper bag tag.  It has her name on both sides, and my phone number on the other side as well. It adds the perfect girly touch to our manly diaper bag that my husband lovingly picked out.

My mother-in-law, Annette, embroidered this butterfly bib and she also made the matching receiving blanket!  I love the butterflies.  She made us several matching sets like this and they are perfect.

An Olivia tote bag!  My sister in law sent this to us for my baby shower.

This is Olivia's "te-te."  I had a favorite headed blankey like this, but mine was Snoopy and I called it te-te.  My mom wanted Olivia to have something just as important to sleep with and love on. 

My aunt Suki bought us this adorable diaper cover.

This is our latest purchase, baby's bassinet! (Craigslist for 25 bucks, in almost perfect condition!)  I love seeing this in our room.  It makes me happy :).

Right now we are letting this little baby sleep in there.

Our home is completely prepared if Olivia decided that she was ready to be born today.  I have been nesting like crazy for most of October and so has Dave, so now we are ready.  The thing we are left doing right now is mentally getting ready!  I love to talk about how much our lives are going to change, and how our routines are going to change, but most of all I love how we really have no idea how things well be. We can read all of the baby books under the sun, which it feels like we have done, but until the time actually comes, and our baby is here, it's all a mystery to us.   

I'm getting so excited for the day that we finally get to meet our daughter and for the days, weeks and years ahead that we all have to get to know each other.  I love that our family is growing and that we have been blessed with the privilege of getting to become someone's mommy & daddy!

"Wordless" Wednesday

However, not so wordless...

Picture taken this morning before heading to work.  36 weeks and 4 days. 

Picture taken the morning we found out I was pregnant. 

Happy Halloween!

We carved our pumpkin!

It was a scary one this year!

Thor was no help, as usual.

This weekend was also the last weekend that Dave and I planned to go "out of town" until after Olivia is born.  We didn't travel very far, and just made a trip up to Harker Heights to visit my parents and see some of their newest home renovations.  My parents have had almost all of the floors in their home re-done, all 2.5 bathrooms renovated, kitchen countertops redone, and some new furniture.  Everything looked great!

Mom and I did some shopping. Then we all had dinner in HH, visited with my grandparents who were driving through down back to San Antonio from Oklahoma, and then passed out candy & glow stick lights to trick or treaters.  My parent's neighborhood was one of those weird neighborhoods that celebrated Halloween on Saturday night rather than tonight.  We then headed back home. 

Today has been filled with grocery shopping & football watching.  We are not armed and ready with our big bowl full of candy for the neighborhood kids!  It is now 6:30, and we have yet to have our first trick or treater!  It would be such a shame if we have no kids to give the candy to and must find something else to do with it :).

Feeling a little bit pregnant...35 weeks and 4 days.

How far along? 35 weeks and 4 days

Weight gain? 36ish lbs.

Stretch marks? Nope.  It amazes me that there aren't any, my belly is huge.

Sleep:  It feels like there is never enough of it.  And I do not know what the heck is up with Thor lately.  He has been getting up and waking me up starting at about 1am to 3am (if i'm lucky) every morning for the past 5 mornings or so.  He will come to the bed, breathe on me or lick my hand or my back until I wake up, and then whimper till I go downstairs with him and let him out.  Then he will repeat around 4 or 430am which is when I will usually get up for the day and we go for our walk. 

Best moment this week:  I had my 36 week appointment on Tuesday and the doctor confirmed that Olivia is head down, my cervix has begun to soften and I'm 0 centimeters dialated and 0% effaced.  More than likely she will remain head down until her birthday because there is not much room left in there for a turnaround.  This was reassuring. 

Movement:  She is a wiggle worm, especially immediately following anytime I eat something.  She is also still much calmer in the mornings, and busier in the afternoons.  There have also been a couple of times when she was so active in the middle of the night I have a hard time falling back to sleep. 

Food commentary:  I've been getting really hungry and must eat RIGHT NOW lately, but it does not take much to fill me.  Anything and everything gives me heartburn at this point so I just deal with it. 

Labor Signs: Aside from getting BH contractions, nothing really new.  Lots of heavy weight feelings & pressure in my underbelly by the end of the day, but I'm pretty sure that's just a result of carrying baby around all day. 

Belly Button in or out? Out, however, my growing belly is finally starting to strech it out and make it a tad bit more discreet. 

What I miss: This week I miss not having heartburn, I miss being able to move quicker, I miss not being able to wear everything in my closet,  I miss not being exhausted at the end of the day from doing absolutely nothing, I miss wearing my wedding ring :(, and I miss being able to wear heels. 

What I am looking forward to: We have finally reached that point in the pregnancy where I'm not required to go to the doctor once a week until we are done.  I'm not so much looking forward to going to the doctor every week, but I am looking forward to being able to leave work early for the appointments once a week. 

Weekly Wisdom: Do a birth plan if you want to!!!  Don't feel like you have to listen to everyone who tells you, oh, I had a birthplan and it all went out of the window the minute I went into labor.  Or don't listen to the people who just plan on going into labor and just seeing how everything goes.  Yes, I know we are going to be required to be flexible if situations arise that are out of our control, but I refuse to allow the medical team to make decisions about my body & my babies body without having knowledge of all risks, pros and cons.  The only way we can really know all of that information is by going into L&D as knowledgeable as possible.  We have learned so much in our Bradley classes about situations that can arise, and how we will want to handle them should they happen to us.  Dave is aware of a lot of my hopes and wants for O's big day and he will be the big advocate of our birthplan when the time comes.  I plan on being a little bit busy, that's why I have appointed him :).   Luckily, I talked to my doctor at my last appointment about having a birthplan and she was all for it. 

Early on when I first started preparing for O's birth I read an example that has stuck with me the whole 9 months.  A mommy needs to approach her labor as though it were an athletic event, because in reality it is.  If you were told one day that in 9 months you would be thrown into the ocean and be required to swim such and such a distance, you would spend the next 9 months training and preparing for that event.  Similarly, when you find out that you are pregnant why wouldn't you prepare physically, mentally, and emotionally for labor and delivery to bring your baby into the world?  Sorry if all of that sounds preachy, it just amazes/frightens me how little women in the United States know about giving birth and leave it all up to the doctors and nurses. 

Weekly WTF: My wedding rings no longer fits!  I'm heartbroken.  For a little while I truly believed I would be able to wear it the whole time.  I never ever take them off, but the other night before I went to bed I noticed my rings were a little snug.  So, I took them off to sleep and figured once the swelling from the day went down I would be able to put them back on in the morning.  No luck.  I feel naked without them. 

Nesting madness:  Moving along as usually.  There is always something to be done at home.  Because we are getting closer and closer to the due date, we will be staying home on the weekends much more.  After this coming weekend's planned visit to my parents in Harker Heights on Saturday I do not think we are going to be leaving town again until after Olivia is here. 

Milestones: We are almost in November which is baby's expected arrival month!!!  Please please please be a November baby!

A Pregnant Woman's Workout

What activity is productive and fun and a workout for an 8 month pregnant lady all rolled into one? Shopping!!!

My aunt in San Antonio has loaned us a cradle to use for baby and we needed to pick it up from her.  She, my grandmother, and cousin said they would meet me halfway in San Marcos.  My mom, sister and I decided to make an event of it!  We met for lunch at the Gristmill in Gruene which was delicious as always.  We then went to the San Marcos outlets for some shopping.  I had such a great time and it was fun to have a little lady time (plus Jon, who was a champ with all of us.) We parked, and walked, and walked and walked.  It wasn't bad at all because all of the walking was broken up by shopping, but my legs and ankles felt it this morning!

Sarah, Mom, Olivia and I :)

Mom, Mama, and Suki. 

Jon, Sarah and I.  Mama in the background looking as tired as I felt!

Post-shopping

4 generations: Grandma, Mom, granddaughters, and great-granddaughter in utero.

We were able to find some cute things for baby, of course!  This Halloween tutu will be great for next year.  It's not really a costume, but we can at least send her to daycare in the tutu and a black onsie to be festive! It came with a headband, too :).

I loved this Christmas outfit! I need to find some white tights to go under this outfit because surely by Decemeber 25 it will be colder here in Texas. (Highs are in the 85-90 degree range next week...)  Olivia has a pair of black patten leather shoes and a pair of "My First Christmas" slippers that can go with this onsie.   Thanks, Grandma! :) 

I'm still on the search for some cute winter hats for O.  It never really gets super cold here in Austin, but we do have a week or so in the winter that hats and gloves are needed.  Especially for our itty bitty newborn baby.  I also want to get Olivia used to wearing hats from early on.  We have brutal sunny summers and she will need to keep covered once it gets hot again.

Next project: Putting the cradle together and finding  a craddle pad and sheet for baby.