And he's here!

It's taken a few days to be able to write this up, but here is our little man's birth story...

Friday night (3/25) my hips were really bothering me so I decided to soak in the tub. J walked in after I was in there a while and asked if I was supposed to do that.  I said as long as it wasn't too hot it was fine.  Later when I crawled in bed I made the comment that if this hip pain was going to last the next two weeks he better just come on out. If I only knew!

At 3:03 AM I woke up with what felt like cramps like I needed to go the bathroom. I rolled over and felt a little gush of fluid.  I went to the bathroom and more trickled out, but I didn't feel like I was peeing. I sat there thinking "This better not be labor, I'm not ready!".  I put on a pad and crawled back in bed.  About 20 mins later the cramps returned. I went the bathroom again (so glad that I did - kept me from pooping on the delivery table!) and more fluid came out.  I decided that yes, this must be labor and maybe I should start watching the clock to see how far apart the contractions were.

I crawled back in bed and made it through the next one. They were down to 15 mins apart.  The next one came only 12 mins later.  When the next one hit I went back in the bathroom, sat on the rug in the middle of the floor rocking back and forth and decided maybe I should call the doctor. The contractions were down to 8 mins apart - I couldn't believe how close they were getting so quickly.

I called the answering service and the guy said Dr Osborne would call me back. Great - the one doctor in the practice that I didn't love was the one that was on call for the weekend.  I sat there on the floor waiting for the call.  After 10 mins (and another contraction) the answering service called me back to see if the doc had called. Nope.  A few minutes later Dr Osborne did call and after I told him what was going on he told me to go to the hospital and he would call to let them know I'm coming.

I went out and woke J up. He was confused, thinking I was waking him up to go to work. "No, we need to get to the hospital."  He jumped up and turned on the light and said "Seriously?  You don't even have a bag packed."  "I'm pretty sure I'm in labor, and I know."

I was hobbling around the room trying to grab things I might need, but as I stood there hunched over from another contraction he told me to sit and tell him what I needed.  We threw what we could think of in my bag and headed out.  By this time it was 4:48 AM and the contractions were 5 mins apart.

We got to the hospital and went in through the ER.  J dealt with admissions since I was being hit with another contraction.  They brought a wheelchair and took me to labor and delivery. I started feeling nauseated from the pain and possibly from the nerves.  The nurse gave me a pan in case I was going to throw up and continued to my room.  I undressed into the gown and got in the bed.  The contractions were getting strong and more painful.  The nurse tried to check me, but my cervix was still tilted so she couldn't tell how dilated I was yet.  She tested to see if it was amniotic fluid that was leaking and once the strip turned blue she said "You are definitely having a baby today.".

They got the info they needed from me and gave me an IV of some pain meds to see if maybe I could get by with just that.  They were doing nothing for me.  I got up and went to the bathroom and when I got back in bed the anesthesiologist came in to do the epi. I barely felt it and he was able to get it in between contractions.

Once that started to take effect I was able to rest a little. I had only gotten 2 hours of sleep prior to the contractions starting so I was already tired.  J stretched out on the pull out couch in the room and I tried to rest.  This time when the nurse checked me I was already up to 7 cm dilated.  This was really happening.  I had been laying on my right side with the monitor on my belly and the nurse came in to roll me to my other side. When she did, his heartrate dropped down into the 70's.  They rolled me back and put me on oxygen.  He had dropped so much so fast that it put him in distress.  At this point they checked me and I was 9 cm.  Time to start pushing.

They put me on my back, the nurse grabbed one leg, J grabbed the other, she told me to take a deep cleansing breath and then push for a count of 10.  We did that in sets of 3.  I had to grab my knees, put my chin to my chest, take a deep breath, and push. I couldn't feel if I was pushing, but she said I was doing great. Between sets of pushes they put me back on the oxygen.  I was so tired from the pain meds prior to the epi that I wanted to just close my eyes, which I did between pushes.  I started to feel sick again and they gave me a bag to throw up in. Nice.

After an hour or so of pushing like this he was down and ready to come out.  The doc came in and said we were ready. I wasn't.  I was so nervous I actually threw up in the bag they gave me.  They took the end of the bed out and got the stirrups into position. With the epi I couldn't feel my legs so they heaved them up there for me and it was time to start pushing.  It followed the same pattern - 3 sets of pushes for a count of 10.  Again, in between pushes I had the oxygen and tried to close my eyes and conserve energy.  J was on one leg still and did a good job at offering comfort.

The funny thing is - I was totally quiet during all of this. There was no yelling or anything at all.  When I was pushing I was just concentrating on getting through the count of ten.

We went through several sets of pushes and the doctor said "There's the head - have a look" to J. He wasn't going to, but he glanced down and looked.  He had thought that he would be spending all his time up at my head, not taking part in helping me deliver.  He did a great job though.

After about 45 minutes of pushing and resting I had one more big one.  The doctor and nurse both said "Here he comes" and it was the oddest sensation to feel him leave my body. There was no pain at all (thank you epi!) but just the feeling of him being there one second and then my belly being empty the next.

I asked why he wasn't crying, but they still had to suction out his mouth. As soon as they did he let out a howl. They held him up and he was all white since he was covered in the stuff from being in my ute.  They clamped off the umbilical cord and the doc offered J the scissors, but he passed. He wasn't ready to do that. So they cut the cord and took him over to the baby warmer to clean him off and get his APGAR scores (all 8's and 9's).  While they had him over there it hit me again and I got sick.  Soon my placenta came out and the doctor asked if I wanted to see it. Umm - no.  That's ok.  He went to work stitching me up (he had to cut me) and I waited for my baby.

Once they had him all clean they brought him over to me.  Absolutely love at first sight.  I could not believe that he was there, on my chest, instead of in my belly.

They took him over to weigh him and J snapped the picture:

7 lbs 4.9 ounces and 20 3/4 inches

We had some skin to skin time and I got to nurse him just a little bit before he zonked out.



My parents were already headed down and got to the hospital about an hour after he was born.  They are so excited for their first grandson.

After my epi completely wore off they had me get up and go the bathroom and take a shower.  Then they moved me from the labor and delivery room to one of the post partum rooms. Not as big, but just as nice.  While this was going on they had taken the baby to the nursery to be checked and for his first bath.  They brought him to us once he was done and he was very sleepy.

We tried nursing that night, but since he had his bath he was super sleepy and didn't want to wake to feed. We got a little in him, but not nearly what he'll be eating normally.



J is still in awe of the little man

I can't believe he is here and that he is mine

Cute and tiny little feet

My sweet little baby  :)

There's been a little drama since his arrival, but I'll cover that another time. I just want to enjoy looking at him and watching him sleep.  I'm still in awe that he is here and can't believe that the past 9 months have bought us this sweet little man.

He's on the move!

This morning I woke up with some lower back pain. Kind of a dull ache that I attribute to me walking 4 miles on the bridge yesterday.  Once I got  up and was moving around it pretty much went away so I wasn't worried about it.

I had my weekly OB appointment at 9:00 this morning.  After the usual weight, BP, and pee in a cup stuff I saw my doctor.  Time for another internal - woo hoo!

She said he is definitely moving down (although I haven't "dropped" yet) and I am now 2 cm dilated and 80% effaced.  Yikes!

We discussed induction and she said once I hit 39 weeks (if I do) we can set a date just so it's out there.  Before I was thinking that I would definitely hit my due date, but since I've actually progressed a bit in the past week now I'm thinking maybe I won't.  My next appt is next Friday and I am praying that he will not be born that day (April Fools Day - which happens to be my brother-in-law's birthday).

I instant messaged J as soon as I got home and filled him in. I can almost sense his anxiety through his messages.  He is definitely excited and we are both kind of in the 'oh wow - this is really happening' state of mind right now.

Oh, and last night we were messing with the little guy. If I pressed lightly on the side of my belly we could watch him kick out against it.  J put his hand on there and was startled by the fact that he could feel his foot.  I admit, it IS very odd to feel body parts.  I know it's uncomfortable sometimes, but I am going to miss feeling him in there.  That's something special that's just between us.  But I can't wait to meet him and get to hold him in my arms, and to see him in J's arms. He's going to be such a good dad  :)

37 week check in

I had forgotten to take a picture of the beautiful bassinet that our friend passed down to us for our little guy to spend his first couple months sleeping in.  We initially were going to use the Pack n Play for this purpose, but I think this will be even better. Plus it takes up a little less room and is on wheels so it can be easily moved. Now I just need to get the sheets for it and we will be all set:

And on to my check in:

How far along? 37w2d.  He should be about 19.25 inches and around 6.3 lbs.  Who knows if that is even close?

Weight gain/loss: Still at +28 with less than 3 weeks to go.

Maternity Clothes: Still 50/50.  Sooooooo tired of wearing the same crap all the time.

Symptoms:  The usual stubborn colon and back pain.  Horrible BH contractions on Sunday - not the least bit fun.

Labor Signs:  None yet - just the BH contractions.

Gender:  It's a boy!!!

Sleep? Sleep is hit or miss.  Yesterday I woke up at 3:25 and never fell back to sleep. Last night I was so exhausted that I slept through the night only getting up once to pee.

Best moment this week? FINALLY getting the nursery put together.  And seeing J get into nesting mode  :)

Movement: All the time.  He's getting very strong in there.

Food cravings/aversions: I'm eating fruit like it's my job.

Belly button in or out? Getting dangerously close to popping out, but it's still hanging on.

Stretch marks?  Still none (yay!)

What I miss? Good sleep and a good hard run.  I never ever thought I would miss running, but I really do.  It's my stress reliever.

What I am looking forward to? Doctor's appt tomorrow to see how much I have progressed (if any).

Milestones: He's full term and I have less than 20 days until my due date.  Eeek!

What I'm nervous about: Starting to get nervous about the actual delivery.  And being in charge of taking care of this tiny human.

And as always, here is a bump picture:

Nesting-palooza

As I mentioned yesterday, this weekend was full of nesting.  Or at least assembling and arranging.

On Friday J took the day off and rearranged furniture.  My bedroom set that was too big for the guestroom is now in our master bedroom and his furniture is down in the guestroom.  He also moved the dresser into the nursery.

When I got home I had the fun of going through all of the crap that I had in the dresser and nightstand that got moved into our room.  Lets just say I threw away a LOT.

Saturday after I went to the gym and he did his 60 mile bike ride we decided to start on the closet organizer for the baby's room.  J had bought this stuff years ago and we planned on putting them in our walk in closets upstairs, but decided they didn't give us enough space.  I'm happy that we are finally putting them to use (one in baby's room and one in the guestroom).

There are two hanging bars on the right and one on the left.  We also have doors that would cover the shoe organizer on top, but the way the closet is set up they wouldn't open so we left them off.

J had also assembled the stroller on Thursday night and it is currently just sitting in the nursery until we move it:

The car seat protector that we bought should be here this week and then we will install the car seat in my car.  Hopefully the little guy stays put until that happens!

Here is the dresser that we refinished for the room.  The diaper cake, teddy bear, and lamp will not be on top of it for long - we have the changing pad to go up there and are just waiting on the changing pad cover to arrive.  Oh, and the pink lamp won't be in the room at all - unless I paint it.

I also assembled the little swing/seat that his parents gave us at the shower.  This one is way less bulky than the one my sister handed down:

While we were on a roll we decided to put the Pack n Play together to see how hard it would be to do. Initially we were going to have him sleeping in this upstairs with us for the first few months, but a friend gave us a beautiful bassinett that we will be using instead.  We'll use the Pack n Play when we travel anywhere, though.

It wasn't overly difficult to put together, but I will say that the directions were crap.
We also put together the portable highchair just for shits and giggles. Obviously he won't be using it for a little while, but we were on a roll.

The chair still needs to be stained since it's still raw wood, but we haven't gotten around to it yet.

I put together the exersaucer that my sister handed down to us, too.  Currently it's just sitting in the nursery.  Man, these babies come with a lot of stuff!

At least now everything is out of the office upstairs and we have it almost ready for our little man.  We still need some stuff to hang on the walls since it looks pretty bare.  I'm on the lookout for something to hang.  And we need to finish the bookcase so we can get it in there and put some stuff on it instead of having it all piled in the closet and on the dresser.  Here's hoping the kidlet stays put for a couple more weeks so we can actually get some of this stuff done!

Full term

Yup - that's right. This kid is now considered full term.  Wow.

It continues to amaze me how fast the past few weeks have gone.  And that we are down to three weeks.  All I can say is Oh My God!!!

In honor of being considered full term the little guy decided to bless me with a day full of BH contractions.  Lovely.  As I was curled in a ball in the chaise in the living room I said "This better not be real contractions - I'm not ready yet!".  J looked at me and said "Me neither!".  I'm thinking we better get ready.

On the plus side, it was a weekend chock full of nesting.  Lots of assembling stuff and getting the room ready.  It almost looks like a complete nursery now (but I have no energy to upload the pictures so I'll have to wait until tomorrow to post them).

Oh, and I bought a lot of the necessities we had left on the registries last week and I have been getting emails about the items shipping. Hopefully that means that this week will be filled with packages arriving.  It'll be like Christmas around here.

Now it's time to crawl back on my heating pad and try to soothe my aching back while watching more of the teams in my bracket lose.  Something tells me I won't be winning the pool this year. Damn.

Finally some progress on the nursery

Last night we started moving stuff around because J took today off of work and is having a friend come over to help move furniture (we're putting my bedroom set upstairs since it's too big for the guest room and there is no way I can help move that dresser).  I said if they move the crib stuff out I can help put it together when I get home (the crib and mattress were still in boxes and stuffed in the bathroom in the old master bedroom - now man room).

Instead we decided to get it out right then and there and put it together. I think me telling him about my doctor's appt with the dilation and effacement lit a bit of a fire under him.

Less than an hour later - and with minimal swearing - we had it all assembled.  I was itching to put the bedding in it to see how it looks.  I love it!

I had been having slight second thoughts about the Baby Snoopy stuff, but it is so freaking cute.  And I think it goes really well with the walls (we've been a little nervous about how bright they are).

After doing all that we moved a bunch of stuff into the closet of the guestroom to get it out of the way for them moving furniture today. Then J went about putting all the switchplate and outlet covers in the nursery and guestroom. I was going to do them while working from home yesterday, but he didn't want me to get shocked (he's getting very protective).

After all that I was beat and headed to bed since it was already 11:00.  He stayed up watching basketball and apparently got busy doing other stuff, because when I went downstairs this morning and looked in the nursery I saw this:

He put the glider together for me, too  :)  I was very happy to see that in there - it makes it seem even more like a nursery.

The bookcases still need to be stained, but J is going to have to finish them (I did the shelves last weekend) since there is so much pollen outside already. He wants to do them in the garage and with the poor ventilation he doesn't want me doing it.  Only one of the bookcases will be in the room - the other one is for the office upstairs.

Now I'm hoping the dresser will be in there when I get home so I can put his little clothes away.  Maybe we can put the closet organizer together tonight, too.  Seeing it all come together is making me so happy and excited.  And to think that in 3 weeks or so we'll have an actual baby to put in there!

He's staying put for now

I had a doctor's appt this morning which included the GBS test.  There are seriously some drama queens on the bump, because all the doctor did was run a swab "down there".  There was no inserting anything and it was really nothing.  I guess the people who made a huge deal about that test were probably the same ones who wanted to cry about the glucose test and having to drink a sugary drink.  Neither of these tests were a big deal.

Anyway, after the GBS I also had my first internal exam.  Big fun.  She had a little trouble finding the tip of my cervix since it appears to be tucked in.  After some digging (ouch!) she determined that I am a fingertip dilated, 50% effaced, and he is at -2 station.  So he will not be making an appearance anytime soon.

That's fine with me. We just got the carpet installed in the nursery yesterday and will be spending the weekend getting it all put together.  So if the little man wants to hang out in my ute for a few more weeks it is just fine with me.

My doctor did talk to me about inducement today, too.  She said they generally don't want to do a first timer before 39 weeks and they don't want me to go past 41 weeks.  She said that male babies have what they call 'wimpy white boy syndrome' in that white male babies' lungs seem to mature the slowest out of all babies. So they want him to stay in until my due date if possible so his lungs will be ready.  I'd never heard that, but whatever. I don't have an M.D. behind my name so I'll take her word for it.

All in all it was a fine appointment and we scheduled my next two before I left.  So I guess next Wednesday we will see if I have progressed at all.  I'm still in denial about how close we are to this little guy being here.  It's crazy how fast it's all gone!!

36 week check-in

Last night instead of going to the gym I decided to take advantage of the absolutely gorgeous weather (I love Spring!) and went to walk the Ravenel Bridge.  I don't think I've been on it (besides on a bike) since last year's Cooper River Bridge Run.  Since I won't get to do the race this year (which I'm bummed about) I want to at least get in some time on it.

I found it very entertaining that while I was walking up the hill and facing traffic that I was getting a LOT of looks from people sitting in their cars in traffic.  I guess people still aren't used to seeing a pregnant woman out getting some exercise.  I walked for just over an hour and did a little more than 4 miles.  I was so tempted to step it up and run down the hill, but with the way the lady parts are aching from just walking I figured I better play it safe.

While I was walking I paused to take some pictures on the bridge.  I love this one:

And on to my check in:

How far along? 36w3d.  According to my iPhone app he should be around 18.75 inches and 5.75 lbs.  I'm guessing he's closer to 6 lbs if the guess at my last u/s was right.

Weight gain/loss: +28 lbs and less than 4 weeks to go.

Maternity Clothes: Still 50/50.  Shirts are starting to get shorter, though.  This belly definitely grew in the last week!

Symptoms:  The usual stubborn colon and back pain.  Also having more pressure at the bottom of my belly and some fantastic aching in the vag area.  Spectacular.

Labor Signs:  None yet - at least not that I know of.

Gender:  It's a boy!!!

Sleep? Sleep is iffy.  Sunday night and Monday night I woke up at 4:00 AM and couldn't fall back to sleep. Last night I slept wonderfully and feel so much better today.

Best moment this week? Our baby shower this past weekend and celebrating Baby W.  It made me beyond happy to see how excited everyone is about his impending arrival.

Movement: All the time.  He's getting very strong in there.

Food cravings/aversions: Embarrassed to admit I ate an entire bag of peanut butter M&M's in 2 days this week  :(

Belly button in or out? Amazingly it's still hanging on. Please stay in!

Stretch marks?  Still none (yay!)

What I miss? Being comfortable.  My wardrobe.

What I am looking forward to? We're getting the carpet installed in the nursery today so we will be putting the nursery together this weekend. Can't wait!!!

Milestones: 25 days!!

What I'm nervous about: How close it's getting - and not feeling ready.  Oh boy!

Here is a picture from Monday:

Baby Shower Pictures

My sister posted them to FB so I can put some on here now:

Delicious cake. Chocolate on the bottom, white on top, and strawberries and cream between the layers.

Cutting the yummy cake before we hit the presents

Ryan filling out the 'Guess the Arrival Date' game

Jeff guessing how big this kiddo is going to be when born

Preparing to open gifts

Checking out some onesies - all the clothes we received are soooooo cute!

Kayleigh helping me open a present while Kendall scoots away

It's just not a party without balloons (according to Kayleigh).

With my  mom, sisters, and nieces. Kendall is pooped.

With Colleen (I used to work with her) and Karen (who I work with currently - she made the diaper cake).

With some of the group. This was later in the night when some people had already left.

Everyone seemed to have a great time and I am forever grateful for their generosity.  I can't wait until Baby W is here to share with everyone!

Baby Shower

We had our baby shower on Saturday evening. After all the drama about it earlier and me getting all upset with not being included it turns out I was all worked up over nothing.  My sister and friends did a fantastic job and it was perfect.

We ended up having a co-ed shower with about 25 people. Perfect. Not a huge crowd, very laid back, and exactly what I wanted. It was at my old roommate's house, there was beer and wine for the others, some great appetizers, pasta and salad for dinner, and a fantastic cake.  My niece, Kayleigh, who is 3 years old helped me unwrap the presents and had a blast doing it.

My sister has all the pictures on her camera and she is taking her good ol' sweet time posting them, so I don't have much to show here from the party.  I do have these, though:

The diaper cake that my work friend made. So cute - and it smells like baby  :)

One of the games. Guess when he will arrive and the winner gets a $50 giftcard to Applebee's.  Any dates that weren't filled in we get. So I guess if I want a free dinner I have to hope for an early arrival.

Guess the baby's weight.  My old roommate, Joe, picked the >10 lb guess.  If that's the case he better use that $50 Outback giftcard to take me out to dinner - I'll deserve it!

Stack of gifts back at our house.  The big box on the bottom right is our glider.  I still can't believe my sister bought that for us. I only put it on the registry to use the completion discount.  I am beyond grateful for her generosity.  There is also our pack n play, highchair, travel swing, a carton of diapers, and a carton of wipes in the picture.

More baby loot stacked in our office.  Some of this was stuff we'd already gotten, but all the bags are full of stuff.  I was overwhelmed by the generosity of our families and friends.

All his clothes that I got out and arranged by sizes.   

So far we have:

19 3-6 month onesies

20 6-9 month onesies

4 newborn size onesies

7 3-6 month sleepers

9 6 month size pants

8 3 month size pants

13 bibs

I think I need to pick up some 0-3 month onesies, but we are well on our way with the clothes.

There are some necessities that we're still going to have to go get, but we did get a lot of great gifts.

All in all it was a great celebration of Baby W - he is already so loved by everyone and it makes me so happy  :)

These things will probably never be the same again

The jeans I'm wearing today that is.  They are non-maternity and I discovered that I can actually zip and button them without the use of a hairband or bella band today.  Of course I am sure that I am stretching the hell out of the waistband of them and when I try to wear them after junior is here they are going to be a mess.  But it IS a nice little boost to my self esteem to be able to button them. It's the little things...

On a completely unrelated note - take a look at the assortment of food on one of our kitchen counters right now:

This is the crap that my in-laws bring with them when they come to visit.  Giant bags of popcorn, chocolate covered cherries, Pringles, white bread, giant muffins, and full sugar soda (not pictured).  The one healthy item in this picture, the bananas, are mine.  And my mother-in-law wonders why she can't lose the extra 40 lbs she's carrying and was just diagnosed diabetic.  Eat a piece of fruit for crying out loud!

I guess this explains where J gets his crap eating habits from.  I do succeed in getting him to eat fruits and vegetables, though, and we don't eat fried stuff very often.  Not the case in his parents house.  I'll just have to make sure this kiddo takes after me with the healthy eating.  He's gotten enough produce throughout this pregnancy that hopefully he is born loving it. Fingers crossed.

One more month!!!

Wow.  I'm not sure what else to say. 

I know this last month is going to be a crazy flurry of activity so it's going to fly by.  I'm trying to enjoy this time as much as I can, but with the level of discomfort escalating it's getting a little tougher.  Last night I was standing in the middle of the living room with what must have been a distraught look on my face.  When J asked what was wrong I just said "It shouldn't be this difficult to maneuver around and do stuff.".  His response?  "Of course it should - you're carrying a human inside of you."  So that made me feel a tiny bit better - knowing that he gets it.

What also made me feel better last night was finally getting some validation at the gym.  I ran into the one trainer who is certified in pre and post-natal training (not sure what that certification entails, but whatever).  She asked when I am due and said that I am doing a great job with staying active and that she loves to see expectant moms exercising and that it's good for me and the baby.  It was nice to hear that since all of my friends and my mom and sisters are always saying "You need to relax and stop going to the gym" or "You shouldn't be doing that".  Hearing some positive reinforcement from a woman who has 5 kids of her own (and she was tiny!) that I am doing the right thing put a little spring in my step for my workout.  No running last night - just the stairclimber - but it still felt great.

And finally - I'd like to give a little shout out to my labor buddy, Mrs. Monica, for designing a badge for us for thebump message boards. 

She did a great job, don't you think?

"So you can milk both at once?"

Yep - that's what my husband said about my breast pump that arrived in the mail yesterday.  I got this one:

The Ameda Purely Yours with carry all.  I did research, read reviews, shopped around, and I figure this one will serve it's purpose very well.

Of course now, based on his comment, I am picturing myself hooked up to this thing like a dairy cow.  Great visual.

I also bought this for our little guy:

The 'My First Snoopy' cuddle puppet.  I figure he'll need something to snuggle with and for $9 I couldn't pass it up.  I realize it will be covered in drool and baby spit in the blink of an eye and won't be nearly as cute as it is now, but I still love it.

Last night a friend came over to help J move all the dressers and stuff out of the nursery. He set up my queen sized bed in there for his parents for this weekend and they will have to help him take it down before they leave on Sunday because I believe our carpeting is being installed on Monday (finally!!!).

I had a mini freak-out last night about all the stuff that needs done still.  J is way more calm about things. Probably because he isn't the one lugging a bowling ball around in his gut all day as a constant reminder.  So as much as I want him to be here (both so I can hold him in my arms and so I can go back to feeling more like me) I need him to stay in until his due date.  32 more days...

And just because they make me smile, here is a picture of some of the daffodils in our flower bed. 

Spring is my favorite season so I love seeing these come up every year.  It's the little things that make me happy  :)

35 week check in

Let me just say that I am definitely starting to feel the effects of this pregnancy.  Part of me can't wait until it's over so I can go back to feeling normal - or whatever my new normal will be at least.  The other small part of me is panicking since we still have a lot to do and less than 5 weeks until the due date.  If we don't get moving and finish that nursery we are going to be in trouble.  Babies can sleep in laundry baskets, right?  (I kid, I kid!)

Anyway, with the lack of sleep, aches and pains, and a 5 1/2 pound fetus using my bladder for a punching bag I am not the ray of sunshine I'd like to think that I normally am.  Poor J has been a very good sport about putting up with my cranky ass lately - he deserves a prize.

And on to my check in:

How far along? 35w2d.  At the u/s last week he measured ~ 5 lbs 7 oz.  If that's right he's probably weighing in at a hefty 6 lbs right now and about 18 inches long.  Don't get too big in there, buddy!

Weight gain/loss: +27 lbs with less than 5 weeks to go. My 30 lb goal doesn't look doable, but I should be able to keep it under 35.

Maternity Clothes: Still 50/50.  Non-maternity pants today.  It's getting harder and harder to find things to wear that don't make me feel like a whale, though.

Symptoms:  Some stellar BH contractions on Sunday, I hate my colon, and my lower back has started aching.

Labor Signs:  None yet - unless waking up at 5:00 AM with bad back pain is one.

Gender:  It's a boy!!!

Sleep? Sleep sucks. Even though I'm tired when I go to bed it's hard to fall asleep.  And I suck at napping so I am doomed when this kid gets here.

Best moment this week? The growth u/s on Thursday and getting to see our little guy again.  So odd to think that the next time we see him it will be in the flesh. No more fuzzy black and white pictures.

Movement: All the time.  Found out at the u/s that his back is to the right side of my belly so that's why I feel most of the movement on the left side.  And he gets hiccups a lot.

Food cravings/aversions: Starburst sour jelly beans have been my downfall this week.

Belly button in or out? Stretched beyond any recognition as a belly button, but it still hasn't popped.  Please hang on for another 5 weeks!

Stretch marks?  Still none on my belly. And I continue to lotion up like it might actually do something to prevent them. 

What I miss? Not feeling like shit because I can't take one.  9 months of constipation is ridiculous.

What I am looking forward to? Baby shower this weekend - kind of.  It means his parents will be in town and we don't really have the room for them to stay at the house but I'm sure they will be. They are very nice people, but they get on my nerves sometimes and my nerves are already shot.

Milestones: Hitting 35/35 on Sunday.

What I'm nervous about: Not recognizing labor signs and not realizing when it starts. Probably a stupid fear, but it's what's on my mind at the moment.

And a bump pic from this morning:

The joys of painting

This weekend we were determined to knock out the painting of the guest room.  Of course on Friday when I told my sister this I got the "You're not supposed to be doing that. Let J do it" lecture from my sister.  Well, unless the Benjamin Moore fairy is going to show up and do it for us then I'm going to have to help out.

As a disclaimer - the windows are open and the fan is on while we are painting. And the stuff doesn't even smell.

Anyway, on Friday night he got to work caulking the crack between the crown molding and the ceiling.  Saturday morning while he was doing his 58  mile bike ride I re-primed over the caulking so the paint would go on evenly.  This was just after the dude came to measure for the carpet.

Once he was done being Lance Armstrong for the day (except for the whole one nut thing) he got changed and got to work on rolling the ceiling.  I supervised.  And pointed out any spots that needed to be gone back over.  When he finished rolling I went around the edge with the paint brush.  Edging sucks, by the way.

Here is what it looked like with the ceiling painted:

Sunday morning we got up and decided to get to work on the walls.  With both of us rolling we were able to get a coat on in about 45 mins.  Unfortunately during this time I think I was experiencing some BH contractions so I wasn't the happiest painter in the world.

Here is one coat - not trimmed out:

We thought it looked like melted chocolate ice cream when we poured the paint out.

Then we went to work with the edging. Did I mention that edging completely sucks??

After about 3 hours we went back to do the second coat.  I was still miserable, but decided to be a trooper and help out. I am determined to get this room done so the carpet can be installed.

It looks like it's going to need a third coat of paint, but he plans on having his parents do it when they get here for the shower this weekend.  His mom will paint the crown and the rest of the trim, too. Thank god - because that part sucks even worse!

I was worried about the darkness of the color (this is paint we got that was the wrong color for a previous room so we decided to use it).  But, the room gets lots of light, it looks really sharp against the white trim, the carpet is going to be lighter, and we'll get a light colored comforter for that bed to add some brightness.

All in all it was a productive weekend and we are that much closer to having it done. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we can get the carpet installed on Friday.  If we do I will be setting the crib up in the nursery either Friday night or Saturday morning. My patience is about gone!