COME OUT!!!!

Come out….Come out…..Come out!!!!!!

39 weeks and 3 days. I am more pregnant than I have ever been and I want to meet my baby!!!! This waiting game is  mind numbing! I knew not to focus on the 38-39wk since every pregnancy is different….told myself to think of Jan 14th as the date (42wks), BUT it didn’t work. I honestly expected to have this baby early. Even my midwives kept telling me to be prepared. Hmph!

I’m trying to enjoy these last few days/weeks being pregnant. I honestly still feel great and can’t believe how easy this pregnancy has been. Hell I can still do a small sit-up if I try (my midwife was impressed with my ab control at my last appt when I went from lying down to standing up in a hot second to grab Harper away from some things….only time in my life my abs will be complimented! haha!). I have no swelling and can easily walk decent distances with little discomfort. All in all there isn’t much to complain about.

But I’m still complaining!

I’m tired of waddling, tired of the comments everyone feels they have the right to make, tired of the waiting game!!!! Contractions have increased 10 fold and little one has dropped WAY down (oh the pressure!). Almost every night I’m woken with tons of contractions and discomfort…..my hopes get up…..by morning they are gone. UGH! I am way too type A for this unknown! I can’t take the mind game! My midwife appt is today and I think they will offer me an internal (they don’t typically do them until you hit your due date). I know they don’t mean anything but I’m pretty sure I’ll go ahead with it. If anything I’m curious where I stand from the point of view of do I need to hurry to the hospital when things get going. If I’m 1-2cm then I can take it slow…if I’m walking around at 4-5cm then I don’t think I should diddle-dawdle! 🙂  My midwife told me last week that I could request a membrane sweep this week if wanted…..I thought about it but I’m just really uncomfortable with any non-natural intervention. If baby isn’t ready then baby isn’t ready and trying to force my hand can just result in stalled labor. Not worth it. Kiddo will come out eventually (right?!). It is a full moon tonight so maybe that will do the trick?!?! 🙂

39wk pic:

Weekly Update:

• How far along? 39wks 3 days
• How big is baby? 7lbs and 20in. Still a watermelon!
• Total weight gain/loss: approx (+) 26lbs….One pound until I hit my weight with Harper. Come out kiddo!! 😉  I’m sure the Christmas food has not been helping!
• Stretch marks? Nope! Officially 1 inch wider than I was with Harper!
• Sleep: Same o’l , Same o’l
• Best moment this week: Christmas!
• Movement: Not much room but kiddo can still rock it!
• Food cravings: Horseradish sauce!
• Gender: Team Green!
• Labor Signs: Constant contractions and pressure. False labor STINKS!
• Belly Button in or out? Little outie. Yuck!
• What I miss: not feeling like a waddling whale!
• What I am looking forward to: Labor!
• Weekly Wisdom: All medical knowledge flies out the window when it is your own baby that is sick! 😦
• Milestones: Almost to due date….come on kiddo!!!

In non-baby news: We had a great Christmas! Unfortunately Harper got her first major illness a few days before and was down for most of the holiday…but we still enjoyed being together! After 4 days of high fever (103-104) Dan and I really feared RSV or the Flu and were in a complete panic on what to do if I did go into labor on the holiday. Everyone we know that can take Harper while we are at the hospital either have small children or are pregnant. Two populations I don’t want around those viruses! Not to mention how Dan would have to move into a hotel with Harper until the bug was cleared (8-10 days AFTER fever breaks for RSV!!!!). Stress levels were a little high! Luckily all tests came back negative so it was just a normal resp. bug…..and we caught a massive ear infection in one ear (her first!) 😦   We have been lucky to make it 2 1/2 yrs without having to put her on antibiotics…..just wish it could have been longer! Good news is that after the first dose of antibiotics we got her fever down to 100 and it completely broke by 24hrs!! Yay! Now to clear up her cough!

Even with a raging fever she still enjoyed tearing apart all her gifts. She would tear the paper off of one…toss it aside and ask for “more presents!”. Haha! Spoiled little girl got a massive dollhouse with dolls, balance bike, baby doll highchair & crib, books, movies, Mr & Mrs Potato Head (the clear winner of the day!), clothes, puzzles…….it was pretty ridiculous! It is so hard to control myself with presents. I always start shopping early and then forget what all I’ve bought until I pull it out to wrap. Plus the holidays are just so amazing with little ones. Watching them enjoy the magic of the season can warm even the grinches heart!  The only thing Harper isn’t so crazy about is Santa 😉  She loves looking at pictures, reading books, seeing him in movies….but the real thing is a no-go!! We tried to get a picture but she was NOT letting me go so we instead made it into a family photo (if I had known that would happen we would have actually dressed appropriately and done hair/makeup!). As you can tell Harper still wasn’t happy about the idea 😉

I am loving having my little family of 3.75 back together!!! 🙂

38 weeks…

Ok kid. I will admit it…I am DONE being pregnant! Time to get this show on the road!

With Harper I always assumed I would go late so I put 42wks in my head so I wouldn’t get that anxious feeling too early. It worked and I was shocked when my water broke at 38wk5d! Great surprise! 🙂  I tried the same trick this time….but it didn’t work. In the back of my mind 38wk+ was always there. I think if you go a little early with the first baby you expect automatically to go early with the second. Now we are officially in the 38wk period and I am so anxious it is insane!

Part of me wants to calm down and really enjoy these last few days/weeks. I do love being pregnant and have a really easy time during pregnancy so I know how much I will miss it once this little one makes it’s appearance. I’ll miss the kicks, hiccups, punches…and just having him/her all to myself everyday. Knowing he/she is always safe. I think the last 6 1/2 months of unknown and stress though has worn me down and I am tired of waiting on everything. Tired of not knowing when something will happen….how it will go. Honestly right now I just want predictability (something not really well known in the military world!). Having Harper to think of and plan for whenever I go into labor also throws a stressor into it! So much easier with your first when you can just head off to the hospital at any time!

I was really hoping that tomorrow would be the day (12/21). My weird sense of humor thought it would be funny to give birth on the “day the world ends”! It could still happen but I’m no longer crossing my fingers. What I really really really really DON’T want to happen is for this to become a true Christmas baby! Monday and Tuesday are OFF LIMITS! Not only do I think that would be a slightly crummy birthday but I also really don’t want to miss Christmas with Harper by being stuck in the hospital! (I also don’t want to inconveniance my doula and people helping care for Harper either!).

The end waiting is truly the hardest part!

38wk pic:

Weekly Update:

• How far along? 38wks 2days
• How big is baby? 20 inches and around 6.5lbs! Same as last week!
• Total weight gain/loss: approx (+) 24lbs
• Stretch marks? Nope! I’m measuring 1/2in wider than I did with Harper at this stage (she was born at 35/5) but still nothing!!!
• Sleep: Decent until about 3am…then I’m wide awake until 6 when I start getting sleepy but Harper is awake! Blah!
• Best moment this week: Still enjoying my family being together!!
• Movement: Still strong! Lots of lower pelvic pain when kiddo moves it’s little head back and forth!
• Food cravings: Loving pineapple (just like with H!) and sweets!!
• Gender: Team Green!
• Labor Signs: Lots of cramping and contractions. Sadly whenever they get a good pattern going (getting my hopes up!) they disappear. ::Sigh:: Guess kiddo just isn’t ready 😦
• Belly Button in or out? A weird small outie. I HATE it!!!!!!!
• What I miss: Being able to cuddle with the hubs! Big ol belly is always in the way!
• What I am looking forward to: Christmas is just a few days away!
• Weekly Wisdom: Don’t focus on one specific day as “the end”….it will drive you mad!
• Milestones: 2 days from hitting the gestation Harper was when she was born!

Full Term!

37 weeks! Kiddo is full term! Holy crap Holy crap Holy crap!

In so many ways I am ready for this kiddo to COME OUT! It has been an amazingly easy pregnancy but things have started getting sore and uncomfortable this past week! I don’t think I have much room left in me! I finally hit the point where turning over in bed at night is a 4 step process that is slightly painful and really annoying. Going up/down the stairs is getting rough and the cramping is driving me nuts!

In so many other ways I am not ready at ALL for this kiddo to make an appearance! I love being pregnant (even with all my gripes above) and it makes me sad to think of not feeling these little kicks and pushes anymore. Right now I don’t have to share this baby with anyone and we are never apart. It is an amazing feeling. I love knowing my little monster is safe & warm at all times! 🙂  Plus I am slightly terrified of being the mommy to two outside kiddos! Totally normal I know but the thought of handling a tiny little newborn AND a crazy toddler each and every day is very overwhelming! Add in the guilt I have about taking attention away from Harper and I am a slight mess 😉

I’ve got a little longer to mentally prepare and enjoy all the little kicks and twists. I am hopeful this kiddo comes before Christmas though! I DON’T want to spend the holiday in the hospital and I love the idea of cuddling up Christmas Eve with my hubby, baby girl and new baby. A family of 4 for Christmas would be the best gift ever!

37wk picture (I’ve given up on my cute little pictures with the chalkboard!)

Weekly update:

• How far along? 37wks!
• How big is baby? 20 inches and around 6.5lbs! The size of a watermelon (that is always a scary fruit to think about!)
• Total weight gain/loss: approx (+) 23lbs….that is a 3lb jump in just a few days so I really think water weight is playing a small role in that number but so far I am on target to gain the 25lbs I aimed for and hit the same weight I was when I had Harper. No more…no less! That is my goal!
• Stretch marks? Nope! I’m bigger around than I was with Harper and things are getting itchy but so far so good!!!
• Sleep: Horrible horrible horrible! I can’t turn over anymore and my hips start aching pretty quickly. The snoogle is still a lifesaver but I can’t claim to have great sleep!
• Best moment this week: Dan came HOME!!!!!!!!
• Movement: Strong pushes and nudges constantly. They are pretty painful at this stage! Little one is always head down with it’s butt almost always on my right side and legs on left. It is in perfect position for labor…..now just gotta get it to drop!
• Food cravings: Ice cream with brownie! Hmmm…maybe water weight isn’t to blame 😉
• Gender: Team Green!
• Labor Signs: Cramping and random Braxton Hicks….less than I had with Harper at this point though! I don’t think little one is ready yet! The any day now thing is super annoying though! I overanalyze everything!
• Belly Button in or out? Half out! I never got an outie with Harper but this time it has popped! Kinda gross honestly!
• What I miss: Sleep!
• What I am looking forward to: Meeting this kiddo and Christmas with my loves!
• Weekly Wisdom: My husband is amazing!
• Milestones: Full term!!