37 weeks down... Merry Christmas

So... this post is a little late, but things have been pretty busy because of Christmas. Unfortunately, Santa didn't bring me what I really wanted this year... a beautiful, healthy baby girl and an awesome tax break, but I'm still keeping my fingers crossed that she will come soon.

Like I said, this last week has been busy. I have been winding things down with work, getting ready to make my exit just in case. Luckily, I've been able to take off all of next week so I can get in some final days of resting and nesting. With winding work down, there have been a lot of little projects that I've needed to wrap up in order to be able to pass everything on. Luckily, I'll have some good support while I'm out of the office and it shouldn't be too bad to come back to.

With Christmas this week, I feel like I've been eating non-stop. I'm a little worried about the look on my doctor's face when she sees me step on the scale next time. I feel huge... probably because I am huge. I waddle 100% of the time these days, and my belly is so heavy that I find myself leaning back to support it. I feel like I've gained weight all over too. My legs and face seem bigger, and of course the swelling of my hands and feet isn't helping much.

Scott and I have officially started baby boot camp, trying to work this little girl down. We've been walking more and more, I've been eating the spiciest of foods and trying to explore new ideas to jump start labor. So far, the spicy food has only upset my stomach, but the walking has lead to more braxton hicks contractions. The other night, while we were out on our walk, I got the strongest contractions yet. I literally felt like I was going to pee my pants. I very seriously contemplated making a pit stop in the bushes, but luckily no extreem measures were taken and I made it home okay.

Scott and I also got a little excitement this past Tuesday with some false labor. After I had gotten up from the couch I noticed a couple of contractions and felt a sudden gushing sensation. I literally thought that I may have broken my water, but wasn't sure because I expected more out of it and the contractions didn't seem to be getting stronger. Just to be safe, I called the hospital and they had me come in to see if I was leaking amniotic fluid. While they said it was good that I came in just to be safe, the did make me feel a little stupid when they asked me if I might have just peed my pants. I don't know what it was, but I assure everyone that I didn't pee my pants... at least I think :). It was nice to get to hear her heartbeat again and see how some of my contractions were registering. It looks like my body is slowly but surely preparing myself for the big day.

On another note, big sister Mya has been absolutely terrible lately. I think that she notices that there is a big change about to take place and has been acting out by being destructive. She has managed to jump on the counter and heat entire plates of cookies (plastic plates included), as well as tissue, a bottle of Tums and opened up a few Christmas presents for us. Scott and I are trying our best to give her lots of attention and work her into this whole baby thing, but she isn't making it any easier on herself. I think we might need the dog whisperer.

Hopefully, labor is just around the corner. I am getting more and more excited for the entire Mommy experience by the day.

I absolutely can't wait to meet you little girl, I already love you with all of my heart!

Weekly belly photo taken at 37 weeks and 2 days... pretty sure the belly enters the room 5 seconds before I do :) With each day I feel her getting bigger and stronger, prepping herself for her entrance into the world.

And I just had to include a picture of Mya trying to look innocent and adorable. At this moment, she is probably exhausted from eating 5 lbs of Christmas cookies and the plates they came on. Bless her goofy little heart, we love her anyway.

36 weeks... aka 9 months!

I'm officially 9 months pregnant!

When looking back at the past 9 months, I can't believe how much our lives have changed already. These days, much of our life is centered around this baby. Whether we're prepping for the baby, decorating for her, shopping for her or just talking about the baby it really doesn't matter because she is always on our minds. I love looking through and reading some of my older posts. My belly has gotten so huge!!! It makes me laugh when I see pictures of it because it really looks like I have a basketball stuffed under my shirt. I'm excited to see what more my body is capable of, I'm sure I'll be really impressed once all is said and done.

The last week has really been full of exhaustion. I am literally not sleeping anymore. This is in part due to my rash, my acid reflex and all of the other pleasant pregnancy side effects that I have going on. Because of my insomnia, I have found myself doing a lot more nesting. I've been doing tons of laundry and folding and refolding all of her clothes. Her room is really starting to look so good! I can't wait to see her in it.

Other than that, there haven't been a ton of new things going on. It is definately feeling like winter outside and the holidays are just around the corner. We have had tempatures below freezing for the past couple of days and it has made walking outside a little dangerous. I actually slipped and fell pretty hard yesterday. It absolutely scared me half to death because I landed right on my side, partially on my belly. Luckily she started moving right away so I knew she was okay, but just to be on the safe side, I called my doctor and double checked. She reconfirmed that our baby girl was fine as long as baby girl was still moving, and I wasn't bleeding or having contractions or anything.

I can't wait for Christmas and New Years... it's going to help the next couple of weeks go by faster and then soon there after we'll be getting the best gift of all. This will be the first year that we aren't spending heading over to Tri-Cities at all for Christmas. It will be a little different spending Christmas morning just the two of us, but I'm actually kind of looking forward to it. It will be nice and relaxing for once, but I'll still miss some of the holiday chaos that the rest of the family will be enjoying.

Here is a picture of me at 36 weeks wearing the same shirt as 32 weeks... look at the difference in just a month!

35 weeks pregnant and PUPPS!

Ahhhh! I can't believe that I'm 35 weeks pregnant already. I am so excited for this baby! I keep dreaming about what she will look like, holding her for the first time and welcoming her into our family. In just a few weeks, we will have a daughter and our lives will be changed for the better.

As excited as I am getting for this baby girl to come, I am also getting almost as excited to not be pregnant anymore. Over the last week I have developed PUPPPs which stands for "pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy" aka not fun... not fun at all. PUPPPs is a rare rash that sometimes developes late in pregnancy for some women and usually is centralized around the belly. Lucky for me, I have developed an extra bad case of it and it has spread all the way to my hands and ankles. The worst part about it is that it itches like crazy! Sleeping has become near impossible and it doesn't sound like it will be getting any better any time soon. Needless to say, I could do without this annoying, unsightly rash.

Here is a picture of my left shin... the rash gets wors the closer it gets to belly, but I'm not willing to bare it all on the internet.



With this rash has come more doctor's appointments, which I don't really mind because I always love to hear her heartbeat and to check on how she is doing. Luckily, everything looks good. Her heartbeat is strong, she is still moving a ton and PUPPPs actually isn't dangerous for mom or baby. At my last doctor's appointment I was surprised to learn that I had actually lost 2 pounds. The doctor assured me that this most likely was just due to the fluctuation in the amount of water I have been retaining. Either way I'll take it! My next appointment is scheduled for next Friday and depending on how I'm feeling I might be checked to for early signs of labor!!! :)

This has been such a journey! I still have a few more weeks to go, but I can't believe that the bid day is almost here!

34 weeks down

Today I am officially 34 weeks and 3 days pregnant. I think it's safe to say that I am slowly starting to lose my mind. Sleeping has become very tough. When I do finally find a comfortable position at night, I am usually woken up by my acid reflex, braxton hicks contractions, the baby kicking or my skin itching. I have also noticed that breathing has started to become more and more difficult. All of my insides are completely squished.

I've been told that there are specific reasons pregnant women are supposed to be uncomfortable towards the end of pregnancy. I guess it makes us even more excited for our babies to be born. And apparently the lack of sleep is supposed to prepare us for waking up in the middle of the night with a new born. I don't know all about that... I'd be excited either way, and it would be nice to get some quality sleep before she comes!

Work as become tougher and tougher. I literally dread Thursdays when I have to walk around the departments and pass out paychecks. Just getting out of my chair has started to take a lot of effort. Every time I walk up stairs I sound like I've just run a marathon because of how hard I'm breathing.

I'm definitely starting to feel ready for this baby to come! Her room is almost together and it looks so cute. We've almost got all of my paperwork in order for taking my maternity leave and preregistering for the hospital. I can't believe how real this is all becoming! I'm so excited! All of these aches and pains are about to pay off and I'll have a beautiful baby girl to show for them.

I love you already baby girl. You've stolen my heart! Now please just hurry up and get here, because you're hurting my back :)