week 38.. still hanging in there!

Today marks 38 weeks. The last few weeks havent been so bad, but I guess with a possible 2 weeks left.. there is still time for the tears and feelings of being pregnant forever to come!
I really am still content with being pregnant. I am not terribly uncomfortable..maybe because I have only gained 20 pounds, which doesnt sound like too much being at the end of the pregnancy road, but it really does get heavy when the baby has dropped (which Finley has). It feels like a big brick stitting on your pelvic bone..lots of pressure and its the worst when you have to pee in the middle of the night..talk about a waddle!! and perhaps the worst about him being so low is that the inside of my legs kill so bad sometimes that I nearly fall to the ground..I have actually fallen to the ground in pain. I am not sure exactly what it is, but its the inner part of my leg where the inner thigh meets the pubic bone.. it feels like it is being ripped off!!!!! I certainly WILL NOT miss that!

Yesterday, we had our car seats re installed at the fire station. I am pretty obsessed with the Mxi Cosi line and zach and I each have one for the car.. his will transition from infant to a 70 pound toddler and mine is a great infant carrier. Its funny to be so excited about car seats, but I cant help it! Car seats are exciting!!

I didnt think I would ever be a woman who would miss a single thing about being pregnant, but last night..for the first time, I really held on tight to the feeling it gave me to have Zach roll over and put his hand on my stomach. I realized that it wont happen for much longer and it only happens for such a short period of your life that I really cherished that moment. You cant really put into words the feeling you get when you feel your baby moving and your husbands hand there as well. Its one of the best feelings in the world and my little family just feels so safe and sweet when we lay like that. I think that is the thing I will miss the most, having everyone right there on me so content and safe!

The other thing I will miss is how freaking nice people are to pregnant women! Its insane!!! I was never nice to a pregnant person.. I always kind of dodged them.. thought they were pretty gross if you ask me. So I was really caught off guard at the amount of people that are drawn to you and then want to be super nice as well! Its just mind boggling! I will miss all that special treatment! Even my crazy satanic boss cant resist being extra nice to me since I am pregnant. If it didnt suck so bad and result in a child, I may just stay pregnant forever. I sort of understand that bat shit crazy Duggard family now....

Now, Finelys arrival. Christmas didnt happen. Thats ok, didnt want it to. Tonight is New years eve and I am not feeling in a laboring mood. I dont feel like today is the day. I think he will be much closer to his due date, if not late! If he hits January 18 and I get a choice to induce...I REALLY want 1/23/12. I am super weird about numbers being in an order and I really like the way 1/23/12 looks! Its strange, but I am drawn to this date and kind of need it... So hold out Finley, I have a good feeling about the 23rd!

Week 37

The countdown is ON! We officially have 19 days left until Finleys due date!!! Its so crazy to think that we are SO close! We have been told that I probably wont make it until my due date, but the closer it gets, the more I think he may just come on time or be a little late! I am fine with being pregnant for 19 more days.. I honestly have a good bit of stuff left to do before I feel like everything is 100% in place!
I am not overwhelmed or anxious really (today). If the baby came, he has more than enough stuff to last him his entire first year, but the stuff just isnt ogranized! That will come! I am placing my last restoration hardware order today for organizational things.. bookshelf, hanging shelves, etc.. once that is all in I can finally organize!

I had my stiches removed last Wednesday and everything went great! we arrived at the hospital around 5 am and got settled in. The IV was once again, the worst part! Those stupid nurses literally stuck me 4 times before deciding to call an anesteseologist to come put it in!!! what  a nightmare! I was a little worried and nervous before surgery, but with the help of some fetanoyl I didnt care if they cut my legs off and glued them back on at that point!! I will be requesting fetanoyl on the hour, every hour until my sweet Finn arrives!! My stiches were out in literally 5 minutes and I stayed numb for a good 4-5 hours. Some pretty crazy stuff happened swelling wise that I wont even write down because its just too graphic!!! I was dilated to 1 cm and 50% effaced... My doctor and nurse figured I would go into labor in the next 2 weeks.. sometime in my 38th week, but really... who KNOWS!? Once again, no rush. I am not terribly uncomfortable and the symptoms that do suck, I have adapted! I have been losing what I think is my mucous plug the last few days. Its pretty gross, but also exciting that something is happening!!

We celebrated christmas for what feels like an entire week now! My mom and sister and aunt kitty and Uncle Mike came to town Saturday and we exchanged gifts and had a lovely sit down prime rib dinner.  My sister and husband went out and I went on to bed! 9 months pregnant isnt a great look for the bar! Zach hadnt been out in awhile and I swear it took him 2 full days to recover! I was happy that he really blew it out with all his friends before Finley arrives!
We did christmas eve at his grandmas house and exchanged gifts there as well and had pot roast! We spent the entire christmas day at Zachs parents house. It was relaxing and laid back...until 6 more relatives showed up with a dog and the place got a bit hectic! Hectic is not something you like at 9 months pregnant! But thats family and it was great to be around so many family members!! As far as gifts, zach and I racked up this year! we got so much money and presents for the baby! It was nice because Zach and I decided not to exchange gifts this year. There wasnt anything either of us wanted or needed and with the baby being sio close, we just didnt feel like messing with christmas this year!! We didnt even put out a single decoration! We know next year will be a big year for christmas gifts and decor so we let this one slide!!

I am looking forward to finishing out these last few days or weeks of pregnancy! I just cant believe that at the end of all of this, we get to bring home a baby! It just seems surreal. I am not really sure what exactly it all entails and what it will bring to our daily lives, but to say I am excited is an understatement. I love this little guy so very much and cant wait for all of us to get to know each other!

The home stretch!!!! 36 weeks!

Happy 1 year anniverseary from Perdido Key and our official last vacation before the nugget!

I was 36 weeks yesterday and am feeling every single bit of it. I weighed in at 155 yesterday, giving me an exact 20 pound weight gain so far. I know my 25 pound weight gain for the entire pregnancy is realistic now being that I only have about 3 weeks left... how much damage could we really do in 3 weeks, right!? Fingers crossed!!!
Zach and I went out of town this weekend- back to the condo in Perdido for one last vacation before I cant travel anymore! It was a great weekend just being away, but I started having a lot of back pain when I woke up Saturday and here it is Tuesday and its still lingering! It hurts to cough, sneeze, laugh, tie my shoes...the list just goes on. Back pain in the third trimestester is a fucking bitch!!!
I was in so much pain yesterday that I went in to see my doctor... I am 1 cm dilated and my cervix is at a 1.8. My stiches come out tomorrow morning. I am hoping I just go ahead and dilate and have this baby!! He is weighing in at 6 pounds 10 ounces... sounds plenty big to me! Surely he is cooked enough to come on out! We did my first cervical check yesterday- it wasnt bad, but I did cramp and contract throughout the night! It seemed to intensify my back and stomach pain. We timed contractions for about an hour and they were anywhere from 7-14 minutes apart, but never got stronger or consistent so I went on to sleep. I woke up still having random contractions- I am sure they are just the Braxton Hicks contractions, but they are becoming a bit uncomfortable!
Basically, I am done with being pregnant. I ve had it. I am feeling defeated lately and that seems to be an odd emotion because this isnt a race or a game.. I still need to be pregnant for a few more weeks, but everything just hurts and defeat is really the only word I can come up with to describe my feelings lately.
I guess I need to just chill out and relax because either way, we really dont have THAT much longer to wait.I go in for my cerclage removal tomorrow morning at 5 am and really anything can happen from there! My prediction is a christmas baby, a new years baby, or a baby that is 2 weeks past his due date!!! I am really hoping for my first two guesses!
Finley, baby, please please please dont linger past your due date, ok? Early would be great..on time would be ok, but late will just be unacceptable! I love you and am ready to play!


9 months..yep, bikini and all!



week 35



my big ole foot.. 34 w 3 days! weighing in at 5lbs 12 ounces


Week 35 was uneventful. I was tired from the long weekend that we had and really just did a lot of laying around all weekend! Friday night zach and I got a dozen doughnuts from Krispy Creme and laid on the couch watching movies! I literally slept until 12:30 on Saturday, which I havent done in months! Heartburn still sucks and I am getting tired again mid day. We had our doctor appointment on 12/5 and Finley is weighing in at 5 pounds 12 ounces! Healthy little thing! I am weighing in at 153 and just pounds away from hitting the 20 pound mark!!! BREATHE!
lately, I have found a new obsession that has helped pass my time and pregnancy blues... dressing Jose up in Finleys clothes and placing him in his crib and bassinet for photo sessions! It makes me so happy and I laugh so hard I typically pee my pants! Jose is so funny and really doesnt mind it at all! He even started to doze off in the bassinet! Hilarious! I promise to wash and clean everything before Finley arrives!!!!

hello from the womb! nice and cozy!

cutest thing ever!!!!!

week 34

baby shower! 35 weeks!

                                                          

Week 34 was so busy and kind of rough! I have been having a lot of sciatic nerve pain! Finley sits right on that nerve that causes my leg to get the sharp pains! On top of that, I have gotten my first case of swelling! I came home from work and after running around the house, my calves in both of my legs were so swollen and gross! They looked like elephant legs! After a hot bath, laying on my left side, and 2 huge glasses of water..the swelling went down! Heartburn is still worse than ever and I cannot wait until the days when I dont suffer from it anymore!!! I am still peeing on myself when I cough, laugh, sneeze and its actually gotten worse!!! Probably the worst thing so far was throwing up and peeing on myself at the same time. haha..oh well at least I was home!!!!
My appetite has really decreased this week..I get full so fast now! A few bites of something and I am DONE! So I am really focusing on eating healthy snacks every few hours to keep my blood sugar and energy levels up and make sure Finley is getting enough nutrients! I weighed 152.8 this morning. Less than a pound weight gain this week, but thats ok!
Zach and I had a wonderful weekend! We had a wedding in New Orleans on Saturday and stayed at the Ritz. I really overdid it walking around that day and by the time we got to the hotel my legs were swollen and sore! The wedding was a beautiful black tie event and although I was very pregnant, it felt really good to get out all dressed up and socialize.
We drove to Biloxi Sunday morning for our baby shower. We had a wonderful turn out and got so many wonderful gifts for Finley! I managed to squeeze my fat ass into a size 6 vera wang couture dress. My pregnancy is now complete and I give myself full permission to gain the rest of my baby weight! I got into the dress, though tight, got some pictures, but had to unzip it to open gifts!!!! Luckily everyone there understood my pain and gladly accomodated me!!

Our nursery is coming together really nicely! His crib, bedding, rug, dresser and rocking chair are in and set up. The walls and windows are still totally bare, but wont be for long and we have to order a bookshelf! I am just in love with all of his stuff and cannot wait to show him his little room! Its sweet and chic and totally peaceful! I am going to have one spoiled little man!

Work in progress!