Two BIG Weeks

Little Miss Addison,

You've continued to prosper with flying colors.  You are a big baby girl...I cannot believe how much you have changed in fourteen short days...just days after you were brought into this world.  Weird.  Mommy is feeling much better also.  My incision is not tape free and ready to face whatever the world has to offer it.  Hopefully, lots of fresh air to help whatever is left heal.  My insides are still fairly sore around my incision though.  We will get there.

You are now 6 pounds 15 ounces.  Little hungry monster!  The nurse asked, "Is your milk in?" And it took all that I had to not sarcastically respond, "She's 10 ounces over her birth weight in two weeks...do you really need to ask that question?"  lol.  Last night you slept 4.5 hours to your first nighttime feeding and then 4 hours till your early morning feeding.  I cannot complain, my love!  The daytime hours are much different.  You are awake wayyyy more this week.  I love it.  You make eye contact with mommy and daddy and we think you are really understanding what we are saying.  You are very alert and sit and watch everything around you.  This world is pretty cool, huh?

You love your swing and frequently stare at the blue hippos in the background.  I will have to take a picture of them, so you know what I'm talking about :)  Your Mommy and Daddy are your biggest fans...we love you oh so much!

..Quote..

As my angel lies asleep in my arms, I'm blogging one handed.  I clicked one of the home decorating blogs I read and found a post about being a Mom.  She repeats 'it's worth it' several times and I hope I always remember that.  But at the end of her post she said this:

And I also want you to know that being a Mom

is the most important thing you can be.

and there is nothing that compares…

And I must say that it fits my mood to a T right now.  How'd she know I just became a Mom for the first time and I just finished blogging about how rad being a Mom is?

Right This Moment

I want to bottle up these days.  The first few weeks of my daughter's life.  I want her stay tiny forever.  Then, I find myself in a predicament.  I can't wait to see her grow into a little girl...of course, not missing any of the steps along the way.  I cannot wait to get to know her little personality, find her likes and dislikes, and how'd she prefer to sleep and eat.  I know she knows I'm her mommy, but I can't wait till we walk into a crowded place and she grasps tightly onto to me...or maybe she'll be the socialite who could careless.  Or how about the feeling when I walk into the room either at daycare, a friend/relative's house, or school and see her face light up at my presence.

Addie, Mommy cannot wait to grow with you.  I love you more than I ever thought humanly possible.  Your Daddy and I are already so proud of you.  You love holding your tiny head up for as long as you can to see the world around you.  You love laying on Daddy's chest when he doesn't have a shirt on.  If you are "crying" it consoles you right away.  I love watching you two lay together.  You both are my world...everything I've ever wanted and dreamed of laying right next to me in bed.  I want to treasure these moments...and I do, but I fear they're going to leave me before I'm ready to let them go.

No, baby girl, I don't want you to be a 'newborn' forever, but man you make it a tough call my sweetheart.  I knew being a mom was going to be awesome, but I didn't know the extent of that awesomeness.

I love being a Mommy.

Post Eviction Notice

(These posts are going to be long and wordy- they're probably too much for the majority if you, but this blog is also documenting my life for the future!)

Wednesday night came and went...Thursday morning they woke me up at 6 am.  Removed the gel pack and a different doctor from my practice came in.  She made me cry.  lol.  It was early and she stuck this stick inside and broke my water.  The second most painful thing the whole entire trip to the hospital.  The part they didn't tell me- there was a string type deal being attached to the top of my baby's head.  They didn't say that it'd be bleeding when she came out or that there would be a scab there for the next few weeks.  Thanks for that one.  Anyways...yes, I cried.

The string deal monitored baby B (it's weird typing this now since the sex of our child was still unknown at this time), so it was necessary and I'm glad it was there.  Contractions started coming with the water breakage and the Pitocin in my iv.  I signed myself up for the epidural at 3 cm...the nurse in the hall said, "she's ready for the epi already?"  lol, yes woman I am a baby when it comes to pain, I want this to be as enjoyable of a process as it can be, and I will go ahead and sign up early before it's too late.  Now, get me my drugs!  The epi did not hurt at all.  A little pinch and a lot of pressure...but I felt golden.  Well, I was really numb.  Too numb actually, so my doc made us ease up on the dip.  That was OK with me though...I couldn't hold my legs apart for a cervix check.  Just FYI, I despise the feeling of not being able to feel your legs.  It sucked.  I felt SO weird.  I had snuck in a snack of orange jello before I was told I didn't get anything, not even ice chips, and what do you know...Miss Queasy Stomach strikes again.  I got busted for eating...lol...as it all came up.

Here's what you are really reading this long post for...contractions were coming at a steady pace and the baby's heartbeat was dropping at a steady pace.  This happens, I was told, but when it drops after the contraction it's a bad sign.  The heartbeat was dropping drastically...dangerously low.  My All Star nurse, Dina, kept coming in and trying different things to help the baby out.  C-section was obviously the last resort.  I was on oxygen, switching sides, laying flat, they even put a tube up there to get amniotic fluid flowing around the baby, but to no avail the heartbeat kept dropping.  They took me off Pitocin and the baby was OK for awhile, but the contractions weren't coming steady enough to progress labor.  Back on the Pitocin I went and back down the heartbeat went.  They were VERY calm...in all honesty, I couldn't see the monitors (partly b/c they were turned away and partly b/c I was drugged and slept ALL day between nurse/doc interruptions) and learned all these things in about 10 minutes.  Doctor B told me the next day that they tried everything known in medicine to avoid the c section...things they haven't done for years b/c once you get to that point, your efforts are pretty much a lost cause.

In walks my beloved nurse with a hair net...I knew that meant surgery...maybe she was going to go in on another lady's surgery, down went my bed rails...nope, that lady is me.  Me?  Waaaahhhhh.  Then came the tears, like a waterfall.  What was going through my head?  This:  "Why me?  No! Did we try everything?  Can we wait a little while?  My stomach is going to be ruin.  I am going to have surgery...for the first time ever.  It's happening right now?  Is the baby OK?  Is the baby alive?  Will the baby survive?  Wait...I'm going to have SURGERY?!?!?!"  I squeezed the doctor's hand and the nurse's hand.  Please tell me we are going to be OK.  And wham, bam, thank you ma'am there were 5 people in my room running around, asking several questions, tossing Mike scrubs, unhooking my tubes, and rolling me away.  The next 45 minutes were without a doubt THE.SCARIEST moments of my life.  I didn't even feel like it was happening.  I honestly thought I wasn't going to have a baby in my arms anytime soon.  The room was cold, stark white...with two huge bright lights hanging from the ceiling.  There were tools on a table and two women rattling off a checklist.  I laid naked on this 'table' that was hardly as wide as me.  The anesthesiologist sat at my head...talking to me the whole time.  I got a spinal block...he said, "You're going to feel something wet and cold in your back."  Check.  They put up the blue curtain, put oxygen in my face, and began cutting.  The word 'tugging' does absolutely NOTHING for how it feels.  I winced in "pain"...but I didn't feel a thing.  They were down right rough.  The doctors were pushing on my body, cutting through my fibrous layer...it felt like they were cutting tendons, but again, I didn't feel anything.  Ugh.  As I laid there, I felt pressure and a pop on my left side...at the top of my uterus...I heard/felt pop, push, gush, gurgled cry, again, and finally, BIG CRY.

The moment they lifted her up I felt a sigh of relief- the baby is OK and the baby is here.  I have an OUTSIDE baby!!!!  Doctor B said, "What is it Dad?"  And Mike paused, "It's uh..."  Then as he got his bearings and "it's a girl" came out.  He sat down gave me a kiss and I said, "Hurry up, go take pictures, you're going to miss everything."  Poor guy had NO CLUE what to expect...I only know from watching A Baby Story on TLC...he didn't watch those with me.  He seemed terrified of breaking the rules...just unsure of his role in an operating room/during surgery.  Then they brought her to my face...#1 reason a c-section sucks:  not holding your baby the very first time you are able to see him/her, after 9-10 long months carrying your baby in your belly.  On the flip side, it wasn't but 10 minutes max before they had her in my arms in my post surgery room (all recovery rooms were full/being cleaned).

Our precious baby girl was born on March 17, 2011 at 3:22 pm weighing 6 lbs 5 oz and 19 in long.  Welcome to the world Addison Irene!!  Her name comes from the street Wrigleyfield is on and my Nana''s middle name. 

One Week Old

Holy cow, Addison time flies.  Look, you are already a week old and Mommy hasn't even told the blog world what happened with your delivery.  Let's just say, you keep me busy these days.  And I love every minute of it.

Addison had her 'One Week Checkup' on Wednesday.  We met with her pediatrician, Dr. Neilsen (*side note: I have a childhood family friend with this woman's exact name...crazy), who will grow with our peanut.  It's kind of cool to me to think that my child has the possibility of having the same doctor her whole life.  Mike and I would like to try really hard to stay in the same area for the entirety of our child's life...something I didn't have as a child.   She is a great doctor, I feel.  The receptionist when I checked out said, "Congratulations- on your little girl and Dr. Neilsen, she doesn't accept new patients."  I was dumbfounded b/c I didn't do a single thing to get her.  I simply went with recommendations and told the hospital that was the doctor we wanted.  I called on Monday to schedule an appointment and wham, bam, thank you ma'am I got "in" with the tough doctor.  When knew?  Only the best for YOU, Miss Addie.

So our pumpkin is perfect :)  She has gained almost all of her weight back, weighing in at 6 lbs 4 oz!  Yayyy for my milk coming in!  All her parts checked out great- her eyes, ears, head, heart, lungs, and whatever else.  She woke up b/c I had to get her nakey and stayed bright eyed for the doctor.  She even pooped to prove her bowels were right on the money.  And now we know for certain she's ours...a pooping, tooting machine.  That's our Addie.  We prefer her to wear the premie diapers, as they fit her little no butt best.  She pretty much sleeps, "plays," poops and starts back over again.  We usually go down for bed after our 9 pm feeding then I am up every 3 hours like clockwork.  Miss Addie could sleep for longer, but this momma has milk and needs to feed.  So, we are up at midnight, 3 am, and 6 am...I've been getting 7 hours of sleep at night.  IF I could fall asleep after the 6 am feeding, it'd get more.  But I cannot.  I am a morning person and am bright eyed and bushy tailed once the sun is up.  She is a smiley girl.  I'm trying to catch it on camera.

(pics to come)

Operation Eviction

Alright- I'm back!  Sorry for the delay.  I had/have had every intention of blogging and updating everyone little by little as the days pass, but I swear I blink and it's 9 pm- time for our "last" feeding of the day and bed.

Operation Eviction went down like this.  My doc appt was on Wednesday morning.  A non-stress test for baby and a quick check of the cervix.  We found out Baby B was not stressed, I was still at 1 cm and my cervix was nice n' thick.  Neither of the later statements meant labor was anytime soon.  I was super upset b/c Mike had off Thurs-Fri-Sat and then was back on the schedule for SIX days.  I just knew I'd go into labor while we was away.  I asked about induction options and she looked me straight in the eyes and pretty much said, "Are you kidding me?  You are only 40 weeks and 1 day, we don't look into those options until you're at least 41 weeks."  That hope was shot down.  The doc wouldn't even strip my membranes.  Bummer.  I sent out a text letting everyone know that I would not be having the baby today (being Wednesday, March 16th).

This was the 5th doc I've seen at my practice...I was only missing one more as there are 6 total.  BUT since this was a new doc I had to re-explain that I'm measuring small, I've had ultrasounds that prove everything is OK, I'm just little.  She measured me at 1 cm less than the week before (red flag #1), six inches less than a typical woman at 40 weeks (red flag #2), and my ultrasound was a month "old" (red flag #3) meaning I needed an update.  So, we went in for an ultrasound.  Everything looked fine.  She said the fluid level was normal and the baby looked healthy.  Whew!

I sat in the room waiting for the doc to return to tell me any sort of news.  She kinda took awhile.  (my door was open at this point, I was dressed and ready to know what the future held for us...as I'm fighting back tears b/c my baby wasn't coming today).  After the ultrasound the tech looks up the averages of fetuses baby B's age and compares.  Apparently, our little bean was in the 40th percentile in Feb and dropped to the 20th percentile in March.  HUGE red flag.  The further details are that baby B's head and limbs measure much closer to what they 'should' be (the head measured as a typical 39 w 6 d old).  But the abdomen was where the issue stood.  This was reason enough for them to believe the baby wasn't prospering in utero.  Maybe it was the placenta, the umbilical cord, or just a small baby, but nonetheless the baby needed out.  She told me I didn't need to go to Children's Mercy of Chicago, but if I felt it necessary, it was my call in the end.  I told her we were fine to deliver locally.  And just like that we were schedule for an induction at 6 pm.

I called Mike in a panic...tears streaming down my face.  It's not everyday you hear that your baby isn't growing inside you anymore.  Honestly, you can't help but question yourself.  What did I do wrong?  What could I have done differently?  Am I not eating enough/the right foods?  When I finally got ahold of hubsy, who was flying until 4 pm and coming home, thank heavens, I said, "Hun, looks like we are having the baby tonight."  The funny thing is, I couldn't have been more wrong :)
We arrived at the hospital fashionably late b/c Mike's flight was delayed.  No big deal to anyone- whew.  We got checked in, settled in our sweet room, and prepared for a long night.  Still at 1 cm and thick, my nurse told me we were in this for the long haul.  They put the tiny, tampon like, gel pack on my cervix to start contractions.  I guess it worked, but they weren't strong enough for me to feel = they didn't count.  They stayed there for 12 hours (overnight)...and we tried to sleep.  I also got my IV that night...I almost passed out.  This was THE MOST PAINFUL thing about my whole entire visit. Mike told me I was the color of my hospital gown and the nurse ordered me some apple juice!

{My labor coach :) I swear, I cannot live without this man.}

{Still looking chipper, this must be early on}

Now We're Forty, Lordy, Lordy!

Like I've said before, I never thought I'd see this day come and go and still have a baby in my belly.  It doesn't necessarily frustrate me like one would think.  Hubby isn't home, so that's the number one issue.  I'm overly sentimental and emotional lately.  I daydream about the moment of my last push, the doctor announcing what our little bean is, looking at Mike and at our baby, having the baby placed on my chest, and giving daddy love from my position in bed.

So, little bean, where ya at?

{Oh that's right...in my belly}

I started to get upset about the baby not being here.  Then I take a deep breath, count to ten, and realize that this lil guy or girl will come out when the time is right.  Maybe this bebe needs to cook a little longer.  Maybe the baby knows daddy isn't home yet.  I could go on with 'maybes' and 'what ifs.' This morning (like every morning) I checked thebump.com's March 2011 Moms message boards.  There was a post about two other moms due today that had absolutely no progress at their last weeks doc appointment and therefore, know it's safe to assume there's no progress now.  (Although that's not always the case b/c one day there is going to be more progress than the last.)  It might be sad to admit, but I was so relieved that there were at least two other women out there paddling my same canoe.  I know I'm not alone, but it's easy to look around and pout thinking "golly gee...that lady had her baby, so did that one, oh, and so did she."  lol.  Every time I see an infant seat my heart skips a beat!  Mine will soon be riding along with me too.

And at about that moment in time, I remember that I need this rest and all the sleep I can get.  I need to spend time in our new home doing as much as I can to prepare for our official move in.  There are errands that need to be ran and other small tasks that will aid in the completion of our home.  To be quite frank, I am exhausted just thinking about it all.  However, on the other hand I need this baby outta me so I can get other things done (painting, cleaning, lifting, moving).  

Baby B, let's get this show on the road :)

Love.Our.House

I cannot believe we own this place.  We have a small part of Chicago.  It is ours!  I cannot wait until the 'moving in' part happens and our things will fill the empty space.  I get giddy just thinking about it.  Now this all could happen IF...if only our baby would grace us with his/her presence!  I hate to put any sort of pressure on the tiny being.  We really shouldn't start that this early :)  Maybe if Baby B feels any sort of pressure on the arrival he/she will never come out.  Ugh.  I'm beginning to feel like there is no end.  I honestly don't think either of us thought I'd be sitting here on the couch facing my due date TOMORROW.  Nope.  Definitely thought I'd have my little bean in my arms.  Little stinker.

{Unlocking our front door with our very own key for the first time.  Yes, my sister Caitlin is calling me...and for the record, this is why I ignored the call!}

{Oh heyyy...just hanging out in my new house.}

{SO much is changing before our very eyes...hopefully, it slows down a little, so we can enjoy it!}

{Our living room..LOVE the color...yayy!}

{Other half of the living room...blinds are up next!}

{Dining area into the kitchen}

{We went with a white kitchen...and I cannot wait to decorate!}

My new phrase is keeping life 'spicy.'  I don't really know how else to describe our life.  If life were a Bloody Mary, it'd be the one you can make at the "make your own bloody mary bar" with Worcestershire, horseradish, jalapenos, and hot sauce (the kind at Z Tejas, Nichole!).  Yeah, it's that spicy! ha ha.  We just don't know what's going to happen next, we have a boat load of stuff to do.  Not to mention, I'm looking for a job and trying to get certified to teach in IL at the same time.

Baby B's living the good life apparently...and has no desire to come out.  I promise, my sweet child, that I'm much better on the outside.  My insides might make some pretty soothing noises, but the outside world is filled with all sorts of wonderful things.  Mommy, Daddy, and Gracie for starters...and several others who cannot wait to love you!

{Look- Baby B...we even have your room all painted and waiting for you}

{It's a beautiful light yellow...gender neutral, of course}

Maybe my next post will be "BABY B HAS ARRIVED."  Until then...we're still prego!

H|O|M|E|O|W|N|E|R|S

How nuts is that?  We are officially homeowners.  I just signed my name 9 billion times.  I sat in 'Closing Room 6' for two hours.  Spent more money than I thought possible in one setting (b/c at some point during a shopping spree, I'd realize I had gone overboard).  Learned a lot about our future.  Got dealt my first deal in debit.  Felt my stomach in my throat...and a little anxiety. Smiled, nodded, and shook my head in understanding of a bunch of gibberish.  And finally, stood up, shook hands, and walked away a homeowner.

I felt like this wasn't really happening the whole time.  I found this foreclosed condo the last day of my last visit to Chicago.  {Still so weird I am a resident here.}  I really didn't want to live in a teeny, tiny 'ghetto' apartment.  I was trying every other avenue, but rent was too high in my more favorable places to live.  I wanted to stay semi-close to family since Michael is typically gone for days at a time.  I also knew the area they lived in was nice (safe, good schools, clean, reasonable distance to the airport).  We knew we couldn't afford "our first home" being somewhere we could raise our family for years on end.  Our situation truly wasn't ideal with pay cuts and unknown employment.  Then I found this little hidden gem.  2 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 car garage end unit in our family's same neighborhood.  It's small.  It's ours.  And it's a great place to start our family.  I do believe we will grow out of it since we currently still want four kids.

I got to choose paint colors.  I got to paint our first home.  I say "I" got to paint, but really I mean I have awesome family members who worked their booties off today to paint our condo.  Kim, Grandma, Ron, Scott, Dee, Kyle, and Ryane (hubs too)- Thank You, Thank You, Thank You.  I appreciate your help more than you will ever know.  It was killing me that I couldn't take part.  After all it is my first home, my first time to have the ability to paint and I couldn't do anything about it.  Ugh.  I am beyond excited to get our life started here though.  Slowly move into our house, have our first baby, get settled, and start our routine.  All in enough time for more change to come (me going back to work).  That's how life goes.  We've adapted thus far, so I have no worries.  Although leaving our first born (and any other child I'm sure), is going to be a huge difficulty.  We will cross that bridge when we get there.

Pics from the website where it was listed.  I will do updated pics as things change (starting tomorrow b/c it already looks SO different).

{Outside view of pretty much the garage...}

{LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my kitchen}

{Dining area}

{Living room}

@ 39, We're Ready Anytime

Whoot Whoot!  Here we are.  39 of 40 weeks along in my pregnancy.  Can't say I thought I'd be here without my baby in my arms.  But I think I am more than anxious b/c of the whole Daddy being gone issue.

{Terribly fuzzy, but when the hubs doesn't wanna take pics- you gotta do what you gotta do!}

Happy Monday

I am saying the title of this blog aloud b/c I truly want you to believe me.  If I tell myself today is a good day, it is, right?  Lately, I feel out of my element.  I am not really me.  I kind of just move through the motions of everyday life.

I saw hubby briefly last night...it was definitely too short and more of a tease than anything.  I've missed him this time around.  Not that I don't normally miss him, but the days are dwindling down.  And I want him here with me.  {Pregnancy mind at work...I had a story to share and for the life of me, I cannot remember it. SO frustrating!}

I have a lack of emotion kind of.  Everyone knows that's one thing this chica is never lacking.  I have loads of emotion.  I am an emotional woman.  Period.  But lately, I just "feel like a plastic bag drifting through the wind..."  I had to do it.  I guess that's kinda how I feel.  Just rolling with the punches.  I don't seem to be stressed that our closing date is supposed to be Friday and we still haven't heard anything.  Honestly, I don't even feel like I am buying a home.  Come on, this is a huge step in life and I should feel like it's happening.  But I don't.  I don't seem to notice that a life altering event could take place at any moment.  The birth of my first child is on the tip top of a mountain about to blow over.  I feel as if this makes me look unexcited and melancholy.  Again, not two adjectives I'd choose to describe myself right now.  It's weird.  I feel like I'm on the outside watching myself.

{Ha ha ha...story of my life.  I feel bad even calling anyone right now b/c "Nope, no baby yet!"}

As I laid like a beached whale in bed this morning, I decided I am going to enjoy these last few days of pregnancy.  Feeling my lil bean kick my insides.  Even getting his/her feet stuck up in my ribs.  I'm going to touch my belly nonstop.  And stare at myself in the mirror.  My body will not be this 'deformed' for much longer and won't take this shape again for at least a couple years.  Embracing.  Sleeping and relaxing as much as humanly possible, which isn't all that much for me b/c I don't sleep in anymore.  So here's to being positive and enjoying these last few...whatevers.

*Yeah Buddy*

Finally I got the 'stuff' I needed to make a 'signature.'  Whoot whoot!  After a few tries, I think I got it.  Now if only I could figure out how to add stinkin fonts I could ditch the boring, lame fonts I have and add some pizzaz!  Slowly but surly this blog will be more like me...more of m|i|n|e.

One Month in Chi Town

How strange is it that I've been out of Arizona for one month and two days today.  Doesn't seem real.  Things I miss:

*  My friends/family...that's a no brainer!

*  My babies...speaking of, I have called them facetime on my iPhone.  Love it by the way.  Can't wait to talk to my family via facetime come baby B's arrival!  All the kids were in their element...Troy crying in the pantry (his favorite door to open and close 9 million times), Hunter giving the phone nonstop kisses and smiling his big, cheesy grin (showing his Nan his sweet side), Colleen and Caitlin running around the kitchen screaming, "I love you Nanny!"  They are all precious in their own little ways and I miss their day-to-day events.  I feel like I'm missing out on so much, but know that once my bean is here I will feel more complete :)

*  My schedule/routine...my gym routine, which I think would be down the drain with this belly anyways, but still.  I miss it.  I miss my daily walks with our G.  I am willing to bet she misses it more than me.  

*  The sunshine...that big ol' orange ball in the sky.  The clear blue sky and the vitamin D that comes from the whole natural feeling of being outside.  I think there have been two sunny days since I've been here.  D.E.P.R.E.S.S.I.N.G.  Every now and then I just get cranky...and I blame it on the lack of sun in my life.  Again, once the bean is here I doubt I even notice the outdoors, but still...I miss it.  

*  Spring training...I guess I knew I was going to miss this all along, but now that it has started, I'm jealous.  I want to go to a Cubs spring training game in my tank and flops and get tan while drinking a cold beverage.  Although that beverage would be water now, I don't mind.  I'd be happy to see some baseball...to get me in the spirit of the best sports season.  

{When she isn't trying to dominate me, she's my buddy.}

I love our G.  I know she's going to have a life altering change coming soon.  As if a three day drive in the front seat of a Budget moving truck wasn't enough.  Plus, a complete change in environment, moving in with two kids and no fence in the backyard.  She was literally depressed.  She didn't eat their whole trip halfway across the U.S. and threw up some water a couple times. (Man, looking back, life was a whirlwind mess a month ago.)  I worry about the quality of G's life now.  She's not meant to be tied up or confined.  She should always get exercise.  She should be able to enjoy the outdoors...she's a dog who loves being outside...anytime...all the time.  BUT the little brat is SO extremely difficult with me.  Only me.  I don't think Daddy gets it, however, living in my sister-in-law's house, they have seen it first hand.  I think it's because Daddy wears the pants and she follows his lead...Mommy on the other hand, is just a wrinkle in her plan, the less dominant figure.  And in her eyes, she rules Mommy.  It's frustrating and sometimes brings me to tears of frustration!  I know she loves me, she just has a different way of showing it : P

{I bought Sperrys...think I can pull 'em off?}

I can't believe I purchased them...I told myself a long time ago they were too 'young' for me, too 'preppy' for me, and too 'fraternity/sorority' for me.  But look what I came home from the store with the other day.  Ha ha ha.  They are super comfortable.  And since the spring here isn't like that in Arizona, I thought they'd be perfect.  Flops might be stuck in the closet until May, so Sperrys it is!

Happy One Month of being in our new place of residence.  We are still Kim's roommates, haven't heard if we are clear to close on our townhome (supposedly Monday), and pretty much in shambles.  But, hey, the baby and the momma are healthy and we are here waiting on the arrival of our precious bundle of joy together.  Well, as together as hubby's work schedule will allow us to be.  Yes, I am super freaked out about every little thing, but it does me (nor the baby) any good to stress now.  One day we will be holding our baby in our arms, living under our own roof (whether or not we own it, isn't up to us any longer), and life will be organized.  Probably just in time for me to go back to work!  Whoop whoop :)  But all in all, I am hanging in there.  I can do this.  I am staying sane and honestly, just not thinking too hard about anything.  Just taking it one day at a time!

What Am I? 38 weeks?!?!?!

Ha ha ha.  That's how I feel.  I didn't post on Tuesday or Wednesday b/c I feel repetitive.  I still feel the same and no the baby hasn't come yet.  I hate that I am being such a 'Debbie Downer' but Baby B, if you only knew how badly mommy wants to meet you.  Then maybe you'd make your appearance sooner than later?  Humpf.

And everyone and their brother comments about how small I am...still.  So, really nothing has changed.  I know that the bun staying in the oven isn't burning.  I know it's their kitchen timer dinging when they're ready.  It's just hard to be patient.  These last few weeks are important to my little one.  He/She will make the debut when they are ready.  I just need to keep telling my heart that : )

Baby's lungs are still maturing, creating more and more surfactant that helps the lungs not stick together.  This ultimately makes that first cry more clear, quickly.  The white cheese-like vernix and lanugo are still being shed from the baby's skin.  All the gunk the baby is swallowing is preparing to become it's first poo that Daddy will most likely be changing.  I hear it's pretty nasty...hope we get some pics!!  As the article I read says, "All systems are almost a go!"

I haven't gained weight the past couple of appointments, which happens.  My belly is still growing, checking in at 37 cm this week.  Mike will be able to attend my appointment next week- double yay for me as I frequently feel like a single mom in the docs office.  My appts in AZ were always on Tuesdays or Mondays, but with the move I got off and now my weekly appts are Wed or Thurs.  It seems to be a reoccurring trend that Mike works later in the week and has Sun-Tues off.  Convenient.

Baby B knows not to come until Daddy has his next set of off days.  Keeping our fingers crossed that the pep talk worked!

{Whoa belly!}

{Doesn't look the same, huh? It is.}