Take back the GPS

Because our little one has a good sense of direction! She is head down after all and in perfect position... I am so relieved, to say the least! I know that labor is essentially only a means to a beautiful end, and we would've of course done what's best for her. But as crazy as this may sound, I am actually looking forward to labor and a part of me felt like I would be missing out if we would've had to have a scheduled c-section. So yay for a head down bebe! And the ultrasound tech also had a little surprise for us... this little lady has hair!! We were able to see some fuzz on the screen, and yes, I currently may or may not have 12 hair clips in my Etsy cart.

• The ultrasound tech did also mention that they are currently estimating her at around 7 lbs 2 oz, which she said was perfect! But we think that there's a strong possibility that she'll be a little rolly polly based on the pictures. I just want to pinch and kiss those chubby, chubby cheeks and rolly arms!



• We also had our weekly doctor's appointment this week to check my progress, and we finally have something to report! My cervix is starting to thin and the doctor thinks that she is slooooooowly but surely starting to drop! I still have yet to experience a single contraction so keep sending me that labor dust, ladies! But thankfully I am not to the "miserable, ready to have this baby any day now" stage yet. I am actually pretty proud of myself for still waking up every morning and having energy to curl my hair and do my makeup. I may be large and in charge, but this mama ain't no slob ;)

And this week officially marked 38 weeks, which means that we have less than TWO MORE WEEKS to go! I never thought the day would come when we would be only 2 weeks away from meeting our little miracle... It seems like it was just yesterday when we found out we were going to be parents that sunny September afternoon. And then, here we are today. Surreal is the only word I can think of right now to describe this feeling.

And here is my 38 week bump photo! I am wondering how many more of these I will take :)

Mildly Hyperventilating

This is not my car. It can't be.

Could someone please be kind enough to pass me a paper bag? So, so surreal.

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Also, on another note, we had our 37 week appointment Wednesday and found out that I may be pregnant forever this little lady already has a mind of her own. Apparently, she has decided to stay in mama's ute until preschool, at least.

According to my doctor, she's still very high, not engaged and there's been no progress at all. She just seems to be pretty comfy and cozy in there, which is still okay with me. I am still loving feeling her Fred Astraire ballroom dance moves in there and I know when she finally makes her debut, that will be one part I know I'll miss. And because she is apparently still under the impression that she's auditioning for next season's Dancing With The Stars, the doctor really couldn't tell her position. So this means that we now get another ultrasound next Tuesday to see her exact whereabouts. I am so excited to see her again, and for this bonus ultrasound! Originally we were not going to have another one, and I was a little disappointed. Not to mention that we're keeping our fingers, toes, arms, legs and yea pretty much everything else crossed that she's head down. Otherwise this mama will have to spend the next two weeks standing on her head :)

I'll be back next Tuesday with an update! Thanks everyone for your sweet comments below. You sure know how to make a pregnant chickadee feel good. I am sending out a hug to you all! Have a fantastic weekend!

37 Weeks and an updated bump pic!

Tomorrow we will be hitting the 37 week milestone which in the pregnancy world means that the baby is FULL TERM! Woot woot! This means that our little one is now physically ready to land on planet Earth! So, whether I give birth tomorrow (yes!) or in three weeks next week, this little girl is pretty much 100% ready to face the world outside of Hotel de Mama. : )

And on that note, you know you’re getting close to the end when…

• It requires you 5 large pillows to find a comfortable sleep position. I feel like I’m 5 again, building a fort every night before crawling in.

• And speaking of sleep, you have to mentally prepare yourself for the chore that is rolling over in bed.

• Friends and family members are more anxious to talk to you now than ever before. EVERYONE picks up on the very first ring, and"hello" has been replaced by "are you in labor?"

• Speaking of excitement, even strangers are starting to feel bad for you. My errand running this weekend resulted in 4 complete strangers stopping me to inquire "when on earth is that baby coming out?"

• You become a public toilet expert due to suddenly having to pee immediately after peeing. I now even consider myself a toilet paper aficionado. Ex. My local grocery store isn't splurging on the nice stuff, Starbucks is. I also may or may not have on a few occasions been spotted carrying a roll of nice TP from home in my purse.

• Anything above 60 degrees is considered sweltering heat. I am only comfortable if my husband/co-workers can nearly see their breath. I did feel sorry for my poor work crew, and brought them all hot chocolates this morning : )

• Cooking at the stovetop should require a fireproof vest. This belly is starting to get dangerously close to those front burners.

• That TV show you used to hate suddenly becomes a lot more interesting after not being able to reach the remote.

• And finally, every single Google ad on your laptop now has to do with "natural ways to induce labor." :)

And here are a few updated bump pics. I think she's dropped a little! What do you all think?

A beautiful love

There are so many little things I love about where I am at this exact moment in my life that I kind of want to just pause everything and stay here a little while.

All my life, I have dreamed of being a mother. And this little chapter of our life together has been, without a doubt, the best one yet. The last nine months have often felt so surreal.

But when I think about how quickly time has gone, it is a bittersweet feeling. At the very beginning of this journey, I made a promise to myself to enjoy every single day of this beautiful ride. And as uncertain and anxious as I have sometimes felt, the last 250 days have been the best days of my life. I have loved every minute of this pregnancy, and even the minutes where I am uncomfortable and cranky. I thank God every single day for giving me this chance and entrusting this beautiful little miracle to me.

Knowing that just around the corner is something we've dreamed and prayed and wished for since the beginning is an undescribable feeling.

29 more days until I finally get to hold my sweet daughter in my arms.. : )

35/35!

First thank you all for the supporting words about my last semi manic post. It does help knowing I am not the only lunatic out there :) And for those of you that said nesting would follow, I can't even begin to tell you how right you all are!

So, nesting. Cleaning. Organizing. List Making. Whatever you want to call it… it's entered my life in full force and it's showing no signs of slowing down.

Case in point- yesterday I took a little trip to a store that I love more than anything... Target.

And I passed up this

and this

to buy this???

Who AM I?

I’ve done so much sweeping and dusting and scrubbing in our house these last few days that I would honestly have no problem licking pretty much any given surface in my home. I really hope this nesting bug wears off... or else I may be renting out my cleaning services so stay tuned!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Oh, and before I forget to mention today is the big 35/35 milestone! It still feels unreal that 35 weeks have already gone by and that we only have 35 days left. I have truly LOVED being pregnant and as much as I can't wait to meet her, I want to enjoy these next few weeks as much as possible. I love feeling her little kicks and movements and I know I'll miss them. Here is the 35 week belly bump update. And I promise more nursery pictures to come soon!

Diary of a rambling pregnant woman...

I am feeling completely overwhelmed.

With only 5 weeks left (yes, you read that right ohmygod holycrap 5 WEEKS) until our tiny, cute new little roommate arrives, I feel like I have NOTHING done. Every single second my brain (pregnancy brain too, may I add) is going crazy… like a swirling, raging tornado with things that I know we still need to do like, right now.

Finish thank you notes, wash and fold all baby clothes, finish nursery, find crib skirt, put away this mount Everest of baby gifts that’s currently occupying our dining room, write out a transition maternity plan for that little thing that is my JOB, pack the hospital bag, FIND A PEDIATRICIAN, clean our living area so that the protective services don’t immediately confiscate our child and I am sure a thousand and four more things that I am currently forgetting.

Yes, realistically, I know if our baby girl were to make her appearance tomorrow (don’t get any ideas in there!), we’d be perfectly fine with what we have. But as prepared and organized as I have felt this entire pregnancy, I feel like I am slowly starting to lose it. Sigh. Oh, and the fact that I woke up this morning to a quick realization that today is MAY FIRST, did not help AT ALL.

Tell me I am not alone?!

Showered - Parts 2 and 3

*warning- photo overload*

Since I am trying really, really hard to be better at updating on the Little Miss Thing (and no, that won't be her name.. we're deciding to keep that a secret), I wanted to share with you all pictures of my other two baby showers!

Two Saturdays ago, an incredibly sweet group of girls threw me a tea party baby shower. I feel so blessed to have friends who would coordinate such a wonderful event for me, while working AND while living in different cities. Thank you Nicole, Molly and Cassy! I love and appreciate you all so much! Below are just a few of the hundreds of pictures we took. And how cute is this little tea house? I loved all the time and effort they spent working on the details.

Thank you again to all my girls who threw the shower and the ones who came as guests! This little girl is very lucky to have such sweet aunties. :)

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And this last weekend, hubs and I packed up our car and headed home for a baby shower his family had planned for us! We had the best time. It was nice having hubs there with me as we opened gifts. Watching him 'ooooh' and 'aweeee' all the little dresses was priceless! : )

I feel very blessed to have so many people in our lives who love us and are excited for this baby! Our families and friends are just the best.

Mr. Photographer, I think I'm ready for my close-up!

We had our 3/4D ultrasound two weekends ago and seeing our daughter was amazing. We were so excited to see her again, since we had not seen her in almost 12 weeks! I have been looking forward to this for two entire months and it was the best 30 minutes of my life. :)

I am still in awe of just how much she already looks like a little person. And seeing her smile at us melted our hearts completely!

And now, when we think about our baby girl we can actually visualize her adorable, precious face! Not only did we get to see some of her sweet little features, but best of all we got to watch her move and play the whole time! It was an incredible experience. We saw her play with her feet, try to put them in her mouth, yawn, move her hands and, of course, best of all flash that little grin over and over again! She's definitely a crowd pleaser. Even our ultrasound tech could not believe how much she was smiling! I hope we have one happy baby! Or maybe she felt her Mommy smiling at her. :)

{sweet pouty lips and cute chubby cheeks}

{smiley, smiley baby}

Any ideas on who she looks like? So far, the popular majority says that she looks like her Mama. ::blushes with excitement::

And now that we've had a chance to see her, one thing that’s been really getting to me lately is just pure excitement. I can’t wait to meet her! Who will she be like? Will she be blessed with her mother’s witty, fabulous personality and amazing taste in shoes? ;) Or is she going to be a sports loving, beer drinking, genius/computer geek like her dad?

I can’t wait to meet this amazing little person and spend every day getting to know her. 7 MORE WEEKS!