39 Weeks

Wow - what a difference 20 weeks can make!!!

It is very exciting to be so close to meeting this new little baby. We are all excited here and the kids are counting down. I try to explain to them that just because I have 7 days left, doesn't mean the baby will be here in 7 days. Hopefully, their new brother or sister won't keep them waiting too long :-)

This has been a great week. I have felt good, the baby continues to entertain us with crazy acrobats and Brock is back after 10 days in ND. I missed him like crazy and my nesting has been temporarily put on hold to snuggle with my man :-) I suppose I will get back to wreaking havoc on this house in no time :-) I had an appointment today and all was well. My belly/baby measured 38.5 cm, heartbeat was 136 and my bp was good (102/66). Things are progressing slowly in terms of my body preparing for birth. The baby is now engaged (lowered into the pelvis) and I was dilated to 2 cm. However, my cervix has not softened much which is a necessity in order to start labor. I have always been late with my babies so I have no expectations for this one to be different. So, with all that said I am sure I will see y'all next week (big belly and all) :-)

38 Weeks

This week has seen a baby popping out like crazy and his/her mama nesting like a maniac. I never truly realize how big I am until I look at pictures and then I think - WHOA, no wonder I feel huge - I AM! :-) The baby is doing great and showing no sign of being born soon. He or she is still real high in the birth canal and enjoying the space to do the norm - kicking, squirming, pushing, pulling, etc. My appointment this week was uneventful, all was great. The heartbeat was 156 (pretty high compared to normally because he/she was moving all over the place) and my belly measured 38. Also, my iron had increased so that was good.

I figured a belly this big had to be seen in my tight tank top in order to truly appreciate its hugeness :-) It is so funny how it pops right out to almost a point! My baby bellies have always been like this - a total torpedo. The midwife told me it means the baby is laying perfect for birth. Okay, I suppose that makes it worth it. :-)

The midwife asked me at my appointment how I am able to still shave my legs. I was kind of surprised and wondered if people seriously can't shave their legs when pregnant???? Hmmm . . . . if so, I didn't know that!

Hannah is nearly out of patience waiting for this baby. She says several times a day, "I want the baby to pop out now". I have tried to explain that God decides when the baby will be born. I have also used this explanation many times when talking about whether the baby will be a girl or a boy. I think she got confused and recently said, "I wish God would hurry up and decide if it is going to be a boy or a girl so the baby can pop out!" I tried to let her know that God already knew and this wasn't the hold up but I am not sure she got it :-) What a funny girl she is!

Brock & Isaac have been gone this past week and we are all missing them. However, it has allowed me to "nest" late into the evening. I have organized, sorted/eliminated, cleaned and attacked many areas of my house (including the crawl space!!) and still have many more to go. Thankfully, I am still rearing to go so should be able to get to the rest shortly. It cracks me up that I can go to do something simple (put Hannah's clothes away) and end up sorting them all, eliminating a bunch of them and organizing everything before I leave the room. I have also gone bonkers in the kitchen - making freezer meals and getting all sorts of fruits/veg into the freezer. I have been working on that most of yesterday and today. It has been fun being so productive, especially when I know it is all in preparation of another very exciting event in our lives!

Family Fun

Last weekend we went camping and had a great time. We were near Big Sky and it was so beautiful. We had a big rain/hail storm each day but still had plenty of great weather and sun. I have lots more pics of our time that I will post later.

We went for a ride and could see our campsite from way up above. We were right along the river so enjoyed lots of wading, swimming and unfortunately horseflies & mosquitos :-)

We packed a lunch and had a picnic as far up the mountain as we were allowed to go. It was beautiful up there and I couldn't resist taking some pics!

We were going to go for a trail ride (instead of on the road) but each time we thought of going it looked like rain was coming so we hit the roads around our campsite. Next time we will check out the trails :-)
My fellow passengers. They had fun pretending to be driving and singing at the top of their lungs!

The kids and I getting ready to do some off-roading (just kidding - I play it safe when I drive) :-)

We have had so much fun camping this summer. We can't get enough of it! It is such a fun way to spend time together and still enjoy the beauty that is all around us!!

37 Weeks

Another week has flown by and I can't believe how soon this baby will be here in our arms instead of in my tummy! I have felt pretty good this week, although still quite tired. The past couple days I feel like nesting has finally kicked in. I am ready to conquer all parts of the house and now just need to get some focus :-) I have tore into several projects instead of finishing one at a time. I suppose the focus will come :-)

I had an appointment yesterday and all was well. The baby measured 37 cm (1.5 cm increase from last week so has grown quite a bit). The heartbeat was 148 - higher that it normally is but still great. My blood pressure was good (100/63) and the fluid around the baby felt perfect. I had a B12 shot last week and another one this week (to help with low energy due to low iron). I will have my iron checked again at my next appointment to be sure the iron supplement is working.

Last week the kids came into the room with me and heard the heartbeat. They thought that was pretty cool. This week Brock was going to take them to the library while I had my appointment but Hannah wanted to come with me. All she could talk about was hearing the heartbeat again. She kept asking if it was time to hear it. After hearing the baby the midwife put the monitor on Hannah, which she thought was pretty cool. It was very nice to just be Hannah and I and she especially seemed to enjoy it. Alone time with each kid can be hard to come by but is a definite necessity.

36 Weeks

We have been visiting MN, WI and ND for nearly 3 weeks so I missed my 35 week picture. Oh well - I guess I will start taking pics weekly now anyways (considering there are only 4 weeks left!!) YIKES. Although I feel like I have been pregnant a long time - the end is coming quickly. It is crazy how things can go fast and slow at the same time.

I feel like my belly has grown alot these past few weeks. It pops straight out and makes me wonder how it could pop out any further! The baby still moves like CRAZY and has entertained us and many others with how he/she makes my belly change shape continually.

I had an appointment yesterday and the heartbeat was 136 and my tummy measured 35.5 cm. They did find that my iron was low so I will take an iron supplement and try eat more iron rich foods from now on. I have been SO tired lately but thought it was all the running I was doing on our mega trip (we drove 3000 miles, traveled in the car 43 hours and visited 5 different locations - 1/2 with Brock and the other half just the kids and I) Also at my apt. we went over all my questions about being at the birth center (vs hospital as I am used to) and I now feel quite prepared :-)

I am feeling less comfortable lately but still pretty good. I can't eat as much or change positions as quickly and feel pretty tired in the afternoon. It may be time to bring back the naps :-) I also find myself more picky about eating - lots of things just don't sound good (like I felt in early pregnancy). I thought maybe I would be "nesting" by now but don't feel the urge to clean and organize yet. I hope it comes soon because I could use a boost :-)

We are all so excited to meet this active little girl or guy and yet are trying to enjoy this stage of awe and wonder as he/she changes so rapidly inside of me. Pregnancy amazes me and gives me added appreciation for the creative abilities of God! I try to make sure I don't lose the joy of that because of getting too anxious for the big day!