Evanston Experiences

I got back to Virginia at the beginning of the week after spending a few days back home with Mom and Dad. This trip definitely had it's interesting moments. It started on the second leg of my trip to the great Midwest. All of my planes were pretty small and the time that I was sitting my the window, I dropped my pen while doing my crossword puzzle. Please note that I was mostly frustrated because my planner is color coded and if I lost that pen, I would not be able to write in any of our general plans! I would have had to buy a whole new pack of pens just to get that color! I hoped, however, that as we landed, the pen would roll back towards me. It did! BUT, there was no way I could bend over to pick it up! I felt so stupid and helpless. There was a nice looking guy next to me so I asked him if he would mind picking it up and kicked it towards him. He was really nice and seemed like he wanted to ask if he could do anything else!

I got to use THREE "expectant mother" parking spots while home!!! I used them at Babies R Us, CVS, and Old Orchard! Woo hoo! It was quite exciting! I still feel guilty, like there are women "more pregnant" than me that should be using them. But, I'm pretty sure I qualify as expecting...

I find myself caught in a Catch 22: I was so anxious for it to be obvious that I'm pregnant, but apparently that means that I also will (unbeknownst to me) invite any and all comments! In the bathroom at a restaurant (Hackney's, for any North Shorers reading), I overheard a funny conversation between a mom and her two kids. I couldn't help laughing as I came out of the stall and she apologized. I told her not to worry about it, that I was just preparing. She had twins in the bathroom with her who were just over five and she told me she had two others younger than them! She went on to tell me how wonderful motherhood is and how much she enjoyed nursing. If I could, I really should give it a try because you can just take your boob anywhere! Now, mind you, this was in a bathroom the size of a large closet. Luckily, at that point other people were trying to go in so we had to leave... Not sure I'll talk about my boobs with strangers...

I've noticed people can't just ask when you are due. They feel compelled to say something else after that. At Trader Joes, the checker was doing so well! She asked when I was due and then said, "Don't let other people scare you." I thought that was actually helpful! Until she kept talking :( She went on to share a pretty detailed labor story that I really could have done without...

Honeydew List?

Josh guessed correctly yet again this week! Sam will be the size of a honeydew melon by the end of this week 35. So, he will weigh about 5.25 pounds and measure more than 18 inches long! For some reason, it is now sinking in how much Sam is growing! Perhaps it's because my stomach feels like it might explode at any moment... He is moving ALL the time! Sometimes it just feels like he's rolling over and over and over, other times he's poking and jabbing. We definitely felt a knee or an elbow the other night--something that bends! I found the following sentence particularly funny: "Your uterus--which was entirely tucked away inside your pelvis when you conceived--now reaches up under your rib cage." HA HA HA What a funny image! We also read that there is now more baby than amniotic fluid, so that explains why I'm feeling so much more Sam!

I had to go and open my mouth the other day about how low Sam was still sitting and how comfortable I still was. I know that what I'm feeling is nothing compared to how some other women feel when pregnant, but I definitely saw an increase in my uncomfortability. (is that a word? it should be!) Thus, my posting at 6am! To me, it feels like Sam is stretching out as much as possible and taking up all the room he'd like. I also am having a super hard time sleeping. That is really sad--I like sleep!

We went to the doctor on Wednesday and he said everything still looks good. Sam's heartbeat is going strong and I'm measuring on track. I asked how big he thinks Sam is and he said that he should be an average sized baby between 7.5-8 pounds. That's all well and fine, but I didn't feel like he really answered according to the actual baby inside ME... I just have a feeling that Sam is actually slightly smaller than the average quotes. I didn't have a feeling about boy or girl and I don't have a feeling about how much longer he will cook, but I do have a feeling about his size. We shall see...

Oh yeah...I am getting better at asking for help seeing as I can't bend over to tie my shoes or pick things up off the floor...Unfortunately for Josh, this means more silly little things I ask him to do when he finally gets home from work--he's a trooper!

Yes, We Cantaloupe

So last week I fibbed a bit... Josh is the one that guessed pineapple and I just agreed with him. Now that that is out in the open, I can freely share that he guessed right again this week! By the end of this week (week 34) Sam will weigh about as much as the average cantaloupe (about 4 3/4) pounds! He will also be about 18 inches long. I can tell he's definitely getting longer as he tries to stretch out in my stomach. I had read that babies stop kicking as much as they get bigger and my doctor clarified that they don't move less, they just move differently. That's totally true. He is moving ALL the time now! Log rolls, curling up , standing on his head, punching out his little hands...he does it all! Sam's filling out (in other words, getting a bit fatter) and his central nervous system and lungs are maturing. While we are definitely moving closer and closer to The Big Day (whenever that should come), we are still encouraging Sam to keep cooking as long as possible!

We are a bit nervous as to what comes after cantaloupe...there are still six more to go...

Second to Last Trip

This past weekend we took our second to last trip before Babydom! We headed southwest to visit Josh's two grandmas. It was a really nice way to kick off my relaxing period! I know that's what I need to be doing now that I'm officially finished working, but I also know it will be hard for me to not pop up and down to do a million different things I think of. These are some pictures we took after church on Sunday--made a good photo op to capture us towards the end of week 33 :)

Funny story: We ate at Cracker Barrel Sunday night and ran into a nice enough woman on our way out. She was not an "old woman," but she was old enough to not have this conversation:

Little Lady: Oh! When are you due?
Me: Beginning of October

Little Lady: Wow! You're so big already!

Josh and Me: Yeah, we're getting close.

Little Lady: And you're sure you're not having twins?!
Josh and Me: Nope. Just one! (Laughing good naturedly)

Seriously?! These would be the smallest twins if I was having them and due in just six weeks! Yikes! I just can't believe what comes out of people's mouths!

Seat #31

Thursday we got a most exciting e-mail: our glider had arrived and was available for pick up! YAY! I had been patiently waiting and waiting and waiting... After much back and forth and delay from Target, we ended up ordering this glider from Walmart. I love it, maybe even more than the original one we picked out! Here are some pictures for those of you requesting nursery photos:

I Live in a Pineapple Under the Sea...

We guessed this week's produce comparison correctly! What are the odds?! By the end of this week (week 33), Sam will weigh just over four pounds and measure longer than 17 inches! Luckily he isn't trying to stretch to his full length too often... Everything we read keeps pointing out that the bones in his skull aren't fused yet and all of his bones aren't hardened yet. That just freaks me out! I know that's how it's supposed to go, but it's still kinda weird.

We had a doctor's appointment last Friday and got another good report! She said everything is measuring just right and based on the fact that we have been picture perfect so far, she fully expects us to go to term :) WOO HOO! I of course wanted to know if that meant full term like exactly on our due date (I was kidding!) and she said that 37 weeks would be a safe bet for us. Josh did admit later that he was pretty freaked out when she started the conversation by telling us that in two weeks and five days (from last Friday) we could go ahead and have this baby. She said if I went into labor then, they might try a little to stop me, but for the most part they would be OK with me having Sam!

My goal for the rest of this time is to make myself relax and take it easy! I know Sam would be in pretty OK shape if he came now, but I'd like him to keep cooking a little longer so I'll do whatever I can to help that along!

...Strollin' Along, Singin' a Song, Side by Side...

We are officially allowed to bring Sam home from the hospital if he comes early! We bought our stroller, and therefore car seat, last weekend! WOO HOO!!! The whole stroller concept was one of the more difficult ones for me to sort through. I had a whole spreadsheet made and everything! And that was just for Graco... I decided early on which car seat I wanted and I thought that would surely narrow down the stroller choices. Oh no! We finally decided which one we wanted and even found a Target near by that had our specific one set up! We made many trips to double check different aspects and finally went last Saturday night with the intention of buying it. As we approached the baby section, I informed Josh that if they didn't have it, I would cry. Unfortunately, they didn't have it out, but I didn't cry! LOL Anyways, they did have the same model, different color, so we were able to answer the remaining questions we had. We were just about to go ask if they had any of our print in the back when I saw it on an end cap. There were only two left...AND they were half price! I couldn't believe our good luck! We bought it and put it together right away. Aren't our two models cute? I am finding the straps a bit more challenging than I would have thought to adjust (they tighten in the back), so if anyone has the Graco Snugride car seat and has helpful hints, we would love to hear them!

Hiccupping Jicama

Not only is it catchy, but it's true! By the end of this week, Sam will weigh about 3.75 pounds. That is about as much as a large jicama weighs. It's good timing for the alliteration since Sam had his first set of hiccups that I could feel the other day! They felt weird, but it didn't occur to me until a little while later that that's what it probably was! Unfortunately, I also experienced my first hot flash (or personal summer, as my friend, Susie, likes to call them)! It was a busy 10 minutes :)

Anyways, Sam is working on gaining a lot more weight from here on out! Only occasionally do I notice that I'm carrying him around. He has been situating himself pretty well and I'm comfortable doing most everything. I'm thinking that all is about to change... Personally, I'm supposed to be on the lookout for more heartburn, shortness of breath, and increased back pain. So far so good...Tums handles the heartburn I do get, I have a VERY understanding and helpful husband who helps out so I don't get out of breath, and I have had the same annoying pain in my back since I got pregnant, but it's manageable. It is amazing that in the course of seven months, I haven't found a good way to get out of bed, etc... Oh well, it's a small price to pay!

I'm also fearing the mood swings are going to start up again. I was just thinking how pleasant that aspect of things had been in the past few weeks and then I was blindsided by a massive breakdown this weekend...Poor, poor Josh...He's coping amazingly well! I definitely would not make a good husband to a pregnant lady--I don't think I would have enough patience! I also am starting to accept that I'm just going to be much hungrier from here on out...Some days there is no satisfying this kid! I wonder how that bodes well for the future...