Tis the Season

How fitting that just in time for fall, when all of the restaurants have yummy pumpkin-flavored special foods, we can compare Sam to a pumpkin?! By the end of this week (week 40), Sam should be average-sized. He should be about 7 1/2 pounds and 20 inches long. I'm getting really anxious to go to the doctor on Thursday and see what, if any, progress has been made! I'm hoping something has changed! I have had a lot more pressure in my lower pelvis so I have to believe something is going on to move us in the right direction! We also have an appointment for Tuesday scheduled (our due date), which I just think is funny. We can't believe that October 7 is almost here!

Still Cookin'

Our latest doctor's appointment was this morning and there is nothing new to report. Sam is still head down (yay!), but no other progress has been made. Obviously, no one is concerned yet since I haven't even reached my due date! Of course we will be excited whenever Sam decides he's ready to show us his cuteness, but we are enjoying our last few days (weeks?) sans baby :)

Here are the most recent belly pictures. The last one was specially requested by Josh. He gets a kick out of the fact that my pants go up so high...

Pregnant Woman's Dream Come True

Dairy Queen has Pumpkin Pie Blizzards!!! WOO HOO!!! The other night Josh and I both craved pumpkin pie but I also wanted chocolate so we looked up recipes for chocolate pumpkin pies. While we found some tasty looking ones, neither of us felt like going shopping or making it. BUT, last night I went with my friend, Susie, to Dairy Queen. In the car I shared my thought with her about how I hadn't been frequenting Dairy Queen for a whole year of blizzard-of-the-months and was hoping there was a pumpkin pie one coming around the holidays. She didn't seem too optimistic, but when we walked in, there was a giant poster on the wall advertising it was time already! I was SO excited! I got it with chocolate ice cream and I highly recommend it (even if you're not pregnant!). It was everything I had hoped for :)

Does My Vote Count?

FYI: Today would be a good day to go into labor. Josh has been working crazy hours at night so I sleep while he's gone and I sleep when he comes home (so he's not lonely--aren't I a good wife?), so I'm feeling pretty refreshed. I think I could push out a baby today...

**I felt this way yesterday too and nothing happened so I don't have high hopes for today, but just in case...

Personal Watermelon Anyone?

Can I stress how I have NO idea how I got THIS pregnant??? I totally freaked out when we read about week 39 in our book and on Baby Center! On the one hand I feel like there is no was that much time has passed, but on the other hand the night we took the pregnancy test seems like FOREVER ago! CRAZY! Anyways, by the end of week 39, Sam will be about the weight of a personal, or mini, watermelon. **GULP** Thank goodness we're almost to the end of the comparisons since there is nowhere good to go from here... According the "average" expectations, Sam will measure about 20 inches and weigh just over seven pounds by the end of this week. That's not TOO bad--I think I can handle that :)

Needless to say, we are getting very excited! I'm starting to think one of the hardest part of this giving birth thing is going to be not eating once I go into labor. Even though it's for a good reason (in case you need an emergency c-section), it's kinda unfair to put that limitation on a pregnant lady...;)

Craving Confessions

One of the most frequent questions I've gotten is if I was having weird cravings. My answer has typically been, "I'm not really craving anything new. I just like to eat more of the stuff I usually enjoy and it tastes SO good!" Since I've been pregnant, however, my willpower at the grocery store is weakening. I am usually really good and don't come home with much junk at all. I have been giving in more easily since the beginning and things like Strawberry Pop Tarts (no icing) and Cheetos have become a staple in the house. Yesterday was the worst though! I managed to turn down: Keebler Elf Sandwich Cookies, Horizon Organic Chocolate Milk (the appeal is that it comes in a juice box with a straw!), TGIFridays Cheese Sticks, and every pudding cup in stock! I did not manage to turn down a big bag of Cheddar Cheese Pretzel Combos, a bag of Candy Corn, and a bag of Harvest Corn or whatever it's called with the chocolate tipped candy corn. Not too bad, but it is becoming MUCH harder to be good! I think I could happily eat McDonald's and ice cream all day for the rest of this gig...

Oh yeah, and I just had a cookie after my bowl of cereal and banana...

I've Sprung a Leek!

No, I'm not in labor, and yes, I know that's not how you spell "leak..." By the end of this week (week 38!!!), Sam will be about as long as a leek. This was yet another BabyCenter post that was just too good to paraphrase:

"Your baby has really plumped up. [He] weighs about 6.8 pounds and [he's] over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). [He] has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold [his] hand for the first time! [His] organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb. (We think this was poor ordering of facts. It makes it sound like he might strengthen his fist by squeezing my organs!) Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If [he's] born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If [he's] born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time [he's] 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after [he's] born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.) (Cool!)"

I did wonder out loud to Josh the other night if I would have a good enough sense of humor when/if my water breaks to say, "Seems I've sprung a leak!" It just seems like that would be a much funnier way to handle it than freaking out...;)

Our Son, the Jumping Jack

***Disclaimer: This blog might include too much info for some people, but from the beginning I said that we were writing this mainly for us and I want to remember the doctor's comments, so here goes!***

We had an appointment last Friday and we met the fifth doctor in the practice and LOVED her! She was awesome! She would be in our top three if we got to pick (the two guys are also in the top three). She did one of the last tests I needed to have and checked me for the first time. She had a good report: my cervix is still closed, I'm 60% effaced, and Sam is head down! WOO HOO! Josh was going to start having discussions with him about what position would be best for us all, but I guess he doesn't need to. Now we just need to hope that he STAYS head down!

That night, since we knew what position he was in, we felt like we were able to more accurately guess what body parts we were feeling when he moved around. He would not "sit" still for a couple of hours! Josh was able to feel lots of movement and he was kicking and punching all over! At one point, it felt like he really was trying to do a jumping jack!

We Made It!

At the end of this week, Sam will eventually be considered full term! WOO HOO! There is a great sense of relief you feel knowing that if your baby decides to be born, there is much less risk of complications. We are encouraging him to keep cooking for a few more weeks, just to get the full effect of this gestation thing. By the end of this week, Sam will be about as long as...a stalk of swiss chard??? What the heck is THAT? Apparently that means he will be just over 19 inches long from head to heel and weigh over six pounds!

While at times it feels like Sam is intent on pounding his way out of me no matter how (through the belly button seems to be his current method of choice), I still haven't reached a state of discomfort. I don't think I want to do this forever, but I'm good for a few more weeks :) I haven't had any contractions yet and I haven't noticed him dropping. I don't think I will though, since I've carried him low the whole time. I am, however, running out of things to clean and organize! LOL

Last night we had great fun pushing on my belly to have Sam push back or move around. He is big enough that we see waves of movement along my belly! It's so cool!

Belly Pic--35.5 Weeks!

A True Look at Dana's OCD

On my list of things to do all week was to start doing some Sam laundry. While we do have a lot of clothes, they are so tiny, I figured I'd have one load...maybe... Well, after an hour of just cutting off tags, I realized I had two full loads! That doesn't even include all of the blankets! Everything is in either the washer or dryer at the moment. And, yes, I was the anal mom using Dreft to wash these itty bitty clothes :) Another insight into my obsessiveness: After everything is dried, I plan to measure the outfits (neck to crotch) so I can arrange them that way. I look at some of these things and think, "What newborn will be THAT long?" or, "I think he'll be able to wear that way before six months!" A disclaimer: I know that the sizes on the tags don't match the age, but the same principle applies. So, I'll be hanging out on the couch with a ruler surrounded by baby clothes later today and I couldn't be happier :D

(I could probably start a business organizing people before babies come. I am assuming not ALL expectant mothers enjoy this stuff as much as I do!)

Reflection

There is A LOT going on right now and I just thought I should take a minute to really be thankful for everything that's going well for me in my life right now. I am thrilled that there isn't a hurricane hurtling at my house and I am expected to pack up only what fits in my car and flee. I wouldn't even know where to start! I am so glad that the immediate members of my family are relatively healthy. I am so happy that I have a husband that comes home to me every night, and even though he is working CRAZY hours right now still makes our baby and me his number one priorities. I can't wait to meet this seemingly perfect baby boy. I have had a wonderfully enjoyable pregnancy and I know I should be thankful for that. Overall, even though there is a lot of crap going on in the rest of the country, I'm doing more than okay :)

Our Baby is a What?!

Well, by the end of week 36, Sam will weigh about as much as a...crenshaw melon??? What the heck is that?! It looks suspiciously like a pineapple and a cantaloupe got together and produced a new type of produce...

Anyways, Sam continues to grow! I'm doing my best to feed him well :) He should weigh close to six pounds and measure about 18 1/2 inches long. After looking at pictures of how different babies hang out in utero, we have determined that Sam's favorite position must be oblique. His head feels like it is down, but pointing more to the side than straight down, leaving his legs to move around LOTS! Sam is also losing most of the downy hair that had covered him as well as the vernix caseosa (the waxy stuff covering him).

Other than not sleeping very consistently, I am doing great! I am getting really excited to meet this little guy, but I also realize I've had a pretty easy time and should just enjoy it while I can!