37 Week Appointment

Hello all! We just had another appointment with the doctor and all is looking well. The baby is well positioned and her heart sounded strong. The fundal height (belly measurement) has increased by 4 cm in two weeks which means the baby is gaining weight and my belly has gotten big. We are still 1 cm dilated but now 50% effaced as opposed to 25% effaced. From what I've read, this doesn't mean much. The doctor said maybe another week or two but I'm not getting my hopes up because I've read about women being this way for weeks. Our next appointment is next Thursday afternoon. I'll let y'all know how that goes. I'll also post a baby bump picture this weekend.

I'm doing well. I haven't gained any weight since last week. My hands have started to hurt while I'm sleeping which is just related to the pregnancy and nothing to worry about. My Braxton-Hicks contractions are still around and were quite uncomfortable last night. In fact, I had to sneeze during one which proved unsuccessful. My last day of work is tomorrow and I'm looking forward to going home and kicking up my feet until the baby gets here.

With each successive appointment, Tim is getting more excited. He was doing a little jig in the elevator after we left the doctor's office. I think he's been feeling left out and is looking forward to being able to help out with the baby more. He spent part of last night getting our stuff ready for the hospital and lining it all up in the den. I had no where to sit this morning. I may have over-packed! I think he may be contemplating working from home some next week so he can keep an eye on me. He doesn't want to miss out on anything.

Have a good weekend!

Baby Bump - 36 weeks

Yep! We are at 36 weeks! Unbelievable! How am I doing? I am doing quite well. I have gained 27 pounds. I am experiencing the usual pregnancy problems: swollen feet, back ache, fatigue, etc. My blood sugar has been testing well. The doctor said at our last appointment that I'm 1cm dilated which doesn't mean a whole but it made me feel better. The baby is measuring healthy and her heart rate is where it should be. She is still very active. There was one night where she had pushed herself so far on my right side that it looked like she was hanging off the edge.

Tim and I are getting very excited and can't believe that we are so close to meeting our daughter finally. Tim has taken such good care of me during these months and I know he is going to make a great dad. He has been to every appointment and he has taken over a lot of my household duties along with doing his. I couldn't have dreamed up a better partner to help me through this. I am really looking forward to seeing him hold her since I have gotten to hold her this entire time. It'll be nice to share.

Also, this week is my last week at work and I am looking forward to having some time to rest (unless, she decides to come early).

In other baby related news, my brother and his wife had their first appointment this week and now have a due date of January 22. Oh, and Stephen was hired back so he is no longer looking for a job.

Baby Bump - 35 weeks

Thomas' Came to Visit

I am finally getting around to posting about the last few weeks. I apologize for the delay. I've been a bit tired.

Tim's parents, sister Carrie and twin nephews came to visit the weekend after my parents. It was a really great visit. Atticus and Isaiah are great babies and we had a good time watching them play and interact with each other.

They arrived on Thursday, May 28, before we got home from work which was fine since they have a key. Tim and I had a doctor's appointment that afternoon, as well, but we managed to make it home by 5:00. Well, Tim's family decided to throw a surprise shower for us. What a nice way to come home! They had dinner and sweets and they had decorated our dining room.

Carrie even made a diaper cake which apparently someone had to hold on their lap the entire trip since they had packed the trunk full with gifts for us and things for Carrie's babies. Isn't it great! It is still sitting in the dining room. I'll take it apart after the baby arrives.

We sat down and enjoyed a great dinner. Then we opened gifts. We got blankets, clothes, diapers, toys, and a highchair!

Mrs. Thomas' friend, Bettye Red, made this blanket. It is so soft!

My Mother's Day gift which I turned into a new robe and some nursing tanks.

Tim's parents and sisters and their families went in together and got us our highchair which I didn't actually get a picture of after it was put together. Here's one from the Target website.

I stayed home on Friday and unfortunately, Tim had to go to work. I had a nice day with the family. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas actually got out and did yard work but we did manage to find time to spend hanging out around the house.

Grandma and Atticus and Isaiah hanging out on the porch swing.

From this angle, I believe this is Isaiah playing in the play tunnel we got as a gift for our baby. The boys had a really good time with this.

On Saturday, Tim and his dad did some projects around the house. They fixed some of our gutters and installed a new door into the garage.


Mrs. Thomas, Carrie, myself, and the boys went to the park for a little a while. It was a beautiful day.


As you can see, we had a great time and we are looking forward to seeing everyone again.

Oh, I didn't get a baby bump shot for this week, 34, but you can see pictures on Carrie's blog by going here.

Baby Bump - 33 weeks

The baby is growing and I can tell she is getting cramped. She is still very active just in a more limited way (ie She is now running into my ribs a lot more). I have gained 25 pounds and I can feel every bit of it when I move. I am still healthy. My blood sugar is mostly under control. My morning fasting levels have been high which is why I have to see the doctor this week as opposed to next week. She doesn't want to put me on medication since my other readings during the day are normal. The diabetes has been frustrating but any time your diet is restricted it is frustrating. It makes you crave things you weren't even eating before. Like right now, I could go for some ginger ale and a slice of pound cake. I told Tim that as soon as this baby is born he is to go down to our favorite BBQ restaurant and buy me a lemon meringue pie.

My wonderful co-workers at the library threw us a baby shower this week.



I am so lucky to have such wonderful people to work with. One of the ladies on the party committee made miniature cheesecakes because she knew I was having to count my carbs (but then I ate three of them!). She also made them from scratch since she's heard me ranting so much against processed foods. They also served fresh veggies and fruit. It was all delicious.

Here are my most recent baby bump pictures:

Mama needs a haircut!

Getting ready for baby

When Tim and I were out shopping for a rocking chair we were also looking for a dresser for the baby's room. We didn't find anything we liked at a price we were willing to pay so I decided to search Craig's List. I found a dresser we both liked so we went that evening to look at it. When we got to the lady's house, she still had the crib she was trying to sell. We already had a crib but we wanted a white one and we were running out of time to get it painted so we bought another crib. : ) She also gave us a mattress, lamp, a crib music box, baby gate, toddler gate for the bed, a blanket, and a matching bed skirt. This has turned out to be a fantastic purchase. Tim can now enjoy his weekends and we are now ready for the baby. We were able to use the original crib as a frame for our full-sized bed.

Tim getting everything off the truck.

My mom and dad (aka Mimi and Granddaddy) came this weekend to help us get it all together. The result was more than I could have hoped for.

Here we are at the end of the day.

Mom helped me cut tags off all the clothes we received at the baby shower and then we washed them. We also did this with all the baby linens. Everything is now ready for the baby! We had so much fun looking at all the cute clothes and putting everything away. Here's what the room now looks like:

This is from the hall door. The changing table isn't done yet
but it will go in the corner on the left.





The decorative items the lady from Craig's List gave us worked perfectly in the room.
The blanket hanging on the wall is the one she gave us.

I wanted to include in this room some items that were special to Tim and I. The quilt rack behind the crib and the shelf over the dresser were made for us by Tim's dad. The quilt rack holds handmade blankets that were given to me while I was growing up and one or two new ones for the baby. I hung on the shelf an outfit my mom crocheted and another that my aunt made and embroidered along with a little pink dress I wore as a baby. The quilt hanger holding the blanket over the crib was made by my grandfather. The blanket on the end of the bed was made by my great-grandmother. The pictures over the bed were taken by Tim on a couple of our vacations. The yellow blanket on the chair is one my mom made for the baby. The mirror in the corner was given to us by Tim's mom along with the purple blanket hanging over the end of the bed. I digress. I guess all parents feel this way about their baby's room. It is special and I wanted to include a lot of old memories to go along with the new ones that will be created.

Tim's mom and sister, Carrie, and her boys will be here this weekend. Atticus and Isaiah are 7 months old so they'll get to test everything out. We can't wait to see them!

Giddy...

My brother Stephen just called to let me know that I'm going to be an aunt!!!! I am just beside myself with excitement. Their first appointment isn't until June 11 so they don't have a due date yet but they're guessing it'll be in February. Happy Birthday to me!

Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers in these early months. Stephen just lost his job so they're having to work out some insurance issues along with trying to find him a new job. I know it'll all work out, though. They're going to be great parents! Congratulations Stephen and Jessica!

I don't know how I'm going to get any work done today....