35 weeks

baby b!! you little buddy garrett thompson made his grand entrance into the world today. this means you are the next baby in the docket. are you getting ready? all of the websites say all you are doing now is gaining weight and your lungs are maturing more and more by the day. i can't believe you will be here in about 28 days. daddy and i are so excited!

last night i had  my first real craving. watermelon. i asked daddy to go to the store at 11:30 p.m. to get watermelon for me. i don't really even like watermelon. i finally got the watermelon after work today and it was so yummy and so sweet!

we can't wait to meet you! i wonder so many things about you every day. i wonder what your little feet look like as i see them move across my tummy. i wonder if you have hair. i wonder what your gender is. will you look like me or like daddy?

this weekend i need to get everything ready in the hospital bag and finish the final touches in your room. we are next baby, and we better be ready!

Tina Fey and SNL...such a funny clip!

Love this Saturday Night Live clip!

Pregnancy...such a funny little science experiment!

baby b and me

i had my 34 weeks doctor's appointment today. baby b did not hide from the doctor today...thank goodness!

i have gained a total of 10lbs to date but did not add on any more since my last visit two weeks ago. the doctor told me i will most likely be smaller after baby b gets here then when i started. that would be a miracle! swimming has been my best friend during this pregnancy. i have had no swelling and very little aches and pains. she complemented me on my positive attitude and outlook. i told her that i have tried to be very positive about pregnancy for several reasons. the first reason, we chose to have a baby and this is part of the deal. the second reason, this whole situation is temporary. and the third reason, many couples try very hard to have a baby and experience trouble and sadness in the process. i feel so blessed that God has chosen Aaron and me to be parents. this child is such a blessing and will be worth minute of this process. she also told me that if my labor were to start in the next week or so that they would not do anything to stop it. eeeeekkk!! time to get the hospital bag together and get everything at work in-line.

speaking of work, i am planning to work up until the day baby b comes. luckily, my office is very close to the hospital and very close to my house so there should be no problem. the girls at work will be on high alert.

baby b's room is almost done. we just have a few finishing touches to take care of and we will be ready to go! aaron re-finished an old dresser of ours and it looks amazing! we hung a mirror, some pictures, a shelf and did a few other things over the weekend. i like to go in there and lay on the floor. aaron has been going in the room a lot too so i think he likes it as much as me.

baby b is still very active. my tummy is constantly moving as he or she rolls about in there. aaron got to feel baby b's foot last night and then as soon as he touched it, it was gone! it is neat to see his reaction to all of the little movements. i went almost 31 weeks with out a belly of any sort. now that my belly has popped and i look pregnant, i think it is more real to aaron too. i had not thought about how the visible belly would effect aaron before.

i was watching saturday night live in bed the other night and they showed the line-up for next week's show. the date on the screen said May 14th. our baby is due June 16th. i can't believe it is almost time! i scheduled an appointment today for May 23rd. where have the last almost nine months gone?

hospital tour. the good, the bad, the ugly

aaron and i went on a tour of the hospital where baby b will be born in just a little over a month. i am the type of person that has to research everything before i do it. i also feel much better about going into something once i know what to expect and what things will look like. this is why google is my best friend. i check for images, reviews, maps, etc. basically...the more information the better. matter of fact, i had to order a regular book to read the other day because for the last 8 months, all i have been ready are books about pregnancy, child birth and parenting.

so, the good:

• we know where to park, what to bring, when to pre-register, where to get the car seat inspected to make sure it is installed properly, and not to being the car seat into the room.
• we know that exactly what the bathrooms look like and when i can take a shower. (this is one thing i was very concerned about.) towels and shower shoes added to the list of things to pack.
• we got to see the labor and delivery room, the recovery room, the OR rooms, the nursery, and the post partum rooms.
• a baby was born while we were on our tour and a lullaby played. i had to choke back tears.
• a brand new baby was going home while we were on our tour. i had to choke back tears.
• i feel MUCH better about the entire hospital process and what to expect.
• aaron held my hand the whole time and i felt such a huge sense of relief knowing that i will have a supportive partner to help me through the process. i had to choke back tears yet again!

the bad:

• i am not scared to death about the fact that in just over a month this little buddy in my belly is going to want to come out and i am going to have to help him or her with that.
• i am terrified that aaron will be on the road and not be able to get back in time to get me to the hospital or be there for the delivery.
• i am pretty sure the phrase, "i want my mommy", is going to come out of my mouth.
• back to the first point...i am going to have to help this little one make his or her grand entrance. isn't that going to hurt?

the ugly:

• we had some SERIOUS characters on our tour. ghetto fab barbie and know-it-all-birthing ball-skin to skin contact-yes,please i want to watch the birth in a mirror-first time mom were both on our tour. when the nurse said that the birth could not be documented with pictures or video, i thought the know it all mom was going to cry. she did however get really excited about the fact that there was going to be a mirror available for her to watch the birth and that a tub and shower were in the room for her and her husband to use during her labor process. she did however get really upset about the rule that states that the support person needs to be dressed properly (shirt, shoes, etc.). she really wanted her partner to be shirtless and have skin to skin contact with the baby right away. ghetto fab barbie actually asked the nurse if her skinny jeans would fit right after delivery. she also wanted to know if it was going to be ok for her to reach down and help deliver the baby and if the hospital bed was going to work for her since she is so short. at this point i was not choking back tears but about to bust out laughing with the rest of the people on our tour.  as the tour wrapped up the nurse asked if there were any other questions. ghetto fab barbie raises her hand and asks and i quote, "do all women have to get cut?". the look on the nurse's face was priceless. she, the nurse, said, "do you mean have an episiotomy?". she admitted that was the information she was looking for but did not know how to pronounce it! at this point the know-it-all mom chimes in that she, ghetto fab barbie, needs to find someone to massage her perineum with oil. wow. we got on the elevator as fast as we could and made it to the car before busting out laughing. at least we got a good laugh out of it!

so, the hospital tour was well worth the time and full of entertainment. i am sure the actual real trip to the hospital is going to be an entirely different story but at least we are prepared!

i forgot a first!

I realized this morning that I had left a few very important firsts off the list. Everyone's experience with this might be a little different though. Perhaps one of the most special firsts in my life was on my wedding day.

The first chord of "Here Comes the Bride" heard standing with your daddy in your carefully picked and carefully tailored wedding gown.

Follow by...

The first time you make eye contact with your soon-to-be husband at the end the aisle.

Followed by...

Your first kiss as a wife. (It was the best kiss of my life for sure!)

Followed by...

The excitement of celebrating your first anniversary!

Ahh....these last two posts might be two of my most favorite that I have ever written. I want to print them so I can remember all of these wonderful firsts on a more frequent basis. Makes my heart smile!

the excitement of firsts

This morning during my morning swim, I was doing some thinking. My swim time is normally the time when I work a lot of things out. My plan for the day, ideas for my department, prayer, conversations I need to have or should have had are all worked out during my mile swim through the pool. This morning was a little different though. I was thinking about the fact that I am eight months pregnant for the first time. Also, for the first time, I am starting to get really tired from regular activities. As my pace started to slow down, I tried to thinks of things that are are firsts that are full of excitement and energy to help me get through the workout.

I started to think about:

The electricity of a first kiss...You know the way someones lips feel when then press against yours the first time. ELECTRIC.

The thrill of putting the car into drive for the first time when you first got your driver's license. Should you turn on the radio? No one will know how loud it is right?

The last 25 meters of a championship race when you are finger to finger with the girl in the lane next to you and you touch the wall first.

The accomplished feeling you have after you conquer something difficult.

Travelling alone to a foreign country for the first time. No language skills required.

The euphoria you feel when the person who you have fallen in love with, but haven't told yet, says they love you too. (I had to swallow a lump just thinking about that.)

The awesome feeling you get when you see the positive sign on a pregnancy test. You know, the butterflies, the tears, the fear, the excitement, all at once.

The first time you see your tiny miracle.

The first time you hear your child's heartbeat.

Every time you hear your child's heartbeat.

The first time you realize the tickle in your tummy is really a tiny foot or a tiny hand making their presence known.

The first time you see your tummy move and wiggle.

So many wonderful firsts. So many wonderful feelings. I wanted to write them all down to remind my self how I felt when each one of them happened. Also, to remind myself that every time I experience something not so pleasant for the first time, (which, I really have not had that much of), that there is one major first still on its way.

Holding your newborn, pink, created out of love, brand new and so innocent, baby for the very first time. (BIG GULP)

I bet it tops it all! That is enough excitement to keep me dragging this heavier by the day belly through the water for seven more weeks!