36 weeks

At 36 weeks, everything continues to be going well with our little growing baby. It has been a really nice spring break for me and Nate is just starting his. I have created quite a list for him...I am lucky to have such a wonderful helpful husband. I tried to be as productive as possible with my time off but also get much needed rest. I feel like I got a lot accomplished with preparation for the baby, like packing my hospital bag, washing some of the newborn clothes, getting lesson plans done for my maternity leave, and organizing/decorating the nursery. I also went out and bought a "coming home" outfit for our little girl which I am really excited about. I can't believe that we could be days/weeks away from becoming parents. I had my weekly checkup on Tuesday and we got a lot of good news. My doctor said the baby's heartbeat was still very strong and I am measuring right on, although he thinks we will have a small baby. Her head is down and creating some pressure, so I am definitely getting more uncomfortable and walking around is painful at times. He said I was 70% effaced and 1 cm dilated at that point, so I was very happy to hear that. Hopefully things continue to progress! I posted a picture of me at 36 weeks and a picture of the nursery thus far. The wall decorations can't be posted yet, because it involves her name, which is a surprise until she arrives! More pictures to come as we add more to the room.

Baby Shower # 2

We will be at 35 weeks on Friday, which is super exciting. Spring break is just around the corner for me as well which makes me very happy. After I get back, we will be counting down the days until baby girl makes her arrival!! The rest should be good for me as well. I have been so busy with report cards, completing case conferences and IEPs, and getting my room organized for my maternity leave that my body is feeling pretty exhausted at night. My feet and ankles are swollen when I get home so that gives me a good excuse to just lay on the couch all evening! This past weekend my wonderful sisters and Mom had a baby shower for me with all of my local friends here in Muncie/Indy area. It of course meant so much to me and everything was fantastic. They had everything decorated so cute, the food was delicious, and we played some fun games to go with the "book theme" they planned. Along with all of the great gifts, everyone brought a children's book in place of a card, so now we have lots of books to read to our little girl. The picture with the teddy bear that says "CoCo" was from my sister Allison...my dad is calling our little baby CoCo until he finds out her real name when she is born so the bear fit perfectly! My whole pregnancy and getting ready for this baby has brought Nate and I such joy, and the baby showers are just one of those exciting things we have loved. Thank you so much to all of my friends who came and celebrated with us, and a huge thanks to my family for having the shower. I really do have the best sisters and Mom!

Preparing for Baby

We are heading towards 34 weeks this Friday, so our time with our baby girl is coming soon! We can't wait! We have made some strides in our preparation for the baby the past week or so. On Saturday we had our first of three "preparation for childbirth" classes at the hospital. We learned more about preterm labor, what to expect when we get to the hospital, and practiced a little breathing...ahh! It is all starting to feel more real! We also worked on baby nursery decor, which I am excited about. Nate and I made a trip to Hobby Lobby and bought some wood frames and mirror to hang on the wall that I am going to get a little crafty on. We will see how it turns out. Today I had my latest checkup and everything continues to be going well. Her heartbeat was at 145, seems to be positioned head down, and I am measuring right on track. We also had a "new mom" meeting at the pediatrician office we will be going to. Now we just have to choose one of the doctors for our baby! We also have our next shower this coming weekend, which I can't wait for! It is all so exciting. Check out my 33 week baby bump.

32 Weeks

We are feeling more and more excited as the weeks pass by and we get closer to our little girl being born. She should be about 4 lbs by now. She is sure moving around a lot and often we can feel a big bulge on my stomach when one of her little body parts is pushing up against it. I love when her whole little foot or hand or elbow moves across my stomach. A baby moving inside of you is really an amazing thing. As she grows (and I grow) it is getting more difficult to bend over and my belly button is definitely a complete outie now. We have our first "birthing/preparing for baby" class this coming weekend, so that should be interesting. Keep praying for our little one!

Valentine's Weekend

Nate and I had a great Valentine's Day weekend.
We have a tradition of ordering a pizza from Giordano's Chicago restaurant through the mail every Valentine's Day. We look forward to that deep dish cheese! We always enjoy the night at home together now, but next year we may want to get out of the house alone! Another highlight of the weekend was the painting of the nursery. We went with a very soft pink color and it looks great ( good job to Nate). I am so excited about it. Now we can start putting the furniture in the right spots. There is one picture of the crib and the wall, but I will post more pictures of the room as we get things put together. I went to the doctor today and everything is great! We feel very fortunate that the pregnancy has been so smooth thus far. The picture of my belly is from last week at 30 weeks.

We had our first baby shower over the weekend in Leo where Nate and I grew up. It was given by my mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and a few wonderful high school friends. We felt very blessed with all the friends and family that showed up to celebrate our little one's expected arrival. I can't tell you how excited I was to see everyone. We also felt overwhelmed by our friends and family's generosity. We received wonderful gifts for our little girl and have so much to get organized in our nursery now. For now it is all sitting on the shelves that Nate built in the baby's closet! Thank you again to everyone who attended the shower and those who put time and energy into planning it for us. Everything was fabulous!!!

The Baby is Growing!

I am just a couple days away from the 29 week mark...yeah! I had a doctor's appointment today and everything seems to be going well. Her heartbeat was in the 140's and the doctor said it sounded very strong! I am also measuring at about 30 weeks, so the baby is getting big. Maybe this means she will make her entrance into the world a little early! Our growing baby girl is squishing my stomach, causing me some sleepless nights because of heartburn. Otherwise, I am feeling good and enjoying all the rumbling around she is doing inside of me! This weekend we have our first shower and we are really looking forward to that!