So, so close...

Holy moly, are we ever close. Below are some of the the more up-to-date belly shots and you can tell that the time is nearing.

Jenn is constantly telling me how big she feels and how tight her belly seems. Although, it's not that it seems tight, but it really is tight. The baby is becoming so big that there doesn't seem to be any room left at all. Touch anyplace on her belly and it is like a rock. This is definitely causing her some discomfort, particularly when the little troublemaker decides to move around and change position.

Well, I think we have pretty much everything in the house in order (except for the master bath...still working on it) and the baby's room is definitely ready. I still have a little bit of yard work that I also need to complete so I don't have to think about it for a while, but the majority is done. Jenn went on a rampage around the house, cleaning and organizing everything. I helped (I swear!), but she really did the lions-share and kicked butt. That is about all she can do for the time being...just running the vacuum tires her out.

I have been trying to wrap up as much of my projects at work as possible before the baby comes so I don't have to dump too much on my co-workers. Still, I have let them know that the baby could be here any day and I am just waiting for the call from Jennifer and I'm out of there. I'm planning to stay at home for the majority of December, probably around 3 weeks depending on when the baby actually is born. I'm really looking forward to that time with Jenn and the new kid; it will of course be tiring and maybe stressful, but it will still be a vacation. Going back to work after that will be interesting -- I'm kind of worried I will have trouble focusing, thinking instead of how I'd like to be home with Jenn and the baby. I guess this will be when the old adage "work smarter, not harder" really comes into play since I'll need/want to come home early every day. Actually, Jenn had a very good idea...one night a week will be my work late night when I can stay as long as I need to. Hopefully, I won't have to utilize that night often, but it will be there if I need it.

Well, the suitcase is ready, the goody bag is packed, the car seat is strapped in, contact list is in my phone and food is in the freezer. We are ready to go. Come on baby!

The Wait Continues...

Well, here we are at 38 weeks! Baby continues to be happy, cozy and warm in mama's belly and mama continues to sleep poorly, pee often and waddle slowly about. Not that I am complaining...well, at least not much. :)

It's strange to think I was born by this time in my mom's pregnancy, what fun she missed out on, at least with me! I think Dan was born around 38 weeks...so...I haven't broken family tradition quite yet. Although, Dr. B. checked things out yesterday and I am still shut up pretty tight...she predicted that I would give birth somewhere between December 13-20. She also said we are on track to having about an 8 lb baby...although I think he/she will be bigger if I give birth AFTER our EDD. I suppose I can handle being pregnant for that much longer! Doug's bro Uncle Chris might get his wish to have his first niece/nephew born on his birthday, December 15.

We still have much to do before baby arrives! I am feeling somewhat panicky about being as organized as possible before he/she comes home, knowing that we will be living in disorganization for awhile. Believe it or not, this is one of my major stresses; I hate messes! Especially when my head is a little disorganized (or sleep-deprived!), a clean and well-organized home helps. So, if you wonder what we might need after baby is born? No, we don't need any more onesies or booties, we need someone to dust and run the vacuum every couple of days. :) I spent Tuesday cooking/preparing meals to freeze and will finish up that task today! While I feel like we can do so much more before baby is born, I know that I have accomplished a lot and that does feel pretty good.

Baby is hiccuping right now...it might be my imagination or wishful thinking...but hiccups feel lower. Since about Sunday, I have felt the baby simultaneously pushing on my cervix and on my ribs occasionally--what a weird feeling! I also felt what I think might have been false labor contractions yesterday...they felt someone different from the Braxton Hicks contractions that I have been feeling since about month 5-6, I felt them more in my back. Nothing came of them but they did feel different and give me some sort of indication that I will "just know" when things begin to happen.

The waiting is really strange, I have really mixed feelings about it. I am physically pretty tired and close to ready to go but mentally, well, I don't know if I will be completely ready. Although, I have a feeling that nature will take care of that; perhaps I will get so big, so uncomfortable that feeling unsure will be a luxury compared to how I feel physically! That is, I won't frankly give a damn about my mental/emotional doubts, I will be feeling so huge and lousy that all I will want is to get the baby OUT!! I have trusted my body so far (and that trust has served me well) so perhaps that is the way it will go...

30 Days to EDD!

Well, here we are, November 13! If baby decides to be one of those rare kids who actually arrives on his/her due date, we are exactly 30 days away from his/her birthday! I had to at least acknowledge it...I know that meeting him/her in exactly 30 days is extremely unlikely.

In fact, I am beginning to doubt my initial feelings of meeting this baby prior to his/her due date! Just over the past couple of days, I have been feeling that Baby Mayer is pretty cozy in his/her womb-home and just might break family tradition and come after his/her due date. I am actually, at this point, feel okay about that, but, talk to me in a month and I might be singing a different tune.

I'll post again soon with photos from this past weekend's baby showers...they were amazing and we can officially say, at least "stuff" wise, we are ready for the baby! I want to make sure to include photos and for some reason, I am not finding them! So expect another, much longer post soon!

Baby Shower Fun

Click here to see all the pics....

Well, we had our first baby shower a couple weeks ago, and by "we" I mean Jenn, and I just showed up at the end. So it goes.

I had started this post soon after the shower, but I didn't manage to finish and it ended up gathering dust in the draft queue. And since I haven't posted in a while I figured I should finish what I started.

While Jenn was at the shower, I was otherwise occupied at the Campbell Octoberfest, accompanied by Steve, Dan, Chris, Mike and Sayre (Jenn's step-father, brother, my brother, our friend and Dan's friend, respectively). We walked around, and well, drank beer. It was very crowded and the way they set up the beer stations was a little annoying and made it a slow process in obtaining beer. You had to stand in one line to buy tickets and then proceed to a second line to actually buy the beer. Add to that, there were only 5 beer stations so the lines were out of control. Still, the beer and the company was good so we had a fun time.

The shower was fun for Jenn and we received some wonderful gifts from our friends and family. It was especially nice to see some of our friends that we haven't seen for some time (that's you, Hosannah, Janis and Kirsten). Thanks again to everyone for your support and love. =)

So now, here are some gratuitous belly shots (cover the children's eyes!)...

Whoo-wee, a couple more weeks and she's gonna pop. Oh yeah, we're getting down to the wire now and it almost seems like we are ready. We just finished up our birthing class through the clinic this past week and wow, do we ever know a lot about the labor and delivery process. I dare you to ask me to describe what happens during the transition period.

I'm not sure we need to know everything we learned, including seemingly all of the possible contingencies, but it feels good to know what to expect. We're also close to finishing up our hypno-birthing course, which has been great. The relaxation methods will be a huge help for Jenn (and even for me) when labor starts through the delivery process. I just need to remember to help her stay calm and give her the proper prompts to guide her.

Then we get to be parents. OMG...

Actually, I'm not quite as worried about that as I was before. At this point, I am just excited to meet the kid (bit, nugget, chitlin, take your pick) so I can talk to he/she directly, rather than through Jenn's belly. I'm sure the reality of being a parent will come crashing down on me as soon as we bring our child home and we are woken in the wee hours of the night, but that's cool. I'm looking forward to it, regardless.

The room is pretty much finished; we still have some decorating to do, but that will be an ongoing project. My mom is over this weekend to help out with refinishing the dresser -- a quick sand and a paint job. She'll be back for Thanksgiving and we'll do some painting of some animals on the walls out of a cute children's book. As for the bathroom, that is still unfinished and haunting me every day. I did get some work done on the tiling this past weekend, but there is still a good bit to do in the shower. I'm hoping to get through a lot of it this weekend with the help of Dan and Mike (Kennedy), but I doubt we'll finish. Ever after that, I still have to take care of the vanity countertop, the sink, faucet, sink plumbing, medicine cabinet, light fixture, cabinet finishing, and various bathroom accessories. Oy, so much work still to do.

Wow, it is getting late and I need to get to bed. Before I go, here's a gratuitous dog pic...

I'm this cute...

40 Days to Go!

I can't believe it. I remember like it was yesterday that I was 40 DAYS pregnant! It seems my feelings haven't changed much since; I recall thinking then, "I can't believe it!" Yet we've come so far since then, in fact, I can't imagine my life without this baby--I already feel like a mom and consider Doug not only my husband and best friend, but the father of our child. Even though we have not actually seen him/her, I can already sense who he/she is, personality wise and how he/she figures into our life. Just ask anyone who bothers to ask, "how are you?" and they'll tell you that all I talk about is this pregnancy and this baby...he/she is already the center of my life. :)

Speaking of life, it is pretty nuts. I think nesting (or the preliminary stages of it) has officially set in--I feel the need to CLEAN EVERYTHING. I am usually a pretty neat person but I want to CLEAN...as in take everything out of the kitchen cupboards and clean, clean, clean! We recently purchased a steam cleaner--one of those lightweight ones you can carry throughout the house. I cannot wait to attack the tile grout with it! And despite my best green sensibilities, I was in the cleaning products aisle at Target yesterday, I saw the swiffer system and realized why people use it; its easier than lugging the vacuum cleaner throughout the house--and I nearly bought it. I resisted, however--I am not that desperate yet. :) Nothing like cleaning your floors with maxi-pad looking things, eh?

I also bought some of those yesterday! I felt a little strange in the sanitary napkin section...I clearly look like I have had no need of such things in quite awhile. It will be somewhat strange to resume my normal bodily cycles. I bought them to begin packing my hospital bag--I am a bit superstitious about this. If I am packed, I won't go into preterm labor, but if I am not packed, I probably will! I hear it is a good idea to have done around 34-35 weeks anyway, so I am right on time. I am somewhat nervous because the fact of the matter is, I was born at 36 weeks. I don't think our baby will make that early of an appearance but having the bag packed can't hurt to try to insure that!

We have two baby showers coming up! Over Veteran's weekend, my aunts Pam and Stacey are throwing us a shower and the fabulous ladies from our church are also hosting one. I am constantly amazed and heartened by the outpouring of love and support for Doug, myself and this baby! I appreciate the fact that everyone, it seems, wants to celebrate this little one. I guess the birth of a baby is a special event; I don't have too much experience with this so sometimes it's somewhat overwhelming--all of the attention. I honestly do love and appreciate the outpouring of care and support and really look forward to getting together with all of those great ladies--family and friends--to help welcome our little one into our lives.

And speaking of little ones--my dear old friend Tasha just had twins! I went to visit her, her husband Bill and their new son and daughter last week at the hospital. Mom and Dad were so happy and proud of the twins and those twins--oh, they are the most precious little beings. I held their daughter for quite awhile and just watched her little facial expressions, her movements. It was incredible. I sat down in the rocking chair at one point with her and as I rocked her, I thought, "wow, I could do this all day." And it was such an emotional moment because I realized that, soon, I will be able to rock my little baby all day long. "Amazing" doesn't even come close to expressing how I feel about that.

The 8-Week Countdown!

We just concluded 32 weeks of pregnancy today and begin our eighth month! I am increasingly amazed at how fast this pregnancy has gone by and increasingly anxious about having this baby! Our childbirth classes are helping in that department; with every class, I (we) become more confident in the whole birthing process and that helps decrease the fears I have about it. I still have much fear--well, more like nervousness--about being a mom but I suppose we have to take it one thing at a time: first deal with childbirth and then deal with the child!

Speaking of the child, here is he/she today:


Even though I still feel like I am more boobs than belly, there is a healthy baby in there! At our appointment on Wednesday, I was measuring 33 weeks--pretty much right on time! So, while my belly isn't the typical basketball looking thing, there is a normal-sized kid in there! I am constantly reminded of this reality; his/her movements are very strong and frequent! Our NP said that baby is head-down already--in the perfect spot to deliver nice, swift kicks to my ribs! Thankfully, I think I feel elbow jabs most of the time; the kick-in-the-ribs often knock the wind out of me! I have also continued to feel hiccups...Doug even felt them, recently! Everyday is an adventure with this little one and I can only imagine what it will be like when he/she is with us on the outside!

Doug and I are really enjoying our childbirth classes and, particularly, our meditations that are a part of the hypnobirthing program. I have had some trouble sleeping lately but last night, after doing the meditation, I slept all the way through the night until 5 AM, got up to pee, came back to bed and went promptly back to sleep! I have struggled all week with not being able to go back to sleep once I got up, and even having to get up and eat something because I was awake long enough for my body to think it was breakfast time! So, not only am I preparing for a satisfying birth experience, I am already reaping the rewards of hypnobirthing! Whoo hoo! We are also learning good relaxation techniques in our Tuesday night class; Doug learned how to simulate contractions on my thigh so I can practice breathing through them and--at least with the simulated contractions, the breathing works! Incidentally, because of my allergies, I discovered that I need to back on Claritin (according to NP, safe for the baby) so I can breathe...

We embark on a new adventure tomorrow...the baby shower! My dear pal Tracy and dear sister-in-law Catherine are hosting it...they are the best. :) I am really looking forward to celebrating this pregnancy with friends and family. I hear there is a special dessert as well...can a pregnant lady ask for anything more? Family, good friends and dessert!?!?! I will make sure to post about it when we get back...

Have great weekends and see some of you tomorrow!

Nightmares, charlie horses and stretch marks

Yes, folks...I am officially pregnant. Very pregnant. While many people still look at me and shake their heads ("You don't look that pregnant! You barely look pregnant!"), I assure you that baby is right on track development-wise and I AM pregnant, complete with nightmares, nighttime charlie horse calf cramps and, even, yes, stretch marks.

We had the first of our every-two-week appointments with our OB/NP yesterday and, as I said, baby continues to grow inside of my ever-expanding belly. My uterus stretches up to under my ribcage now and have felt the occasional rib-kick. Baby is about 3 lbs now and is still performing amazing acrobatics, although not as crazily as before (less room for him or her to ricochet off the uterine walls, I guess). I feel him/her pretty much all day long, even in just the littlest of movements. I think I felt hiccups the other day--I was expecting it to be "cute" little thuds but they were frankly somewhat violent! Poor kid...I understand...I hate the hiccups, too.

We also began childbirth class on Tuesday! There are eight other couples besides ourselves and so far, we are pleased with the teacher, her philosophy, etc. She is even incorporating some hypnobirthing methods, which is great--considering we begin our hypnobirthing class on Sunday evening. Never heard of hypnobirthing? Here's a good link:

http://www.hypnobirthing.com/

We'll share more about it once our classes begin!

As for the Tuesday class, it is offered through our OB's practice and is a combo of many different methods. What is sort of funny is that Doug and I seem to be the oldest couple there; so many of the couples seem so so young! A couple of gals, especially, seem no older than about 20...wow. I know that we are not "old," per se but I felt somewhat old, sitting in that room with all of those bright and shiny faces. We'll see how the rest of the 5 weeks go!

So about the nightmares, charlie horses and stretch marks: those have been just a few of the fun experiences the third trimester has brought. I knew about stretch marks (figured I get them at some point) but I did not previously know that nightmares and charlie horse leg cramps are normal occurrences during pregnancy. I wake up nearly every night out of a deep, disturbing sleep at about 4 AM...having had some crazy nightmare-like dream. They are all stress-related, according to what I have read. My brain is apparently trying to work out the stress I feel about birth, being a mom, etc. and thus I have dreams about running from gangs of murderous thugs or (and this one is my most recent and pretty obvious) trying to get somewhere but missing the plane because I was trying to get everything ready and I had too much to pack. Don't need to be Freud to interpret that one. :)

To add insult to injury, when I wake up in sweaty panic, I am usually dealing with a charlie horse cramp and the intense need to pee...ugh! At least it is still only once a night, we learned in childbirth class that as soon as the baby "drops" (expect that to happen anywhere around 36-37 weeks), my bladder will be able to handle about a tablespoon of pee. I suppose I should be thankful around that time...at least the nightmares will go away because I won't be sleeping--just peeing every hour or so.

And stretch marks...they finally appeared about a week ago. I just have them right under my belly and am trying to keep them under control with Burt's Bees Mama's Belly Butter. I am not too heartbroken...no one will ever see them other than Doug and as I mentioned before, I was expecting them. They are frankly the least of my worries....I'd take the stretch marks over the crappy nightmares, any day. I really hate the nightmares.

I must also share the general dinginess/distractedness I have increasingly experienced also during this crazy third trimester. To put it into perspective: tomorrow is the last day we can say we have double-digit weeks until the baby is born. When we wake up on Saturday, we are less than 10 weeks away from his/her arrival. Yes, we are excited but as it gets closer, the more terrified I get and the more distracted I am. It is extremely difficult to think about anything else other than BABY. As I was sitting in my only class last night, I caught myself at least twice not paying attention at all...I was not able to recall anything anyone had just said. I don't do that...I am an extremely attentive student but I seem to have lost my edge. This is somewhat depressing; I always pride myself on having something meaningful to say but lately, well...my contributions are mediocre at best. I am still putting in all of the work and trying my hardest but, man, it is just really hard. How do other women show up for 8-hour workdays? My hat off to them...wow.

That's enough from me...for now.