37 Weeks 3 Days

I am officially full term.  YAY! This baby girl is welcome to come any time she wants now.  I had a doctor's appointment on Tuesday and everything was great.  Just a few of the things we covered were:

• I LOST 3 pounds! Over the Christmas holiday at that! Don't have any clue how because I can't even do that when I'm not pregnant.  Puts me at a total weight gain so far of 34 pounds.  I may be able to stay under my 35 pound goal after all if I don't gain anymore or keep losing.


• I am still 1 centimeter dilated but moved from 70% to 80% effaced.  Almost completely thinned out, YAY!


• He is going to strip my membranes next week to stir up things a little.  Not looking forward to the pain of it but if it can speed things up I'm all for it.


• After my appointment Tuesday, that night I started to lose my mucous plug(gross yes, but exciting!).  Then the next morning lost more of it.  Not sure if it's all gone or not but I haven't noticed it anymore in 24 hours.  I have noticed stronger contractions since it happened but nothing in sequence.  I just think she is preparing herself for the world.


• My blood pressure was great still.  So thankful for no health issues this pregnancy.


• My Group B Strep test came back Positive.  Which means when I get admitted to the hospital for delivery they will immediately hook me up to antibiotics so that it doesn't pass to the baby.


• As for me, I'm feeling pretty good.  I want to sleep all the time though.  I am sleeping about 10 to 12 hours a night and it's actually good sleep.  I guess my body just knows to get rested up now!


• The nursery is completely ready.  Well we do need to get a bookshelf still and that's in the plans for this weekend.  I also need to finish packing my hospital bag.  It's only half way done.


• We have another appointment next Wednesday so I will update then.

I keep wanting to rush the end of this pregnancy but then think to myself, I need to enjoy and cherish this last two weeks just being a family of two.  Go on some dates with my hubby, enjoy my sleep, watch lots of movies...but it is hard to control the rushing.  I have been carrying her for nine and a half months inside of me and I'm ready to hold her on the outside.  I finally had my first dream about Emma.  I had just given birth and they had cleaned her off and wrapped her up and brought her to me.  She was so beautiful.  It felt so real and when I woke up and she wasn't in my arms it was upsetting but I know she will be here soon enough.  Can't wait to meet her precious face.

 

 

Boo to the Sniffles

I unfortunately have a pretty rotten cold right now, which is not making the end of pregnancy any more fun than it already was.  I somehow seem to catch any bug my two-year old nephew gets.  I even avoided kisses and still got it.  I thought pregnant women were supposed to have superhuman immunities to block sickness? Obviously not.  Besides the horrible cold things are progressing nicely with this pregnancy.  I'm 36 weeks 2 days today but feeling more like 40 weeks.  I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and in bullet point fashion this is how things are going:

• I gained 2 pounds.  Definitely not the 1 I was wanting to see but oh well.  I'm almost to the end and am tired and grumpy and don't care too much :)


• My blood pressure was 118/72.  Perfect.  Has been the whole time.


• Belly is measuring about 37 weeks.


• Baby's heartbeat was 144 bpm.  Nice and strong.


• Baby girl is LOW LOW LOW.  I'm dilated to 1 and 70% effaced.  He was able to touch her head yesterday which blows my mind.  I knew there was a reason I feel like I have a bowling ball in between my legs! He also in so many words said I have good hips...guess that's a good thing for giving birth!


• I am hoping she comes on her own but if not we are talking about inducing on 1-11-11 (pretty cool birthday right?).  He seems fine with it which I'm excited about.  Having a set day is great for me since I'm a bit OCD anyway.  However, as low as she is maybe she will come sooner than that!


• I'm OVER pregnancy.  I'm sure I've mentioned that before but I need to say it again.  Over it.  Sleep was excellent last week and now sleep doesn't exist.  I can't get comfy, my brain will not shut off, I am peeing more this week, I'm crampy and she likes to keep me awake all night and I am having hot flashes at night again.  Crazy how it can change so much just in a week!


• I'm noticing more contractions.  Nothing back to back but she's definitely working her way out slowly but surely.  Yesterday after being checked for dilation, I'm pretty sore today.  Add that to my cold and you can imagine what kind of mood I'm in today.

It's just hard to believe that this LONG journey is almost over.  I am not even scared of labor at this point.  I'm excited and READY for it.  I know the day of delivery I will be extremely nervous but BRING IT ON.  This girl is ready for motherhood :)

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope everyone has safe travels and has a wonderful spent with loved ones.  Let us not forget what the real reason for Christmas is! So thankful for the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.  What a wonderful gift to celebrate at Christmas.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Nothing beats a warm delicious bowl of soup on a cold winters day.  I decided to try a chicken noodle soup recipe and I'm so proud of its turn out.  I had never made it before (pretty sure opening a can of Campbell's doesn't count!) and was a little nervous but it was amazing! I just used a simple recipe I found with Google.  Here's what you will need:

• 3-4 stalks of chopped celery


• 3-4 chopped carrots


• Half of onion chopped


• 1/4 cup of butter


• 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped


• 12 cups water


• 9 chicken bouillon cubes (yes NINE, seems like a lot but just do it, trust me!)


• Dash of dry Marjoram


• Dash of dry bay leaves (you can use fresh if you prefer, I only had dry and it worked just fine)


• 1 teaspoon of black pepper


• 2-3 Large Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts


• 8 oz of Egg Noodles

To start, boil your chicken until done.  Drain and cut into big chunks or shred (whichever you prefer).  In another large stock pot saute' your celery and onion in 1/4 cup of butter.  Then add the 12 cups of water, bouillon cubes, carrots, bay leaves, parsley, marjoram, black pepper and chicken.  Bring to a boil for a few minutes and then simmer for about 30 minutes.  After soup has simmered add egg noodles and simmer another 10 minutes or until noodles are tender.

Then ENJOY! Just try not to burn your tongue like me and Dustin did because we were impatient and couldn't take the time to blow it! It's so very simple.  It's pretty much just a little bit of chopping and adding stuff to a pot.  Just so you want to make it even more, here's a picture of what it looks like!



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Right after this picture I crunched up some crackers in mine, talk about heaven!

O come, let us sing unto the LORD

I grew up in church my whole life and gospel and christian music have been apart of my family since I was born.  I grew up singing in my children's choir and adult choir in church.  My mom sings and plays the piano and both of my sisters sing.  It's always been a huge part of who we are.  In my teenage years and after, I fell away from Christian music and didn't think much of it.  In the last year I have recently found my way back and I can't believe I ever stopped listening to it.  I had forgotten how wonderfully amazing it is.  It just makes me feel GOOD.  If I'm bummed or upset all I have to do is turn my radio on Way FM or pop in a Selah, Sanctus Real or Third Day cd, just to name a few.  I stopped in our local Family Christian Bookstore today for a Beth Moore Bible Study and came out with two cd's.  Even if you don't have a close relationship with Christ and have been pushing him away or have never heard of the wonderful love of Christ, I highly recommend purchasing the new WOW 2011 cd.  The music on it is incredible.  Also, for the holiday season I recommend O Holy Night by David Phelps.  It will bring tears to your eyes, make you smile and give you chills! It's a great deal too.  Not only do you get a cd but you get a dvd as well!



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rejoice in the LORD, O ye righteous: for praise is comely for the upright. Praise the LORD with harp: sing unto him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings. Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise. For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth. Psalms 33:1-4


O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. Psalms 95:1-2

Did somebody say FREE?

In Christmas's past I have usually sent out your typical boxed Christmas cards and I finally decided this year it was time for a change.  I recently learned that Shutterfly is offering 50 (you heard me correctly, 50!) FREE holiday cards for posting a blog on your site about their amazing products.  I am new to the Shutterfly experience and after browsing their website I am completely in love with their products.  I have several friends that send us Christmas cards every year created by Shutterfly and they are always great.  I love that you can personalize your card with your own words and photos.  It makes it special to those family members we don't get to see very often.  I am so excited to share the card that I have picked for our family this year.



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What do ya think? Pretty amazing quality I must say.  I browsed the website today looking for the perfect card for our family and when I came across this one I knew it was perfect.  I think family and friends will love them! You may see that I added Emma's name to the card and it's because she is already a member of our little family even though she's still growing in my tummy.  Who knows, it's a possibility she could be here at Christmas! To look for your own perfect Christmas Photo Card just click here.  You won't be disappointed! Also, if you love the Christmas Cards you will love the desk calendars.  With baby Emma arriving at the first of the year I'm thinking I may just have to order some 2011 calendars for our home and for the grandparents, aunts and uncles! You can check those out here.  If you want to partake in this wonderful offer just head on over to Shutterfly and get started!

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

This holiday season is particularly special to me this year.  Why you ask? Well, because of sweet baby Emma growing inside me.  To experience the holidays through all of this is definitely a different experience, but a good one.  We traveled six hours to Virginia to spend Thanksgiving with Dustin's family.  It was not the easiest drive being over eight months pregnant.  I was very thankful to arrive Wednesday night safely and with very little swelling in my feet.  We had such an amazing time with his family.  I was so thankful we were able to spend some time with them before Emma arrives.  Dinner was wonderfully delicious on Thursday.  I look forward every year to his family's Thanksgiving dinner.  It is literally a feast.  I feel like I did well with food.  I had a huge plate of food but didn't go back for seconds! I could have but didn't.  The day after Thanksgiving we skipped Black Friday (because getting in that madness is plain MADNESS!) and his mother threw me an amazing baby shower.  We are so blessed to have received so many wonderful gifts from his mother and other family members.  They were all so generous and we are so thankful.  We got so many of the big items we still needed including the stroller, jumperoo, boppy, shopping cart cover, moby wrap, avent bottles and so much more! We are pretty much set on everything she needs.  There are still some last minute items we need to purchase but she can come whenever she is healthy and ready!

After returning home we got busy with decorating the house for Christmas.  I have been waiting months to put up the tree! I've had all these milestones in my head since I got pregnant to count down until Emma's arrival.  All these holidays keep passing and it's only making labor day closer! She could be here anytime after the Christmas and New Year holidays and I couldn't be more ready and excited.  This house is looking like Christmas around here and I love it.  We even have half of our shopping done and presents wrapped under the tree.  I'm determined to get it done as soon as possible just in case Emma decided she wanted to join us for Christmas :)

Yesterday, I had a doctor's appointment.  It went great.  Still no issues in my health or babies health.  We have been really blessed with a healthy pregnancy.  Her heartbeat was 144 bpm.  My blood pressure was perfect and I'm measuring about a week ahead at 34 weeks.  Wonder if that means she could possible come early? My next appointment is in two weeks and they will start checking my cervix for dilation.  I really can't believe we are already at this point.  I start going every week after that! We are really in the home stretch now.  I think I should probably start preparing a hospital bag...I already have her diaper bag in the works but I should probably work on one for myself! Being in the third trimester is awesome just knowing she will be here soon but it's a pretty rough trimester.  I'm really tired and don't sleep well.  Everything is much harder these days, tying my shoes, shaving, getting off the couch, getting out of bed...I could go on and on.  I just keep reminding myself that it's only for around 6 more weeks! We'll meet you soon baby girl!

Baby Shower Christmas Tree :)



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The cake was yummy! Only one piece for me though.



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Me at 33 weeks with my sister-in-law and sweet Parker.



Dustin practicing on Thanksgiving day with  two week old Hudson.  He looks like a pro!



Christmas Time!