38 weeks!

38 wks

Less than 2 weeks to our due date!! A few highlights from the week:

• Had our appointment this past Friday. No weight gain over the week. Which puts me at a total of 30 pounds for the pregnancy.
• My blood pressure is still fine. I was a little worried after I had a pair of beautiful cankles this past Wednesday and Thursday, but they were most likely due to me just being on my feet so much those days. 
• Only 1 1/2 cm dilated..so looks like she may still be nice and comfy right now.
• The joints in my hands are still pretty sore during the day.
• I am so fortunate to still be sleeping pretty well at night. She did think that 4am was time to wake up a couple of nights, but, luckily, she adjusted her schedule:)

 My sweet office gave a shower for Quinn on Friday too. It was so much fun, and she got so many sweet gifts!! We have also made it past the wedding that Jessica was in last night. We have both been worried that Quinn was going to want to come this weekend while she was in the wedding. Now her showers are done, Jessica is finished with the wedding, and I've gotten my pedicure. We are all set to meet Miss Quinn!!

37 Weeks and Full Term!!

We are officially 37 weeks and 3 days pregnant! She is now considered full term. My appointment went well this past Friday. I'm still only 1cm dilated and off bed rest. Now we just get to wait on our sweet girl to let us know when she is ready to come. I enjoyed being able to leave the house! We went to the pumpkin patch at Legare Farms. It was fun, but I can't wait to go back next year with Quinn. Then we went down to Folly to see a few friends before ending the night at this new coffee/wine bar to hear our friend Caxton play the guitar and sing.

It was great being back at work today. I work with the sweetest ladies!! It was also so nice to get the few last minute details together that I needed to do. That way I can leave work for 12 weeks with no worries! I told Jess that I was going to treat every day as if it could be my last so that I leave the office with everything together. She was quick to point out the fact that it might make the week longer when I think every day could be my last, but I definitely have enough to do at work to keep myself busy for the next few days.  The Braxton Hicks contractions are so much stronger lately. It is amazing at how hard my stomach can gets! I can also feel so much more pressure on my pelvic bone.  I can't wait for my appointment on Friday. I just want to know if we are any closer to meeting out sweet girl!

My Sweet Sister

While I'm waiting for my chocolate chip cookies to finish baking in the oven, I'm looking over my blog thinking about how blessed we are to have such wonderful family members and friends that have already helped us out even more than we could ever have imagined! To all of my mommy friends, Mom, and sister-in-law, I can't thank you enough for all of your advice and gifts so far, and I know that I will definitely be calling with a million questions in the future. However, I realize that I haven't really talked about how much I appreciate everything my sweet sister has done for me during these past few months. The biggest was my sweet surprise present that I got when I was home for Labor Day weekend. She surprised me with a 4D ultrasound appointment!! I thought Mom, Jess and I were going to this large baby consignment sale that was going on that weekend. When I asked why we passed our turn, they screamed surprise to let me know we were going to Tupelo for a 4D ultrasound. Being the hormonal pregnant woman that I was/am, I cried like a baby. This of course got my mom crying too. They were happy tears! I can't describe to you how amazing it was to see our sweet little girl on that screen:

John was able to watch a live feed from home while we watched at the clinic. She wouldn't take her hands away from her cheek. This was the best picture we were able to get. We were able to see her suck on her hand, and she opened her eyes. She definitely liked being curled up. We did get some good pictures of her sweet chunky cheeks. She got a little aggrivated with us bothering her, and we got to see her sweet double chin. I can't wait to hold this precious angel!!
It was such a thougthful gift. Jess has been my rock through this whole pregnancy. She is always there to answer my ridiculous questions, and she listens when I'm probably providing a little too much information on what's going on with me;)  She's such a wonderful mother, and I am so excited that we get to go through the wonderful experience of being mothers/parents together!

9 Months = Bed Rest

9 Months!

As of last Friday, we are now 36 weeks/9 months pregnant! Last Thursday morning I woke up around 5:30am with some back pains that were coming and going. I ended up being sent to Labor and Delivery in the hospital to be monitored for around 4-5 hours that afternoon. Turns out that I was having some contractions, but it wasn't pre-term labor. They labeled it an irritable uterus:) Since this can lead to labor, my doctor put me on bed rest until this Friday to get me to 37 weeks (full-term). I have an appointment tomorrow. As long as everything seems fine, I will be cleared to go back to work on Monday.

Going into the hospital last week made reality set in that she will be here any day now! I think that I have been coasting with work and staying busy to not get too anxious about her arrival, but after sitting at home all week thinking about it, I'm SO ready!  I packed the last minute essentials into my luggage before our appointment (just in case), but I didn't get to straighten up around the house before going to the hospital. All I could think about was that my house wasn't ready for guests..lol. When John said that he would run by the house, if we ended up staying the night, to check on the dogs, I actually asked him if he would sweep before coming back!  Since we were able to come home, all the cleaning has now been taken care of by my sweet husband. I think somehow my nesting moved over to him. He was awesome with cleaning, organizing, and painting our guest bedroom this past weekend. I went through my lists of last minute details, and we are now ready! It's all up to Miss Quinn now.

9 Month updates:

• She still gets the hiccups every day. The doctor said this is actually a good sign.
• She is a growing girl. Every day I'm amazed at how much tighter my clothes have gotten.
• Early morning and late at night are her most active times of the day. She's pretty sleepy the rest of the day. She sits mostly on the right side of my belly. I can rub my hand over what must be her little booty and back sticking up on that side.
• I love watching her move and stretch across my belly. I'm really trying to take it all in as much as I can. I don't know if I'll be one of those women that miss their belly or not, but I definitely want to enjoy every moment.
• She is lower than she has been. I can rest my arm between my chest and stomach now, and I feel that I am waddling a lot more.
• My good eating habits are out the window. I feel that I have been good most of the pregnancy with trying to eating healthy and not indulge too much in sweets and junk food. However, my sweet cravings are a lot stronger, and I think I'm cheating almost daily with having some type of dessert. Also a big fan of cheddar and sour cream chips. Survival mode has kicked in I think.
• I've made it this far with only 2 meltdowns. I at least knew I was not being rational.
• My favorite shirt is this extra large Shuqualak Lumber Co. shirt that was left at my house. I have no idea who wore the shirt. It is huge but comfy!!
• My favorite times during the day are the long hot showers I take, and my naps. I like to read and nap in the nursery just because it is peaceful to me.

The medicine they have given me has kept the back pains away. It makes me a little sleepy I think...at this point I feel that I've been sleepy my entire third trimester:) Our appointment is tomorrow, and I'm anxious to hear what the doctor says. I'll keep you posted!!

A Charleston Shower

My sweet friends, Erin and Alisha, put together a perfect Charleston shower this past weekend! It was so much fun to get together with my girlfriends.

The decorations were adorable! Loved the party favors with her full name on them!

                                        Of course, no shower is complete without the belly picture!!
I'm so fortunate to have so many good friends here in Charleston, and  a lot of them with really good advice for this mama-to-be:) Thanks again ladies!