40 weeks

Well, yesterday was my due date and still no signs of baby.  But, that's ok.  I know that he'll come when he's good and ready and not a second before (well, unless he lingers around too long).

I had my 40 week appointment on Thursday.  I was confident that I had made at least a little progress.  I had walked between 4-5 miles every day the week before...surely that had helped some?  Unfortunately it didn't.  I had made zero progress since my last appointment.  I was still just 1 measly cm dilated.  I had a not-so-small breakdown in the doctor's office (poor doc, must have thought I was crazy).  But, over the last few days I have come to realize that this baby is going to come sooner or later, and no amount of me worrying is going to help.

So, I'm trying to enjoy my last few baby-free days.  Thankfully I'm still incredibly comfortable and have no complaints about being pregnant.  Tonight Chris and I are going on a date...something that might not happen again for a while so I'm thankful for the opportunity.  My parents will arrive on Monday and I look forward to spending a few quality weeks with them.  As much as I cannot wait to meet my son, I know the Lord's timing is perfect!

Here's what I looked like on my due date!

Thankful at 39 weeks

Yesterday we had our 39 week appointment and left the doctor's office pretty discouraged.  I haven't made much (or any) progress since my 38 week appointment so this baby is probably going to hang out for a while longer before making an appearance.  When I asked the doctor what I could do to get things progressing he basically said "be active".  I'm not sure how much more active I can be at this point!  But, I woke up this morning realizing that this baby is going to come when he's good and ready, not when I think I'm ready.  And, I also realized that I have a ton to be thankful for:

1)  Other than the morning sickness, I have had a very easy pregnancy.  I have still been able to exercise and continue my daily routine without any problems.

2)  I am still very comfortable.  I have no swelling and have lots of energy to do what I need to do.

3)  I am able to sleep (relatively) well.  I'm not sure any woman, at 39 weeks, can sleep fabulously with a baby laying on her bladder...but I do feel pretty well rested most days which I'm thankful for. 

4)  The longer this baby stays in, the better I guess at this point.  He has measured small the whole time and staying put another week (or 2) will allow him to gain some weight.  Yesterday he was weighing in at an estimated 6 lbs 10 oz...a whole 12 oz more than 2 weeks ago!  So, I guess we won't have such a tiny baby after all.

5)  As anxious as I am to meet our little guy, these last few weeks are something to cherish with my husband.  Never again will we be a family of 2!  So, hopefully this can be a special time that we can savor.

Here's a picture taken a few days ago...not the best angle but I'm definitely growing!

Exercise During Pregnancy

I suppose, since I am an exercise physiologist by profession, I should write a blog post about my experience with exercise while I have been pregnant.  I'll be honest, it's been a very different experience than I expected.  I always thought I would just keep on running up until the day my baby was born.  I mean, I've run for years...why would pregnancy keep me from it?  Ha.  Was I wrong...for a number of reasons.  Let's start with the initial reason I stopped running- morning (noon and night) sickness.  I was just too nauseated to run much.  I really tried to keep running most days until about week 15, then I just gave it up.  But, when I started to feel better at week 18 I thought I'd try again.  I was successful for a few weeks but developed tremendous pelvic pain that was worsened by running.  So, I decided it was time to hang it up and start a new exercise routine that was more conducive to pregnancy.  At first I did a lot of inclined walking on the treadmill (sometimes with jogging intervals if I felt ok that day).  Or, I would do a workout on the elliptical.  My favorite days of exercise were the days I would come home from work and Chris and I would go for a long walk/jog.  I look forward to doing lots more of this after the baby is born with our wonderful new stroller!

I continue to exercise 5-6 days a week for 45 minutes to an hour.  Aside from my cardio workouts, I have tried to continue doing strength exercises, particularly lots of squats and lunge.

I am so thankful that I have been able to exercise throughout my pregnancy.  I really believe that it was helped me in so many ways- I have been able to gain a healthy amount of weight, I have not experienced any swelling, and I still feel extremely comfortable.  I really am not tired of being pregnant yet, mostly I think because I am still able to be really active.  I am hoping that my exercise will all pay off when it's time to welcome my precious son into the world with a quick and easy labor!

Maternity Pictures

First, let me say how glad I am that I had a few dear friends convince me to have maternity pictures taken (thanks Alison and Ashley!).  And thank you Lindsey for taking these pictures that Chris and I will treasure for a very long time!  

We took these pictures at Tanglewood a few weeks ago, I was 35 weeks pregnant.  I am really pleased with how they turned out!

  

 

Nursery sneak peak

We have just about finished the nursery!  I keep thinking of little things I need to do but, for the most part, all it needs now is a baby!  Here are some pictures:

This was an old dresser that we had...our friend Matt re-finished it and did a great job!!

Pages out of some of my favorite Dr Seuss books

Chris made this wagon in shop class in high school and his mom gave it to us for our little boy...very special :)

Baby boy already has a ton of clothes!

On another note, we finally purchased our stroller!  I did a lot of research and decided on the BOB Revolution SE.  It was our one "splurge".  If you know Chris and I, we are really frugal.  So, we waited and waited to buy the stroller but a few weeks ago we went ahead and bit the bullet (it helps that it was on sale!).  I am SO excited to start running again!

 

It's hard to believe that we will have a full term baby in just 6 days! 

I couldn't have said it any better

It's hard to put into words what Chris and I feel as our foster care journey is coming to an end very soon.  But, Chris put something on facebook yesterday that pretty much sums it up, I couldn't have said any better...

"It has been an absolute joy having the boys live with us for the past 19 months. The journey has had its up and downs, but they have touched our hearts and we have grown to love them more then we ever could have imagined. Now the next part of their lives will begin. Over the next month they will be transitioning from our home into their potential God willing adoptive forever home. It will be sad to see them go, but luckily they are going to the absolute perfect family for them. The way everything has fallen into place so far with this family being brought into our lives has been amazing and there is no answer for it other then "God had a perfect plan." Abbie and I will be able to continue being a part of the boys lives, and they will be raised in a wonderful Godly home where there is no doubt they will be loved and cared for. Thank you to everyone who has prayed for us and the boys over the last year and a half. Please continue to pray as there is still some work to be done, but it is awesome knowing what an awesome God we serve."

 Please continue to pray for the boys as they make this transition to their new (Lord willing forever) home.  It will not be easy for any of us but we have been clearly led to this decision.  Also pray for Chris and I as we start on a very new and exciting adventure with a newborn in 5 or so weeks.  Thank you in advance for these prayers- we really do serve a God of miracles!

34 weeks

I posted a picture in my last post but since it was taken at 32 weeks I thought I'd post a more recent picture, mostly for my own sake as I look back on this blog in the future. I have received a lot of comments about how I'm growing quickly (like, "wow, you are really ballooning up!"...I think someone needs to offer a class on what to say and not to say to pregnant women!). So, here it is!