39 Weeks- Still Pregnant!

I'm due in a week! I can't believe it! I had a Dr. appointment today and yet another ultrasound to determine Landon's size. This time he was measuring about 8.5 lbs. The Dr. is guessing he will weigh about 9.5 lbs when he's born. I've made some progress in the dilation/effacement department too which was nice to hear, but it isn't much. My Dr. said we will see how much more progress I've made by my appointment in a week and talk induction then if we need to. I don't think they want me going too far past my due date since he's on the bigger side. I'm very nervous about pushing out a big baby, but the 2 Drs. who have given me ultrasounds have said that I'm tall and they are confident that I can do this. They also said his head isn't HUGE and the fact that it's so far down in my pelvis is a good sign that he will fit. Obviously we don't want a c-section unless needed, but I also don't want horrible tearing down below. I'm definitely feeling anxious about everything and my higher blood pressure this week reflected that.

I finished with work last Friday and I love not having to get up early or lesson plan anymore! I know once Landon gets here I will not sleep much, but until then, I am enjoying my rest and feeling so lucky that I get to be a SAHM!

Here's my 39 week pic taken by my husband. I'm big!

38 Weeks!

First, thank you all for the sweet comments on the nursery! We're really happy with it! We actually found some shelving this past weekend, so I will be sure to add a picture of it once I get all of Landon's toys and books on it!

I would be thrilled if this was the last pregnancy post I made, but I have a feeling Landon is going to be late and I will wind up being induced. Jeff thinks he will come on or near his due date because his head is so low and I have a lot of pressure in that area. I've made zero progress towards labor so far, but I know that can change in an instant and that being dilated or effaced could still mean a few more weeks of pregnancy. I am seeing the Dr. today at 3:15, so we'll see if she has anything new to tell me! I have been getting more cramps, but nothing consistent. I really don't want to go late since Landon is probably already big and the longer he stays inside of me, the bigger he will get. Some Drs. will let you go 2 weeks late and I think I will die if that happens to me! We have the car seat installed, the diaper bag packed for the baby, and the hospital bag packed for us, all we need now is the baby!

I have a bit of a cold which sucks and it needs to go away ASAP. My lower back still hurts, as does my pelvis, but no more than it did last week. Walking around is hard, and so is getting up from a sitting or laying position. I am getting up 3-4 times per night to pee, but I can still fall back to sleep fast, which is great! Speaking of peeing, the newest thing is peeing, then standing up and feeling like I have to pee again, so I sit right back down and get like a little trickle out. So irritating haha! I know it's not a UTI, just a pregnancy related annoyance. My feet and hands are pretty swollen now and that kind of came all of a sudden last weekend and is here to stay. I can only wear flip flops on my feet (I even wore them to a wedding we went to this past weekend. I didn't have a choice!) and cannot wear either my wedding or engagement rings anymore which makes me sad. This week is supposed to be hot, so I'm expecting to be even puffier and more miserable than usual, but I will manage.

Friday is my last day of work. It's definitely kind of bittersweet because I do love teaching and won't be going back for a very long time, but I am so ready to meet my baby and become a stay-at-home-mom. It's always been my dream and I'm so excited that I can do it! My job is awesome and is giving me 3 weeks of maternity leave (the amount of time left in the school year) instead of disability, which is what I thought I was getting. This means I get full pay until the last day of school, which is much better than 60% of my salary!

My next post will either be week 39 which will no doubt include some complaining about still being pregnant even though I won't be at my due date yet, or a post announcing the birth of my son! Almost there! :)

Here's my 38 week belly:

The Nursery!

I'm finally posting about the nursery! We still have a few minor things to do: Hang up a couple of pictures and find some shelving to display all of Landon's toys and books, but the major stuff is done.

The stuffed bear will not be in the crib when Landon is.

We are going to hang up a picture above the changing pad and that lamp is going away.

One of 2 closets in the room. This isn't even half of his clothes. It's some of the 0-3 month stuff and some of the 3-6 month stuff. The rest of his clothes are in the dresser. I want to get more hangers so I can hang up a bit more stuff! The other closet is being used as storage for the books, some toys, the bathtub, etc.

37 Weeks- Full Term!

I'm now considered full term! I'm so grateful to have made it to this point because not everyone does. I'm very uncomfortable though, so Landon can come out anytime now! I have a strong feeling he will be late though, which means he will have even more time to gain weight. The kid weighs more now with 3 weeks to go than some of my friends' babies did at birth at 40-41 weeks lol.

Like I mentioned above, I am really uncomfortable! My pelvis hurts all the time, making walking difficult. Landon likes to hang out on my sciatic nerve and that is killer! My lower back aches and I have a lot of pressure "down there" due to how low my baby's head is. I waddle and I am going much slower than I'm used to (normally I am a really fast walker). If I'm not sitting, I'm not happy lol. We ran a few errands on Saturday and I actually had to go sit in the car while we were at Costco because I was in so much pain, I had cramps, and my hands and feet were swollen. Thank goodness I teach middle school and can sit most of the day! Speaking of work... I am having the Dr. write me a note this week at my Wednesday appointment telling work that my last day will be Friday, May 27th. That's next week and I cannot believe I'm at the point where I am leaving work due to pregnancy! I am looking forward to sleeping and relaxing as much as I possibly can before Landon is born! I will miss my students and teaching, but I've always wanted to be a stay at home mom and I am so lucky that I can do that.

We are meeting with a pediatrician this afternoon that my friend loves. Unless something goes majorly wrong, we will be taking our son to him. Jeff really wanted to meet him before deciding for sure, so I made an appointment. I've heard nothing but good things about this Dr. so I look forward to meeting him!

In spite of my recent complaints, I have enjoyed being pregnant for the most part. The first trimester/beginning of the second trimester sucked because I was puking and/or feeling sick a lot, and this 9th month has been kind of hellish so far, but otherwise, it's been really easy and fun! I love feeling and seeing Landon move around inside of me and I will definitely miss that once he's born.

I'm starting to get anxiety about giving birth, especially knowing that this baby is not small. I know it will all be OK in the end, it's just the unknown for me that's scary. I've also never had stitches before and I am pretty much guaranteed them given Landon's size, so that makes me a bit nervous. I am so getting an epidural ASAP and I know it will all be fine. I was reading "What To Expect While Expecting" last night and had to put it away because it was freaking me out so much! I won't be reading anymore of that book during my pregnancy!

Here's my 37 week belly:

Landon Update!

I'm so happy Blogger is back! I've been dying to post about my appointment!

I went and had my 36 week ultrasound yesterday. Landon is estimated to be 7 lbs 11 oz already (give or take 1 pound). All of the measurements the Dr. did said he was measuring anywhere from 38 weeks to 39 weeks, 5 days, so he's going to be a big boy! I know ultrasounds aren't exact, the Dr. herself said that, but I think it's right in my case and this is going to be a big baby! My Dr. said I am built to have big babies and she isn't worried about it at all, which makes me feel better. His head is VERY low (hence the constant pressure and pain I have downtown), but I still feel him up in my ribs, so the kid is also long. He's taking after his mom and uncles! The Dr. is guessing he will be at least 9 lbs at birth since babies gain about half a pound a week and I have 4 weeks to go. I am now preparing myself for the idea that I will more than likely tear or have to have an episiotomy. I HATE the idea of getting stitches down there (I've never had stitches before and that is a hell of a place to get them for the first time), but it will all be worth it!

Even though knowing he's big makes me a bit more nervous for the birth, I'm actually happy he will be a bit more sturdy and strong due to his size! I won't be as afraid to handle him since he will be a bit beefy lol

36 Weeks!

I'm 36 weeks pregnant! 1 more week until I'm full term! I say it every week, but this pregnancy has really gone so, so fast! It still seems surreal to me at times that I am going to be someone's mother very soon!

I'm really tired and getting uncomfortable. It hurts to walk because my lower back and pelvis ache. I'm still sleeping pretty well, but I can't seem to get enough of it! I've also been getting horrible leg cramps here and there. I got one Friday night/Saturday morning and it was a bad charlie horse that came and went 3 times within a few minutes. My leg still hurts from it and the pain was intense when I was going through it. I also think Landon is hitting nerves down there because I get some shooting pains where my legs meet the rest of my body. They're painful, shocking, and happening at least once a day. I plan on talking to my Dr. about writing me a note to leave work about 1.5 weeks before my due date so I can just rest and be uncomfortable in peace. I want to be able to tie up loose ends at work, prepare my students, and talk to the person/people covering my classes before I go.

I also cannot see my lower belly anymore and I haven't really looked at my entire body in the mirror recently. I was using the faculty bathroom at work the other day, and there's a big mirror in there, so I took a look at my stomach and was horrified to see a bunch of stretch marks on my lower stomach! I had NO IDEA they were there! They're red and angry looking and I was genuinely upset about them for a few days. I also have them on my left hip and a little bit on both boobs. They say it's genetic, but my mom got none with 3 HUGE babies, so I thought I would take after her... WRONG! I was so shocked to see any on my stomach because I really thought I was going to be like my mom. Not that I was going to anyway, but I won't be wearing a bikini ever again because no one wants to see these. I know they will fade and I plan on getting cream to help that along. I'm OK with them now. My poor husband had to hear me complain about them and be upset for a few days, so he's been super sweet about making sure that I know he still thinks I'm beautiful and all that and it's made me feel a lot better. I still think the stretch marks are super ugly, but having Landon is so worth it and I wouldn't give up this experience for anything. In the grand scheme of things, it's not a huuuuge deal. I have had an easy, uncomplicated pregnancy, and both Landon and I are healthy, which I am so grateful for. It was just a bit shocking and I'm hormonal, hence the overreaction and vain behavior on my part.

Everyone thinks Landon is going to be big. One of my bosses, who has given birth to 5 kids, told me today that she thinks I have a big baby in there! I will find out more info at my appointment on Thursday when they do an ultrasound. If I get any interesting news, I will be sure to post about it. I'm excited to see him once more before I give birth to him! I cannot believe we're in the home stretch! I've started packing our hospital bags and Jeff needs to install the car seat bases into our cars!

Here's my 36 week belly:

35 Weeks!

I'm 35 weeks today and it dawned on me yesterday that I will be considered full term in 2 weeks! That's insane!

Not much new here. I am swelling a lot, so I can manage to fit my wedding band on my finger, but having both that and my engagement ring on at the same time is a bad idea. Not sure why I can wear one ring and not the other since they're the same size, but at least I can wear something! I'm hot all the time and the warmer weather doesn't help anything. I'm still sleeping well. I do get up to use the bathroom several times each night, but I fall back to sleep quickly. I am definitely getting more tired faster and I'm looking forward to being done with work in a few weeks.

I went to the Dr. last week and everything looks great, but she did say that she can tell by feeling my stomach that the baby isn't going to be "a tiny pipsqueak." This makes me a bit nervous since I was 11.5 lbs at birth, Warren was 10.5 lbs, and Kurt was 9.5 lbs. The only reason Kurt didn't get to my weight is because my mom was induced 2 weeks early to prevent that. My grandfather was 13 lbs. so I come from a family of big babies and it looks like my son might be following suit. I told the Dr. all of this, so she is going to give me an ultrasound next week when I go in to see just how big Landon is! I think he's long too since I know his head is down low, but I still feel kicks and various body parts up in my ribs and I have a long torso!

On a completely different note, today is my husband's 29th birthday! He always said he wanted a kid by the time he was 30, and he's getting one a little bit sooner than that! :)

Here's my 35 week belly: