Lots of Baby at 37 Weeks

I have neglected posting about our baby girl due to lack of pictures, time and energy. But now we are feeling prepared and I have pictures and lots of news and stories to share. Still not a lot of energy or extra time to spare... but taking a few moments to write about this pregnancy!

Here is the happy, healthy, and slightly uncomfortable mommy at 35 weeks (but currently 37 weeks):

There is something about having a picture taken that makes you realize how pregnant you actually look. I have been so happy this pregnancy to not gain as much weight as I did with Creighton. In fact, so far I've only gained 1/3 the weight I did with him. But unfortunately I started out this pregnancy still hanging on to quite a bit of that weight... 

At 28 weeks I finally traded in my regular jeans for some maternity ones and just last week bought some new scrub bottoms. I probably should have gotten new scrub bottoms about 3 weeks ago though. This last week was much more pleasant at work. Sundays have become difficult because I feel like with all of my knee length dresses/skirts and the fact that it is winter I should wear panty hose. But panty hose are seriously impossible at this point. And I am not ordering any maternity hose online to wear for just a few weeks. So maxi dresses it is on Sundays. I feel under-dressed for the Sabbath, but it is comfortable and I feel so happy to not expose my white legs to all.

Beginning in the middle of my 2nd trimester I started walking funny. REALLY funny. I was so uncomfortable, almost in pain. I was worried that baby girl was already extremely low or in a dangerous position but my doctor assured me she was just fine. I have learned to deal with it and I think I have straightened out my walking to be more normal. However the girls at work are still teasing me about my almost constant waddle. I am carrying her much lower than I did with Creighton. I always felt as though he was kicking me in the ribs, but she doesn't get me that high up. 

At 30 weeks I had this amazing moment. I realized, "Wow! I feel awesome!! This is such a great pregnancy. I haven't been too tired, I haven't had an increased appetite, I have been hardly nauseous, I haven't been very moody..." Silly me. That's because it was only 30 WEEKS. Things have really changed. 

Now at 36-37 weeks I am feeling more tired. But I contribute that to the fact that I don't sleep more than 2 hours at once during the night because I am constantly going pee. And then it takes a while to fall back asleep. I am also working 3-4 days a week and it is exhausting. I use to work on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In September, I picked up Fridays until the end of December. Also in September, a hygienist at my office found out she was expecting twins and fell extremely ill. So I worked a lot of Thursdays for her. And with our office being closed for the holidays, we have been open Monday and I have worked several of those. I am totally DONE working. Mentally. Unfortunately, I must continue on... My last day is December 28th and I don't return until February 19th.  Hooray for maternity leave!

I have also had an increased appetite as of late. Due mostly to the fact that it's hard to eat much in one sitting. So 2 hours after a small meal it's time for another. Or constant snacking throughout the day... I was shocked to see at my last appointment that I hadn't gained any weight in 2 weeks because I feel like I have been eating so much more. But I have really been getting a workout at the office, I am constantly going!
At the beginning of the pregnancy I was nauseated just a bit and overall felt good. In the third trimester I have been the most sick of all! Strange. When I get sick (throw-up), Creighton comes in the bathroom and says, "Yay!! Mommy go in the potty!" He is so supportive.
As far as my mood, I feel much more stable than when pregnant with Creighton! But I wouldn't recommend buying a house when 32 weeks pregnant, boxing up all of your stuff and then moving into a new home when 37 weeks pregnant. It can do a number on your sanity.

Cason has really been a sweetheart at home picking up the slack. He makes dinner several times a week and has gone grocery shopping, cleaned the house, ran errands, etc. He makes it easy for me to come home and relax after many exhausting days. And he himself is busy with full-time work, full-time school, and now an internship! Over his Thanksgiving break he painted sister's room. He did such a great job and I was so happy and surprised to come home on lunch break and see it!

Pink! Of course! I was a hard decision to decide how to paint it and how much, but I'm glad I decided to do just one wall. It certainly could of become overwhelming had we done the whole room. In the picture above you can see the wall well, but now the changing table is attached and it covers up most of the bottom portion.

That's right! Baby sister has a name, Macey Jo! She has been Macey Jo for a long time. I considered several other names and there are many that I like, but Macey Jo is my favorite and even though she's not here yet it is just perfect! I thought for a while that she couldn't be named Macey Jo if she had red hair, it just couldn't fit... but that is silly! However, I do imagine her with brown hair and blue eyes, like me. Cason loves to wonder about what she will look like. On the way to the doctor's office one afternoon he looked over at me while driving and without any warning said, "Our daughter will be beautiful." He is such a great husband and daddy. He is so anxious for her to arrive! I am sure I will probably always call her Macey Jo, but others can call her just Macey. And it will be okay with me if she wants to go by Macey or Macey Jo. Some people call me Katie, and to others I am Katie Jo. 

It was so fun to pick out her bedding set. At first it was frustrating, I couldn't find anything that I liked at all, and then all of the sudden I had three that I loved. I am so happy with this bright and happy flower bedding. I just love the mobile! The flower picture is cut from her cloth toy bag and the frame I covered in the fabric that was the back of the cloth toy bag. Those cloth toy bags are useless so I re-purposed it! Creighton is very happy to show visitors his little sister's room.

He is also very happy to keep her car seat/carrier warm until she arrives!

We washed it and put it all back together and Creighton thought it was a funny little chair. Boy how time flies... Amazing that he was ever so tiny. He sure has grown! I explained to Creighton that it was his chair when he was a baby and now that he is a big boy he gets to share with baby sister. He is very happy to share! 

When we were buying baby items while expecting Creighton I wanted to try to buy gender neutral things so they could be used for boys and girls. But that is kind of difficult. I think unless it is pink it looks like a boy! So I wanted to make a carrier cover that would incorporate the green and brown with pink. I was lucky enough to find the perfect fabric! And with some direction from Pinterest and a lot of help from my mom and several hours on a Saturday morning, this is what we made! 

I have had a lot of fun sewing for Macey Jo. I have only sewn this and some burp cloths. But by some I mean 20+... Macey Jo's room use to be the craft room, so we moved it all downstairs into the spare bedroom but put the sewing table in front of the TV and I found it very relaxing to sew while Creighton watched cartoons! I am glad to be having a niece in March so I can share all of these burp cloths!

From what we know she is just as healthy as can be and we feel so blessed. It can be hard sometimes to go to the appointments, wait in the reception area for 30+ minutes, then in the patient room 15+ minutes for the doctor to finally come in and measure, listen to the heartbeat and then say, "Sounds good! See you back in 2 weeks!" I'm thinking, "Really? That's it?!" But I try to be grateful that I don't have to go in more often or have long talks with the doctor about complications. 

Around Thanksgiving I started having contractions and I was concerned. I didn't have a contraction with Creighton until the day before he was born! So at my next visit I asked the doctor to check for any "progression"... NOPE! No early baby for me! Which is totally fine. I am happy to stay pregnant for a few more weeks.
When I first learned her due date was January 6th I was concerned about the date being so close to Christmas. I know so many who have birthdays within a couple of weeks of Christmas and most dislike it because they don't feel their birthday is as special. For that reason I hoped she wouldn't come too early and at least wait until January. I have been writing notes to her in a journal since the summer and recently wrote her about her birthday. I told her I would always try to make her birthday as special as possible no matter how close to Christmas it is.

I am getting anxious for her to arrive. Our whole family is excited to meet our new sweetheart!!