The Irony of birth

Here I am 9 months later from that first pregnancy test, up again at 4 AM. The irony of this can't be missed by anyone, looks like I am in labor. Just so as not to mess with the program, when I told Brad I was having contractions and AFTER I had assured him that I didn't need to go to the hospital yet, he promptly fell back asleep. So here I am again all excited and worried up by myself. I actually woke up a little after 3 AM and was not quite sure what was going on. There isn't a lot of room in there so I couldn't tell if the pain I was feeling was because I had rolled over in my sleep too quickly or a contraction. I lay awake in bed and waited... when the next one came and I hadn't moved I had to assume something was up. I waited until two more had come and gone before I called my Mom. She lives 8 hours + away and if this is the real deal needed to get going if she is going to make it here to help me through this. Another little piece of irony is that she was planning on coming up today any way just at a more reasonable hour. I had big plans to "make" myself go into labor set up for today and tomorrow, so he could be here for her Birthday on August 22, and so the doctor’s wouldn’t have to induce me. Today; the plan was to get a massage, an acupuncture appointment, followed by a long walk, and to finish pressure washing the driveway. Tomorrow; a habanero pepper egg breakfast, long walk, membrane sweep at the doctor office, spicy lunch at a Thai restaurant, another long walk, and I was playing around with the thought of castor oil but I hear that can be quite messy. But it looks like Rourke is already too smart for me, as he had heard of his coming eviction notice and has decided to leave things on his own terms. At least I hope this is not a false alarm or I am going to feel really silly. The contractions are not that bad yet and are about 20 minutes apart with some minor contractions in between to keep me on my toes. Well, all we can do is wait, and after 9 months of waiting I have gotten pretty good at that. I guess we will know for sure in a couple of hours.

38 weeks, 6 days

How far along? 38  weeks, 6 days

Maternity Clothes: with this heat only dresses!
Total weight gain:  down to 16 pounds again....
Stretch marks?  None that I can see and it looks like I've going to avoid the line down the belly too!
Sleep: Only woke up 4 times last night between legs cramps and bathroom trips...
Best moment this week:  Getting to Play with Kaylee, Nick and Baby Kasen all weekend!
Miss Anything?  Being able to move like I used to... I keep forgetting how big I am and try to do things that just don't work.
Movement: It is slowing down but a lot more dramatic when it does happen. I think we are both frustrated with the lack of room.
Food cravings:  None really this week.... way too hot to want to eat
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nothing having a great week
Labor Signs: Yup! I have started to feel contractions, this of course again means nothing but the doctor is concerned that Rourke might be bigger than they originally thought so they are stripping my membranes on Tuesday to help get things started.
Symptoms: low back pain and contractions
Belly Button in or out?  not all the way out but you can see it through all my clothes
Wedding rings on or off?  On getting harder to take on and off in this heat... did I mention it was hot?
Happy or Moody most of the time: So EXCITED!!!!! Almost done!
Looking forward to:  My mom to get here Monday and for this waiting to be over. I just want to be holding my little guy and laying on my stomach!

37 weeks, 6 days

How far along? 37 weeks, 6 days

Maternity Clothes: I have my favorite outfits that I wear in a weekly order... I can't wait to be back in normal clothes
Total weight gain: 16.5 pounds!
Stretch marks? Nope! I'm hoping that since I have held off this long I'm in the clear!
Sleep: Getting harder again, he dropped down a little more and I have to pee all the time. Plus Brad must be nervous as his night terrors are getting more regular and they wake me up.
Best moment this week: Getting the wood floors done and the baby room all set up! We may be finally ready!
Miss Anything? Sadly, I think it is alcohol this week. This weekend in my 10 year high school reunion and I hate not being able to drink socially.
Movement: Mine and Brad's new favorite game is to place a plate on my stomach in the evening and watch Rory try to kick it off.
Food cravings: Bread and cheese.... no idea why
Anything making you queasy or sick: Eating/drinking too much too quickly
Labor Signs: According to the doctor I am now 100% effaced and still less than a centimeter dilated. This means he could come any time or I could still have a few weeks left. Basically nothing...
Symptoms: low back pain, I am now ready to get this little guy here regardless of my fear of labor. 
Belly Button in or out? an outish in....
Wedding rings on or off? On, I went ring shopping with my childhood friend the other day (for his girlfriend) and it was the only thing that saved us from judgement.
Happy or Moody most of the time: I was SUPER moody last week, but this week I'm feeling pretty good!
Looking forward to: This weekend we are staying with my bf Kaylee for my high school reunion. I'm excited to get some girl time in and to get to practice on her little one Kasen!

The real face of pregnancy

These are a few of the fun pictures our photographer took that I didn't think were up to "facebook" standards. Yes, I'm sexy and I know it....

36 weeks, 6 days

How far along? 36 weeks, 6 days

Maternity Clothes: Of course, I'm wearing maternity clothes, I'm 9 months pregnant! My main concern these days are what shoes to wear. With my center of gravity so off, wedges and heels make me fall over when I bend down.
Total weight gain: Official doctor scale 14.8 pounds. I freaked out when I heard this… Who loses weight when pregnant? But the doctor said my belly was still growing and Rourke is not a small baby so to just not worry about weight… easy for her to say.
Stretch marks? Still none that I can see
Sleep: With my due date fast approaching I’m starting to freak myself out and having panic attacks. Two days ago I almost got up at 4 AM to clean out a closet.
Best moment this week: Getting more of our maternity picture back (love them) and even with the weight thing my doctor’s appointment. I love hearing Rory’s heart beat and hearing from the doctor that everything is ok.
Miss Anything? Not worrying about everything baby
Movement: Love feeling him move but to be honest its getting kind of painful
Food cravings: Watermelon
Anything making you queasy or sick: The time moving by so fast…
Labor Signs: According to the doctor I am 85% effaced and less than a centimeter dilated, so I still have a ways to go.
Symptoms: I’m forgetting everything these days, I just spent an hour looking for a container of sour cream that I had put on top of the refrigerator.  
Belly Button in or out? Moving further towards out.
Wedding rings on or off? On, still no swelling.
Happy or Moody most of the time: This week I’m going to have to say moody… I’m full term tomorrow and I don’t feel like we are ready at all anymore. So many little projects!
Looking forward to: Rourke being in my arms safe and sound