37 Weeks*

How Far Along: 37 Weeks*
Size of Baby: Swiss Chard
Weight Gain: 27 pounds

Movement: Still loads of hiccups–she is actually hiccuping away as I type right now and this is her third round today. She is still very active, though she is still definitely most active in the mornings and evenings; she seems to sense when I’m at work and tries not to interrupt. :)

Cravings: Brownies. And cupcakes.

Food Aversions: Same as last week–basically anything I prepare myself is less than appetizing.

Symptoms: My feet are not just swollen, they are huge. Well, today at least. For a few days this week they went back down to almost their normal size, then yesterday they ballooned back out again. This morning I went to slip on those boots that I’m wearing in the picture up there, and I couldn’t even get them on my feet! It’s a sad, sad day.

I definitely started feeling some pre-labor symptoms this week. On Thursday my legs were aching from the moment I woke up and I wrestled with cramps (like menstrual cramps) all day long. I ended up taking a half day off work and came home and slept which really helped, and I haven’t felt anything like it since.

Belly Button Watch: Still an inny. :)

Baby Prep: We’re still playing and cleaning in the office / nursery, but all the essentials are now set up. We have been trying to go out each Saturday to pick a few things on our “still-need” list, though the baby showers our family and friends have thrown for us have gone a long way to help us out in that department. We have been extremely blessed to have received so much from everyone around us, and words cannot express how grateful we are. It’s been incredibly stressful trying to balance full-time work and preparing for the wee-bean, but everyone we know has gone the extra mile to help us out. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The car seat is prepped and now just needs to go into the car–hopefully we’ll get to that tomorrow afternoon!

Contraction Watch: I’ve had a few more BH (Braxton Hicks) contractions this week, though they’ve been very sporadic and they aren’t painful. Thursdays contractions + cramping was the first time I really felt like something was happening, especially as I sometimes feel like the baby has dropped so low that she’s right… there. You know.

Things I’m Thinking About: Two weeks. Holy crap.

I think I’m the only one of my pregnant friends who is praying that their baby doesn’t come early. At all. As excited as I am to meet our little wee-bean, I would love a day or two to breathe between work and her arrival. I know I don’t get much say here, but I’m praying that she waits and arrives on time or even a day or two late! I would love a few days to be absolutely lazy, sleep in and watch movies in bed all day.

And not have a pile of marking staring at me while I do it. :)

I need curtains. Right now we just have sheer curtains in our living room, and I desperately want to get a heavier curtain to cover up after dark, especially in case I want to feed the baby downstairs. I’ve tried IKEA and Walmart with no success–where does one go to buy reasonably inexpensive curtains? I’m looking for long (80″), Mustard curtains. Help?

My wardrobe is shrinking every day. I am down to a small pile of shirts that still stretch over my belly… thank goodness I’m almost done work!

On that note, I only have seven work days left. SEVEN. And only two of them are actual teaching days; the rest are all exam supervision and marking.

Holy moly.