38 weeks, 4 days

Well, I forgot to take pictures again. During the 2nd trimester I was all about the weekly pictures because I felt so darn cute every day. Now, not so much. Judging by the breakout on my face I'm sure some people think I'm a pregnant 15 year old. It's wonderful. I'm starting to swell, albeit not noticeably but I feel like everyone can tell. My rings still fit, but they're snug. I'm hoping they'll last the next 2 weeks!

That being said, when I look in the mirror in the morning with my camera in hand, I usually think "umm, I'll take these later."

Other news:

The nursery is complete! Everything is hung, the little details are in place, this mama is very happy. Chris helped me finish it this weekend and it looks fabulous. I'll post some pictures later today.

The doctor said that I was 1.5cm dilated as of last Monday. I go back tomorrow, hopefully I'll show more progress by then. I'm so ready for this baby to come out. I know a lot of the "labor inducers" are old wives tales but I'm willing to try anything at this point. We have: walking, sex, eggplant parmesan, spicy food, pineapple, foot massage, raspberry tea, cold showers. Lastly, castor oil. I won't be trying that one.

Last night Chris and I went to the Blanco HS football field and walked around the track a few times. He jogged, I waddled, Roger romped. Good family fun time. Before we left, I decided to sweep and mop the floors. Don't worry, I took my time and did not overexert myself or bend over too much or anything else painful. It was actually pretty relaxing. Kind of sad how happy clean floors make me these days. After I cleaned up, I went to HEB, came home and started baking cookies.

The cookies aren't really a nesting thing. I promised my sister I'd send a package to her dorm a few weeks ago. I made cookies and ended up eating them. This time I kept reminding myself that they're not for me, they're for my sister. I even made some extra to send to my brother as well. Then I made dinner. It was a lot of standing and walking around all afternoon, so by the time we got to the track my back was killing me.

I thought walking would make it better. I was sooo wrong. We got home and I laid down on the couch. I couldn't get back up. I physically could not get up. It hurt SO bad. I managed to slowly get to my feet, and stood there hunched over and waddled to bed. I got zero sleep last night because my back and hips hurt so much. It's better this morning, but I am a little tired.

Chris keeps telling me he's glad I'm awake all night because I'm going to have to get up every time the baby cries. Because babies cry a lot. In the middle of the night. Who knew? He also mentioned that "if I think I'm not sleeping now, just wait until the baby is here." I think all of the other mamas I know will agree, please don't say this to a pregnant woman. Believe it or not, we are aware of life after pregnancy and we know we'll be tired. I love you, but say something like that to me again and I'll punch you.

Oh, lastly: stretch marks. They've arrived. They're ugly, but I'm accepting them as a necessary part of pregnancy. Let's not talk about what will happen if you point those out to me again. :)

Mine.

Roger loves his baby sister.

Full Term

Emily is full term this week! That means I'm ready for this little girl to come out now! My doctor told me she will only let me go 2 weeks past my due date... that's in a month! I could be induced the day after my due date (doctor thinks I'll be begging for it by then) but I'd like to give her more time to come out on her own. We'll see how I feel at that point if Emily hasn't shown up yet.

I've read that her growth will slow down now that she's full term. That's good news for me- I don't know how much bigger I can get! Some people have told me I look like I'm going to pop, and a lot of people keep telling me how small I am. I think I look about average? Aside from the back pain and heartburn, I still feel pretty good.

I'm feeling better about everything lately. Chris has been helping me calm down and I don't feel so stressed out today. He's been working overtime this weekend to make some extra money so we're not in a bind between maternity leave starting and my short term disability kicking in.

I'm finally working from home! Well, my mom's home. She lives 10 minutes from the hospital and has a faster internet connection. I'm also less distracted when I'm there. When I'm at my house, I want to clean up the house during my lunch break or wash a load of laundry while I'm waiting for a report to load. At my mom's house, I'm able to concentrate on work.

At my last appointment, the doctor told me that I'm 1cm dilated. Hooray progress! I go in again tomorrow for my (almost) 38 week appointment.


She has definitely dropped! Most of my shirts don't fit anymore because she hangs out of the bottom. Now we just have to wait! 18 more days!

Holy hurricane, batman.

I went back to work for one day this week. A hurricane hit the coast the day before and the storms finally made it to central Texas. Perfect day for a pregnant woman to drive an hour and a half away from her hospital.

I had to train my temp. That, my friends, is a blog for another day.

On the way to work, I was behind a school bus. I stayed back pretty far because there are CHILDREN on that bus and if I had to slam on my brakes I really don't want to slam into the back of a bus. Yes, it would hurt me more than anyone on the bus, but still. I know to stay back.
The car behind me with the bright ass halogen lights apparently does not know this rule. For 2 miles, they stayed right on my bumper, swerving back and forth to see if they could get around me. Did I mention it's raining so hard I can barely see the big yellow bus in front of me? I finally hit my brakes and pulled over. They happily passed me, flashed their hazards and proceeded to ride the school bus bumper another few miles.

I made it safely to work, attempted to train my temp and immediately wished I was anywhere but the office. This girl refuses to be taught and wants to just know what to do immediately. Anyway. The rain had stopped all day long. at 4:30, it started to pour again. Of course.

I got in my car and drove about 5mph through traffic. When traffic finally ended, I was able to get up to the breakneck speed of 30mph! By the time I got to Blanco, the sun was shining.

Chris and I drove around town and took pictures of the river running over the low water crossings, because that's what you do in a small town.

My bellybutton.

Ah, football.

I'm almost full term! Today is the first Texas game of the season, so naturally I took my photos wearing my burnt orange. Hook 'em!

Corporate America has crushed my soul.

So, I "officially" got approved to work from home for the second time. The last time it got pushed back a week. And a half. Then I brought in a doctor's note. I got approved. I was elated.

I left the office this afternoon thinking "I won't ever have to make this drive while pregnant ever again."

I got home. I relaxed for the first time in a looong time. I started a movie with Chris.

My phone rang.

"Hey Jessica, your temp got approved! Yayyy! Hey Jessica, we need you to come in to train her all next week! Yayyy!!!"

I should have said no! I should have said, "I'm sorry, but I really can't." But no. I said "sure, see you next week." Ugh, what is my problem! Maybe I can talk them into half days so I can miss traffic. Now my three day weekend has been ruined.