37 weeks, 1 day: Another reason NOT to shop at Walmart

It's fantastic to be off work!!!  I have no idea how I sat at a desk and worked for 8 hours after today!  Taking a 2 hour nap every day is fantastic.  I had a great weekend too.  I went shopping with Christina on Saturday.  I bought Cooper a coming home outfit since we are low on newborn sleepers I didn't have anything for him.  A random woman in the baby section thinks Cooper will be less than 8 lbs, because if he were 10 lbs, "I'd be carrying him all over and I'm all belly."  I finished reading I am Legend on Saturday, too.  It wasn't awful, but I wouldn't recommend it to a single person to read.  Go see the movie--it's a better story.

On Sunday I walked Scout in the morning and then we ran some errands.  Chris is building models for Cooper's room so he needed paint, and I'm going to stencil a quote on his wall so I was looking for supplies.

Today was a busy day for me.  I walked Scout in the morning and then came home and got ready.  I had lunch with Caren and Jennifer at Olive Garden.  Then I went to Target, still looking for stencils, and then to 5 other places.

I ended up going to my most hated store--Walmart.  I really hate shopping at Walmart and I haven't shopped there in over a year.  I disagree with their labor practices and their business practices.  I hate how cheap everything is, how dirty the store is, and rude the average customer is.  I hate their long lines and dim lighting, and the feeling of claustrophobia.  So I vote with my dollars and refuse to shop there, unless I get desperate.

As a last resort I went to Walmart to get stencils.  As I was walking down an aisle, this old, fat man in the automatic shopping cart that's more like a wheel chair says 'Did you swallow a watermelon?'.  As I kept walking, ignoring his rude comment, he yells down the aisle, 'Ma'am!'.  Unbelievable.  Just another reason NOT to shop at Walmart.

When I came home I took a nap, ate dinner, and then tried to finish another book I'm reading, Pledged.  I just can't finish it.  I don't like it--sensationalized journalism.  It has a lot of accuracies about sorority life, but it also has tons of generalizations.  I guess maybe it's more fitting for large southern universities, but I can't relate having been at a 75% male, small, engineering school.  I also filled out most of Cooper's baby book today!  That was a lot of fun!

Cooper was being a brat yesterday.  I couldn't get comfortable to save my life and every time he moves his head over certain spot, I get a shooting pain from my pelvis to my knee.  It's awful!!  Does he ever stop moving??  Here's his schedule (as best that I can tell)...I wonder how it will be once he's born:

5 am - 9 am:  awake and moving, but gentle, enough to wake me up every 30 min - 1 hr

9 am - 10:30 am:  very small movements, or none at all

10:30 am - 12:30 pm:  regular movements, some big, some small

12:30 pm - 2 pm:  very small movements, or none at all

2 pm - 4 pm:  some small and some strong movements, but very regular

4 pm - 9 pm:  lots of strong movements...what the heck is he doing in there....my belly doesn't move that way!!

9 pm - midnight:  slowing down, smaller movements, irregular, but enough to wake me up if I'm sleeping

midnight - 3 am:  he doesn't wake me up, could be moving

3 am:  bathroom break:  he's moving when I get up

3 am - 5 am:  he doesn't wake me up, could be moving

 

(37 belly pic posted...messing with settings on camera, so lighting looks different/worse.)

36 weeks, 5 days: Sign me up!

Scout has started throwing tantrums. If Chris and I are both on the computers at home and not paying enough attention to her, she feels neglected. The other night I was sitting at the computer and she jumps on the chair next to my computer. She starts her whining/barking/howling thing to get my attention. I quickly give her some love and go back to what I'm doing. She then puts her front paws on the arms of my desk chair and starts pawing my arm. Again, I give her love quickly and go back to what I'm doing. The next thing I know she is howling/whining and then flops over sideways and puts her head behind a pillow to let me know she is pouting. I just started laughing at her. She pops up and then jumps off the chair and runs outside through her doggy door. I'm surprised she didn't stomp her feet on the way out!! I only hope I can be as patient and find humor in a tantrum when my children throw them!

It's my last day of work today!! Yay!!!! I'm feeling really big lately, and my maternity clothes don't fit so well anymore. The shirts won't stay down and the pants won't stay up, so I end up looking ridiculous with my belly hanging out and constantly pulling on my clothes! I'm still having quite a bit of discomfort with my hips and round ligament pain. I'm considering going to see a chiropractor.

Cooper gets a little irritated with me when I'm sitting at the computer and I lean foward toward the computer screen. He starts kicking really hard anywhere he can reach and then punches my hip bone. Real pleasant, let me tell you. I suppose if my mom was sitting on my head and squishing my butt down, I might get really upset too!

We had a doctor appointment yesterday. Everything looks good as usual. I gained 4 lbs in 2 weeks and my blood pressure was 120/71. Cooper's heart rate was strong and ranged between 136 and 143 bpm. He was doing his moving and shaking like usual and the nurse could even tell where he was because my belly was so lopsided.

I had my first internal exam--and Che was right, yowza!! The doctor says knees up and then she looks over and sort of laughs and says "I've never seen a husband move that fast before!" Yeah, Chris wasn't about to witness anything and he took no time at all moving away from any possible glimpse.

The doctor did the swab for the GBS test (not bad at all) and then checked for progress (only a soft cervix, no dilation). Yikes...it hurt really bad!! I don't want to know if I'm making anymore progress...just stay the heck out of there!! Unfortunately I think I get them weekly now until I go into labor. I told Chris it felt like she was prying me open and there was no way I would be able to handle Cooper trying to get out coming the other direction!! Sign me up for the epidural now!!

We asked a lot of questions about when I go into labor and start having contractions. The doctor gave us all the information we need. She is so laid back, so she fits really well with our personalities. I hope she is actually the one to deliver Cooper!

On Sunday I'll be considered full term. I told Chris that we could have a baby this weekend, and both of us sort of snickered and said yeah, right that can't be possible. It just doesn't seem like I could have him now.

36 weeks: Good weekend

It was a really good weekend.  I think it's helping that I know I only have 5 more days of work left!  Work had a celebration luncheon for me on Friday.  It was so nice, although I have to admit that it is strange to have your male (all of them are male...I'm the only female in the group) coworkers who are your father's age ask you if you plan to go natural or not!!  So weird to talk about birth and having children because some of them started talking about their recent grand children (!!) or how it was back in the day when they had their kids (who are only slightly younger than myself). 

I scheduled a spa day on my birthday and I'm having lunch with some girlfriends a couple days before.  This will be the first year I am off work/school for my birthday!  I'm starting to feel more relaxed, what a great feeling!

This Saturday was the first week we didn't have training with Scout and she's not used to not going.  We still 'woke daddy up' like usual (she runs and jumps on the bed and licks his face), but we didn't take her anywhere.

We went to Babies R' Us and bought the bouncer ($50 item we got for $25!!).  I tried to go buy it last weekend by myself but it didn't work out so well.  The cashier was really rude to me and I thought I would pass out because it was so hot in the store (since when did everyone turn off the AC??).  I ended up leaving and being upset when I got home.  I've decided I shouldn't shop by myself anymore while I'm pregnant...it was nice to have Chris with me this time.

Then we went to REI and Home Depot for some miscellaneous errands.  After relaxing at home and doing some things in the nursery, we took Scout on a 30 minute walk.  The weather was beautiful and some of my pain has gone away so it felt good to get out and enjoy the sunshine.

Today started off quite interesting.  I got up around 8 and then Scout started barking like crazy at 9.  So I went outside to make her be quiet because Chris was still trying to sleep.  Well I opened our front gate (which is a solid door) with one hand while I held Scout's collar in my other hand and in walks this big, strong male pit bull mix!  I thought, uh-oh, this could be really bad!!

Well he turned out to be super friendly and I made Chris get up to help me.  'Hando' and Scout played for awhile and we tried to get a hold of the owner.  A couple hours passed and we didn't hear back so we called animal control.  Right after we called them, the owner called us to come get his dog.  We had to give Scout a bath afterwards (he drooled all over her and pushed her into the mud a few times) and she's pretty pooped!

Chris went to the grocery store by himself today.  This was one of the last household things that I used to do completely by myself.  Last time we went together and we fought the entire time and when we got home we were both tired and grouchy.  This time Chris wanted to go without me.  He did a great job...and definitely came home with fewer things that weren't on the list than I would have!

I did laundry and cleaned up a little bit until he got home.  We put groceries away and then watched the North Carolina basketball game...I fell asleep though.  When I woke up I made ham, mashed potatoes, and sweet potatoes for dinner.  Yum!  All in all, it was a really good weekend.

I had a dream that we ended up having a March baby instead of an April baby...I was mad because I couldn't go to my spa day!  Really though, I would be okay with Cooper arriving any day now.

I updated belly pics...wow, what a difference 2 weeks makes at this stage!  I plan to take weekly pics from here on out.  Enjoy!

35 weeks, 3 days: Blubbering, Emotional Pregnant Woman

Yesterday was bad day. Exhaustion + Raging Pregnancy Hormones + Long Day at work + irritating bosses + discomfort + pain = Blubbering, emotional pregnant woman who breaks down in tears for no real reason.

It was my first real emotional breakdown during this pregnancy and it felt really good to cry, even if it was for no reason at all. It started on Tuesday when I couldn't fall asleep until 11 pm because I couldn't get comfortable. Then I woke up almost every hour until finally it was 5:30 am and I just got out of bed to get ready for work. This meant that I would probably put in a long day since I would be getting to work earlier than usual.

I was super busy all morning at work and was excited at how productive I was being. I met with Ursula for lunch to deliver her wedding invitations to her (they turned out beautiful and she loved them). Then I had a meeting for work and it all went down hill.

Remember me talking about my lack of ability to multi-task? Well when I'm tired, uncomfortable and in pain, it is just impossible to do. I had to facilitate a meeting, that was supposed to last 1.5 hours, but I also had to present at the meeting. It's really not feasible to both present and facilitate, so the meeting ended up running to 2.5 hours. So my work day ended up being 9.5 hours instead of 8 hours.

I was really disappointed with the meeting since many of my coworkers and bosses commend me on my ability to efficiently run meetings. This one just didn't go well. The content was good, but I was completely off on my planning and ability to facilitate. Plus how awful is it that I had to get up in the middle of facilitating the meeting and go to the bathroom!! Several people had that 'knowing little smile' on their faces.

One of the managers at work really irritates me and he especially got on my nerves during the meeting. He is always so negative and I don't like his management style, nor do I respect him. I have basically zero tolerance to play the political game and it's all I can do to not be rude and disrespectful to him. All I know is I could never work directly for him.

So I get in my car to drive home and Wednesday's are my days to cook dinner. I call Chris to let him know that I am exhausted and we just need to throw in a pizza for dinner. He says okay he'll take care of it and I start driving. (I'm a little on edge behind the wheel because on Tuesday when I was driving home I almost got in an accident because this stupid driver cut me off by going straight through the intersection when he was in the turn lane.) When I stop at the next stop light I text Chris to let him know that I'm emotional and on the verge of tears for no reason.

Yep, I start crying on the way home...not exactly safe. Every song on the radio makes me cry. Cooper won't sit still and then I get irritated because he won't leave me be, then I start crying harder because I feel guilty that I just thought this. Basically I was an emotional wreck for the entire drive. I finally start to calm down just in time to get home.

Scout welcomes me in her usual way by running out to greet me, but this time she is unusually hyper. Chris is super nice to me and I just start talking about the things that are bothering me. He just lets me talk and comments that he knows how I feel (no problems solving like he usually tries to do). I surprisingly hold myself together. When he says, do you need a hug, is when I finally started crying again. We hugged and I sort of lost it...blubbering and all.

I told him that I felt so silly crying over nothing. We both commented on the fact that this was the first time I've done this during pregnancy and he said he expected me to have at least 3 or 4 of these episodes. The rest of the evening turned out to be fine. I relaxed, watched TV, and designed the baby announcements (I love how they turned out so far!).

So about the pain...I think Cooper has dropped, or is starting to drop. Now I understand why pregnant women waddle. I have what's called round ligament pain, which is a formal way of saying ouch-this-really-freakin-hurts-like-someone-kicked-me-really-hard-in-the-crotch-kind-of-pain. It hurts to sit, stand, walk, or lay down. Plus it feels like I have a baby's head shoved right down into my pelvic bone (which is exactly what I have). I was considering having a natural birth...but the epidural sounds better and better with every ache and pain!

35 weeks, 2 days: Scout's graduation

What's happening to the baby:

The baby measures about 20.25 inches from head to toe and weighs more than 5.5 pounds. The baby doesn't have much room to maneuver. Since he is so snug in the mother's womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Lungs are almost fully developed, but if born now the baby would probably be put in an incubator. He still doesn't have enough fat deposits beneath his skin to keep warm outside of the mother's womb. Most of his basic physical development is now complete--he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.



Scout graduated on Saturday! It was super easy though. We walked through the store, told her to leave it when there were toys on the floor (passed), then had her sit & stay (passed), then down and stay (passed), then had her free on the leash and had her come and sit (passed). She didn't much care for the graduation cap, and it's a good thing she didn't have to do drop it with a sock, or she would have been held back! She'll drop it with a toy, but not anything else. (..she tossed her cookies on the couch and we got the hair-tie back...in the trash it went. ewwww!)





She also got to do agility...which was interesting. She had a hard time focusing on the weave poles and since we struggle to take pictures w/ our camera when something is moving (obviously we need to take the time to figure this out before Cooper comes), then we didn't get good pictures of the weave poll. The hoop was funny...she would do anything to get the treat--except jump through the hoop. Chris finally picked her up and shoved her through it. She LOVED the tunnel though. I guess it helped that the 3 dogs before her wouldn't go into the tunnel and each owner threw 5 or more treats into it. It was like a hitting the lottery for her! We couldn't keep her out of the tunnel.













As far as me and pregnancy...nothing to report. I'm feeling good, trying to get things done at work. I leave an update every night before I leave just in case anything happens. We are installing the carseat this weekend and making a list of people we need to call after he's born. Other than that, just enjoying being pregnant for now!