37 and 38 Weeks

Today we are officially 2 weeks away from our due date. Time seems to be dragging along. If we just knew when he was coming, I think we'd feel a little more at ease. But the uncertainty is killing us!

I guess if you're reading this, you've probably seen the video. And if you haven't already, you'll just scroll down now and watch it. So, ok, I'm hormonal. I can't help it. I admit I may seem crazy at times. But I'm carrying around a 30lb bowling ball, which means I can only waddle so fast, I'm hot all the time, I have to get up and pee every couple of hours during the night, and I have some other aches and pains that I'll spare everyone the details of. I mean, you have to expect that I'm going to have a moment of hysteria every now and then. But, rest assured that I will get my husband back.

You may have also read about our breast feeding class. It was quite informative. Despite all of his protests and claims that there would be no other men in the class, it turns out that there were 9 other men in the class and 10 other women. I, of course, pointed out how many men were there and Patrick informed me that they were all there against their will too. But he survived and we learned a lot about how it all works.

I think we've officially covered all of our bases when it comes to educating ourselves about this whole process. We've taken classes about introducing the new baby to our dog, newborn care, childbirth, breast feeding, and we've taken a tour of the maternity ward of the hospital. I like to be well informed, and I certainly think we're as prepared as we can be. When it all comes down to it, I imagine that the knowledge is great to have, but nothing is ever as you plan or expect so you just have to go with the flow.

I have obviously entered the "nesting" phase. I've been cleaning, for crying out loud. Some may not realize that I HATE to clean. I like living in a clean house, but I hate cleaning. My sister's one piece of advice to Patrick when we got married was that he should hire a maid. I can't for the life of me figure out why he doesn't think that's a good idea. I think it would be worth every penny. I would be such a happier person. I get really grouchy when I clean. I have way more fun things to do than scrub toilets. But I've always heard about "nesting" and sure enough, there I was this weekend scrubbing the shelves of the refrigerator, dusting, vacuuming, and mopping. And I was grouchy.

We went to the doctor yesterday. Basically, we listened to the heartbeat ( a strong 138), the doctor asked me if I was having any contractions, I said no, and she said she'd see me next week. Patrick, after having to live with my grouchiness from cleaning all weekend, asked what we could do to speed the process along. She had a couple of suggestions, none of which really sounded appealing to me, so we're just going to have to let him come out when he's good and ready.

Once I hit 37 weeks, the baby was considered full term. His lungs are fully mature and ready to function on their own in the outside world. As we head into week 38, he probably weighs about 6.8 pounds and is over 19 1/2 inches long. In addition to his lungs, his other organs have matured and are also ready to function on their own. We're ready for his arrival, so hopefully he'll decide he wants to make his appearance soon! We'll keep everyone updated!