Can you believe it?!?!

I can't! 3/4 of the way there! 10 weeks to go! Final stretch! Almost in the single digits! Dr. visits every other week! AGHHH!!! YEAH!!!!


Before we know it, Aubriella will be here! This week started rough. My grandpa is in the hospital and he wasn't doing well. They have no idea what is causing it, but his memory comes and goes. His health is declining, and he doesn't have much strength to walk around. I really wanted to go see him as the next chance of going out of town wasn't for over a month, and honestly I didn't (don't) know if he will still be here then. I was torn though because one possible diagnosis was spinal meningitis, and visitors and nursers were wearing protective masks. After talking to my doctor, and my grandpa's nurse, I was highly recommended to not come in contact. Long story short. On Saturday we learned that was ruled out, and that evening Jose and I packed in 30 minutes and did a 24 hour trip to San Bernardino. He is doing a lot better than I was expecting, and I'm very glad we went. But 8 hours in the car wore me out!

Monday morning when I woke up at home, I didn't feel the usual kicks and punches Ellie is so fond of waking me up with. I got pretty nervous because even after putting syrup and whip cream on my waffles (hey, give me a break I was trying to wake her up!) and drinking orange juice I wasn't feeling movement. I actually think I would have called the doctor for the first time if I didn't already have an appointment.

The appointment went great and we got lots of good news, and one not so good news. Bad news is that I gained WAAAAAY to much weight last month. So much that I had to re-weigh myself to make sure there wasn't a mistake. There wasn't. Aside from that we heard a very strong, healthy heartbeat, and the midwife (and Jose!) were able to feel Aubrie's butt and head. She is head down already! Good little girl is already getting into position! It explains why the last few days I feel pressure on my bladder when I stand up, and it also explains why a little foot is constantly getting stuck under my ribs!

The end is drawing near, and I'm getting more and more excited. This week Jose's cousin Veronica had her baby Gulianna, and my friend Lacey had her baby Maggie! A couple more November babies to look forward to, then January is our show time (unless she decides to take her time and we roll over to February)!

29 weeks!

29 weeks seems like we are so close to delivery day! For the first time I started feeling a little overwhelmed with all that needs to happen between now and Ellie's arrival. I've been praying for the time to go by fast- and it is-but it may be a little too fast! A couple of nights ago I could not fall back to sleep and my mind was going crazy with a "to do list". Landscape the backyard, finish the garage, find and install a chandelier, paint......I literally tossed and turned for at least an hour, but somehow in the morning the list didn't seem so intimidating. There are lots of projects to do, but I'm semi confident we can get it all done. I can't believe all that will happen between now and January 29th! A wedding to attend next weekend, our Colorado trip, Thanksgiving, baby showers, Christmas, New Years.....yeah! So much fun stuff to make the time go by faster!

This week we enjoyed our midweek Holiday. Having a day off in the middle of the week really helped make this week fly by. On Wednesday we took our tour of French Hospital, and I am more convinced then ever that this is a great hospital. The educator/nurse who took us around answered all my questions before I asked them. She seemed to really understand our desire for a natural delivery. I didn't even tell Jose yet, but when I walked into the hospital, straight into the birthing center, my stomach kind of dropped and for a couple of seconds I had this overwhelming moment of "This is real." The feeling bordered on fear, but was mostly excitement. After the tour though, I was much more relaxed and excited. The one thing that I'm really sad about is that they are not allowing children under the age of 16 in the hospital due to flu season! My brother Jasen has to be able to visit! They are also limiting guests to 2 at a time which isn't a big deal to me as I don't really want many guests while in the hospital.

My stomach grew a little more this week. One day it felt all soft and flabby and the next day it seemed a little bigger and tight again. I still don't have any stretch marks, and my belly button is still an innie for now! I think I got mild heartburn twice this week. It was annoying but not very painful, and eating actually made it feel better! Backaches are bearable, but always present, and sleep still comes easy.

Picture of my growing belly to follow!

12 weeks to go!

We are at 28 weeks! Ellie should be about 17 inches and 3 pounds! She is close to the her birth length, but has quite a bit of weight to put on!

This week I had my glucose test. Not fun, but definitely not as bad as everyone says. I basically drank sugar in the form of a super sweet orange drink, watched a movie in the office for an hour, then had a blood test. The drink reminded me of McDonalds orange drink with waaay to much syrup. I assume I passed the test and do not have diabetes, because I was told they would call me in 2 days if there was a problem. One week later and I never got a call!

I amaze myself at how well I handle shots and blood tests when I know that it is for my baby. Up until 28 weeks ago, I had a very juvenile fear of needles. I knew in my head it wouldn't hurt much, but that didn't help. I literally got teary eyed everytime I was about to get shots- as recently as 2 years ago! But since finding out I was pregnant, I have had two blood test and two shots and barely flinched. I think it really is a testament to the natural maternal instinct God has placed in women.

I'm getting nervous that my belly buttom may pop out. I really don't want that to happen, though I know it comes with the pregnancy territory. It has been getting very shallow, and I'm afraid it may only have a couple of weeks before it becomes a gross outie.