No April Fool's Day Baby Here

Soooo - thirty...nine...weeks... and no baby! I am going back and forth between thoughts of "come out baby!" and "if you need more time to cook, go ahead and stay as long as you want." I feel that if I just stop thinking about it, then the baby will come out and it will all happen. BUT - how do you stop thinking about the moving baby that is hanging out in front of you? Impossible! Here is the most recent picture... Until next time, I will continue to grow...

Baby's Size

Gianna and I

Gianna sits on her future cousin...

Doctor Appointment

I had my weekly appointment today and they did an internal exam which showed that I am 1 centimeter dilated and 60% effaced. Things are 'softening up' and we are right on track to deliver any day now! My stomach (or rather the uterus) is measuring 39 centimeters from my pubic bone to the top of my uterus and this number usually corresponds with the number of weeks pregnant you are. So again, we are right on track! Basically, all this means is that we are still waiting...

The Waiting Game

I think I mentioned it before, but the most difficult part of pregnancy, in my opinion, is waiting for the baby to come out! The fact that it could happen at any time is completely consuming. In the middle of the night last night, not sleeping, I realized that JR and I are basically waiting for our lives to change. Don't get me wrong, we are enjoying our last moments together (it might be hours, days or weeks) by going to dinner and watching movies and spending a lot of time together, but there is also a sense of excitement that makes us all the more aware of the fact that we really are just WAITING.

38 weeks

Anyone out there that still thinks my belly looks small???? Didn't think so!

A comparison...

The first photo is me pregnant at 13.5 weeks.....

This photo is 36 weeks....

Can't forget the doggies...

How Maya gets a nap in without worrying that Jagger will steal her bone.

The latest photos of our first children...

The room is almost complete....

The nursery is pretty much complete. This is one thing that is not keeping me up at night any longer even though I have to get JR to hang a few more things. I also packed my bag today -- I hope I didn't jinx us because at this point I cannot imagine being pregnant (and getting bigger) for another month!!
These last few weeks have definitely been the most difficult - not in terms of uncomfortableness - though I am definitely more uncomfortable being this big - but difficult because I have no idea when this baby is coming! Plus, the fact that it could be any day is making me so excited. Waiting out these last few weeks is way harder than not knowing the gender of our baby!

The newest of Baby Gianna

Belly Size

We discovered something funny today.... I measured my stomach with a piece of ribbon (at my belly button) and JR put the ribbon around his belly to compare and we realized that we are exactly the same stomach size now! Too funny. He wouldnt let me take a photo but I promise it is true!

Still pregnant

I am still around and still pregnant... I have just been super busy and my days just get away from me. I have been focusing most of my time on the nursery which is nearly complete. All the baby's laundry is done and ready to go and the diaper bag is packed. I still havent packed my bag, but that is on today's list of things to do - and hopefully I get to it! I will post pictures of the nursery soon!

Today's purpose in posting is to introduce baby Yadrick.... due to make his or her debut October 1, 2007. Soooo cute!!

A night out in LA...

JR and I went to LA to have dinner with a good friend of mine from law school and her fiance. We have been trying to make it up there for quite awhile and thought that it was best to go now before the baby comes. Not to mention that I am the sober driver, making it easy to get home from a night out. We had a great time and here are some photos from the night!

35 weeks and counting...

This pregnancy hit me in the last week. I have all of a sudden become really pregnant and with that comes some uncomfortableness, not to mention some nervousness. I went nursery room shopping and grocery shopping with my mom yesterday and thank goodness we did the grocery shopping last because that way I could hang on the cart while pushing it around. I wore tennis shoes, but after just a couple hours, my feet felt like bowling balls. They didn't look too swollen but they felt like they were falling off. I came home and put my feet up for a bit, but they are definitely not the same anymore.

This last week has had some good developments too - I am sleeping really well. Don't get me wrong, I still get up to go to the bathroom about a half dozen times during the night, but I think I am used to it and I am able to fall right back to sleep. I must also be used to sleeping on my side now too. I wake up in the morning feeling like my body got hit by a bus and it feels new every morning to get up and start carrying the extra weight around, but at least I am sleeping!

I am now going to the doctor every week for check ups. They check the size of the baby, the baby's heart rate and any new symptoms I seem to have that week. They also checked last week to see if I was dilated (because I was having contractions). The os of my cervix was opening and softening but not the main part of my cervix (doesn't really mean anything yet). There really is no way to predict when this baby is coming, contractions or not, so JR and I made a friendly bet. His guess is the week of March 19-26 and I guessed March 27-April 2. I am not sure why both of us think the baby will come before the due date (especially since most first babies come after their due date) but I think it is because I am starting to feel like I have been pregnant forever.

All Smiles

Gianna loves to smile and when she gets really excited, her little arms go up in the air.

34 weeks & other Prego Momas

From left to right, Cathy, me, Leila (due any day!) and Elishia.... All expecting!


I think the belly looks fake in these photos... I also think I look a little tipsy - I promise, I am not!

Gia reads books

We babysat Gianna last week and she just loves her new books. It is the cutest thing to watch her get so excited by all the colors.

Shadow Shot

I had a regular doctor appointment today and had an ultra-sound to check the amniotic fluid levels. It was a quick ultra-sound and I have no photos to show for it, but it was really neat to see another shot of the baby. His/her hands were clenched and s/he was kicking me at the same time - and the head - my goodness, s/he looked like a real baby. I know that seems obvious, but I havent had an ultrasound for 13 weeks, so to get another chance to see the baby was amazing!
The baby is currently head down, though that can always change... Next appointment is in two weeks!

32.5 weeks

The most recent photos: B-I-G~!



Jagger and Maya pass out intertwined, as usual.


Maya and her boyfriend George hanging out...

The Room

OK, so we only have the crib and a dresser -- but it's a start!

Ronan and Gianna meet

Gianna and Ronan's first meeting went really well - despite Gianna being a couple months older, Gianna and Ronan are nearly the same size! Ronan slep most of the time, acting like he wasn't interested in her and playing hard to get.

Gia says HI

Year of the .... Pig?!

On the Chinese calendar, 2007 is Lunar Year 4704-4705. On the Western calendar, the start of the Chinese New Year falls on February 18, 2007 — The Year of the Pig. Pigs are highly regarded for your chilvary and pureness of heart, and you often make friends for life.

Pigs are also intelligent and loyal, cant resist naps or bubble baths, curious by nature, can be quick-tempered, but mostly born to please mom.

"Contrary to its rather negative reputation in the West, the Pig of Chinese Astrology may be the most generous and honorable Sign of the Zodiac. Pigs are nice to a fault and possess impeccable manners and taste. They have so much of the perfectionist in them that others may be inclined to perceive them as snobs, but this is a misconception. Pigs are simply possessed of a truly luxurious nature, one that delights in finery and riches (in surroundings, food, lovemaking and otherwise). This Sign believes in the best qualities of mankind and certainly doesn't consider itself to be superior. Pigs also care a great deal about friends and family and work hard to keep everyone in their life happy. Helping others is a true pleasure for the Pig, who feels best when everyone else is smiling."

It was Positive

I know it is gross, but I kept the orginal pregnancy tests that I took back in August. I am not sure what I planned on doing with them but it didn't seem like something I should throw away. Well, after seeing them in my bathroom drawer for the last six months (in a zip-lock bag!) I decided to take photos of them, post the photos on here, and then throw them away! So here are the tests! And Yes -'tests'- as in plural tests not just a single test. The afternoon I found out I was pregnant (August 13, 2006), I took 5 (FIVE) pregnancy tests, and the next morning, I took a sixth. One of the reasons I took so many tests (and different brands of tests) was because I didn't think I was getting a 'positive'. If you look at one of the sticks it indicates Pregnancy will be shown by a Plus (+) sign in the left box and a vertical line in the right box. My tests showed two vertical lines which indicated nothing. So as I sent JR to the store for a different brand of test, an EPT test, (the EPT tests he got showed the word "pregnant" but after six months the digital reader has gone out and it is now blank) I got on the phone and called the 800 number to figure out what two vertical lines meant on the first four tests. I got a recording which immediately stated "If you have two vertical lines, you are pregnant. Ignore any horizontal lines" ... or something like that. Basically, the recording told me I was pregnant (which JR had been saying since he saw the first test). I still took the other two EPT tests though.

Super Bowl Sunday

Our neighbors got a "jump" to keep the kids busy during the Super Bowl yesterday. We found out that the dogs loved it more than the kids.

These are also the newest belly pictures. JR noticed that my belly button is sooooo close to popping out but the close-up pictures don't quite seem to capture it (though if you look closely at the side shot, you can almost see what we are talking about).

After running up the jumper and sliding down, the dogs were exhausted, and slept in the hot sun the rest of the afternoon.

The Tour

JR and I did a hospital tour last night. I never thought I would write about it because I didnt think it would be a big deal.... But, here I am, writing about it.
The doctors recommend that you do a hospital tour so that when you go into the hospital during actual labor you aren't freaking out about where to go and what to do. So we went to the lobby of the hospital and there were about 15 other couples waiting there for the tour too. I am not sure why I thought I would be the only one there.
I kinda freaked out and it became a little more real when the tour guide would say things like "Here is where you will check in when you are in labor" and "Here is where your family will wait when you are delivering" and "Each room has a jacuzzi tub to make labor more comfortable for you." We saw an empty room and I was impressed at the size - in fact, the entire tour of 30 people fit in the room - though it was a little cramped. Each room is private with a mini fridge, cable tv, and a jacuzzi tub. The hospital was nice - a little old - but I was impressed with the place. They are building a new hospital with a new maternity wing across the street from this one but it won't be done until May so we will just miss it.
Everything went fine and we are that much closer and so much more excited. Seeing the labor and delivery rooms was nuts though - to be able to imagine where I will be when it happens is crazy!
They did tell us that video cameras are not allowed during delivery (but immediately after is ok). I guess that video would have been cool to have but not sure I wanted a camera pointed at that area anyways.