Three and a half weeks... Alien...Etc...

I'm sitting here watching the alien within squirm around inside my tummy. It is rather amazing that this is a living human being inside of me. Wow. A very restless one, too. The last few days he has been moving SO much, it's a little odd. Still a very wonderful feeling, but harder to do things like... well, anything, but especially sleeping. Of course, that's a problem for other reasons as well, at this point.

It's hard to believe that we only have just over three weeks left until our due date. Yikes! I'll be 37 weeks in just a couple of days. That's just hard to believe. We've been in a holding pattern for so long that it's odd to actually be at a point where he or she could come pretty much any day. Of course, it will probably still be four to five weeks, but, you know. People are still telling me every where we go that I don't look like I'll make it to the due date. I'm thinking I could be pretty ready in a couple of weeks... :) Andrew's mom's passport won't be ready until the 26th, so hopefully we'll last that long, but after that, bring it on! (Just for the record, my Dad is predicting the 27th or 28th... We'll see, I guess).

We had our 36 week checkup this week. It was fairly short and to the point. Dr. Lindley is a funny guy. At least, he makes us laugh. He was asking if we were ready for the baby and ended up telling us a funny story about his first baby. Apparently they bought paint for their nursery and his wife had to work on the weekend and he didn't. He didn't paint over the weekend and it seems that his wife thought he was rejecting their baby as a result. Lucky for Andrew, he painted with a couple of days (with some assistance from Gina Gayle) after purchasing the paint. No rejection there. But, Dr. Lindley is a sarcastic type and we generally get along well with him. We have to see a doctor after every three visits, so we usually see him when we're not seeing Carolyn.


Anyway we made several casseroles this evening, which will hopefully be helpful later on, either before or after HannOni's arrival. But now I'm exhausted and ready for sleep. So, good night.

Crib Dreams

Andrew and I have been looking for a crib for a few months now... We had decided that was one of the things we would prefer to either buy new, or from someone we knew, just for safety reasons (I know that at this point some of you are thinking "new parents, new parents"). So, I've been looking and keeping Andrew updated on things. I finally found one that I thought would work, was the perfect colour (espresso), wasn't too expensive (I guess that's relative... thank you US government for some extra dollars this year), and basically looked pretty hot, all things considered. But, I wanted to wait around and see if perhaps we could get a better deal or find another one. So last week he basically indicates that he thinks we should go ahead and get it and, yes, it was out of stock at Walmart and the espresso colour was no longer on the StorkCraft web site (which to me says it's no longer being manufactured, cause they had five other colours available). So, I look around, and find another one that seems like it will work. It's a little too harsh in it's modern design, but I think, hey, it's the right colour, and it could be worse. And I kinda like it (I don't think Andrew does).

So, two nights ago just before going to bed, we sit down and decide to just order the less-hot crib. I'm tired, but decide to go ahead. As I'm scrolling down trying to find it, Andrew goes "Hey, click on that other one!" He has somehow noticed that the wording beside the hotter crib has changed.... it went from out of stock to available! We couldn't believe it. I was too shocked to do much of anything. He, being the guy that he is, grabbed the computer and just went ahead and placed the order for the crib. So, miracle of miracles, I think I'm going to get my hot crib! It should arrive at our Walmart by next weekend. I'm still kinda shocked. What's even cooler is the next day when we went to check on the web site, not only is our crib back to saying "out of stock," but so is the other less-hot crib that we were going to get! It seems like God was definitely working that out for us. I wonder if someone ordered it, but then didn't want it? Or if they found a few in some warehouse somewhere? Whatever the reason, I'm thrilled. I guess espresso is either a way popular colour or going out of style. Anyway, we're pretty pumped up.

I'm getting excited about the baby's room. We now have a crib, and a repainted dresser (which is gonna look great), and walls that are being painted. Andrew is actually back there painting right now. He's almost done and it looks really good. I'll post some pictures when it's all painted (and I transfer them from the camera to the computer). I'm pretty excited about the whole thing. Plus, we only have four weeks left to our due date! Yikes! I'm pretty ready to have this baby, though. I can't wait to meet him or her!

HannOni's Room

So, we've finally taken steps toward preparing the baby's room for habitation. :) After much deliberation we decided on colours for the room. We're painting three walls a medium-light shade of brown, and the other wall will be a dark chocolate colour (and yes, I do use the term "we" lightly... I'm not doing any of the painting, much to my chagrin). I think it will be pretty. Gina Gayle actually came over yesterday to get started on doing the trim work in the room. I wish I'd thought to take before and after pictures, but I guess we'll start from "trim work" to "completion." I will post pictures of this project as it progresses. We're hoping to finish up with the painting some time this week. Sam and Gina have volunteered to help out with that as needed, so that's good. I'm glad Andrew has help, since I'm not able to paint. The medium brown shade is darker than I had hoped it would look on the walls, but it will still be beautiful. We're hoping to lighten things up with some white accents.

Also, we've begun (again, I use "we" lightly, but it was my idea, so I get included) to re-work an old dresser, hopefully into something that will be beautiful. Andrew is currently sanding the fronts of the drawers to an old dresser that I had back before we were married. It was painted blue and white with stickers (maybe from old wallpaper?) glued to the front. We're intending to re-paint the top and sides white and paint the drawer fronts the chocolate brown. I think it will look pretty hot. And, it will double as a changing table. Yay. We'd spent a lot of time looking, both online and in stores, for a dresser that was affordable and that would hopefully be the right height for a changing pad with absolutely NO luck. It was very frustrating. But, I think this will work nicely.

We've been looking for a crib too... It used to be fun to look around hoping to find "the perfect crib." But, I found "the perfect crib" several times, and each time I was thwarted in some fashion. The one we really like is out of stock in the espresso colour that we want, but they have it in stock in at least 5 other colours! It's officially frustrating. And it doesn't look like they will be making any more any time soon. Every time I find another that I like, either it's out of stock or doesn't have a drop side rail. Oh well! It's not like the baby will really care, right?

Anyway, there will be updates to the nursery decor as they become available. Thanks for tuning in to this episode of "HannOni's Room."

The Beauty of Growing New Life

This just made me smile and I thought I would share it. :) Enjoy!

I Love My Baby's Daddy.

So lately I've been reading some pregnancy message boards, mostly from other women due in April. For the most part, I've realized that this is an incredible waste of time... However, one thing that has caught my attention is the fact that there are an awful lot of women out there who use those boards as a place to vent. Now, I can understand the need to vent, but seriously! Some of the things people say about their husbands is just wrong! And, when one woman posts, the reactions of other women seem to just get worse... "Oh yeah?? Well, listen to what MY husband did to me!" Because yeah, that's what we need. A bunch of emotional pregnant women (I'm allowed to say that, seeing as I am one) playing off of each other's already whacked out emotions.

Anyway, I've probably read, or at least seen... well, a whole lot of these threads where women are constantly tearing their men down. Surprisingly enough, I did see one thread (to which I think maybe 6 women responded, versus the 40+ who responded to the others) where a woman asked if other women's husbands "treated them like a princess" the way hers did. For several weeks I've been planning to post on how wonderful my husband is, and these posts just made me more thankful for him. So here goes...

Having been married to Andrew for 19 months now, I have had ample opportunity to experience how wonderful he is. He takes such good care of me, and that care has only improved since we discovered that we are expecting a baby. Life was definitely not easy for those first 4+ months because I was so sick, but he did everything in his power to make it easier for me... Including doing almost all of the packing and cleaning of our old apartment when we moved one or two months in, doing almost all of the cooking (smells were nasty!), letting me rest when I could, and just doing whatever he could think of to be helpful. (Oh, and if it's at all avoidable, don't move during pregnancy!) Those were hard days for both of us, but his support was irreplaceable.

And now, my growing tummy is making just about everything more difficult. I have to keep reminding myself that, as difficult as it is to do things and go places now, it will never be this easy again.:) I may feel like a house, but it's still easier now. I have to keep reminding myself of that. It is becoming increasingly difficult to do silly things like bend over to pick something up off of the floor, get off the couch (especially without first sliding to the edge), or tie my own shoes. Andrew has become increasingly helpful with all of those things...

He frequently ties my shoes for me, and pulls or pushes me up off the couch, doing whatever he can. I don't know how I would have made it this far without him. He is a constant encouragement to me. He makes me feel special, beautiful, and loved, and he's excited to share this pregnancy with me. I couldn't ask for a better husband. I am exceedingly thankful for him.

He's such a sweetheart. And I love him. I can't wait to see him with the baby. Just watching him interact with our baby now is such fun. I love it when he has his ear against my tummy and the baby kicks him. It just makes me smile. He's going to be a wonderful Daddy. He already is a wonderful Daddy. I am truly blessed to have him. He does all he can to make my life easier. I'm looking forward to embarking on this new section of this adventure with him. It's hard to believe that we have less than six weeks left!

Andrew, I love you. I am thankful for you every day of my life. You are a wonderful example of what a husband should be. Thank you for loving me, and for loving our baby. I don't know what I would do without you.

33 1/2 Weeks and Visits with Friends

So, the arrival of this baby is getting scarily close. Yikes! It's just hard to believe that April eighth is just over six weeks away. Of course, I'm still telling myself it's the 16th instead, so that I'm (hopefully) not too disappointed when I go over. Maybe we'll have a tax-day baby. Or, an end-of-March baby, which would be nice. :)

We had a checkup this last week with Carolyn, who is the midwife that we like. She said everything is going well. My blood pressure is a little high, but hopefully that will calm down by the next visit. She felt the baby and told us how he was positioned in there. That was kinda fun. But then she got the Doppler out to listen to his heartbeat and discovered that she must have scared him and given him hiccups! It was funny to both feel the hiccups and hear them on the Doppler. :) It made us smile. She did say that he's probably going to be a good size (surprise, surprise) and that I'm measuring two weeks ahead. Overall, it was a good visit. We really like her, and I wish there was a way we could know that we were going to have her there for the delivery. That would make us much more comfortable. She's not a worrier, but she does tell you when there is a problem. She said she wouldn't order an ultrasound just because the baby is probably going to be big, which I really appreciated. (I guess they offer an elective C-section if the baby is projected to be higher than a certain weight.) ANYway, I just like her. We have our next appointment on March 5th, and then after that it's every week until he (or she) arrives. Crazy.

Also, last night we met my roommate from college, along with her husband, sister, parents, and their youth group, for supper at CiCi's. They brought the kids to ski at Winterplace. It was just really good to see Deborah, as it's been a while. Plus, HannOni needed to meet his Aunt Room Frog. :) I wish I'd taken the time to get a picture, but I forgot! Hopefully we'll catch up again in July.

Okay, I'm off to make banana bread and rice and beans while Andrew works on school. I've been wanting banana bread for a long time, so I'm excited about it!

Hiccups

I've wondered over these last days and weeks why I've never felt our baby hiccup. Everyone is always telling me about being annoyed by the baby having hiccups. Why doesn't my baby get hiccups? But, during our birthing class on Thursday night, one of the labour nurses said something about hiccups, and Andrew looked at me pointedly... And it finally clicked that the movements I was feeling (it was almost like I could feel a pulse, but it was way too slow, but too rhythmic to be kicks or squirms) were hiccups! Eureka! And since then, I've felt it several times and it's like, "duh!" I can't believe I never put that together. Needless to say, our baby does in fact, get the hiccups. (Just in case you were wondering.)