Playing the waiting game

Yesterday was my weekly doctor appointment, and we had an ultrasound to check on my amniotic fluid levels, too. Last week Dr. Taavon told me that depending on fluid levels this week that I may be induced as soon as next week (around the 23rd at 38 weeks pregnant). When we had our ultrasound yesterday, we found out that my fluid levels have remained stable and that I will be induced at around 39 weeks!

Dr. Taavon basically said that he would "keep me on the monitor" for next week (which I am assuming means ANYTHING could happen- I could kick myself for not clarifying!) and that someone from his office would be calling me to schedule a birthday, probably by next Friday.

So at this point we are just playing the waiting game! We know that unless Max comes along by himself that he will be making his big debut sometime in the last week of March, so that actually helps us plan ahead a little bit for his arrival. He is now past the 37 weeks mark, so he is technically full term, meaning he could really come along any day! I had to change my last day of work before Max's arrival (originally scheduled for March 31st) to March 26th, and Nick was able to give Lowe's a heads up that he would likely be out for a week starting close to the end of March. He is the department manager of the Garden Center at one of the busiest Lowe's stores in North Carolina, so needless to say this time of the year is sort of crazy for him!

In the mean time, we still have plenty to do to keep us busy! This weekend we have another baby shower in Wilkes, and we are going to Ikea on Sunday to get a few things that we would like to have before we have a baby in the house. Not to mention keeping the house clean (easier said than done when you are a nit-picky and humongous pregnant woman) and a few other random projects that I know...if we do not get them finished before Max is here they will probably never get finished!

I will try to take a belly picture later on today and post it...some of you have been asking! :)

Nursery updates!

Oh what a beautiful day it is today :) The windows in our house are all open and I am cleaning away! FYI...today may be my last day off work that I don't have something else going on before Max arrives (depending on what they tell us at the doctor Wednesday, of course). So needless to say I feel like I have no choice but to get a ton of things accomplished today. I am off work next weekend, but we will be in Wilkes for another baby shower on Saturday, and we are planning a trip to IKEA on Sunday to get a rug for Max's room.

I decided to take a short break from my preparations to post a little update on the nursery...here are some pictures of it for your enjoyment!

The moose on the wall is from IKEA...anyone who knows my husband very well knows that he has a small obsession with moose. This one doubles as decoration and hooks to hang various things on! The rocking chair is one of my favorite things in the room. Also from IKEA, my parents gave this to us as a shower gift...I sit in it all the time and daydream about our sweet baby boy :)

The art on this wall was made by Max's Aunt Chelsea and her friend Stephanie...inspired by "Where the Wild Things Are." We love it!

Changing table area, all ready to go!

I am not posting pictures of the crib are yet...my Aunt Leslie and Nanny got us the bedding (Thank you so much!) but it is not here yet, and I haven't hung the letters on the wall above his bed yet.

Not too much longer til this room will be occupied :)

HOW much longer???

So...Wednesday was my weekly doctor appointment, and I thought I would update any of you who actually read this blog.

I asked Dr. Taavon what his thoughts were about when Max would be making his appearance, and I wanted a straight answer. He has sort of gone back and forth throughout my entire pregnancy about whether or not I would be induced prior to my due date, and after last week's appointment I was really curious about what he was thinking.

His answer? Still not too sure. This coming Wednesday when we have another ultrasound we will talk about a specific date to induce labor, unless of course I happen to go into labor on mu own before that date, depending on my fluid levels and Max's growth (and I understand completely...Dr. Taavon is a great doctor, and I know that he can't predict everything). What he did say is that we should plan on welcoming Max into the world before my due date, probably around 38-39 weeks. He said it is likely that I WILL be having a baby in March, and he said he would not be surprised if it was closer to 38 weeks (I will be 38 weeks on March 23rd). He is considered full-term as of this coming Wednesday at 37 weeks, and Dr. Taavon says it is fine for him to be born anytime after that...so no worries!!!

So I went to the doctor Wednesday morning thinking we had 4 weeks left, and came home from the doctor knowing that Max may be here in 2 weeks! If that won't light a fire underneath you I don't know what will! Needless to say, Nick and I have been busting our butts over the last 2 days trying to get everything spotless and perfect for the arrival of our little one and the company that is sure to come along with him!

We are excited, but a little stressed too. Please keep us ALL in your prayers...that our stress levels will be minimal and that everything will go smoothly Wednesday :)

35 Week Appointment and Such :)

Just 5 more weeks!

Nick and I went to the doctor today for another ultrasound and some other routine sort of things. The ultrasound went great! Max is weighing in at about 5lbs 8oz, which is actually on the low side of babies at his gestational age. That little bit of information surprised us a teeny bit since before now he has measured so big, but he is healthy and adorable, so everything is good!

This is the ultrasound 4D picture that we got today...but of course it is just a picture of a picture that was taken with my phone. I will get it scanned and add it on here as soon as I can so you can see what a good picture it is! The umbilical cord is in front of his mouth, but you can see most of the rest of his sweet little face :) I am already in love with his chubby little cheeks!

Dr. Taavon went over the plan with us for Max's delivery today...all the information about what has to happen before we page him and when we should go to the hospital, etc. It sort of seemed as though he expects to be inducing me at around 39 weeks, but that we are just going to wait and see how things go for the time being. We really thought today would be the last ultrasound we would have before Max is born, but Dr. Taavon wants to do one more in 2 weeks to check my amniotic fluid levels and just make sure everything is still okay...

SINCE going to the doctor just this morning I have developed a fever...ick. I have had what seems to be a sinus infection all week, and this afternoon I started feeling particularly disgusting. I checked my temperature and it was 101.2! The nurse's advice was to take Tylenol, rest, don't go to work (which may kill me...I really hate not going to work when I am scheduled), and call them if my fever doesn't come down or if anything gets worse. Being sick and pregnant is no fun at all...normally if I get a fever with a sinus infection I don't worry, and I just see it as my body trying to get rid of the infection (I get sinus infections at least 4 times a year probably, so I am sort of used to it). Since Max is also involved, I have to worry about the fever a lot more. The nurse assured me that as long as my fever doesn't get extremely high or last a really long time that it wouldn't harm him in the least, but she also wanted to make sure I realize that I need to take care of myself and REST (easier said than done...I am absolutely itching to get this house ready for Max!). Just say a little prayer for me that this gets over with REALLY quickly! ;)

Max and I hit the 34 week mark yesterday! You know what that means...only 6 more weeks until his due date! :) <---yes, my countdown is probably going to start driving you crazy. Get over it...haha! We are excited, and we should be ;)

I had yet another doctor appointment this morning, and will have one every week until he arrives from here on out. The first thing Dr. Taavon said to me when he walked in the room was "so, are you ready for the home stretch?!" Holy cow, he's right. Max's arrival is sooo soon in the scheme of things. Granted, at the moment I am sort of inbetween feeling like it will never get here and feeling like he is sure to come before everything could possibly be ready for him! Dr. Taavon also told me that it still looks like I am "trying to grow a big one," but next week I have another ultrasound so we will see just how Max is measuring up.

This weekend is sure to be awesome! Our first baby shower is Saturday...for my side of the family, and I can't wait. I know it sounds bad to be so excited about a party that is just for giving gifts basically, but I am a huge sucker for baby stuff, and it makes it seem real- that we really are having a sweet little boy in a few weeks!

The other awesome thing about this weekend is that I get to see all of my wonderful family! Since Nick has to work (and I forbid him from taking a vacation day for a shower...I would rather him save those for when Max is actually here!) I will be riding back to Wilkes with my brother! I haven't seen him or Chelsea, his girlfriend, since pretty close after Christmas, I believe, and I can't wait to see them and spend time with them. The scary part? The next time I see them they will likely have a nephew! (Yes, Chelsea= Aunt Chelsea in our book...she is practically family!)

Life is getting so exciting...I love it!

A Note About Nesting

I have always heard about nesting from other pregnant women...but honestly never knew how crazy it could get until I experienced myself!

I remember in particular when a pregnant friend posted in her Facebook status about how much cleaning she had done on that day...and thought "wow...that is a lot to do in one day"...my nesting has affected me a little differently though (I guess it is just like all those other pregnancy symptoms...everyone experiences it a little differently).

For the past couple of weeks I have only thought of two things: Max and cleaning. Literally...I woke up extremely early one day and as I was laying in bed trying to go back to sleep all I could think about was how I really should be getting up and going to scrub our kitchen floors. I eventually talked myself out of this, but it was not easy. And for me, the cleaning bit hasn't been for me to do a million things in one day (dishes, mopping, vacuuming, dusting, organizing, etc.)...

Instead of tackling a million tasks in one day, I have instead been feeling the need to do everything very meticulously. Today, for example, I started washing dishes at 10am (that is the normal part). After that was over, I decided to vacuum the couch with the hose of our vacuum cleaner to get the cat hair off of it. THAT turned into taking all the cushions off, including the big one that you sit on, vacuuming each one, and steam cleaning the entire thing. THEN I slid the couch out of the way (it slides very easily...no worries! No heavy lifting for this momma!), vacuumed underneath it, cleaned the legs of the couch which are made of wood, and mopped the floor underneath the couch with a sponge on all fours. Let's just say our couch is definitely clean now.

This is how it is every day for me...it is all about the little things for me I guess. It might be interesting to see how in the world I will get everything done by March 1st- the deadline I set for us to have everything spic and span and completely ready for Baby Max's arrival!

Happy Weekend!

Seriously...I have never looked forward to weekends so much in my entire life! At my job I work 6 days a week (every day but Sunday) but every shift is only 4 hours or so. Even though I am really not there long every day, it still makes for a long week, and I LOVE Sundays and having them off. (PS- I really do like my job and the amazing girls I work with, but lets be honest, no matter how much you love your job everyone still prefers days off to days at work!)

This week has been a pretty good week :) Monday was Valentine's Day (duh), which Nick and I don't really celebrate very much. BUT he did buy me donuts from Krispy Kreme that I had been having a major craving for and had resisted...even though it is literally 2 minutes from our house, I drive by it at least once a day, AND they have a drive thru. It pretty much made my week...I love my husband so very much! We also went to Women's Hospital, where Max will be born, and took a tour last night. I have to say, I really appreciate how supportive Nick is. He was the only husband/significant other that came along for the tour...most of the women were alone! I was thinking the whole time that it was really more important for him to know things like where to take me for admission and where things are in the hospital, etc because goodness knows when I am in labor I won't be much help with such things.

This weekend is going to be especially awesome! Nick and I are going to our hometown (Wilkesboro) tomorrow after I get off work to stay through Sunday...for the first time since Christmas! I have seen my parents and my oldest sister, Evie, a few times since then, but I haven't seen my other three sisters and I miss them so very much! I am so excited to see everyone and spend some quality time with my family.

Hope you all have a perfect weekend too!