37 Weeks and counting!

So, I am officially 37 weeks!  Since I have been going in to the OB every week now, I have been twice since I last posted.  I was nervous about the transfer but I really like my new doctor and the office!  They are great and he is very personable!  Definitely a good choice for me :)

My first appointment was on January 15th and it went well!  I was 60% effaced and 1 cm dilated and little babycakes was at -2.  Fair spot to be in with a month left!  He ordered an ultrasound for the next week since I was a new patient - fun! 

My second appointment was on January 21st.  My test results came back positive for group B so I will get an antibiotic while I'm in labor.  I'm kinda glad because I would rather get the antibiotic and be safe rather than test false negative and have him get sick or something...  So I am great with those results!

We also did the ultrasound and that was really fun!!  He was so big that all you could see was a hand or a leg at a time, but she was able to take a look and get some pictures.  She confirmed he is a boy, and did some measuring.  She said I was looking to be about four days ahead of schedule, but as due dates are such rough estimates they said the four days didn't really matter, so my due date is unchanged at Feb 14th!  She also estimated his weight and he seems to be about 6.5 lbs currently.  55th percentile - he should be fairly average weight.

So, that is the low-down on the last two appointments and I go in again on the 28th of January.  It is getting more and more exciting as we get closer!  I just can't wait to see Andrew as a dad!  I love seeing his face light up when he feels the baby kicking and during the ultrasound.  He will be amazing!  I think he is feeling a little stressed with the new job and insurance issues and lesson planning and finding a sub and wanting to be there for me 24/7, but we still have a couple weeks so hopefully he is feeling better by then :)

Speaking of prepping and feeling ready, we went to our first prenatal class at the hospital tonight.  It was week 1 of 2 and we were there from 5:30-9:30pm.  I think I will really like this hospital!  We did a tour at the end to get a feel for the facility also.  It has a really amazing NICU and the labor and delivery suites are definitely sweet!!  Ha ha!  And it was great that Andrew was able to be there with me.  It was a fun date night!  I don't even think he minded having to watch a lady pop her baby out on screen - heh heh...

I have been feeling great still though things are getting a little more intense!  Some days I feel like I am in labor, with back pain and cramps and contractions...  Some days I don't even feel pregnant!  And I finally got my pregnancy merit badge as my stretch marks showed up a couple days ago.  And boy did they show up!  Our little baby seems to be doing well too, except I don't think he likes it in there anymore!  He kicks and punches and pushes me without mercy and I think it is amazing my hips and ribs have survived!  But it just makes me love him all the more :)  We have officially unpacked and I have been catching up with friends and prepping for baby.  Andrew, as mentioned, is crazy busy!  Some of his online classes to renew his license have ended, however, so we anticipate less late nights and more of that "idyllic teaching schedule" we hear so much about.  He is a trooper and my number one hero!  He is just such an amazing man!

Anywho, I will post again soon!  Here are some pics of the tummy, the ultrasound (if you aren't an expert at reading these things, little munchkin is looking straight at you with his hand tucked under his chin...hopefully you can make out his eyes and white nose and little fingers), the nursery, and some pics of the house so you can get a feel for where we are living.  Hope this wasn't too long and boring!  More soon!

Mountain of boxes...not even half of them though...

 Nursery pics!  I think I am done tweaking it so this is the final product!

 Some pictures of the house... Kitchen, family room, front room, entryway with hallway down to bedrooms and little office area off the entryway

 Yep, I'm pretty massive now!

 And the ultrasound!  Again, he is laying on his side looking at the camera with his fist under his chin

34 Weeks and counting!

So, this post is a little late... We had our last appointment on the 28th of December but I am getting to this post a week late because of life-craziness that has included not having the internet for a couple days!  For those who haven't heard, we moved to Arizona!!  A short time before Christmas, Andrew had a video chat interview with a school down in Paradise Valley and heard back from them later that day that he got the job!  It took a couple days to be confirmed by the superintendent and HR (we found out last summer that principals don't hire, they submit your name so it is good to not get too excited until you hear from HR).  During this couple of days of anxiously waiting, we did a lot of thinking about where we want to be and what will get us there.  Also, we have been praying for a job opportunity to come along in Andrew's field since he graduated last December (a whole year!!).  When it came down to it, we decided that we needed to jump at this opportunity and not even think about complaining about timing!  It is a great job for Andrew!

So, we had two weeks to enjoy Christmas, pack up the house, solidify a place to live, switch doctors, and move!  We planned on moving Jan 2nd and Andrew's new job starts on Jan 7th.  We had a really really wonderful Christmas and New Years close to Andrew's family, soaking up the love and amazing spirit you can feel around them.  We also spoke in church, and packed!

I had my last Dr's appointment at Valley OBGYN on Dec 28th and it was super quick!  I went in planning on doing the group B test, but they decided that since I was moving and it would have been a little ahead of schedule anyways to have me wait.  I was fine with that!  I was happy to have complete records to transfer down to my new doctor instead of waiting for test results to come back in.  I filled out forms to fax to my new OBGYN (Dr Tamanaha - recommendation courtesy of Lana and Kelsey, whom I am already impressed with because his office was great to work with in switching!) and got a print out of my records for myself.  Those were fun to look through, except the nurse's notes from all my blood draws which say I turned "hostile" and that it took "nurse x2 to restrain patient."  Ok, someone is exaggerating!  I admit it was not one of my proudest moments but I don't remember being hostile and requiring a troop of nurses!  I will deny everything...  Anywho, my next appointment is in a week and a half on Jan 15th.  That was the closest to two weeks they could get it.

And then the big move!  Andrew's family came and helped us move, which was really such a blessing!  After two hours of playing tetras in the moving van, we got everything to fit!  Yay!  There was over a foot of snow outside and none of the boys could feel their noses by the end, but we were done!  Yay!  The girls cleaned and I sat back and watched like a helpless person!  Yay!  I had been having painful braxton-hicks contractions off and on the handful of days before, so I was being serious about taking it easy.   We spent the night at Andrew's parent's home and left the next day.  The trip was incredibly cold!!  I have never seen my car thermometer hit -20* before!  The trip took a little time with the moving truck, so we clocked in around 13 hours later (added 3ish hours) at 8:30 pm.  We unloaded that night and slept soo good!  We were both beat!  Since then, the unpacking wars have commenced and we are settling in!  Pictures of the house will be in the next post, but here is a 33 week picture (was that just last week!?).  Andrew and I are thinking of going to take pictures together before little Whiffenpoof is born...  (yes, our child has the weirdest nicknames...I typed that without even thinking about it, but then thought I aught to explain that it will not be on his birth certificate...).  I also included pics of my cute Andrew in our old house (I will secretly miss the small space and cinderblock walls and all the memories we have there) and the group picture at the Robinson family temple lights trip (see if you can id people with all the hats and scarves!)

So, to sum up, God is giving us all blessings at once and we are settling into our crazy new life!  It was hard and sad to leave Utah, but we are really happy and really feel good about where we are right now.  We feel like Heavenly Father gave us this opportunity for a reason and that is good enough for us! :)