39 Weeks and the End of the Semester

My due date is in 6 days and I'm feeling better than I ever expected to feel at this point in my pregnancy. I finished work on Monday, my classes yesterday, and am hoping to have my finals done by this Saturday (hopefully the baby will cooperate, so far she has been very obedient).

On Monday they said I was dilated to 1.5 and 70% effaced. They offered to strip my membranes, but I declined because I would rather get this semester over with before she comes. We are getting excited, although it still seems crazy that I could go into labor at any moment.

Landon is all done for the semester and I am very jealous. We are doing well, just waiting for our life to completely change in a few days! Here is a picture of me at 39 weeks. I look a lot bigger than I actually feel!

32 Weeks and a Check-up

Last week I hit my 32 week mark! Here I am to document my progress.

Landon gets upset when I pose with my hands on my belly. He says it hides my belly (I'm not sure how I could possibly hide it).

So I moved my hands, but then he was upset that I wasn't perfectly sideways.

So here you go. No hands and directly sideways. Are you happy now?

We also went to the doctor on Friday and things seem to be normal. My weight gain seems to still be on track and well as my belly growth. He said the baby is definitely not large, but not small either, which I was very pleased to hear. He also told us that a lot of first babies come late and not to anticipate going early. He advised us to plan on going about two days late, that way we won't be as upset if the due date comes and goes.

This past week we went to our last prenatal birthing class. So now we are both experts on what to expect and what to do during labor. Well, probably not, but it definitely was useful and has helped us feel more prepared and confident.

We have been taking advantage of the little Babies R Us coupon books that contain 20% off one item coupons each week. We have gotten some good deals (20% off our crib mattress) and it is nice to spread out the expenses a little bit rather than getting everything at once. I need to take some pictures of the baby's room to post on here, but for now, this is probably enough.

An Eventful Weekend

We had a great Valentine's/Chinese New Year/President's Day weekend this year. On Friday, my grandma took us out to dinner since she and Fay were in town. They brought the baby a quilt and a receiving blanket, and promised a crocheted blanket once my grandma finishes it. It was fun to eat and chat with them.

On Saturday we decorated Valentine's cookies with some of Landon's relatives. I was finally able to use some of my cake/cookie decorating items including my alphabet cookie cutters to make a "LOVE" cookie. After decorating cookies, Landon took me out for Indian food where we had delicious food- Saag Aloo, Chicken Aloo, garlic naan, and mango/strawberry lassis, and samosas. We went all out! I am so grateful that I can still eat spicy, delicious food without getting heartburn! After that we went and played a couple of games of air hockey and took pictures in a photo booth. We then went to "The Cocoa Bean Cupcake Cafe." They sell fancy cupcakes and drinks (hot and cold, without caffeine). It is a fun little joint and a great place to take a date. After all that, we came home and watched Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (thanks Mom and Dad).

On Sunday we went to church and spent most of the day organizing our baby's room. It was so fun! We still have a lot to do, but it is so fun to go in and just look and imagine a baby in there. We also made calzones, something Landon has been wanting to do for a while now.

Landon created his calzone first.
And then I put mine together.



And they ended up being ginormous.

Happy Valentine's Day!

On Monday we had an Arrested Development party and did more in the baby's room. It was a great weekend!

Chinese New Year started on Sunday the 14th, but we didn't actually celebrate until Friday. And we celebrated well thanks to my parents for a generous red envelope. This year is the year of the tiger, which is what it was when I was born. Since our baby girl will be born this year, she will be a tiger too!

Nuh-Night Music

On my drive home from work the other day, I decided that I wanted to compile playlists of "Nuh-Night Music" for our baby girl. I think I will make several playlists with just a few songs that are soothing and will help her want to sleep. I haven't really started compiling them, but I know artists like Ben Harper and Feist will make an appearance. I think I will also do a playlist for Sunday with some of my favorite hymns and primary songs. If you have any songs that have helped you or your children settle down and go to sleep, now is your chance to suggest them to me!

Pop!

I haven't posted any pictures of what my belly looks like lately or any type of update on us, so here you go.

This was taken the day we found out we were having a girl. I was 20 weeks (just about 6 weeks ago).

Here I am just a few days ago at 25 1/2 weeks! It looks as though I "popped" over Christmas. I can't believe how much change these pictures show! I knew I had gotten bigger, but this definitely shows it. People are no longer afraid to ask me if I am pregnant. I have been feeling great and the doctor says am measuring right on schedule. I can't believe I am quickly approaching my 3rd trimester.

We spent our Christmas break with Landon's family in Florida. It was so nice to relax for a couple of weeks and forget about our responsibilities. We have been spoiled by both of our families with all kinds of baby items... Tons of cute clothes, shoes and accessories, my mom's rocking chair, a jogging stroller and car seat, and money for a crib. We feel very blessed. We are trying to sort and rearrange through all of our things so we can start setting up our baby's room.

We started school again and we will both stay busy with classes, research, and work. I'm sure this semester will fly by and we will have our little girl here before we know it. We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and that this year will be fantastic!

Suggest a Name

Just thought that this would be a cool way to allow people to suggest names for the baby, if they cared to. I won't promise that we will use any of them, but who knows, maybe you will come up with one we really like. So, give it a shot.

Boy or Girl?

You can watch the video bigger if you follow the YouTube link.