PEACE OUT CALIFORNIA!!!

MY DADDY IS COMING HOME ON FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!! HE IS GOING TO BE SURPRISED TO SEE WHAT I HAVE DONE TO MY MOMMY'S BODY IN THE LAST 3 WEEKS!!!!!

31 Weeks!

I am now going to the doctor on an every two week basis. I had an appointment this past Friday with the nurse practitioner. She asked the same questions, listened to the baby's heartbeat, and felt around to see how the little peanut is positioned. I have been feeling a hard ball like sensation in the lower right quadrant of my abdomen, so I knew it was either a butt or a head. Good news is that it was indeed a head, which means the baby is in the right position! Although I know my stubborn child, and I am sure it will move between now and mid-June :) All vitals were good and I actually lost 2 lbs from my last appointment. I guess she wasn't concerned, because she never said anything. Since I didn't know my exact pre-pregnancy weight, I am guessing I have gained a total of 18 lbs so far. I scheduled my next appointment for a little over 2 weeks, so Chad would only have to miss this one appointment. I always tell him that he doesn't have to come to every appointment as they are usually very brief, but he insists on being there! I guess it is better to have him there in the off chance that something was actually wrong!

Speaking of Chad...he has been gone for about a week and a half, which means only a week and a half more to go!! I miss him terribly, but the time is passing faster than I thought it would. He is doing well with his training and just trying to retain all of the information he learns on a daily basis! He is such a perfectionist it cracks me up! He calls me every day to tell me his grades! I am surprised he isn't mailing them to me to post on the refrigerator! However he does send me pictures from the beach and of the beautiful sunsets...jackass!! Just kidding! He deserves a break after the long days he puts in! He gets home on April 22nd and then I feel like time is going to fly! We have my dad's b-day on the 25th, another shower on the 30th, my bro's b-day on the 6th AND my friend Liz's wedding, my mom's b-day on the 19th, and last but not least our 2nd anniversary on the 23rd! And then IT'S BABY TIME!! It's so hard to believe that this tiny human being is going to grace us with his/her presence in two short months!! Until then here is a shot of my expanding, pale, mottled, NAKED baby belly :)

30 Weeks and a Wonderful Baby Shower!!

I am SO happy that I don't have to say the number 20 anymore! I am officially in the 30's (in regards to my pregnancy of course!) While I still tell this baby every day that it has a lot more cooking to do, there is an overwhelming sense of relief now that I am in my 30th week!

Friday April 1st my mom and I set out on a LONG car ride to Northern, VA for my baby shower! That morning was a little rough as I had to say goodbye to Chad for a long three weeks. I cried like a baby of course. Then I felt stupid, because I know there are plenty of people in this country who have to say goodbye to family members for much longer periods of time. I do not know how they do it! Especially the pregnant women out there! The drive was long, but not as bad as we thought it would be! Saturday was spent shopping and just hanging out with my mom and Chad's family. Me & the peanut had dinner on Saturday night with one of my best girlfriends, Abby, while my mom stayed back to hang out with Chad's parents. It is always so nice to see my girlfriends, but it makes it that much harder to come back to Ohio!! Sunday was baby shower day!! My girlfriends threw the shower at a really cute restaurant in Arlington, VA called Liberty Tavern. It was such a beautiful shower and I could not have done a better job myself! I fought back tears the entire day as I saw my best friends in the world, read their tear-jerking cards, and saw a few of them with their sweet babies! My hormones were definitely in overdrive. It also didn't help that I knew Chad was on an airplane to go to the other side of the country! It was such a great day and it ended WAY too soon! I wish that I could have extended that one day for a whole week! I miss my friends SO much and I am so incredibly blessed to have each and every one of them in my life. They are my family and I would not be the person I am without them!

Monday morning it was time to get back in the car and do the long drive all over again! Chad's mom made sure we had everything we needed for the ride home, so we didn't have to stop as much as we did on the way down! It was so nice to stay at their house and have his family be a part of my baby shower. Despite the long drive, my mom and I had such a nice weekend celebrating with friends and family! Now that I am home I am just organizing and counting down the days til daddy is HOME!!

Pain or No Pain?

I just received my weekly email from www.babycenter.com. It was titled "What you need to know about epidurals." I deleted it without even opening it. All I need to know about epidurals is that I WANT ONE!!! I have a lot of respect for women who want to deliver naturally without pain meds, but I have no desire whatsoever to experience pain while bringing my child into this world! I believe it is a personal preference and I don't think one way is better than the other! I have been to plenty of deliveries in the last 5 years and my decision is based on experience as well as I just WANT ONE! Plus I don't want to accidentally claw Chad's eyes out in the delivery room :)