HAPPY BIRTHDAY MATTY!!!!

33 Weeks & Chad is FINALLY Home!!

That was a LONG three weeks, and I am SO glad that it is OVER!! Of course I was scheduled to work the night Chad got home, so I wasn't even going to see him when he got back. Well it turns out the overstaff that I had signed up for weeks earlier was actually granted :) I knew we had gotten busy at work, so I did NOT expect to get called off! So what did I do? When Chad called to tell me he had landed, I told him I was on my way to work! My dad picked him up from the airport and took him out to eat, so I just sat at home waiting to surprise him. When they finally got home, he walked and saw that the door was open and all of the lights were on. The first thing he said to me was "you are such a liar!" Haha. It was so good to see him and so nice to have the night off of work!! I am even more thankful that the baby behaved itself the whole time he was gone!

Like I said in my last post, I have been going to the doc every two weeks. I scheduled this past appointment so that Chad would be able to come since he missed the last one. Well we were scheduled to see the only doctor in the practice we had yet to see in my 33 weeks of pregnancy. Our appointment was for 2:30 and Chad had a 3:00 conference call. Well I figured we would be fine, because my appointments had been lasting all of 15 minutes and I have NEVER had to wait to see a doc this entire pregnancy. Well apparently this doctor is ALWAYS behind and we sat in the waiting room until 3:00 without word. Chad had to leave the doctor's office for his conference call and I went up to the front desk annoyed. They said she runs behind because she is SO good and everyone just LOVES her. Well Ms. Receptionist Lady, you must not know that I work in the industry and I have heard what other medical personel think of her, so I am sure that most people do LOVE her, but don't bulls**t me because I have heard otherwise! So I saw the nurse midwife, who I like the best anyways! She urged me to schedule my next appointment with the doctor I had not seen just in case she is the one to have to deliver me. I really did not want to, but did anyways. So besides having to wait and poor Chad missing yet another appointment, everything went great and the baby is remaining head down!

In other news, my brother came home for Easter and to celebrate my Dad's birthday! It was so funny to see his reaction to my growing belly! He had not seen me since Christmas, so needless to say...I had grown! He talked to the baby and felt it move a lot, which is funny, because the second anyone else lays their hands on my belly, the little stinker stops moving altogether! Baby loves it's uncle Matty already! It was so good to see him and who knows...maybe next time he's home he will be holding the little one in his arms instead of feeling him/her in my belly!!

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 :)

How Cute Am I??

PRETTY DARN CUTE!!! I could look at these pictures all day everyday! We had our follow-up ultrasound this morning to check on my placenta previa and to get a better view of the baby's spine. My doctor's office offers a 3D/4D package for an additional fee. I was originally planning on going to Expecting Mom Spa to do our 3D/4D ultrasound, but my doctor's office had a cheaper package that offered more time and pictures than the cheapest Expecting Mom package. So since we were going in for a follow-up today, I scheduled our 3D/4D at the same time. We were going to wait until closer to 30 weeks, but Chad leaves next week for 3 weeks and I did not want him to miss out!!

Great news to report...not only does the baby look GREAT, but my placenta previa is completely gone and the spine is totally normal!! I no longer have any restrictions and my doc said I will not need another ultrasound unless I go past my due date!! The ultrasound tech said the baby's estimated weight was 3 lbs 1 oz. She said that they usually weigh 3 lbs around 30 weeks...well I guess I am feeding the baby well, because I am only 28.5 weeks! Haha. I guess that would explain my 9 lb weight gain from 3 weeks ago! Ahh! I knew I would gain it all toward the end! Chad, my dad, and my Nana all say the baby has 'masculine' features, so we will see! I don't think you can tell by looking at it's features, but my gut still says boy :) Either way, we will be thrilled!!

I am SO excited that one week from today, my mom and I will be traveling to Northern VA for my baby shower! I am SO SO excited to see all of my wonderful friends as well as Chad's family! It will be a long 8 hrs in the car, but it will be well worth it! The only sad part is when we return Chad will already be in California :( What am I going to do without him for 3 weeks?! I know time will fly by and he will be home before I know it!

My next appointment will be in 2 weeks, and hopefully by then spring will be here to stay!!