32 Weeks

Well, as a friend put it, we're in the single-digit week countdown now! How did that happen? It feels so far away, but when I look at a calendar, I admit to some sliiiiiiight moments of panic when I see just how few days are left before this little one is actually here! Pregnancy feels like it has lasted forever, but these last few months have really been passing quickly.

We're wrapping up our last week of our Bradley classes this week. It's been fun to meet and check in with other couples that are at the same stage of pregnancy as us. We've made some nice friends and have plans to meet up for a 'reunion class' sometime in May with all of our babies.

I know my last update probably sounded like I was over and done with this whole pregnancy. At the time, I was! :-) But, as it always seems with pregnancy, every day is different. I've been feeling more comfortable lately, so I'm back in the swing of things. Not that I'm saying I want this to last forever....but 8 more weeks, sure...why not? :-)



How far along? 32 weeks (going on 8 months - crazy!)
Total weight gain/loss: Hovering at 30 lbs.
Maternity clothes? Yup. Even had fun shopping for some more the other day. I had some gift cards - woohoo! - although if I ever have to step foot in that Destination Maternity store again, it will be too soon. Joel went with me and even he couldn't believe how much the sales associates hovered. It's like they are trying to suffocate you! But, I digress.
Stretch marks? Ok. Sadly, I think I found two little ones. Boo. Oh well. Maybe they will fade. It was nice while it lasted.
Sleep: Sleep has been fine - just not getting as much as I would like. I even heard today that Kaiser says it's fine to sleep on my back. WHAT?!?! File that under things I would have liked to have known a few months ago! Oh well...better late than never. I can't wait to sleep tonight!
Best moment this week: We're enjoying our last few weeks as a 'childless couple'. We went to a movie the other night and we're trying to relish our time 'just the two of us'. We can't wait to share the joy of having our baby and raising a family, but we know this time is special, too!
Movement: Plenty. Kaiser has a kick count card that I'm supposed to fill out every night. So far...10 kicks in 10 minutes every night. If this is any indication of what we are in for with this kid.... watch out!
Food cravings: Mmmmm Coldstone's. I'm having a chocolate fix lately, but as always, the 'kicks' pass and I move on to something else. :-)
Gender: I still think boy, but as I've said before, we really just want healthy and happy so either way, we're excited! We really are looking forward to the excitement in the delivery room so it's worth the wait!
Labor Signs: No, but we did get to visit the Labor and Delivery department tonight for the Late Pregnancy class and tour. Thankfully, we haven't had to go in for any early visits.
Belly Button in or out? What belly button??? Mine is MIA.
What I miss: Being able to put socks and shoes on the conventional way. So much for that.
What I am looking forward to: Starting to actually decorate the nursery. That is going to be really fun!
Weekly Wisdom: I just learned that I get to consume 500 more calories a day as a breastfeeding mom vs. 100-300 while pregnant. Sign me up!!! Haha....
Milestones: Wrapping up 10 weeks of our Bradley Method classes. We're really glad we took them and feel so well prepared to approach this process having learned what to expect and how to cope with all the possible scenarios that a birth has to offer.
Current Projects: We painted the nursery this weekend (I'm standing in it in the picture above) and picked up the dressers at the store. We should be ready to move the furniture in and start the real fun stuff in the next week when we have time! Yeah!!!

Help for Haiti

For those of you that check this blog regularly, I wanted to share a link to charity:water's website. Our good friend Becky Straw is the Water Projects Director for charity:water and has personally traveled to Haiti to oversee the clean water projects there (see the website for a special message by Becky herself). With the recent earthquake in Haiti, charity:water's work there will only become more crucial. 100% of the donations received by charity:water go directly into projects to make fresh drinking water accessible for the millions around the world that must do without. The work they do is so incredible!

As many of you may remember, my class last year spearheaded a Water for Schools fundraiser at our elementary school to benefit charity:water. That experience made me an even bigger supporter for the cause. We know that times are tough for everyone in this economy, but we hope that if you can, you will consider charity:water if you are hoping to find a way to help the people of Haiti.

www.charitywater.org

30 weeks down, 10 to go!

This weekend, we had a great visit with some of our college friends. Jeff and Brandi came up to stay with us so that we could all attend a baby shower in honor of our other friends, Mike and Erin! The boys celebrated the shower by visiting a nearby drinking establishment while the ladies enjoyed the usual shower activities. :-) It was especially fun to get to see Erin and Mike as they are due the day after us in March! It was fun to visit and relate about how our pregnancies have been going and Joel took some great pictures of the future friends and their mommies out by the pool.
We also celebrated a VERY special occasion with Jeff and Bran while they were in town. On Friday, Brandi received her PhD!!! We are so very proud of her and it was really exciting to get to be with her to celebrate all of her hard work! :-)
As for the regular updates, scroll on down for the latest stats. I've come to the conclusion that pregnancy sucks for the most part, but nobody tells you that part until it's too late. Of course, there are plenty of people who will disagree with me, but I think they might be a bit delusional. :-) JK... Granted, I will readily do it all over again someday, God willing, because I know every ache and discomfort will be beyond worth it - but people....do you KNOW how long ten months is??? *sigh* Good thing this kid will be a total angel and sleep through the night right away. I'm going to be exhausted by the time they arrive. Wait, what do you mean that isn't how it works? ;-)

How far along? 30 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: about 30 pounds give or take. Eh...whatever.
Maternity clothes? Nope. I'm totally back in my size 6 clothes! Riiiiiight.....
Stretch marks? Still negative. Thank you, genetics.
Sleep: Comes and goes. Some nights I sleep like a rock, others I feel like I slept ON a rock. :-/
Best moment this week: The crib arrived this week! It's still in the box, but it's here! Yeah! (Thanks Dad & Pam!)
Movement: Constantly. We've graduated into the stronger jabbing and 'stretching' phase, where Baby Corcoran likes to push out in all directions. At the same time.
Food cravings: Still no real cravings. I guess I bypassed that symptom, too?
Gender: Well, at Erin's shower this weekend, the popular belief was that it's a girl! See, isn't this fun... 40 weeks of guessing! :-)
Labor Signs: Hello Braxton Hicks...I think. I didn't think I was having any, but just recently I started noticing times where my whole abdomen hardens up for a minute or so. If a friend hadn't described hers the same way, I don't even know if I'd have noticed them. They almost feel like a crunch or a sit-up - definitely not comfortable, but not painful either. Other than that - no labor signs thankfully!
Belly Button in or out? Still rockin my 'flattie'.
What I miss: Sitting comfortably. Those days are long gone.
What I am looking forward to: HA! Not being pregnant anymore! :-) Have you noticed a theme with this post?
Weekly Wisdom: The baby won't care where he or she sleeps, nor will they care if their nursery is set up in advance. (Thanks for the reminder Mom! I know it, but it's hard to keep it in perspective!)
Milestones: None that I can think of this week, but that's okay, too!

Current Projects: Decluttering the house is our plan of action right now. We are planning to take advantage of donation pick-ups, e-waste pick-ups, and might even get a dumpster. We both tend to keep stuff we don't need to keep and we'd really like to get back to basics!