[Thinking Aloud]: Week 37

Just a busy week getting ready for Christmas!

I mad most of our Christmas gifts this year, and really enjoyed it! I made a set of coasters for both sets of parents, Donny and Jaimie, and Kelly (didn't really think Jason would be interested....although, now I wish I had anyway). I made a "Family" sign/picture or note holder for the in-laws, a twine wrapped "G" for my parents (which I think I forget to get a picture of :/ ) and a sign for my dads chicken coop that he's making! Everything turned out really well, Sean helped me wrap everything (which turned out to be really fun actually, AND he did a really good job!) and we got all of it sent on time! WOOT! Well, except for dad's sign, because I totally messed it up the first time, and wanted to fix it before I sent it. I also got our Christmas cards finished and sent out this week. sort of cutting it close, but still...ON TIME!! <---this is one of my goals for 2012. Well, as far as sending cards and gifts go....I'm STILL working on Kayla's scrapbook (hoped to have it finished by Christmas) and Megan's birthday gift, as well as Christmas gifts for my AF wife friends. Anyway.....

Had my 36 week appointment right around the 37 week mark...Talked with Tom, one of the midwives, a lot about labor and delivery; how I hope to not be induced, or have any pain medication-especially an epidural- unless I absolutely feel I need it during labor, when to call them or L&D when contractions start up, who will be there with me, and who will be delivering my baby, planning to breast-feed, etc.... I really like Tom. He's been a midwife for a long time, his wife is a lactation consultant, and he just makes you feel really comfortable. I got my strep-B test finally, and hopefully it will come back negative so we won't need any antibiotics....but I felt like this lady was drawing my blood forever! She is also at 36 weeks, and informed me that there are a lot of 36-39 week pregnancy's at Palmetto right now...greaaaaaaat. As if the L&D wasn't small enough, it looks like my hopes of being the only one there is definitely not happening lol

Feeling about the same this week...just big and bigger, ALL over. I've gained 36 pounds so far, and still have a few weeks to go, so I'm thinking this baby is pretty big, or I just really need to stop eating so many cookies! They just keep coming and they're SO good!! I really wonder how big she will be!?

Update from babycenter.com:
Your baby is now considered "full term," even though your due date is three weeks away. If you go into labor now, his lungs will likely be mature enough to fully adjust to life outside the womb. (Some babies need a bit more time, though. So if you're planning to have a repeat c-section, for example, your practitioner will schedule it for no earlier than 39 weeks unless there's a medical reason to intervene earlier.)
Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

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Well, I probably should have broken this post up a little bit, but I haven't really been taking a lot of pics this week, so I'll just move on to Christmas too....

Christmas Eve, I prepared egg casserole and my mom's cinnamon roll recipe, to be baked the next morning, then Sean and I ordered take out from Red Lobster and then watched a few movies. It was so quiet and relaxing (and an easy, clean dinner with no mess or dishes!). We're really cherishing these last few weeks of time just for us I think :) Christmas morning we opened stockings, had a delicious breakfast, took our time opening gifts, skyped with both families, visited with Kristin and then made burgers and Mac-n-cheese for dinner! Again, it was so quiet and relaxing...I wouldn't have asked for anything different! We spent the rest of the evening just talking and enjoying our time together. A huge difference from last year on Christmas or how next year will be....last year we skyped for a few minutes, but the connection was horrible and Sean just got half of the day off (in Kuwait) to enjoy some pizza and KFC, and next year we will have a new member of our family...so I am INCREDIBLY grateful and feel very blessed to have had this special time with just the two of us (and the dogs :) this year.