{37 Weeks : Full Term}

 I am officially walking in "full term" territory. 

My long list of pregnant friends is quickly being checked off and I am now next in line. Two weeks. TWO. WEEKS. (Give or take.) I grabbed Truman's arm in the doctor's office yesterday when it hit me that there will be a baby in my arms a month from now. 

Aside from all of the expected pregnancy discomforts at 9 months I'm still feeling pretty good. I'm walking every day and drinking Raspberry Leaf tea in hopes of helping my body start the labor process. I have yet to experience a real contraction, though. I keep worrying that I'm not going to know when the real thing starts but every woman I've talked to says "trust me, you'll know!" 

The past few weeks I have been experiencing the strangest symptom. I have this strong desire to smell certain chemicals like gasoline and spray paint and I LOVE the smell of Ace Hardware. Don't worry, I'm not about to start sniffing paint, but when I catch a smell it is so satisfying...and so weird. I'm sure it's an indication of low iron or something.

Baby P went to her last show in the womb this week -- John Mark McMillan.

It was an amazing show. I haven't experienced worship like that in a long time and it made me feel so present. A band called Jude Moses opened for JMM and it didn't take long for me to get hooked. It may be nerdy, but I tend to get a little emotional when I'm experiencing really good music. I get goosebumps all over, tears in my eyes, and this overwhelming feeling of gratitude. Jude Moses did that to me. The whole show did that to me. 

Lately I've had to keep a close eye on Beans because she loves to sneak back into the nursery and cause trouble. I was cleaning the kitchen the other day and realized that Bean had been suspiciously quiet for a while. I called her name and she came running around the corner looking guilty as ever. I walked back to the nursery to find P's cute little mouse (from Grandma Joni) face down on the floor. Beans had somehow managed to jump up and snag it from the crib. That naughty little girl knows what's coming and she doesn't like it.

I got to see my sweet girl's face yesterday. Can't believe I'll be looking at those chubby cheeks soon.

{36 Weeks}

The end is finally within arm's reach and I am SO thankful...and terrified.

You would think that with a big belly and the house full of baby goods it would be easy to picture a baby in a few weeks, but I truly still can't. I'm beyond excited that I will be holding her soon, but I've been waiting so long that it seems unreal. 

-At my 35 week appointment, baby P was 5.2 lbs. We will definitely have a small gal and I'm okay with that as long as she is healthy.

-Braxton Hicks contractions have been getting more frequent (especially at night) and powerful. It feels like I get the wind knocked out of me every time so I have to really focus on my breathing. Even though they aren't very fun, it's exciting that they are bringing me one step closer to the real deal!

-Kali was over the other day and Baby P was putting on a show. She was pushing her feet out of my side while bouncing her bum back and forth. Kal could see my belly moving back and forth from across the room. Needless to say, I think my gal is ready to be out. 

-The nursery is slowly but surely coming together. I'm spending this week trying to get the majority of it done so I can just relax the last few weeks. On Saturday I will be considered "full term" and even though she most likely won't make an appearance for a while, I want to be ready. 

I ache to hold my baby girl, to massage her little feet, to snuggle her in the rocking chair when she's fussing. Life is going to drastically change for the Faeh's in a couple weeks, but I am ready for it. Now if only I felt that way about labor...

Changing Table

I had a heck of a time finding a changing table that was reasonably priced and not falling apart. Of course I wanted to find something that fit the design of the nursery, but I was to the point where I didn't even care and just wanted something to lay my babe on. Thankfully I found a dresser at an antique store in Lincoln called Cool and Collected. It was very reasonably priced and all of the drawers worked. The only problem was that it was hideous...

I found a few different blogs with tutorials on how to spray paint furniture. I had never done it before, but it seemed easier than regular painting...I was wrong. Granted, it might have been easier if I would have done it in a well ventilated garage, but I did it outside on a fairly windy day. Woops. 

The process is simple, mine just took a while since it was a large piece of furniture. 

1. Prime with Kilz Original Primer (in spray paint form)

-I was in too big of a hurry and didn't read the directions enough to realize that the Kilz creates a very grainy texture so it's best to sand after using.

2. Paint 2-3 coats of Krylon Spray Paint 

-I used Almond in a Satin finish but I really wish I would have used the Glossy finish

3. Coat with Miniwax Polycrylic protective finish (in spray paint form)

-This is supposed to protect the furniture and keep it from smelling

***Buy everything at Wal-Mart. We first went to Ace Hardware and Hobby Lobby and all of the products ended up being cheaper at Wal-Mart.

Beans had to steak out her territory on the ottoman.

Overall, I'm pleased with the outcome.

I'd like to eventually get rid of the grainy texture, if possible, so if someone has a suggestion that will work let me know. I also notice that the nursery has a faint smell of the paint so I need to figure out how to get rid of that, as well. 

Here's to checking off one more thing on my list!

J.

{34 Weeks: Big Girl Pants}

34 weeks

I have been so blessed to have a relatively comfortable pregnancy thus far. 

No morning sickness, no bloating. But week 34 decided that it was time I get a taste of the true discomforts pregnancy can bring. 

Things got real.

It started last weekend with a slight sore throat. I had only gotten 3 hours of sleep the past two nights so I wasn't surprised that sickness would creep it's way in. I did everything I could to ward off this lingering cold but it was persistent. I spent Sunday through Wednesday on the couch, completely helpless, tired but unable to sleep, and miserably pregnant. Truman was so sweet to me and would come home on his lunch breaks to bring me smoothies. I spent the week watching just about any TV show I could find on Hulu Plus and by Wednesday I was SO sick of laying around doing nothing. I started to feel a little better Thursday so Trums took me to the mall to pick up a few candles on sale...and another little outfit for baby P :) Minus the intense congestion, I felt optimistic that I was slowly regaining health. Then came 8 p.m...

I noticed this sharp pain in the lower left side of my back that felt unlike all the other pregnancy related back discomforts. The pain would come and go every couple minutes and I started to worry that it could be a sign of kidney stones (I had them 4 years ago and NEVER want them again). I figured the pain would work itself out over time since it wasn't anything near the pain I felt with my last kidney episode, but as the hours passed the pain only got stronger and started to reach my hip and arm pit. I tried every comfort measure I could think of but the pain was only increasing and causing me to be a little nauseous. I really didn't want to wake Truman because he had to be at work in the morning, but by 1 a.m. the pain was so severe that I knew we had to do something. I woke him and we called the on-call nurse for advice. She suggested we get to the ER immediately...so that we did. 

That may sound like a no-brainer to most people, but if you know me you know that I've never been to the hospital before other than the occasional uncomfortable visit to a sick family member. I wanted to avoid that option at all costs. Going to the Emergency Room seemed so serious and I started to get anxious as we made our way. Thankfully we were the only ones there and they quickly wheeled me up to a labor and delivery room (which made me really nervous because I thought this would be a quick check-up with a doctor). They asked me to put on a gown and get into bed so they could monitor the baby--I was freaking out! I was having contractions, but none that were causing labor. They gave me anti-anxiety meds to slow them down and see if it would stop the back pain, but the pain only got worse. We spent about 3.5 hours in that freezing room until they decided they didn't know what was causing the pain and we needed to be checked into the ER. Ugh.

Back down we went where we were sent to an even colder room to wait. I was in so much pain and the fact that they still weren't sure what it was made it worse. The nurse came in and started putting together an IV and my heart dropped. The IV was such a scary thing to me. I had heard so many horror stories of how painful it is and it made me feel like a real hospital patient. Though I was scared to death I hid it by cracking a few jokes and the nurse told me I had nothing to worry about. Tru held my hand, but I felt ridiculous that he did because it literally took her 10 seconds to put the needle in--it was less painful than getting blood drawn. She gave me morphine for the pain and that was wonderful. I had an ultrasound on my kidneys and bladder and then waited a good two hours for results. Thankfully they didn't find any stones or other concerns for my kidneys, but that still didn't answer the question of my pain. The doctor said to monitor my pain over the weekend and come back if it gets worse...kind of discouraging. 

We got home at 9 a.m. and passed out for the rest of the day. The pain started to come back but the last thing I wanted to do was spend another evening at the hospital so I tried a position that my mother-in-law suggested with my head on the ground and my butt in the air to relieve some pressure from below. I was really skeptical that this was sciatic nerve pain because it was so much worse than any pain I have had before...but low and behold after 10 minutes of that position the pain was gone and didn't return for a couple hours. 7 hours in the hospital and they never once questioned if it was the position of the baby. I spent the whole night with my butt in the air looking like a fool but it worked and I was able to finally get some sleep. 

I'm having lots of cramping and sore legs. Back pain comes and goes but I'm thankful I found a technique that works. I'm hoping that I don't feel this way for the next 6 weeks, but I suppose I have to be realistic. It hit me today that I only have 3 weeks until I'm full term and my to-do list is still quite long, but a healthy baby and mama is most important so I may have to give up a few things along the way. 

It was a week from hell, but I am thankful for three things:

(1) I was able to conquer my fear of the hospital so I feel a little less anxious about labor and delivery (2) My amazing husband who took care of me all week

(3) A healthy baby who continues to grow (even if it means a little pain on mama's side)

AND even if our hospital stay wasn't very helpful, I learned that a heating blanket is a MUST for the hospital bag because we froze our butts off.

 Nothing like a tiny pair of leggings to cheer you up!

 Nurse Bean monitoring my bath time. She has taken good care of her mama this week.

Hoping for a healthier and more productive week!

J.