38 week doctor’s appt

Any dudes reading this who would rather not have detailed information about my hoo-ha… stop reading now!

Had my 38 week appointment today!  Baby is doing well, as am I.  No special health concerns.  She’s still head down and in the right position for a regular birth (good girl)!!

My OB did do an internal and said my cervix is fully ripened, about 50% effaced (thinned out) and a little more than a fingertip dilated.  She said it might be a little more dilated than that, but she didn’t want to “root around in there too much.” Those are her words, not mine!   She said that she would be able to strip the membranes but preferred not to do that today, to avoid potentially sending me into labor in the middle of our second blizzard of the week.  I was half tempted to say, just do it!  I want this baby out!  But I’d rather not deal with a huge snowfall and the safety of ourselves and our families while trying to get to the hospital.  Just not worth the risk.  Plus, my mom and my sister have planned a baby “sprinkle” this weekend and I would hate to go into labor and miss it!

So the good news… we have some progress!  The bad news… it really means nothing in the grand scheme of things.  I could walk around for three more weeks (please, God, no) without anything happening.  We just have to wait and see when this little diva decides to make her grand entrance!

A letter to my daughter

Dear baby girl,

We are in the home stretch now (special emphasis on the streeeeetch, because you sure are getting big in there)!  Your due date is rapidly approaching… just about two weeks away! I can’t describe how excited we are to meet you.  When I was pregnant with your big brother, I was getting really nervous about labor and delivery.  Now I know that it is a pretty amazing experience; something that (dare I say it?) I am actually looking forward to.  And thanks to our wonderful experience raising your brother, we know we have so many beautiful things to look forward to once you arrive.

We still don’t know what your name will be, but we have narrowed down our choices to a select few that we love.  We are excited to see you and pick the perfect name once we get a good look at your sweet little face.  I keep wondering if you will look just like your brother.  When I imagine you as a newborn, I sort of picture what he looked like, but of course I know that you could look completely different.  It’s like waiting to open a present that you are so impatient to rip into!  I’m the kind of person who would probably take a peek at that gift if she had a chance, so the anticipation of seeing you and seeing who you look like is torture!

I think I am still wrapping my head around the concept that you will be our DAUGHTER.  I always wanted to have a daughter, but I never knew if I’d be blessed with the opportunity.  To be honest, I had become very comfortable with the possibility that I might be mommy to a pack of crazy boys.  So when I was told that you were a girl I was just shocked.  And I must say, thrilled.  Your daddy is just as excited as I am… maybe even more! He’s always wanted a daughter and you are a dream come true for him.  Here’s a hint… if you want to be spoiled, just ask Daddy for whatever you want.  I can already tell you that he won’t be able to refuse any opportunity to make you smile.

I am looking forward to having a wonderful, close relationship with you, similar to the relationship I have with my own mom.  Lots of people joke about the “bad” parts of the mother-daughter relationship, but I have never experienced that, mostly thanks to my mom  and how she handles our relationship with unconditional love and support.  I promise that I will always keep those lessons in mind and be a loving, supportive mom… not an overbearing or critical one.  I hope you always feel close to me and know that I will be here for you with love, not judgment.

Of course I am loving the idea of doing girly stuff with you, but I want you to know that I will love you for who you are.  Even if it turns out that we have no interests in common! I hope to teach you many lessons in life that help you grow into a happy, confident girl.  One who is kind and polite but not afraid to speak up for what she wants or needs.  One who appreciates that being a female, growing up to be a woman, is a great blessing and sometimes a challenge to do so gracefully.  We have so many opportunities as women, so many paths that we may choose in life, that sometimes it is stressful to just make those decisions and be comfortable with them.  I want you to choose your path and have the life you want, without too many regrets along the way.  I want you to feel that almost anything is possible if you work hard enough for it.  I want you to know that looking beautiful isn’t as important as being a good person and feeling like you have a beautiful, kind soul.  Most of all, I want you to simply be happy.  Of course, these are lessons that I won’t have to teach you right away.  Hopefully we will be blessed with many years and many opportunities to help you grow into a happy, kind, friendly person.  I promise to try and model that behavior to the best of my ability.

As I write this, you are squirming around in my belly and I know that all too soon, I will miss having that feeling.  The good news is that I will be able to hold you in my arms and welcome you into the world.  Your father and I are so anxious to meet you, to name you, to love on you and welcome you into our family.  The same goes for your big brother, who just tonight kissed my belly and told me “Aiden loves his baby sisser.”  We all love you, and we have yet to meet you.  That unconditional, awe inspiring love is what truly defines family, and we’ve been waiting for you to help us feel complete.

See you soon, sweet girl.  You’re almost here.  I can’t wait!

Love,

Mama

A letter to my son

Dear Aiden,

You have been asking me lately, “Baby sisser get out of your belly soon?” I think you are more than ready for her to arrive, and these many months of talking about a baby (with no tangible results as of yet) have left you a little antsy to just MEET THE BABY, ALREADY!  Like, come on, Mom!

As much as I am looking forward to meeting your baby sister, I can’t help but feel a little wistful, a little sad, about all the changes that are soon to come.  When I was pregnant with you, the only thing I worried about was how I’d take care of a newborn and how badly my sleep would be interrupted.  This time around, I’m not really concerned about those things.  The only thing I worry about is you.

For nearly the past three years, you’ve had the undivided attention of your daddy and me.  You are the center of our world, confident in our love for you, and I think that’s a big reason why you are such a sweet and caring kid.  Because it’s my job to worry about you, lately I have worried about the impact on you when a new baby is thrown into the mix and we simply can’t make you the sole focus anymore.  I don’t want you to feel jealous, or sad, or not as important as you used to be.  One piece of luck that’s on our side is that you are such a good helper, and you seem to love babies, so I hope that you will enjoy being a part of the baby’s everyday care and that you will feel important and special in your role as “big brother.”

I know that I am probably overthinking all of this, as many parents before me have done.  That’s because I know that soon, our relationship is destined to change.  No longer will it be “just us.”  And you are so wonderful, so sweet, so loving with your words and actions, that I selfishly don’t want anything to change.  But change we must.  That’s the nature of life.  And when I’m not being all weepy and emotional about it, I know that as our relationship grows and changes, there will always be sweet new memories to be made.

You are so lucky to be getting a sibling soon.  I’m grateful that you will have someone to grow up with, to play with, and even to fight with.  Someone who can commiserate with you about how crazy your parents are, someone who will hopefully always have your back.  I know how glad I am to have a sister… I hope you feel that way too.  And believe me, I think your sister is extra lucky to have you as her big brother.

Even though I tell you all the time, I am so proud of you and the little boy you are becoming.  Your daddy and I love you more than words can express.  You make us proud every day, and we are so fortunate to be here with you as you grow and learn.  Life wouldn’t be the same without you, and soon, we are going to feel doubly fortunate to have another child.  My love for you won’t ever change… my heart will just grow to allow room for another special baby to take her place in our family.

I love you, my best boy.

xoxo,

Mommy

The Amazing Aiden

A few recent snippets of life with my best boy.

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Walking into my OB appointment this morning, I told Aiden to be very careful because there was some ice on the ground.  When we left the appointment and exited the building, he said, “Aiden hold you arm, Mommy!”  and he insisted on holding onto my forearm, not my hand.  He wanted to make sure his mommy didn’t slip and fall on the ice.  What a sweet little gentleman!

~~~~~~~

At Babies R Us a couple weeks ago:  Aiden wanted a snack, so we picked out something for him.  He looked at me and said, “Aiden pay for it!”

“Oh,” I replied.  “Great!  Then Mommy won’t have to spend her money!”

He thought for a second, and said, “Uh, Mommy.  Aiden no have money in Aiden’s pocket.  MOMMY has money in her pocket! So Mommy pay!  Do dat??”

~~~~~~~

He requested toast for breakfast one morning.  I plated it and gave it to him.  He took one bite, looked at me, and said, “WOW, Mom!  Great cookin’!”

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Aiden is usually very helpful and a good listener.  If I ask him to clean up his toys, he generally complies and is getting quite good at cleaning and organizing his stuff.  Just recently I asked him to clean up his play area and 10 minutes later, I found that he had picked up everything, put it in the correct baskets, stacked all his toys on the shelf, and organized the dishes in his play kitchen.

This week he saw me cleaning our kitchen and doing dishes, and he asked if he could clean *his* kitchen.  I dampened a sponge and watched as he wiped down his toys.  Then he proceeded to tell me that he was going to “help Mommy” and he went and wiped down all the surfaces he could reach, including the coffee table, console table, TV stand, etc.  What an awesome helper!

~~~~~~~

He spots ice cream at the grocery store.

“Oh. My. God.  ICE CREAM!!!!!!”

~~~~~~~

We are finished our shopping and head to the checkout.  I tell him we have to pay and then we’ll go home.

“Wait Mommy,” he says. “Get some-finn for baby sisser!”

I ask what we should get for her.

“A blanket for baby sisser,” he says.  “Aiden cover baby sisser, keep her warm.”

Love. that. boy.

36 weeks

Maybe I don’t need to actually come up with any words for this post.  Maybe just a picture will suffice.

36 weeks

Well. That’s a large belly, isn’t it?  And to think that I believed I was looking big back in November when I was 25 weeks along.  Even though the baby is measuring right on track, I feel like I am as big as I was at the end of my pregnancy with Aiden.  Check out these pics of me at 39 weeks with Aiden and see for yourself.  My friends and family just look at me with sympathy now, rather than exclaim over how cute I look.  And yesterday my husband might have said, “Wow, you are huge!”  That same husband may now be dead and stuffed in a freezer in the basement, but I shall admit nothing.

I think it is all best summed up by the checkout lady at the grocery store.  I shopped two days ago, and as she rang up my purchases she said, making small talk, “So you must be due any day now!  How exciting!”  To which I responded, “I actually have four weeks until my due date.”  Her response?  “Ohhhhhhhh.”

I’m definitely ready to be done with pregnancy at this point.  I’m not sleeping very well and I think I have to pee every 10 minutes.  Plus I have developed a really sexy waddle.  Oh, and I am so hungry that I could just eat non-stop (and often do). The good news is that the baby is doing just fine and we are both very healthy.  If she could just arrive before her due date at the end of February I would be thrilled!

He…

… is 2.5 years old.

… has been completely potty trained since last October.

… adores his Daddy and loves to wrestle with him.

… is extremely well-behaved and rarely gives us much trouble.

… Still takes an hour nap each afternoon.

… knows his entire alphabet, colors, and can count to 15.

… loves to read grown up books and look for his favorite letters.

… is learning how to spell words.  So far he recognizes “Aiden”, “Mommy”, and “Daddy.”

… can operate my iPhone better than many adults can.

… is a serious snuggle bug and loves to cuddle.

… likes to talk on the phone, especially to his Daddy and Gram.

… loves waving goodbye to Daddy at the window.

… requires all of our dogs to be in his bed snuggling with him at naptime.

… likes to narrate what he thinks our pets are “saying” to us.

… is a pretty good eater, and adores pasta, fruits and all vegetables.  Eating meat is still hit or miss.

… gets excited when you give him cucumbers or broccoli.

… loves his family and will squeal with delight when they arrive at our house.

… is very excited about his baby sister, and talks about her frequently.  He asks when baby “sisser” is coming out of mommy’s belly.

… adores Buzz Lightyear and Lightning McQueen.

… likes to set the table for dinner.

… “cooks” for us in his play kitchen, which remains a favorite toy.  His specialties include pizza, hot chocolate, cookies, and shishkabobs.

… has an aversion to pants and will often strip from the waist down, needing a reminder to put his pants back on!

… kisses mommy all day long and is very sweet.

… loves his playgroup friends and really enjoys seeing them a couple of times a week.

… is not a bully or aggressive child, but will stand up for himself if he is bullied.

… goes to sleep in his own bed, but seeks out Mommy and Daddy’s bed in the middle of the night.

… likes to wake up by snuggling Mommy, stroking her face, and whispering “I love you, Mommy.”

… knows how to be charming and uses it to his advantage.

… Can dress himself, including putting on his own shoes.

… has a bunch of favorite movies, including Toy Story, Cars, Up, Polar Express, Ratatouille, and Bolt.

… is truly an “easy” child and a true joy.

… is the boy who shaped us into parents, and lights up our world.

Love you, Aiden.

Wedding Recap

Since a couple of you asked to see the whole ensemble… here’s a pic of my outfit for the wedding yesterday.

I was pretty happy with how it all turned out.  I wore a Candies dress that I bought from Kohl’s a couple of years ago.  It’s nice and stretchy.  I paired that up with a ten dollar necklace from Charlotte Russe, a pair of black heels, and black hose.  I was so glad to have saved our money and avoided a pricey purchase of a maternity dress that I may never use again.

We had such a fun time at the wedding!  Eric and Marisa were adorable, Marisa was a beautiful bride, and the whole wedding party was a lot of fun to be around.  I got pretty tired toward the end of the night, especially since I wasn’t able to have a bunch of wine to keep me feeling perky.  But my dress stayed comfortable and my shoes didn’t hurt at all!  It was a really nice evening, even when all the drunkies started rubbing my belly.  HA! (I didn’t mind… it doesn’t bug me and they were all super sweet.)

We had fun!  And thanks to everyone who weighed in on my questions about what to wear, dress and accessory-wise!

Jas and me

I actually had a reason to get myself lookin’ nice yesterday, so I had to get some photographic evidence!  Jason is the best man in his best friend’s wedding this weekend, and today is the big day!  (Congratulations, Eric and Marisa!)

Last night was the rehearsal and dinner, so my mom came over to watch Aiden for us and snapped a few pics of Jason and me before we left.

Here we are, posing with baby girl (33.5 weeks along) and with our little munchkin Aiden in the background.

Figuring out what to wear for the rehearsal and for tonight’s wedding have been a little stressful.  I mean, there aren’t a ton of options for a woman who is six-ish weeks away from delivering a baby!  And call it vanity or pride or whatever, but there’s enough of my old Miss Maryland drive left in me that I feel I MUST look nice at a wedding!  No sweatpants or muu-muus for this girl, no thank you!

So I settled on this black maternity dress with a cute gold sweater for last night.  Tonight, I have a really cute red and black dress that I actually had before I got pregnant.  It’s not maternity, but it is stretchy and comfy, besides looking cute.  I got some cute accessories (shoes/shawl/chunky necklace) and I’m pleased with the results.  I’ll have to share some pics of that outfit later.  And can I just say I am SO PLEASED to have not spent money on an expensive formal maternity dress?  Cha-ching!

Have a great weekend!

Blast From the Past

You know what?  Nothing compares to clicking through hundreds, nay, THOUSANDS of your first born baybeeeeeee’s pictures and getting teary eyed over OMG look how little he was! how round his pumpkin head was!  how drooly he was!  This may have nothing (or everything) to do with the fact that I am pregnant and hormonal and just slightly sad over the fact that my BAYBEEEEE is about to become THE BIG GIANT OLDER CHILD, no longer holding the title of SOLE PRESHUS BAYBEEEEEE.

Ahem.  (Slowly gathering control of self and hormones).  Anyway, may I present to you: one of my child’s most crazy and funny photos ever.  No matter how big he gets, I will always have this picture to remind him of how little he once was.  Also, how willing we were (still are, actually!) to make a fool out of him for our own enjoyment.

32 weeks

Time is slowly ticking by, and my February 24th due date is approaching.  At least we are in the YEAR of baby girl’s birth now! I’m just hoping that the months of January and February pass quickly.  They always seem to go sooooo. slooooow. after the rush of the holidays.  I’d much prefer to keep things movin’ along!

32.5 weeks, on New Year’s Day

Baby girl doesn’t have a name yet.  Well, according to her brother she is to be called Buzz (as in Lightyear) but that might have to be her nickname.  Who knows, though… if we can’t decide we might be introducing little Buzzarina to you all in about 7 weeks.  Or maybe sooner?  I’d love to have this baby shortly before my due date, instead of going late the way I did with Aiden.  And if she times it well, she and I could potentially share a birthday!

We are almost done the finishing touches on the nursery and I can’t wait to share those pictures.  Otherwise, all is well.  I’ve gained close to 30 pounds (much less than with Aiden!), the baby’s and my vital signs are textbook pregnancy, no stretch marks, and I am feeling very well in spite of a little heartburn and occasional insomnia.  Come on, February!