I CAN SEE THE LIGHT!!

GOOD NEWS!!!

Well the morning started rough, because I have not woken up at 6:15 AM since June when I was teaching! But I scheduled our doctor appointment for 7:30 AM so that Matt could go with me and it wouldn't drastically effect his workday. UGH! So while all of my wonderful teacher friends are back at work today, I was right along side them hating my alarm clock this morning!

So this is the 4th week of my weekly doctor appointments. I was not hopeful that any changes have been made in our labor process, because for the past 3 weeks I have been stuck at 1 cm dilated. I got my hopes up WAY too much early on, and was very disappointed, unnecessarily might I add, when there was no progress. So this morning, I did not go in to the doctor's office with a very positive attitude.

Dr. Banks even noticed the tone in my voice when she asked, "How are we doing?!" and I said, "Oh we're good..." I have just been pretty downtrodden lately :/

BUT - for the first time in weeks, possibly months, I can see the light!!! I have never been as excited as I was this morning since we were in our fateful sonogram when we found out that we were having a girl! So here is the exciting news...

As of today, I am a whole 2 cm dilated! Woo! But that one small cm came with a huge stipulation. Dr. Banks said before she checked my cervix that if I was still at 1 cm, she would want to wait and try to let my labor happen naturally and not talk about an elective induction. But if I was at 2 cm, then we could go ahead and schedule our induction for next week. AND I WAS 2 CM! So that was a big ole' happy happy happy from me! She did try to manually loosen my cervix, which until giving birth, is the worst pain I have ever felt. Yikes. But right now, it's all in the name of getting this baby out and bringing her home so I am A-OKAY with whatever she feels is necessary. She IS the doctor after all :)

Ultimately, this means that if I don't go into labor this week, then I at least know that next week we will be in the hospital being induced, and FINALLY meeting our precious little girl! I am so elated I can hardly handle it. I can't wait to meet Parker, to see what she looks like (even though my sister says all new born babies look like potatoes), to hear her cry, to see how Matt handles being a dad, and to bring her home. I am excited for our precious fur babies to meet her, albeit a bit nervous about their large size and large levels of excitement ... I think the dogs will fair better than the cat! I am just overall EXCITED.

There is a light at the end of the tunnel! All of this waiting and waiting, and frustration, and weird pains, and discomfort, and weight gain... It will all be worth it within a matter of days. Eeeekkk!! It is a good day today in the Truitt household.

39 Week Update!

How far along? 39 weeks... I was REALLY hoping she'd follow the family trend of being 2 weeks early. But no such luck!

Total weight gain/measurements: 

Not sure. I kind of stopped paying attention at the weekly weigh-ins. At this point, I don't even care anymore! I am just so ready to be done, and I know that 6 weeks from now (or next week, or the week after...) I will be able to start working on losing everything and getting back to my pre-pregnancy body. So really now, this far along, it's not a big deal to me.

Maternity Clothes:

Leggings, yoga pants, anything stretchy and light weight. We randomly have had cool weather the past few days, so the heat hasn't been too unbearable. I am just trying to stay comfortable!

Stretch Marks:

Still the same. Still using the Palmer's. Again... At this point, it is what it is. 

Sleep:

I sleep a lot. I sleep during the day. I sleep all night. If I could sleep for 24 straight hours and wake up in labor I'd be the happiest almost mommy around right now.

Best moment this week:

Getting an unexpected baby gift in the form of the most adorable play mat that I had really wanted! It matches Parker's room perfectly, and it is adorable embroidered with owls. I love it. Getting a massage, manicure/pedicure, and seeing a movie ... Trying to cram in some last minute "outings" before I can't anymore.

Miss anything?

I miss not being pregnant.... I miss being able to shave my legs without my belly being in the way. It's not easy and it really hurts!

Movement:

I'm completely shocked that she can still move in there. How is it possible that there is any room left to move? But she does. And it hurts!

Food cravings:

Peach froyo ... yum.

Anything making you queasy or sick?

Heartburn.

Gender:
Girl

Labor signs:
Braxton Hicks. Last week's doctor appointment revealed that I am STILL (for a 3rd week in a row) only 1 cm dilated. Poor midwife could tell I was really bummed and said I was "1 cm and a wiggle"... she tried to make me feel better!

Symptoms: 

Pregnancy edema has not been my friend here towards the end. I can't walk around, even in the A/C, for more than 15 mins without feeling swollen :( My face looks puffy now, which it didn't much so before, and that makes me sad. I had my first "oh my gosh can I really do this?" panic attack last night... I have been EXHAUSTED the past week or so, sleeping a lot more than usual. 

Belly button in or out?

Completely flat. Still hasn't popped out.

Wedding rings on or off?

On, but sparingly.

Happy or moody most of the time?

Moody. Happy most of the time, but my mood swings haven't been this bad the entire 9 months of pregnancy until this past week. 

Looking forward to: 

Meeting Parker! Bringing her home. Starting our family :)

38 Week Update!

How far along? 38 weeks... the waiting game continues!

Total weight gain/measurements: 

I am still at 36 lbs of gain. Haven't gained any in the past week. That's good! I am however, carrying A LOT of water weight, as evidenced by the swelling in my feet/fingers/knees :( Hoping that subsides fairly soon after delivery!

Maternity Clothes:

Long dresses. Non restricting clothes, but things that will cover my legs because *warning: very unlady-like reason coming up*... It's insanely difficult to bend over my huge belly to shave my legs. Oh the joy!

Stretch Marks:

Things haven't changed here either. I can't tell if the Palmer's stuff is working or not... I really hope it is.

Sleep:

Sleep is worse, definitely contributing to my irritability and mood swings! Up to pee, but mostly I am just flat out uncomfortable and not able to sleep for longer than an hour or so at a time. Super cool!

Best moment this week:

Thursday was my birthday! That was definitely the best moment this week. I need things to look forward to, because the waiting game of labor and delivery is making me crazy. Matt took me to a very nice dinner, I got to have a blow out so that I didn't spend 3 hours sweating and attempting to straighten my hair, and I shockingly felt pretty at a huge 9.5 months pregnant. We had a blast... I haven't spent that much quality time with him lately; he works like a mad man. It was a great day. Despite having to have my blood drawn at the doctor with Round 2 of preeclampsia testing ;)

Miss anything?

I miss not being pregnant.... I am definitely ready to be done!

Movement:

Still moving! Her movement is all on the right side of my body, so my ribs are just about fed up with her being in there... She is merciless. 

Food cravings:

String cheese, root beer, yogurt

Anything making you queasy or sick?

Nope. I get queasy from heartburn, and then randomly just because. But not for any reason in particular. 

Gender:
Girl

Labor signs:
Very sadly, I am still only 1 cm dilated... I got way too excited last week when I found out that progress had been made, and too hopeful that it would continue that way. But no! Not that lucky. Braxton Hicks are still pretty constant, but no major signs of labor at this point.

Symptoms: 

Swelling of my limbs is out of control. My blood pressure was high on Wednesday which is why I had to do my second round of preeclampsia testing. I am now on "bed rest" until the results come back in. The nurse told me that should be Monday, and lucky me - I will be back at the doctor on Monday, as well! I spend too much time in that place.

Belly button in or out?

Completely flat. It's so weird.

Wedding rings on or off?

On, but sparingly.

Happy or moody most of the time?

Moody. It's been made worse by the lack of progress in labor... I was way too hopeful that things were continue to move along since last week, my hopes were shot down and it's not been a good contribution to my daily mood!

Looking forward to: 

Getting this baby out of my belly! I have never been more ready for such a painful experience in my life. Bring it on, please.

The Return of the Orange Jug!!

So it's only Wednesday, and we've already had quite the eventful week! Where to begin...

On Monday I was very excited because one of my dearest former students has moved back to Texas, and while her family is in transition into their new home, she came to stay with me! I love having her around. Even more so when she starts to unload my dishwasher and do chores for me without me saying a word :) What a delightful house guest! As she and I got up to leave to go pick up dinner, we walked into the garage to quite a surprise... it was flooded! After much investigation by Matt and his dad, it was determined that the water heater broke and needed to be replaced :( WHAT perfect timing. I felt awful that sweet Justice is here to stay and now we have no hot water!

Tuesday we had a useless plumber come to look at the water heater, over quote us on the price, and then let me know that he couldn't come back to fix it until Friday AM. Umm, NEXT! Fortunately, we got some of it covered by our home warranty, and Benjamin Franklin Plumbing to the rescue! They fixed the whole thing right away after a consult on Wednesday. Sweet! But cherry on top of the cake, our microwave broke on Tuesday night. Another appliance to replace. Super duper!

So, I've been monitoring the amount of swelling in my limbs during the pregnancy, more so after the first round of preeclampsia testing. After my doctor appointment earlier this afternoon, my blood pressure was high both times they took it, and I am ordered to rest and Round 2 of the 24-hour pee test! UGH... Never thought I'd be storing my pee in the refrigerator again! Back to the doctor I will go tomorrow around noon! I am starting to find the doctor's office really rather off-putting... Not that I was ever a huge fan of going to the doctor, but BAD NEWS BEARS! Not what I wanted to hear today. I am very hopeful that this is just due to the heat, because it has been 105 degrees the past few days, and not due to preeclampsia :( I will post an update whenever I find out what the deal is! Woo hoo!

RETURN OF THE PEE JUG! It really is a sequel.

How often is too often to say "it's almost time!!" ... ?

I feel like I am constantly saying "any day now!" or "it's almost time!" ALL THE TIME these days.

After my doctor appointment last week, we found out that I was already 1 cm dilated. Dr. Banks said to not get too hopeful, because I could stay 1 cm dilated for several weeks. But it's REALLY difficult to not be a tiny bit excited that the labor process had begun, and to have dreams of starting the hospital stay portion of labor & delivery (to poorly quote myself) ANY DAY NOW!....

So in the meantime, we wait. And wait. And wait. And wait. This has got to be the worst part of being pregnant. Waiting!! SO. MUCH. WAITING. I have absolutely no clue when she's going to be here, I just know that it could be sometime soon, or sometime not so soon, or really any time between now and the end of August. Argh blargh! 

What do I do to consume my time while waiting? Well, I've packed my hospital bag, we've installed our car seat, and I've finished up Parker's nursery. I clean my house practically every single day. I do as much yoga as my burgeoning belly will allow. I try every single cord in the "what do these go to cords bin" to find our camera's power cord. I repack my hospital bag. I pack Parker's hospital bag. I write blog posts. I play A LOT of Candy Crush. I am going INSANE! This is not good for anyone's sanity, namely mine.

A big ole shout out to any and every lady friend of mine, and all others everywhere in the world, who've gone through pregnancy without pulling out all of your hair. KUDOS TO YOU! It's one thing for people to tell you the last month is mega-difficult, but the expectations have been far exceeded. It's mega-difficult on speed.

I go back to the doctor again tomorrow. I am way too hopeful that I have dilated a tiny bit more, because I am READY to be done with this! All of the fun new things about being pregnant are now more of constant annoyances... That sounds awful. But I am done with the back pain, having to roll like an armadillo to get off the bed, the pregnancy waddle, and the lack of caffeine. Will I do this again? Most likely. But I will need several years between babies to forget about this final month in order to find myself wanting to be in this position again.

PARKER LOU... Let's get this show on the road!

Here are some shots of Parker's nursery! I have a few tweaks to make, but for now, this is it!

That is seriously the most comfy chair in all of the world.

My lovely Momma K made the window treatments and the bed skirt. Love it!

This is one of my favorite spaces. And will be used the most!

37 Week Update! Full term!

How far along? 37 weeks! Technically, I am now full term!

Total weight gain/measurements: 

Well since I just read recently that Kim Kardashian gained 65 lbs during her pregnancy... I can VERY gladly say I have gained no where near that much! I have gained 36 as of today. It still feels like an insanely large amount of weight to gain so quickly, but when I take all of the water weight into account from how much I've been swelling this summer, not to mention what everything inside weighs right now (including Parker!), I don't feel as bad. I know that I will lose it once she's here, and it's more important to me that she and I are both healthy than purposefully trying to not gain weight while pregnant. That's definitely not healthy!

Maternity Clothes:

Right now: whatever I can feel comfortable in! I've been wearing my linen shorts and tshirts a lot. Only wearing my flip flops anymore, because other sandals hurt my feet!

Stretch Marks:

Small ones on my hips, and some on the back of my thighs. Still going strong with a "pretty belly" and no stretch marks on my baby bump! But I am using Palmer's oil to help with the stretch marks at least twice a day. Again, battle wounds :) It's all worth it to have my sweet little princess here and healthy very soon!

Sleep:

Sleeping through the night mostly, up to pee, but falling back asleep faster than usual. I am getting some good naps in during the peak heat of the day. Trying to "stock up" on sleep because Parker could be here any day now!

Best moment this week:

Meeting with Mrs. Gonzalez (my sister, Erin, her boyfriend's mom who is a labor and delivery nurse at Baylor Dallas). She answered SO many questions for me, and made me feel much more calm about everything that has been making me nervous. She's a great advocate! Every pregnant lady needs an L&D nurse in her corner! :)

Miss anything?

At this point, I miss everything! I've been pregnant for long enough. I'm ready to meet my baby girl and celebrate with an ice cold Shiner Red Ruby!

Movement:

Her movements are now much more deliberate, since she's so big and taking up so much space! Dr. Banks estimated today that she's somewhere between 6-6.5 lbs right now! Her head is down on my bladder, and her back is facing the left, so all of the movement is focused on my right side. I feel like that's not fair! But I definitely don't want to feel her flip over right now. That would hurt much more than the baby taekwando she's performing in there!

Food cravings:

Root beer, peach yogurt, strawberries, chicken

Anything making you queasy or sick?

I'm getting really sensitive to smells. Matt left some bags of grass in the garage from cutting the lawn, and I thought I was going to puke, the smell was so awful. Weird!

Gender:
still a girl! Although, Matt's latest joke is "what if she comes out and she's a boy?" Oh geez.

Labor signs:
Braxton Hicks are out of control, and I am officially 1 cm dilated! So my body is getting ready to get this current tenant out! 

Symptoms: 

Braxton hicks, heartburn, swelling in my knees and feet/ankles. The swelling in my fingers has really not been too bad lately. But my legs have been really uncomfortably swollen. 

Belly button in or out?

It's flat. Hasn't popped out, don't think it will either!

Wedding rings on or off?

They're still on! I must say, I am surprised myself. But they are still going on and off pretty fast!

Happy or moody most of the time?

Anxious. Not moody... Just anxious.

Looking forward to: 

PARKER!!!!! Any day now!! Let's get this party started!