Week 36

So, big news on the baby front ... I am now officially full term!!! It feels really good (and a little crazy) to know that the baby could safely arrive at any time now. Getting to the end of this week was really important to me because I wanted to make it to full term AND make it to my final baby shower on Sunday.

This is the fourth for those keeping score at home. It was hosted by my fabulous aunts Wendy and Lana and they did a really beautiful job. This shower was mainly for my friends and family in Paducah and it meant so much to me to have everyone there. We had cake and I opened a ton of presents. I got lots of great gear and some adorable little outfits.

My grandmother claims I will wear this baby out changing its clothes, because I've already bought so many clothes on my own. I would just like to say in my defense that when we found out the baby was a boy, there were only a couple of sad little onesies left after I sorted out the girl stuff. I just felt so bad for my little man that I might have slightly overreacted. But whatever so my baby will be the best dressed baby boy in Paducah...there are worse fates.

Anyway, the shower wasn't the only party this weekend. My family kept it going all weekend because we also had a surprise housewarming party for my cousin Michael. He just bought his first house and after the party, it will be filled with lots of kitchen supplies and more laundry detergent then he might ever use.

The other positive development this week was we found a pediatrician! We had an interview with another doctor who had come highly recommended by many of my friends and he was just as wonderful as they had described. He's opposed to the overuse of antibiotics, he is very supportive of us using an alternative vaccine schedule, and he seems generally passionate about the care of children. My favorite moment was when he said, "I try to practice 21st century medicine. I'm not going to do something just because it's been done for the past 15 years." I almost hugged him. So, yeah! - our baby has a doctor.

Our home improvements are also moving along nicely and we finished painting the two front rooms. Since my aunt was in town for the shower, we took a few more runs through Surplus City and TJ Maxx and picked out drapes and accesssories for several of our rooms. Everything is really coming together and it's so exciting.

The only blip this week was that my mother was diagnosed with BOTH strands of the flu (no it's not swine flu!). The best part is she got the flu vaccine, which justifies me further in never getting said vaccine because it's freaking pointless. She feels pretty bad but we've quarantined her in her bedroom and no one else in the house has gotten sick, so I think we're ok.

Two Downs:
1. My hips and lower back are really starting to hurt, especially at night. If I don't do my yoga, it's difficult to sleep through the night.
2. I'm starting to get frustrated with my limited range of motion. It sucks feeling like a turtle on its back half the time.

Two Ups:
1. I'm starting to get really excited about the baby actually being here and in my arms. I'm even excited about labor and delivery (yeah, yeah it hurts - I know!).
2. Other than the hip and back pain, I still feel really great - no swelling, no heartburn, no nothing.