32 weeks

Survival Tip #19: If you are discouraged, find people whom you identify with.

We are seven months into this pregnancy... only two more to go! It feels like time is passing so fast, and so slow at the same time. Baby is doing great. She is measuring within expectations (which means ahead but not beyond the margin of error for a fundal measurement). I now feel her up in my ribs, down really low, and have had a few Braxton Hicks contractions. She moves a ton and is so strong. The other day she kicked me and I saw my whole belly reverb from side-to-side. Crazy! Sometimes I feel like she is pushing so hard it hurts. Other times I feel the gentle push of a little hand/foot/elbow and she'll leave it there long enough so I can touch the little spot. It's almost like holding her. I am so excited to meet her and see what she looks like! Will she have my nose, or Vander's eyebrows ;)? I started throwing up more again, so the ARNP has me taking my Zofran every 8 hours regardless of how I'm feeling. I'm also now taking Zantac for heartburn and an iron supplement. All this makes me feel like maybe I wasn't made for pregnancy and can be discouraging. I'm so thankful for how supportive Vander is through all of this though; I don't know how I'd do it without him... although I suppose I wouldn't be in this state without him either :). In addition to Vander, several women have come up to me and told me they were also really sick with their pregnancies. Hearing them helps me to not pity myself. I always thought I would be the type of girl who is at her best when she is pregnant. That has clearly not been true. Yet every time I meet a woman who had a hard pregnancy she tells me it was totally worth it. Most of these women have multiple children so I believe them. :)

   I realized about a week ago that I have been so focused on the idea that Baby will probably be late (the average gestation period is 40 weeks, 3 days), that it never even crossed my mind she could come early! I'm suddenly freaking out that we are not going to be ready for this baby because I'm counting on 9ish more weeks before she comes, when really she could come whenever God wants! In some ways I know this is ridiculous, but there are still a few things to take care of. We have done our hospital tour but still need to do our birth class. I've been reading everything I can get my hands on that might help me understand how to care for our daughter. I watched "Pregnant in America" and "The Business of Being Born". We have a crib now (a hand-me-down from Vander's co-worker/mentor), thank goodness! Some of my sweet friends are throwing a baby shower for me in September and after that we will pick up anything else we need. I need to figure out childcare for her while I'm in my internship (8 hours a week, but don't even get me started; I hate the thought of leaving her!). I know that really, I don't need to worry, I just need to slow down my racing mind, and enjoy where I am now.

With that all said, here are a few monthly progress pictures to catch up: