35 Weeks! 4 weeks and 6 days.

Can I just share a story with you for a minute?

Wednesday of last week I called Kyle on my way home. He is now getting out of work early everyday to study for his big test coming up. And he does study, but he is also finding other things to do with his time. As I'm talking to him, he very excitedly tells me that he has been doing some rearranging in the kitchen. Um, what? Both of us are nesting now, this could get interesting. I laughed a little, and he went on to say that he has new plans for all of his beer glasses. (Yes, all of them. That was the thing he was in charge of registering for when we got married, so we have quite a collection). He told me it'd be a surprise and I'd have to see when I got home just what he did. You can imagine my excitement. So I get home, and for starters I noticed the "decorative" beer glasses he registered for were no longer displayed as decoration, but he had taken them down, washed, and dried them. Let me break the story here to tell you that I also noticed how he had taken the other dirty dishes out of the sink and placed them on the counter in order to make room and only clean his beer glasses. All I could do was laugh. I kind of thought that was it, so I went upstairs to see him. And that's where I learned there were more "surprises" and I'd have to look around the cabinets. Low and behold, he had moved our bowls, mugs, and wine glasses, and his beer glass collection now has two cabinets all to itself. And because I missed this in looking around, he made sure to tell me that he lined up his glasses in order of importance, putting the ones he uses the most in the front. And there you have it. We are now both nesting, and apparently his nesting is as much for Leah as mine is. After all, she would not be comfortable in her new home with her dad's beer glasses in disarray. God, I love him.

And that's how we will start 35 weeks. We are both overly anxious to meet our baby and doing whatever is necessary to make a perfect home for her. My countdowns will all say "4 weeks and 6 days" tomorrow. I realize that is practically five weeks, but to see a four just blows my mind.

So with only four weeks and six days left, what is the little bug up to? Well, would you believe me if I told you she has finally stopped growing?! Well, she has. Or might have. No one really knows, but most babies max out somewhere around 20-21 inches, and that's where she is this week. She is, however, still packing on the pounds. Five and a half of them to be exact. So she might not be getting longer, but she is definitely plumping up. Here's to hoping for fat, kissable cheeks! Although, I will also gladly kiss them if they are skinny. She's still head down. I can tell because that's where her hiccups are, and I can watch her little leggies move just under my ribs or out to my sides. Her moving is now less kicking and more rippling. So alien. I'm an expert at finding her back. And she loves to roll from one side to the other. I can see a big flat lump taking up my entire midsection on one side, then suddenly watch it roll to the other side. We all have to flip sides when we sleep, right? Why should she be the exception. She also does crazy things to my belly button. Depending on how and where she is laying it can turn inside out, or be completely sunk in. Pregnancy is not natural, I'm convinced of that. One night last week she gave Kyle a taste of what I go through every night. I had just gotten up to go to the bathroom (for the third time), and he was just coming to bed (at 3am). He likes his "me time" on the weekends. So we were both laying there, but trying to go to sleep. He rolls over and puts his hand on my belly. Now, I knew Leah was having herself a play day in there, but he had no idea. I wasn't about to tell him, I wanted him to have a nice surprise. And about 10 seconds later, she rolled right into the palm of his hand. He was surprised, and I simply said, "yeh, she's awake." He laughed and told me he didn't think she'd be moving. Ha. Welcome to my world. He felt her for a while, then rolled back over and went to sleep. Must have been nice. I continued to lie there awake until she calmed down. There is no sleeping when there's a baby jumping inside of you.

And me? Oh, I'm hangin' in there. Everything from the neck down hurts, but that's normal, right? And my nausea is back. What's up with that? It's not nearly what it was in the beginning, but just enough to let me know I don't feel 100%.  This belly (or should I say baby) of mine is quite heavy. Saturday, I actually made Kyle stand up with me and pull me up by the armpits. There is just no more room! And I desperately needed some length... and relief. It felt amazing. I don't know if it's me or Leah, but one of us is getting pretty insistent with things. If I have to go to the bathroom, there better be a bathroom 10 feet in front of me or I might not make it. If I'm hungry I better find food in less than a minute or I'm sick. If I get tired, making it up the stairs to bed is almost impossible. The second something hits, I better have a solution... quick. I also can make it through about one chore, or one trip to a store without having to collapse on the couch. But, we only have 4 weeks and 6 days left, and I continue to remind myself that: Iwillnotwhine, Iwillnotwhine, Iwillnotwhine. Kyle is getting better at answering his phone. He still needs some work, but he's not as bad as he was. And he's still got 'til Wednesday to get perfect, so I won't really worry until then. Starting in June, it's game on.

Also, last Friday Kyle's work held a surprise baby shower for us! Obviously, I knew about it, but he was completely clueless. He even walked in with a notepad because he thought he was going to a meeting. It was so fun! And Leah is not short on blankets, I can tell you that. She got 5 of them that day! One of them I've already packed in her hospital bag. It is purple, and hand knitted, so it has holes in it. She will be allowed to sleep with it (the only one she will sleep with), and I won't have to worry if she is suffocating or not. I have actually been looking for one, but they don't just sell handmade stuff at Target. It also came with a matching hat (that is also in her bag) and booties, that she will have to grow into. We are fortunate to work at such great companies that we each were surprised with a baby shower. Or should I say Leah is lucky?

Can I tell you the one thing I hate about being 35 weeks pregnant? Well, in the beginning I got bombarded with emails (cause I signed up for everything) about the signs of miscarriage. Those were fun. Then in the middle I got emails on the signs of pre-term labor. Now, I am getting fun emails on how much everything is going to hurt. And "not to worry about it." You know, I wasn't worried about it until I started getting 20 emails a day telling me how damaged I'll be. I didn't even think of it. Now I'm petrified. Thanks. But the thrill of seeing her still completely overshadows my (new) fears, so I will try my hardest to not let them cloud my mind.

I spent Memorial Day weekend boiling bottles, washing all of her new blankets, dusting her room, figuring out how to put her mirror in the car, and starting the book, "Happiest Baby on the Block." I also spent it hoping this would be our last holiday with her in my belly, and that she would be here to spend the Fourth of July with us! We are officially in the time when we can say, "this time in a month..." and I don't even know what to do with all the excitement that I've got because of that. In one week I will start seeing the "3 weeks and 6 days" on all of my countdowns, I will start my weekly doctors appointments, and will just be a week away from my doctor starting to tell me if she is on her way out or not!! Things are getting serious. See you then!