37 Weeks

    I am still managing to hang in there. I am actually feeling pretty great right now. I baby must have shifted positions because exercising hasn't been a problem for about a week and a half now. I used to have the hardest time even walking a mile. But I have been able to go 2.5+ miles the past few days and still have energy for weights and some floor work. Maybe its the surge of energy that you get right before labor. Or maybe its not :) Either way, I am grateful to have more energy and motivation to get myself out and moving and get things done around the house.
      My principal finally replaced me at work. I don't know how I feel about it quite yet. I am excited to be staying at home, but I have made so many amazing friends working at Three Peaks that I know when it truly comes down to it, it is going to be really hard to leave them all behind. But hey, adventure is out there, and its time to start my next one.
    I have continued to work on some of the hypnobirthing relaxation techniques and I have to say it is really quite interesting. On my walks the past few weeks, I get Braxton Hicks contractions like crazy (especially when I am trying to speed walk), which tends to make my walk a little more uncomfortable than it needs to be. But this week I started using my relaxation techniques and putting myself into a relaxed state, even while walking, and I do have to say it works. I could tell I was having contractions, but they didn't phase me. I was able to enjoy my walk, and just be at peace in my mind, and relaxed all over. I know that I will need to continue practicing them if I want to be relaxed during labor, but I feel like I have had a few good practice rounds.
     Baby is doing good. He is just chillin. I have sat and "talked" with him, and I know he isn't ready to come yet. I tried to convince him to come a little early but I know he isn't ready. I can feel that he is excited to join our family, but he just needs more time to prepare for the journey to join us. He is responding to me and to music more these past few weeks than he has before. I was listening to the radio a few days ago on my way to work and Pharrel Williams song "Happy" came on, and at the part where it says "clap along if you feel like a room without a roof" my little man totally started to kick and wiggle to the beat. It was the cutest thing. He must have been having a good morning.
    My family came down to take their foreign exchange student to visit Zion and Bryce Canyon. I took a day off of work so that I could spend some time with them. It was certainly quite different going on lots of walks and sight seeing with a big ole belly. But I enjoyed being able to spend some time with my family. My mom and I worked on baby boy's kilt for his blessing day. Its pretty much all finished except for the pin that will hold the whole thing together. Now he just needs a sporran and a shirt and he will be ready to go!
   

Yes I look like a schlum but I needed to take a picture this week before I forgot. I have been lazy and not as photo happy the past week. He is definitely getting bigger. But that means he is coming soon!

36 weeks!

     I actually managed to get my next post up before a month has passed by! I am really going to try and write down how I feel over these next 4-5 weeks so that I can remember for myself what the last leg of pregnancy was like. I know I still have at least a month before little boy is born, but I totally feel like he could come sooner than that and I wouldn't have a problem with it.
     I thought I was getting used to Paul coming to visit then leaving, but my hormones must be reaching an all time high as pregnancy progresses because I swear it gets harder every time he leaves. I guess it is a good sign that I don't like him to leave; just means that I love him like crazy.
     My belly is starting to get unusually heavy. I feel like I might tip over if someone accidentally pushed me forwards! But I do have to say one thing that has been kind of exciting is that thus far I have managed to evade getting tiger stripes (stretch marks). :) I am sure that one of these days I will sneeze and they will pop out all over my body. But for now, I am grateful that my body hasn't changed too too much all at once.
     I haven't been craving a whole lot this past month. I was on a carrot kick for a while. I had to eat lots of carrots with this delicious dip that my best friend Lisa Walters introduced to me. But lately it has just been all things dairy. Milk, yogurt, cheese, and ice cream. I have tried to be really good about it, but at the same time, if I can't stop thinking about the ice cream in the freezer no matter what I do, I don't hesitate to have a few scoops of it.
     I am still pleased to announce that I can do my 10 pushups in a row with out stopping. My stomach muscles clump together and turn my stomach into a concave hump when I do pushups so I can't get as close to the ground as I would like without hitting the baby. But I can still do those pushups even though they are semi modified now.
      On of the hardest things for me during this pregnancy is not being able to be as active as I once was, or as I would like to be. I was running around 2.5 to 3 miles up until around 32 weeks. But then I did something to my muscle. I don't know what. Some people thing it is sciatic pain, and some think it really could be a muscle issue. But anyhow, I can't run anymore let alone walk a lot. If I even just walk 2 to 3 miles I get really sore in my leg and have to take 4 to 6 days to recover from it. I am still doing some crossfit stuff, but at the same time, it all depends on how my leg is feeling. I am swimming laps twice weekly which has been good, but I am now at the point that my friends old stretched out race suit doesn't fit my belly very well so unless I find an alternative swimming suit I might have to be done with that here in a few weeks. I did attempt to ride my bike the other day, and I must say it was actually quite enjoyable. I surely could only bike 5 miles before I was completely wasted, but it was refreshing being able to get my heart rate up a little bit without having to worry about my leg hurting. I did look like a goof I am sure because I had to ride my bike a little differently than a person without a big belly would. But it was still enjoyable nonetheless.
    I am starting to feel like I will get all my baby-to-do list done before little boy comes. The list still feels a mile long, but I try to get at least one thing off the list now every week. Every day is hard. Especially with the longer projects. But slowing things are getting done.
      Joys of this past week are just being able to spend some time bonding with the baby. I have been looking into hypnobirthing a little bit. I haven't taken a class. I am just going to read the book and see what I think, but I found a relaxation MP3 from a hypnobirthing coach and have started to teach myself to meditate. Its actually harder than I thought it would be. I think I am a very alert person for the most part, so to let myself sink into a deep relaxation is kind of a challenge. But I do feel like each day that I practice I am able to relax a little bit more. So I guess it is a good thing I started practicing early. Maybe I will actually be able to relax during labor and what not.
    Paul was able to be here for General Conference this past weekend and it was so nice. I was grateful to be able to cuddle with him and listen to the words of the prophet. I am grateful for all the wonderful messages we received and all the guidance and counsel that I was able to take from their talks and use for my own life.
     Guess we will see how things go over the next few weeks!

36 weeks exactly. Feeling pretty good but a little large :)

I am feeling like I could pop at any time, but unfortunately I still have 4 weeks to go! Can I get any bigger??? Geez I sure hope not!

35 weeks, and the count down begins???

     Today is the day I have completed 35 weeks of pregnancy! Wahoo!! I want to start counting down, but at the same time, I don't know if I do. I don't want to get too excited about things that could be happening the next few weeks especially if our little man decides he wants to come late. I have really been thinking about the birthing process a lot the past few weeks and am excited for what is to come.
     Paul and I are going to have a home birth and I couldn't be more excited. I am starting to get annoyed of all the people saying, "Why would you ever do that?? Thats crazy. Don't you know that its not safe. What if something happens?" Gosh. I have done my research and I feel great about our decision. I don't feel like I need a medical intervention to have a baby. If something happens, yes, I will go to the hospital. But I don't need a hospital to birth a baby. My midwives gave me a book to read and it talks about the process of giving birth, and is basically a birthing class course all summed up in a book. I just finished it the other day and am feeling a little more ready for this boy to join our family. I think the biggest thing that I need to work through right now is the fears and ill educations that I have associated with birthing and being in labor. Everyone makes it out to be this horrible, painful, never to be forgotten experience. When I truly believe it can be an empowering, humbling and spiritual one. It all depends on if I let my fears take over what I know and believe to be true.
     My goal for the next few weeks is to start clearing my mind and let go of all of the worries that people keep trying to push on me about how my birthing experience should go. I understand that it will be painful, but its nothing that I should be afraid of or fight. I know that I am capable of anything I set my mind to, so birthing a baby naturally, at home, is just one of many things I can and will do in my lifetime.
     I have finally started getting things done for our little baby boy. I completed a swing cover for our baby swing. The one that was on the swing was super babyish and just not my style. This one is brighter and happier and cute. I finished sewing all my cloth diapers and soaker pads too! I can't wait until I can start using them. Now I just need to finish his quilt for his bed and finish a baby blanket I started making with all the scraps from his diapers. I am feeling productive, and it has been great to get so many things done the past few weeks. I did write up a list of things that I want to deep clean before baby comes. I figure I will get all the sewing projects done first, then knock out the cleaning projects one at a time until I have them all done.
     No rememberable cravings these past few weeks that I can think of. My back hasn't been hurting as bad so that has been way nice. I am still a little sore occasionally, but my back doesn't ache all day and all night like it did before. My feet are deciding to swell and un-swell depending on the day. Some days they don't go back down from the previous days activities, but some days all my shoes seem to fit just like they did before.
      On a happy note, I can still do 10 pushups in a row and feel good about it. Weighted squats are getting a little trickier just because the extra weight does put some pressure on my back. But I am finding different ways to hold the weights that don't put so much strain on my back so that is good. I have started to do a lot of isolation work outs with my abdominals. I am trying to keep them strong and ready to go for when I am in labor. I hope that if I have a good strong core I will be able to have more strength and stamina for helping our baby boy join us.
    Paul has been able to visit every weekend for the past 3 weeks. That has been such a huge blessing for me. I don't realize how much I miss him and rely on him until he comes to see me. I enjoy every minute he is there, (even if all we are doing is watching march madness while I work on a sewing project and Paul does finances). I think the days I am really counting down until are the days that I get to move up and be with my husband again.
    I know that I am going to miss Cedar with all my heart. I have made lots of friends and great connections here that I will miss. Especially all my friends I have made working at Three Peaks, and serving in my callings in the church. But I am way excited for the adventures that are to come as we start a new life together up in Salt Lake.

33 weeks.  Still fitting into a shirt that isn't a maternity shirt. And sadly it looks better on me when I am pregnant then when I am not! Don't mind the clothes in the back ground. Laundry is a miracle if I can get it done more than once every 2 weeks!

34 weeks. I am definitely getting bigger every week. But I am thrilled that my hips still fit into pre-pregnancy pants. They for sure aren't massively comfortable, but they add variety to my wardrobe. 

34 weeks again. But I figure a picture is a picture and it will be good to be able to remember what I looked like. I know they are all selfies. But when Paul isn't home to take a picture its too hard to get anyone else to do it. Besides, most of these pictures are pictures I send to Paul so he can see how baby is doing even though he isn't here to see me every day. 

35 Weeks! Pee breaks all the time! I was doing great at only needing to pee once in the middle of the night, but I have had a couple nights where it has been twice. I am still feeling good about that though. The two timer breaks are only every so often so thats good!

The finished project of the baby swing. The other one had cutesey animals on it and it was just so babyish. But this one is a little brighter and more fun to look at. Plus it is soft and I can take the cover off and wash it when it gets dirty.