Life these days

Well I can tell you, it is flying by.  Only two more weeks of my summer nanny job.  Only 6 more weeks until Bambino joins us!  I can hardly wait.  I didn't realize it was possible to still have the baby arm ache and baby fever when the reality that your very own baby was coming so soon. But I have it.  Every time I peek into his little cozy corner outside our room.  Every time I fold up a little sleeper or tiny pair of socks.  I can hardly believe this is happening and that I will be a mother to my own baby.  One who no one else knows yet.  One who I know the best of all... by his hiccup patterns reverberating deep in my belly, his jabs and rolls as he rearranges in his tight little nest, by his little tap-tap response when I push on his feet.   It truly is amazing.

Someone recently asked me if I was tired of being pregnant.  And the answer is no.  But allow me to qualify that statement.  I am tired of not being able to function as I normally could.  Simple things have now become complex tasks or I have given up all together.  My brain simply cannot remember things that should be the easiest to recall.  Yes, I have had moments where my husband reminds me twice not to forget the gift for the party, and not five minutes later, I walk right past it by the door and don't realize I forgot it until I arrive at my destination.   Yes, I got all the things ready to bring the dog with me one day, and then as I was leaving, walked outside and tied her up to her cable, told her to be good and drove away.  Yes, I get up every few hours in the night to go to the bathroom.  Yes, I have to roll out of bed, squat to retrieve dropped things, have Ben help me put on shoes and underwear, do gymnastics to shave my legs (or just go prickly).  And Yes, I lumber about like an ox, fall into bed like a beached whale, flale my arms to get up like an upside down turtle and often forget that my belly extends too far and get caught between things I used to be able to slip through.

 But this process...this mind-blowing, life changing, intricate, ever-changing, mysterious process...I am not yet tired of.

On to 34-week (almost 8 months) stats:
-Bambino is getting close to 5 lbs, measuring a little bigger than my Estimated Due Date
-He is head down and will hopefully stay that way
-This means most of his kicking and jabbing is done up by my ribs
-He gets hiccups about 2-3 times a day
-He is most active when I am resting, and especially when I lay down to go to sleep at night and just wake up in the morning.
-I am sleeping pretty good, but sitting is getting more and more tricky, as I need pretty good back support.  You should see me in church, I have my foot stand, a cushion for my back, my water bottle and a blanket because it is SO COLD in our sanctuary.
-We have been practicing relaxation and breathing techniques...Ben is taking the coaching seriously...it's so cute, and gives me supreme confidence that he will be an excellent birthing partner!
-His little cozy corner is shaping up quite nicely
-I have been grateful for lack of swollen feet, heartburn and some other unpleasant things that often come with pregnancy.  My biggest "complaints" are general weariness, some back discomfort after sitting too long in bad positions, inability to eat very much at one time, and those pesky Braxton-Hicks contractions that tighten up my belly and make things generally uncomfortable.


I shall get some pictures posted as soon as I can...they are currently downloading, and there are a lot to sort through!

In the mean time, I am going to go grocery shopping.  Because it is my day off, I am feeling motivated, and I have learned that if I am feeling motivated, to jump at the opportunity, because it might be a while until it returns...

One fabulous weekend while my brother was here, my cousin Justin flew out and we met up with Randy (who is Justin's cousin and also lives in MN now), and we went up to a friends lake house for a day or two of boating and lounging! 

Thanks again, Justin for the hookup ;)

We took Sierra...and she hung around Randy a lot, because he gave her the most attention. 

She was being so crazy though.  Everytime someone would jump in the water, she got all concerned and would pace and whine and would have jumped in too, so we had to tie her with a tow line.  And she would fervently watch the skiier/wakeboarder until they were back in the boat.  

Seriously though...she couldn't just relax.  It was cute though, I think she felt the need to rescue them. 

Keeping an eye on the double skiers

Gorgeous sunset

Randy slalom skiing while holding his dropped ski under his arm.  

After being on the boat, Justin serenaded us with some amazing trumpet echoing out over the lake! 

This is what Sierra would have done the whole time if we let her!  

Overall, it was such a fun few days...perfect summer weekend! 

Baby bump doin' its thing!  I think I was early 7 months here. 

Celebrating Tanya's birthday on a dinner boat cruise on the St. Croix.  

I love my dear friends!

Our riverboat.  Don't know what is going on in the botttom of the picture...

One of the reasons I love them...they know how to have a good time...even with pre-lit sparklers!

One of my 4 showers was hosted by some ladies from church.  It was so tastefully done, delicious food, perfect outdoor weather...

A snapshot from someone else's perspective.  

One of the gifts from my in-laws was the cutest pair of Nike shoes that match a pair that Ben has.  TOO adorable.  I can hardly handle it.  =)

Fischer and Violet, the kids I nanny for the summer!  Enjoying Minnehaha Falls!

Went with Joe and Rose to a Pentatonix/Kelly Clarkson concert.  Interesting combination, but it was fun.  Not to mention we got hooked up with the most amazing tickets/seats because Kelly's keyboardist and Musical Director is an old friend of mine.  

PTX doing their thing.  They were wonderful.  It was fun to watch them put on a show and to hear their amazingness live! 

Although we agreed that it would have been better in a smaller venue where people weren't so loud =)

Oh yeah, got to meet this pretty lady.  Who is also expecting a baby too!  She is sweet.  And meeting celebrities isn't as crazy as one might think.  She is super down to earth and sweet.  could definitely see us being friends ;) 

  

Her singing with Jason (my friend) playing in the background 

Cute wall hanging my super talented cousin Bethany made for Bambino's cozy corner.  

My very hard-working husband using his bubble level to make sure he hangs things straight.  Love him. 

So our baby corner is kind of hard to explain, but this picture kind of shows what we are dealing with.  Our technical front door is non-functional (although it is a super awesome door).  We have a separate entrance.  Anyway, this little nook was the former entryway in some other lifetime.   It is basically an extension off of our bedroom, as our doorway is just to the right of where I'm standing to take the picture.  The actual door to this whole area is behind where I'm standing and leads to the living room.  I'll try to get more pictures someday.   Basically it is a strange set-up, but it works.  And we have a blackout curtain that can section off the baby nook from the rest of our room.  This was the only space that worked, as we wanted to keep our guest room a guest room.  Turns out, it is super functional, adorable and has easy access from our room.  

Amazing the kinds of shelving and storage out there that lends itself well to small spaces.  

My talented friend, Crystal, took some maternity shots for us.  I loved how they turned out! 

Sierra was so cute.  This picture has become a favorite of many who have seen it!

This mess used to be my fish oil capsule bottle.  Before the dog got curious and broke her super long spell of being really good while I'm gone.  She chewed the bottle and popped the gels on my entryway rugs...and as much as we tried to clean it and air it, the distinct fishy odor remained.  So we had to toss the rugs and start over (they weren't nice enough to pursue more expensive and lengthy means of cleaning).  

*sigh*

No more vitamins on the counter.  Thankfully my prenatals are in a glass jar...or else I would have been out a fair amount of money too...

My dear friends (previously mentioned on the riverboat dinner cruise), threw me a sweet baby shower too.  I didn't get many pictures, but it was children-book themed.  All the food matched a book:  Deviled eggs made with green herbs and proscuitto (Green Eggs and Ham),  Fruit skewers with green grapes and topped with a strawberry (Very Hungry Caterpillar), Bowl of colored goldfish crackers (One Fish, Two Fish)...and others.  It was so cute and fun!  

In all, it has been a full month or so.  I'm caught between living in the moment and savoring all the good things...and living in anticipation for this baby's arrival and the next piece of the adventure.  Overall, I am feeling incredibly blessed, content and grateful for what life is, who God is, and for each step along the way! 

au revoir.