37 weeks!

How Far Along? 37w3d...yea! I made it and now have no worries if I deliver (which I'd like to within the next week or two)
Total Weight Gained/Loss? Gulp--over 40 lbs! I gained over 4-5 lbs in one week--I think it's due to the swelling which seemed to pop up overnight. My feet and hands are huge!
Maternity Clothes: Yup--except for my lounge/sweats. Some of the tops don't even fit anymore (too short!)
Sleep: Overall ok--I get up every hr or two each night, but it doesn't seem to bother me. I try to take naps, too (if I can).
Best Moment of the Week: Getting the car seats in--it doesn't take much, does it?? ha ha!
Movement: Still quite a bit of movement, but more rolling/moving, not as much little jabs. However, every once and awhile (s)he really belts me one--ouch!
Food Craving: Still fruit and light food (what I call summery food), like jello, fruit, yogurt, cereal, eggs, etc). I also drink milk and juice a lot!!!
Food aversions: Nothing that I can really think of, but still not really into heavy food like pasta and such (which I normally love at this time of year).
Morning sickness: Occasionally get a bit nauseous, but it passes quickly and nothing comes of it.
Labor Signs: None yet and now I'm starting to want them! When I went in for my stress test last week, they said they think I had a contraction, but I didn't even know it.
Belly Button: Out like a sore thumb!
Stretch Marks: I'm not sure--it looks like I have a reverse linea nigra (above the bb, not below!) I can't see below my bb, so I don't know if I have any there.
Wedding rings: Haven't worn them since mid-Dec, which is good conisdering how swollen my fingers are now.
Swelling: Oh yes, esp. when I've been on my feet a bit. My toes even go numb occasionally due to the massive swelling. Also, I need to stretch my fingers often or they get stiff. Putting on socks/shoes--don't even get me started. I had to go out and buy a new pair of work shoes in WIDE since my feet are so swollen (I'm normally a narrow foot!).
Exercise: Yeah right, like I have the energy. Just cleaning/organizing the nursery gets me winded!
What I miss: Being able to put on and wear my shoes easily and being able to do things around the house w/o asking for help.
What I love: Still love being pregnant. And, now I can say that I only have 2.5 weeks left! Most are really surprised since they say I look only 7 mths. I think it's because the baby is all out front and nothing on the sides. I love the attention!
What I'm looking forward to: Working from home starting next week.
Weekly Wisdom: I'm trying to learn the mantra to let things go and somethings are not worth it!
Milestones: Hitting 37 weeks! Also, got the car seats in and nursery is basically ready. The only things to tie up are finishing packing the L&D bags (both me and J).
Size: Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long.


Update on the nursery and lists: All is in put together in the nursery, but still working on organizing. Got most of the clothes and such washed, the sheets and crib skirt are on. Got the changing pad attached and put on the cover. The chair should be scotchguarded, but need J to do that. I got the aquarium and mobile put on the crib. Now, I'm trying to organize the closet since it's been kinda my junk closet full of my extra clothes and wedding stuff. I'll try to post pics soon.
I also got more nursing/lounge clothes/pjs, so I think I'm good on that front. Like I said, now just finishing packing the L&D bags and create a last-minute list (car seat, ID, etc).
Work is hectic, but it's all from me trying to get everything ready for when I'm gone. The hardest is not knowing exactly when!
J's been fantastic making dinner and creating meals to freeze for the next few months--I can't rave enough how great he's been with everything and me, esp. with his crazy workload to boot!

35 weeks

How Far Along? 35w4d
Total Weight Gained/Loss? I've gained about 35 lbs. I'm seeing it more in my face, but I still have a waist--the baby is all out front. Looking at me from the front isn't as noticeable, but from the side, ...hello baby! I'm starting to also notice more swelling in my feet and hands--kind of uncomfortable.
Maternity Clothes: Yup--except for my lounge/sweats. For my maternity clothes, my pants still keep falling down, I don't know if they're too small or what, but it's annoying to keep pulling up my pants. And, ironically enough, I can barely zip up my new maternity coat--nice, eh?
Sleep: Still varies. Some nights great, some I'm up for 20-60 mn in the middle of the night. I get up about 2-3x to go to the bathroom and that's getting more of a chore just to roll out of bed. I feel like a rolly-polly doll. When I was off around the holidays, I was able to nap once/day--so lovely and nice!
Best Moment of the Week: Not having to work (vacation time) around the holidays. So nice to be able to rest and nap and get stuff done for the baby (visit daycares, buy more stuff, get the nursery ready, put together baby items (swing, crib, etc).
Movement: Oh yeah--no more light kicking. Now, I get the occasional jabs, but more often, I feel (s)he move around since (s)he is getting bigger and less room in there, so I sure feel it! The u/s showed us that the head was down, but I have a permanent lump on my right side and sometimes it pokes out way to abnormally (it's the feet).
Food Craving: Fruit and light food (what I call summery food), like fruit, yogurt, cereal, eggs, etc). I also drink milk and juice a lot!!!
Food aversions: Nothing that I can really think of, but sometimes random smells get to me--like jerky. Also, not really in the mood for heavy food.
Morning sickness: Nope (crossing fingers)
Labor Signs: No. Not even any braxton hicks. (good!)
Belly Button: It's officially out! Really noticed it NY day when I was with friends and had a tighter t-shirt on.
Stretch Marks: I'm not sure--it looks like I have a reverse linea nigra (above the bb, not below!) I can't see below my bb, so I don't know if I have any there.
Wedding rings: Haven't worn them since my last update. I took them off right before my shower and haven't even wanted to try to put them on. With the way my fingers feel like sausages, I know there's no way they'll fit. I was going to try to buy some fakes, but haven't gotten around to it and not sure if it's worth it now with so little time left.
Swelling: Oh yes--really started noticing this in the past two weeks or so. My shoes are really tight and like I said, my fingers feel like sausages (esp in the middle of the night/first thing int the morning.)
Exercise: I did yoga one time over the holidays, but have no energy to do anything. Just doing stuff around the house and work and all gets me tired and winded, so I don't want to push it.
What I miss: Wearing my rings, being able to bend over normally, getting out of the bed and off the couch without help and/or w/o rolling off, and drinking diet soda.
What I love: Besides being pregnant, the fact that others finally notice that I'm pregnant and ask me about it (when I'm due, do we know what we're having, etc.) I love the attention. =) Also I love that Joel makes me rest and take naps. I love planning and dreaming of LO coming soon and wondering how different our lives will be.
What I'm looking forward to: Getting everything ready for LO, but everyone says you're never ready!
Weekly Wisdom: I'm trying to milk this pregnancy as much as I can since it's going so fast!!!
Milestones: I'm due one month from today!
I had my local shower a few weeks ago and had such a good time with everyone. The hostesses did such a great job and P's house looked amazing. Everyone was so generous! Ironically, I didn't get many clothes, so I'm trying to find the best deals and the best sizes for LO--who knows how big (s)he'll be???
Size: Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

Update on the birth class: It went well and there were a lot of couples due when we are. I hope that I don't have to share a recovery room! I'm not as scared of L&D, just more apprehensive. I'll just leave it in God's hands.

As for my checklist, I was able to visit 3 more daycare facilities and we just need to decide which one we want to use, I found our pediatrician (she spoke at our birth class and is in the same practice that two good friends go to and recommend), we got the nursery painted and it looks great!, we got our crib and chair put together (I'll post pics soon), bought our mattress, cleaned/ironed the bedskirt, and got a lot of stuff for post birth (diapers, wipes, stuff for me, etc). Now, I just need to finish cleaning out the nursery and put all items away, buy more baby clothes, buy more nursing pjs/outfits, do more wash, clean out the nursery closet, and pack our (mine and baby's) bags for the birth, and figure out the breast pump! (Plus, tie everything up at work.)
Uff da--comparing this to my last post, I guess I have gotten a lot done this past 3 weeks--yea me!