If I Can't Keep Up With This Now, How Will I Be Able to Once He's Here?!?!?!

I've been so scatter-brained lately that I can't even begin to think about updating this blog... which is such a bad omen for days to come!

We've obviously had a few appointments and ultrasounds since I posted last, but not really a lot of new pictures (at least not what amounts to the usual barrage) and not too many updates... until recently.

At 33 weeks, he was measuring 4 pounds, 8 ounces and had HAIR!!

My cervix is still shortening, but there's not much they can really do about it now (especially since at this point, that's what they're supposed to be doing in preparation for birth).  As of my appointment at the OB on Wednesday (34 weeks), I'm dilated to "a fingertip" - which is around 1cm.  I've started having contractions consistently 20 minutes apart, but I'm having a hard time figuring out if this is the real deal.  They're not debilitating - just really uncomfortable, and they don't extend into my back - but my stomach gets rock hard!  So I guess we're just playing the waiting game now - wonder when little mister's going to make his grand debut!?!?!

Speaking of new arrivals: one of my really dear friends, Meagan, and her hubby, Aaron, welcomed their son Ethan Gray into the world last night! 6 lbs 8 oz 18 3/4" long.  They're all doing well, though Ethan's in NICU right now for observation (he was born at 38 weeks, but she was in labor with him FOREVER and had to have a c-section at the end, once they hit about 48 hours post-induction due to high blood pressure) - pictures to come!

oh how time flies... except when it doesn't...

Two years ago today, Nate and I went on our first date - skipped out of HoneyBaked around this time, enjoyed a little Olive Garden and Starbucks, and started our official future together.  Seems like just yesterday!

On a side note, we could have anywhere from 22-37 days left until Hudson is here... can we please hurry it on up?

ok, this post is out of order date-wise :-/ (are you surprised i'm playing catch-up?)

Ugh! I didn't post pictures from the baby shower! How will I choose which ones need to be documented here (versus Facebook, where all ~200 are proudly displayed)? Let's see if I can pick just a couple... 

It was an amazing time and I'm so blessed to have the support system that I do - and glad that everyone wanted to come out and celebrate our little miracle!

I ended up taking a week off of work to see if the "rest" would combat the shortening cervix, constant pain in my lower back and hips, etc.  Doesn't seem to have done anything for the cervix, but it was nice to be home in my pjs where I could slowly start nesting.

32 weeks was pretty uneventful for us - though I have to mention how mad I was at the hospital! It was the first ultrasound that Nate had been on this side of the country for in a while, and it was a growth ultrasound - meaning that we got to spend longer looking at more detailed aspects of our baby... or we would've if our tech hadn't been so apathetic.  She moved the wand around so quickly, I didn't even get a clear shot of anything except his heart.  He wasn't wanting to breathe for her (though he had a couple gasps and hiccups, which she - and only she - doesn't count), so all we watched was his diaphram for the entire appointment.  Not a single picture!! :(  But, he is measuring at 4 pounds, 8 ounces and looks like he's going to be a big/healthy/chunky little boy.

So it's holiday time again... :-/

Halloween: we're still having a hard time getting the girls to understand that there comes a point when you're too big to go trick-or-treating... Last year, we all went out for dinner and saw a scary movie, had the discussion that they were too big/old, and I thought that was the end of it.  But this year, they started in again with the "I want to be [insert random, hard to create on short notice, character here]".  Luckily, Nate was home early that night (I guess Halloween is an observed holiday with DriveTime and they closed at 6:30 to allow their people to induce sugar comas with their families) so we ordered pizza and a scary movie at home... and the girls still had to dress up for our 3 trick-or-treat-ers (Alyssa was a geisha and Natalie was Darth Maul).

Thanksgiving is right around the corner!  While it's one of those holidays that has, unfortunately, been so discombobulated over the years, I LOVE THANKSGIVING!  And I'm going to admit that I love it for the social reasons: food, food, and more food!  My hubby's family is Native American in descent, so it's got a slightly more... hostile?... feeling in our home, but this year, I'm focusing on the fact that I'm a million months pregnant and can eat everything in sight rather than the PC ramifications of waltzing into a country and booting all the natives - sorry, I'll be back to my normal self next year.  And speaking of Thanksgiving brings to mind turkey (though we always have ham instead), and I'd like to note that this turkey timer is just about ready to pop!

I've started thinking about our Christmas cards/baby announcements and have a few designs saved as favorites - just waiting on specifics of little mister and a photo op.  This year isn't going to be too exciting (the girls will be with their mom, we'll be sleep deprived from a newborn, etc), but I'm so thrilled that Hudson will be here in time for this part of the year!

What A Memorable Weekend!

So just  quick post to talk about all the momumental newness this weekend brought:

The girls each had a sleepover on Friday - now, I'm sure you're thinking "ok, so what did you do that was so memorable?", but that was the special moment. Since they've lived in Greensboro (and possibly before, discounting family and friends of the family, of course), the girls have never spent the night away from home. So they both got to enjoy a night away from home with a bunch of their girlfriends, and I got to think how nutso both of these mamas are with multiple teenagers + other siblings in their homes and appreciate the peace and quiet of a date night with my hubby!

I've been nesting... in very small increments. I took all the tags off the baby clothes one day. I washed one size another day, and another size after that. It's been about an hour of "work" at a time - mostly because I'm in nesting denial... until now. This weekend, I finally started panicking about the fact that Hudson could be here any time now and I didn't have the carseat washed and installed; I didn't have the bedding washed; I didn't have the crib or the pack-n-play set up - nothing! So we set to work and knocked out almost all of the nusery in one day.  All that's left is to paint the letters on the wall, stock up on a few more essentials, and figure out a plan for our living room that allows me an easy nursing place (since it's not going to happen in the nursery - no space for a glider/rocker/comfy chair in there!  But, if I do say so myself, it looks amazing - and I'm starting to feel a little more "ready"!