It's been a few weeks since I've written about the pregnancy directly, since we've had so many other things going on. And it turns out that, as eventful as Weeks 33-35 were, Weeks 36-38 have been almost completely uneventful. I neglected "get 35/36/37 week picture" on my to do lists this month, but I DID manage to get pictures at 38 weeks. I think these will be my last belly shots, because frankly I am quite over belly shots and very ready for baby shots.
It has been a rather strange climate around here because in addition to "the baby could come at any time" thing that is always going on during pregnancy, there have been 2 instances now where the doctor told me that she would likely induce me, but instead they passed us by and I am still very pregnant. For about a month we were all thinking, "just make it to 37 weeks and the dr will induce." But when 37 weeks arrived, there hadn't been any dips in the heart rate all week, so there was no real reason to induce, other than a mom's impatience, which isn't high on the doctor's priority list.
On Wednesday at my 38 week visit, the doctor told me to come in Thursday night for my non-stress test. If there were any dips, she would admit me and induce me then. So Thursday I finished up all of the (quasi urgent) "do before baby arrives" items on my to-do list, had a nap and a shower, put all of those "add at the last minute" items into my hospital bag and headed to the hospital with the happy possibility that baby might be leaving in the car seat instead of my belly. But there were no dips, and a bit later we were all on our way home
One of my friends and I have been saying that once I reach the "safe" point (37 weeks) that I'll be climbing stairs, running all around, and doing whatever I can to try to get this baby out, but that hasn't really been the case. Reaching 37 and 38 weeks also comes with that irrational fatigue, where I want to tell my body, "You slept in and have only been awake for a few hours, you couldn't possibly need a nap this bad!" But then I remind myself that 2 people are using my energy, and my food, and my body, so I need to just give in.
Last weekend one of our friends went into labor and had her sweet little girl just over 5 weeks early. That day as she texted me updates about her progress I went into crazy nesting mode. I had Chris and Jayce come upstairs to help clean out and re-arrange Jayce's closet, shift some things into the nursery and re-organize in there a bit, wash/fold/hang the baby clothes we had received at our shower, and got everything ready in case our baby decided to come that day as well. But the only thing that this accomplished for me, (besides getting organized) was ensuring that I felt completely miserable for the next 2 days. I couldn't get enough sleep, and my back and sciatic nerve hurt so badly that I thought I might be having back labor. It turns out that I can't over-exert myself into labor, so I'm taking it easier instead. Instead of trying to figure out how I can finish up nursery projects from the couch, I'm trying to spend my couch time actually resting or snuggling with Jayce.
Now it looks like I'll be induced next week, at 39 weeks. The day that I am officially 39 weeks is also our wedding anniversary, so we might not elect to induce her that day, but definitely by the end of the week.
So it looks like we might have one more weekend together as a family of 3. I think we'll all hang out, rest up, and enjoy the old normal before it switches over to our new normal.
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