Getting Closer...

Happy Last Day of July, everyone!
Can you believe that this month is over and that it's basically AUGUST!?
Normally by this time, I would be stressing about the beginning of the new school year and I certainly would have already spent HOURS in my classroom preparing things for the newest group of sixth graders...
With the school year only a few weeks away, my mind isn't geared towards notebooks, pencils and 6th grade novels - instead, my mind has been overtaken by tiny pink outfits, large packs of Pampers, and bottles for feeding a tiny little girl!

So - as this summer quickly passes me by, and all of my 'teacher friends' get ready to start a new year, I am doing everything possible to pass the time of the summer in hopes that this baby will be born very soon!
The nursery is ready, Brooke's closet is full, we have enough diapers and wipes to last at least the first few weeks - all we need is this little baby to be born!
Zig and I talk every day about how excited we are and how we just want her to be here...

He reminded me a few nights ago about a conversation we had before I got pregnant...
A few weeks before we got our positive test results, I was feeling very discouraged. I wouldn't allow myself to have any more hope in our quest to become parents. I was extremely frustrated with the previous 4 months of disappointment, but I asked Zig to remind me of this IF/WHEN we did become pregnant. I asked him, "Do NOT let me complain about ANYTHING through pregnancy - we would only have things to be thankful for, so remind me of that every time I complain about being fat, sore, tired, or IN LABOR!"
Needless to say, Zig HAD to remind me of our conversation because I was, of course, complaining! I'm exhausted. I hurt in spots I didn't know existed. Every time Brooke moves it feels like she is going to come through my skin! Not pleasant.
However, I know that I'll miss these days and will be willing to give anything just to remember what it felt like to carry her in my stomach. Someday...but not this moment.

So...because of my stress, I decided to share my thoughts with Dr. Grill at today's appointment.
The appointment started out with the regular weight check - I didn't even ask what my gain was, because frankly, I don't want to know. This was followed by a blood pressure and urine check - both looked good. The results from the 3 hour sugar test a few weeks ago came back normal, but since the first test was high, I have to have one more round of tests done. I'll probably take care of it tomorrow morning - all I have to do is go in to have blood drawn 2 hours after a meal. Not so bad.
The nurse continued in the check up by listening for Brooke's heart rate which was very high! All Georgette said was "Wow, she's excited! What did you feed her this morning, sugar?" She reassured me that everything was fine - her heart rate was in the 160's vs her normal 150s.

When Dr. Grill came in, we were still listening to her heart rate. When he attempted to measure my belly to make sure we were right on track with 33 weeks, he had trouble distinguishing between my pelvic bone and Brooke's head! More proof that this little girl is extremely low!
I asked Dr. Grill if this COULD mean that she would come sooner than her due date. He told me that although she probably wouldn't come early, it may make labor much easier and make it so that I won't have to push very long because she is already so far down in the birth canal! Cool!

This conversation led to me joking with Dr. Grill...
"So, Dr., September is such a long time from now..."
"We don't really need to wait until September...August works well for me!"
He laughed and told me that 33 weeks was too early to check me to see if there was any change in my cervix, but at the next appointment in 2 weeks, he might check me. He said that as soon as my body starts to show signs of preparation for labor, "there are things we can do."

I'll try not to get my hopes up about not having to be pregnant MUCH longer, but at least I planted the seed about being ready whenever he is - as long as Brooke is healthy! Maybe we'll only have to go to 36 weeks or so...WOW, would that be great!!

So, I see him again on August 14 - just in time for him to tell me that everything is OK before I head off to Meg's for the weekend. I'll be in Milton from August 16-18 with my GORGEOUS MAN while Meg and Jason are at a wedding OUT OF STATE! Meg is already freaked about leaving him over night for the very first time, and I can only imagine how many times she is going to call us to make sure he's alright! We're going to have a blast together, me and my man... I just hope that Brooke doesn't decide to make her appearance that weekend! Oh dear...

And so, the waiting game continues, but we're getting closer and closer to actually seeing Brooke and having her here with us...whether we wait until her due date, or convince Dr. Grill to get this party started a little sooner! As long as the end result is a beautiful baby girl, we'll be happy!