Week 36!

The weeks are flying by and it seems as though I have been busier over the last weeks of summer than I was during the whole summer as a whole! I've apparently squeezed an entire summer into about 3 weeks time - and I'm trying to take care of a million things before Brooke makes her arrival!

After last week's doctor's appointment, I started preparing to go away for the weekend - MY MAN was ALL MINE! Meg and Jason were out of state at a wedding and were leaving Joshua overnight for the first time! Joshua was absolutely fantastic and we had such a blast spending 3 days together! His Mommy did much better than I thought she would and she only got sad when Joshua said "Miss you Mommy" on the phone...oops, that was my fault! I told him to say it!

He ate well, he slept well, and we played and played for the whole weekend! He was especially excited when Uncle Zig came to spend Saturday night with us! Uncle Zig and Joshua played all evening - they laughed, they chased each other around the house, and Uncle Zig even helped with tubby time and bed time! On Sunday morning, Zig was even the one to get him out of bed! Joshua was so excited that Uncle Zig was still there - you should have seen the smile on his face!It was kind of like playing 'house' for the night - and Zig and I agree that we're going to make a pretty good team when it comes to parenting!

Nana came to help me on Sunday and stayed over into Monday morning until Meg and Jason got home! I was very thankful for her back up as I was starting to slow down a little bit by Sunday evening. Joshua could tire the most energetic of people - and he definitely did his best work with his VERY pregnant Aunt Libby!

I love that he is comfortable with me and that his parents trusted me to keep him all weekend on my own! He is my most favorite man in the entire world and I can't wait for him and Brooke to be great friends and cousins over the years! There are so many more wonderful things to come for our family!

In the world of pregnancy...

We saw Dr. Grill again yesterday for our 36 week check up. Even though we had been looking forward to our first exam and some news about progress, they told us that they won't be 'checking' me until 38 weeks. The way that the nurse explained it was that the exam is very uncomfortable, so if everything seems to be normal and there is no sign of contractions or pains, they hold the exam until the very end. Bummer...

So the appointment was more of the same - gain a few pounds, pee in a cup, check the BP, listen to the heartbeat (150 this week), and measure the belly - which grew since Thursday!

Since we're on the weekly schedule, we go back again on Tuesday the 26th... I've been having some weird pains and some nasty nighttime cramps lately, so maybe we'll share this at next week's appointment and get an exam out of it! Who knows... We're definitely on the home stretch and the end is very much in sight! Thank the Lord!

We are still waiting on the arrival of our niece - Scub and Stephanie have been told that it could be anytime that this baby will arrive - so we've been keeping phones nearby and staying updated as best as we can. We do know that if the baby doesn't come by Tuesday the 26th (Stephanie's due date AND birthday), they are going to induce her... We can't wait to meet this new baby girl!

School starts ONE WEEK from today and I'm starting to panic more each minute! I've met several times with my teacher who is taking over for me as well as the other Reading teacher in 6th grade - they have everything under control, but it seems so strange that I am not in the building every day preparing for my newest group of students!

I was there yesterday and was able to see my class lists, so I got a peek at some new names and faces that I'll be getting to know very soon...

We have an appointment to go into Labor and Delivery on Wednesday the 27th to get registered and attend the "New Beginnings" class - all in preparation for our stay at the hospital. I'm looking forward to taking care of that and will feel much better about Brooke being born once I know that the hospital is ready for us!

Baby Center is telling me that I should have my hospital bags packed by the end of this week, so I might take care of that tomorrow... It's so strange - although I can NOT wait to meet this little girl, I know that my life will be completely different as soon as she is born!

This is the scariest, yet most exciting time of my life...and I'm loving every minute!