39 Weeks!

Aaaahhhhhh!!  I can't believe I'm finally 39 weeks!  Wander if this will be my last belly shot!?  I sure do hope so :)  No real signs of labor yet but I did clean like a crazy person this weekend.  We are as ready as we will ever be for baby boy to arrive!  I've really enjoyed this pregnancy and I can honestly say that I will miss it just being baby boy and me.  But...it is time to share him with the rest of the world!  I cannot wait to see him!  Hard to believe I've been dreaming about him for so long and now we are so close to meeting him!  I have started to dilate and thin but that can mean we are very close or still a week away!  Time will tell :)  Until then I'll enjoy these last few days I have with this little joy in my belly.  I already love him so much!

38 Weeks & Getting Anxious!

Like I've said this whole pregnancy...I can't believe how fast this has gone!  We have been so lucky with this little guy.  He has already been so good to his Mama.  I have loved being pregnant with him and am going to miss it, but I cannot wait to get my hands on him :)  It's surreal to think that soon we will meet our baby.  

We've had another awesome week.  We continued celebrating my birthday with friends on Thursday night.  It was great to enjoy one of the last few times we'll be out without Baby Elie.  We have the best friends and I think they are all almost just as excited as we are for him to arrive! 

29th birthday celebration with Helen and Aileen :)

 We also toured our area daycare's and decided where we will be sending him when I go back to work.  It was a relief to get that accomplished.  We were really impressed with the one we chose, they have great security and the people there seemed wonderful.  I also am close to several people that have only good things to say about it.

Last Friday's doctor's appointment was an exciting one!  I had lost a pound which made me happy and blood pressure is still great.  I have started having some cramping in my lower back and across the bottom of my stomach, I can't say that they are contractions but I guess I'm also not sure they aren't.  Hard to tell when you don't know what to expect!  I let them know this and per my request, they did check me!  Good news is I am dilated a fingertip, 40% effaced, and he is at a -2 station, meaning he is very low.  The doctor could feel his head!  Wow, that made it seem real, real fast!  Ha ha :)  Also measuring 40 weeks.  Unfortunately Chris had to work so he missed out on all the excitement but my Mom went with me.  It was her first time coming with me to the doctor so I think she enjoyed it and was excited to hear his heartbeat.  The doctor said he didn't think anything would happen over the weekend but that maybe I wouldn't make my next appointment!  Well...so far, we are still here!  My next appointment is on Friday again (in 2 days) so it's looking like I'll make that one.  No signs of labor here.  Still just occasional cramping, but at least that is a good sign and hopefully means my body is preparing!

So, all in all things are still good.  I'm trying to stay busy so I'm not constantly thinking about when/ where/ how will baby decide to come.  Chris's parent's got here over the weekend.  His Dad stayed a couple of nights with us but has since gone back to NY.  His Mom is with us and will be until Baby is here!  We are all so excited for him to get here...but we are obviously working on his time, ha ha!  We celebrated Chris's Mom's birthday Sunday night by cooking out and then later with homemade vanilla ice cream :)  Yummo- Chris hit the jackpot when he got that for me for our anniversary.  We have been putting it to work!  Aside from that not much else is going on.  Trying to relax...going to get a pedicure with Aileen tonight after work which I am so looking forward to!  After tonight I'll definitely be ready, ha ha!  Have to make sure my toes are pretty for his arrival!

38 weeks

Classy bathroom shot!  Ha ha :)

     

My laugh for the day!

It is hotter than Hades outside.  That is all.

37 Weeks and Full Term! Hooray, We Made It!

37 weeks+, on my 29th birthday!

I am so happy to have reached this milestone!  Baby is now 37 weeks and can safely be born at any time!  Come out come out wherever you are :)  It has already been a great week.  I had a super productive weekend and finished all of our freezer meals.  And now, the downstairs freezer looks like this:

It makes me so happy to have that checked off the to do list.  This week we are going to look at daycare's to decide where Baby Elie will go when I go back to work and then I think our chores are over until Baby Boy arrives!  I have already packed his hospital bag.  I'll post on that later.  I can't believe we are 2 1/2 weeks away from the due date!  I have started gathering things that I know I want to take and have them on the mantle in our bedroom.  All I will have to do is grab our last minute toiletries and a coming home outfit and we'll be ready to roll.  

Yesterday was my 29th birthday :)  I took the day off of work and ended up spending the morning power cleaning the kitchen!  All the cabinets have been reorganized and scrubbed inside and out.  Not that that is really a necessity for the baby to be born, I just feel like it's going to be a while before I have the chance to do jobs like that.  So what time is better than the present!?  The afternoon was much more relaxing.  Chris and I spent some time in the pool, caught up on the DVR, and then went out for a quiet and delicious dinner alone at a local winery.  He continues to spoil me!  This year he surprised my by getting a remote start installed on my new Edge.  AMAZING!  So exciting to not have to get into a cold car in winter, or a hot car in the summer.  Especially with the bambino on the way.  I know it will make mornings so much better when I'm taking him to daycare and then heading into work.  Thank you again love!

Chris's parents will be here by the weekend!  They are coming from NY to visit, his Dad will be staying for the weekend and then heading back, but his Mom is here for the duration until Baby E arrives!  Looking forward to hanging out with them and relaxing until D Day!  I'm so glad we got everything finished as early as we did, now we can kick back and enjoy the next couple of weeks without worry.  Here are some other pictures of the last week. 

A ginormous surprise cupcake from my awesome boss at work :)

      

Make Ahead Freezer Meals!

So today I tackled my to do list for the make ahead meals in preparation for Baby Elie's arrival!  Throughout this pregnancy I've been reading other pregnancy blogs, trying to find good idea's for organization, planning, and preparation for baby.  I guess with our future holding so many unknowns, I am comforted by doing what I can now, to plan and try to maintain some level of control of where our lives are headed these next few weeks and months.  I thought having meals on hand in the freezer for those nights when I don't feel like cooking, or when we have company would be so convenient, and definitely better than ordering out or eating store bought frozen dinners.  I amended each recipe to make it as healthy as I could.  Subbed whole wheat pasta, low fat cheese, reduced fat sour cream, fat free condensed soups, light mayo and wheat crackers.  I think paring these dishes with a steamed veggie or salad will make perfect dinners!  

I split my to do list by recipe's using chicken and beef.  Every thing that included chicken I made today, and will finish with the beef recipe's tomorrow.  With some swelling going on, I didn't want to be standing in the kitchen all day long.  Surprisingly, with an early start this morning, I whipped it out in no time!  I think the bulk of the work was in selecting recipes, making my shopping list, and actually shopping.  The cooking seemed to be much easier than I thought it would be!!  So, today I made the following: 

Hot Chicken Salad, recipe can be found here.

Buffalo Chicken Pasta Bake, recipe can be found here.

Chicken Mac & Cheese, recipe can be found here.

Hash brown Casserole, I use my own recipe for that one!

Just getting started!

I used aluminum disposable pans and heavy aluminum foil to store these in.  Then just used a sharpie to write what each one is, and the cooking directions right on the package.  They are already tucked away in our freezer downstairs!  Tomorrow I will finish up with a pan of Baked Ziti, and a Lasagna.  Yum!  I also have been trying to stock up on basic household items so we aren't running out of something annoying in the first couple of weeks.  I got a few extra things just to make our lives easier.  Right now we have tons of toilet paper, paper towels, paper plates, solo cups, laundry detergent, and trash bags!  I know I'm probably overdoing it, I do realize that we live less than 5 minutes from a dollar store and small grocery store.  I'm sure at some point I'll be anxious to get out of the house to grab a thing or two, but at least until then, we will be all set!     

Maternity Pics & 36 Weeks!

After scheduling our maternity pictures 3 different times we finally got them done!  Hooray!  This summer has been crazy with the rain so it's been difficult for an outdoor maternity shoot.  Kirsten with Captivated by Him did our pictures out of Mayslick, Kentucky.  If you are ever in her area she is so talented and wonderful to work with!  I highly recommend her!  We've only seen two of our pictures so far but I am thrilled with them and CANNOT wait to see the rest!!

36 Weeks

36 Weeks

So here we are, almost to full term!  I have to say I'm getting a lot more anxious for this little guy to come out.  The nursery is ready and his bag is packed.  Car seat is installed.  We officially have every baby item I think we will need for the first few weeks.  I've made a list of what I want to take to the hospital for Chris and I.  This weekend I plan on doing all the make ahead freezer meals...more on that later!  I'm stocking up this weekend on basic household items (toilet paper, paper towels, paper plates, laundry detergent...basically anything that will make our lives easier those first few weeks at home.)  We are touring daycare's next week.  All in all, once he's fully cooked we are ready for him!!! 

For the most part I still feel good, but sleeping has become a nightmare.  I do okay for about 4 hours and beyond that my back feels like it's going to break.  The last two nights I've ended up in the recliner in the living room because that is one of the few area's I feel really comfy.  Hopefully it subsides a little, I hate to ditch my hubby and our bed for the recliner for the next 3 weeks!  Baby is doing great though.  At our appointment yesterday, he measured 37 centimeters which she said is perfect for 36 weeks and 4 days.  My blood pressure is still great but I have started swelling in my ankles and legs.  Hopefully that is partly to blame for my 4# weight gain in one week!  Boo on that :(  I'm making it my mission this next week to drink a ton of water (a TON more than I ALREADY DO!) and to eat even better.  I'm hoping by doing that and avoiding salt I can get some of this fluid off.  So that's about it!  It's been a busy week with visiting family, having our pictures done, and going to my good friend's baby shower last night.  Chris works all weekend but I'm still looking forward to the weekend.  I'll feel better to get these freezer meals out of the way, do a little cleaning, and hopefully a lot of relaxing in the pool.  Fingers are crossed for a nice weekend!     

Nursery is complete!!!

The pictures should speak for themselves... there are no words for how much love is in this room.

Happy 4th!

Hope you all had a happy 4th!  We managed to have a good one, even though it rained almost the whole entire day!  This summer has been wet for sure.  Luckily, I was able to get some cleaning done early, and then cuddled with the dogs for most of the afternoon.  Between cozying up to either me or Chris, they were happy!

The rain didn't keep us from sticking with our plan for dinner!  Chris smoked pork for pulled pork for about 9 hours which was delish!!!  I made baked beans and coleslaw, Aileen and Helen brought potato salad, deviled eggs, and peanut butter fudge, and last but definitely not least, we had homemade cherry cheesecake ice cream!  If you have an ice cream maker you NEED to dust that bad boy off and give this recipe a whirl, you won't regret it!!

http://addapinch.com/cooking/2013/06/17/cherry-cheesecake-ice-cream-recipe

Chris's awesome smoke work! 

One benefit of being 35 weeks preggie :)

35 Weeks!

A selfie at 35 weeks!

Another busy week!  We started this week by celebrating my great grandmother's 101st birthday!  Yes, that's right, 101!  What an achievement that is!  Here are 4 generations of my family, 5 if you count Baby Elie still in the oven :)

Granny, my Mom, and my Grandmother

After her birthday party we started celebrating the 4th of July early at our friends annual pool party.  It was so nice to see all of our friends and hang out in the sun for the afternoon.  Obviously we haven't been catching up with a lot of our friends like we normally would at the bar, so it was a treat to hang out with everyone!  And to make it even better I made a festive dessert which seemed to be a hit! 

My red, white, and blue trifle!

Looking forward to the rest of the week!  Chris and I are both off work on July 4th so hoping for a sunny day to spend in the pool.  Then having my parents and some friends over that evening for a cookout and to watch the fireworks.  Our doctor's appointment is Friday and then we are headed to Cave Run Lake on Saturday with friends to spend the day on the pontoon!  Hooray for summer activities!