20 days left (or less)!

So, we are now in the waiting game. The nursery is as ready as it is going to be (we have to wait until the end of May for our rocker, and early June for one of the sets of window hardware) and the rest of the place is pretty clean. It is good, but it is a little wierd. Everyone at work says that I look like I am about to burst, and that is pretty much how I feel. My heartburn is out of control and my feet are so huge. She has really run out of room, so I can feel her body parts jutting out almost all of the time. I mostly feel her side and her little rump and her heels (as they dig into my side), but every once in a while I can feel her shoulder and her hands, too. One time I put my hand on my stomach at work and she brushed her hand (or arm, I am not sure...I just know it wasn't a foot because of the proximity) back and forth on the spot I was touching for a long time. It was pretty cool. I am going to start working from home next week, so that should help me feel more comfortable and will definitely help with the swelling. I am worried that I am going to get a little stir crazy, though. It is hard to be patient! As nervous as I am about labor, I am ready to get this party started. The doctor said I have already started progressing, so that is a good start. It doesn't really mean too much, but it could be sooner than later. I think we will know more when I go again on Tuesday. Anywhoski, here are some pics. Who knows, they could be the last!

37 weeks




36 weeks

Matt's early lesson in suturing

So, we had to rush to the ER on Friday night. Don't worry--it had nothing to do with the baby. I stabbed my hand with a kitchen knife while pitting an avocado. I was just really tired and my hand just slipped. I was so mad because I had to leave the yummy dinner I had just prepared behind. I had pushed through my near exhaustion to have the meal, and Matt had to practically drag me out the front door. It was really bloody. Matt knew it was really deep and insisted we go. It turned out that the doctor that sewed me up is the preceptor for a couple of Matt's good friends (that means that they do a clerkship with him, which is kind of like an internship). As soon as he found out that Matt was in med school, he was very descriptive and basically started giving him a lesson. Apparently he teaches suturing at the Cornell campus (Cornell and Columbia fall under the same hospital umbrella), so it was his cup of tea. He did cosmetic sutures on my hand instead of the regular kind just to show Matt how it was done (which, I know from experience, take a lot longer). Matt takes his suturing class on Wednesday; if he had already had it he was going to have Matt do it by himself! He gave Matt the removal kit so that he can take them out for me when the time comes, so I will be Matt's first patient. :) Kind of fun...although I am going to be a little nervous since I know that removing stitches can be painful. My hand was really sore all day yesterday and I couldn't really use it. It is much better now. Matt and the doctor both said I was lucky to have hit a spot where there weren't any tendons and there are few nerves. The doctor thought it was really funny when I told him that, as far as I am concerned, I prefer to think that I don't have anything under my skin (since anything else just really grosses me out).

Well, it is getting late here so I had better go. Happy Easter everyone! 32 days left!

Week 36

Today was a good day--I was feeling pretty good and then I felt even better because my office threw me a surprise baby shower. They got tons of stuff for the baby, including lots of little things I (well, she) really needed. Anyway, it was just fun that they thought of me and did that for me/her.

So, there are only 36 days left. I am starting to feel a little nervous...but I am still more than ready for that day to arrive. Well, I take that back. I was supposed to pack my overnight bag tonight, but I ran out of time. Plus, I can't find my "master baby list" right now, which basically means I have no idea what needs to be done. Once I write something down, I forget about it (which is the beauty of a list), but that means that things are going undone left and right while I track that little sucker down. I should really stop making my lists on my teen-weeny memo pad at work...but that is just how it works. What is really driving me crazy is that there are things I could cross off if I could find it...oh, well--enough about the list! Can you tell I am tired?

Matt and I rented a car on Saturday and ran a bunch of errands in New Jersey on Saturday. We got a bunch done, but the best part is that we got to eat at Baja Fresh. I am telling you, it was worth the rental fee just for that. Yum.

The baby is huge and her little foot was really hurting me tonight. The doctor said she is pretty sure she is already in the head down position, but she is going to do an ultrasound at the next visit to be sure. She said she will check the baby's weight, too.

Matt got to meet and introduce Elliot Spitzer yesterday. Pretty cool. Spitzer is running for governor and is pushing for state funding for stem cell research; while Columbia can't endorse any political candidates, the medical student organization (of which Matt is co-president) can do whatever, so he was the link between the two. It was pretty cool and he got to meet quite a few big-wigs.

Well, I had better go to bed. The days just go so quickly...well, the evenings do, anyway.