Fully cooked

We hit 37 weeks yesterday (full term) which means that Aisling is fully cooked and if born today will do just fine. I am hoping she gives me a couple more weeks to prepare, but the choice is up to her and realistically she can come any time now. I am now at the point where every weird twinge or Braxton Hicks that I get, I start to wonder if this is the start of labor. I still think she will come on the 21st, but I am on labor watch anyway.

We are doing pretty good preparing though. Her room is basically done, I bought some shelves today to paint and hang up for her knick knacks. I still need a changing pad and I decided to get a bassinet or co-sleeper for our bedroom, that way we can use her playpen downstairs for her naps and it also has a changing table so it will be very useful. We'll get the stuff this weekend on another venture to Babies R Us.

I have been busy doing little odd jobs around the house too. I feel really motivated to get everything in order and take care of things I have been putting off and probably won't have time to do when she comes. I think this is my form of nesting. Brian has been very helpful with my constant list of chores and things I want him to do. I feel lucky to have his support, I can't imagine how anyone could go through this alone.

I guess it's lunch time and I have no idea what to have. I sure miss the commissary at work sometimes.

The Gold medal goes to Aisling!!!

We had some great news at the midwives yesterday. Aisling is head down. We are both so happy that she turned. I believe she turned on Thursday or Friday. She was moving so much and the movement was rather uncomfortable and even a bit painful, but I am not complaining because we are go for launch now. No more miserable exercises for me and she can relax and settle in for her last few comfy weeks in the womb. We also saw Dr. Bob today who taught me a few tricks to loosen up some muscles and ligaments to help her really lower down. So now we start the waiting game.

I am officially enjoying the no working thing. My brother was in town for the last few days and we had a lot of fun and it was a great way to kick off the maternity leave. Also, a visit to cheesecake factory on Sunday to celebrate Aunt Laurie's and Nana's birthdays didn't hurt either, Fried macaroni and Cheese and avocado egg rolls, need I say more.

Maternity Leave

Today is my last day at work. This week went so slowly, but I finally made it through and now I am off until July sometime. I hope this little one waits at least a week or two so I can finish up some odds and ends and get some rest as well. And hopefully she will turn in the mean time.

It is amazing how fast and yet how slow this whole pregnancy has gone. Sometimes I feel like I have been pregnant forever and other times I can hardly believe I am about to be a mom. It is a pretty surreal experience. I sure won't miss not being able to tie my shoes or the random aches and pains that comes from pregnancy, but I will miss the closeness I have with her, oh and the excuse of eating a burritto any time I want and not feeling guilty cause I can claim the baby is hungry.

Our Little Valentine

We had our 35 week appointment today. Another two weeks without gaining weight which is amazing considering how much cake I ate at the baby shower. We also got to see her during a quick ultrasound. She is so big now her head hardly fits on screen. We got to see her little heart pumping away too which was extra cute considering the holiday. We also got to see that she is still head up. Our little stinker just won't settle into a head down position. So we have another week of exercises and I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Bob for next week as well. So hopefully we will have some better news at our next appointment. I'm not giving up on her yet, but I have to admit it is getting a bit discouraging. Turn baby turn!!!!

Shower

We had our baby shower on Saturday. It was a great day, lots of fun spent with friends and family. The games were fun, although I had to blush when the guess the size of my belly was played, some people were really nice, others not so much. :) Everyone got into the guess the name of the celebrity on the back as well. We have some competitive people out there.

Everyone was so generous too. I can't believe how much stuff we ended up with. We got our stroller, playpen, high chair, mountains of clothes, blankets and diapers. Also some amazing handmade items like an awesome diaper bag from Grandma K, two beautiful knitted sweaters from Nana and a cute Mini mouse blanket from Aunt Lea. It took me half the day to sort through it all yesterday and a couple of loads of laundry to get everything washed and ready for her. There isn't much left to prepare. Her room is basically ready and stocked. Just a few more odds and ends left to tie together before the big day.

It really was a great day. Time really does fly by when you are having fun, I blinked and the party was over. Becca did an awesome job setting everything up and running the event. Amy was an awesome assistant and there was lots of family to help with the set up and clean up too. I am so grateful to all of them. It was a truly special day that I will never forget. I really feel lucky to have so much love and support around us.

Surprise

We had a big surprise today when I showed up for a meeting and walked face first into a surprise baby shower. It was a really nice treat, I had no idea my coworkers were planning anything. I, of course, turned bright red as usual, but we had a really nice celebration with our layout crew. They gave us a very generous gift card to Babies R Us and cute little hat and booties. Not to mention the yummy cake Elkeer baked for us, it was so good, don't tell my midwives.

We also met with our pediatrician today at lunch. He has a nice practice not too far from home in an old craftsman style house on Hillhurst near Los Feliz. I liked his philosophies and felt very comfortable there. He is a bit on the older side, picture a cross between Mr. Burns and the old bank owner from Mary Poppins. He comes highly recommended by friends, the midwives and my yoga place. I have read articles he has written in my favorite Mothering magazine too. Another reminder of where we live... He was Leonardo DiCaprio's pediatrician and I think Madonna sent her kids there. He is also Heidi Fleiss's dad, the Hollywood Madame.... Yes, we have a Hollywood baby. I just hope she doesn't want an agent anytime soon.

Last night we had our breastfeeding class. I learned a lot and feel like I will have a good foundation to start with. With that said, the class was excruciating, it was hot and we were stuck on these teeny folding chairs for 3 hours. I was really nauseous and about to faint for half the class. Plus the teacher was a really unpleasant and irritating New Yorker who kept trying to sell us stuff. I wish I had a better class experience, but at least the information will be useful.

pin cushion

I had my first ever acupuncture appointment today. It was actually really fascinating. It didn't hurt too much, only a quick sting for a brief second. Some of the needles made it feel like electricity was shooting down my legs or arms. It was a strange sensation. She put needles in my neck, wrists, legs and one on the outside of each baby toe. Then she did moxibustion which is the burning of this herbal stick next to the outside of the small toe. It got pretty toasty on my little toes and the herbs smelled a lot like pot, the smell is still lingering on my clothes by the way. I am really hoping no one gets to close to me today at work, or they may get the wrong idea. I can just imagine them thinking I am toking 8 months pregnant.

She gave me some more of the moxibustion stuff to do at home everyday. Now let's see if it works. Hopefully, baby will be head down by our next appointment on the 14th.

Aisling's friend

We met baby Fintan today. He is so unbelievably cute. Aisling was trying to say hi to him by kicking at him while I was holding him. I think it is just a sign of what is to come between them. It was great to meet him and see Ingrid. It is still hard to believe that she's a mom and I'll be one myself soon. It was fun to hold him and realize I will have my own in a month and a half.

Tomorrow we are going to have our first acupuncture appointment. I am hopeful that our little tumbler will turn head down and stay that way till her birthday. I have never had acupuncture so I have no idea what to expect. It will be interesting to see what happens.