one week later

And no change. Everything looked good at the DR apt today and things are right on track. . . with this baby no closer to coming out any time soon. Looks like I am in it for the long haul - again. I gave my DR the "please have mercy on my eyes" and asked if she could sweep my membranes today (again, sorry if too TMI for the blog!) which put me into labor with Annika but she said NOPE! Not even 38 weeks yet and won't even consider until 39. It is what I expected to hear. . . and why I love my OB's. As much as I want this baby out, I know waiting until the body/baby is ready it the right thing to do and I am thankful I go to a practice that believes in that as well.

Go back again in a week.

annika's first "real" haircut

Annika still doesn't have much hair other then a mullet. . . and while she used to let me trim it up, she now SHRIEKS whenever I come near her with a pair of scissors. She would thrash around so much I started to worry I would poke her eye out! So I decided it was time to take her to get a real hair cut. I thought watching Bergen get his hair cut might make her want to get her hair cut (being that she wants to do everything he does!). . . but I was wrong.

We went to Fantastic Sams and Annika got to watch for a bit as Bergen got his hair cut. So then it was Annika's turn. After I got Annika settled in the chair and checked in with Bergen for 2 seconds, I turned around to find that Annika's stylist decided it would be okay to give her not only 1 but 2 suckers (one for each hand!) to help Annika feel better about getting her hair cut. She is only 19 months. I don't give her hard candy yet. . . so I head over to Annika, watch her bite down and see the entire sucker breaks off. I immediately swipe out the large chucks of chokeables from her mouth. . . while the stylist continues to gab MORE suckers for Annika to chew on. Not sure what about me swiping her mouth she wasn't getting that I didn't want her to have *more* suckers . . . so now not only was Annika MAD about getting her hair cut, she was MAD at me for taking away her new candy adventure.

I substituted the suckers for a more age appropriate candy and that seemed to calm her down a bit. . . but she still did NOT like getting her hair cut. Bergen finished before Annika did and he was a super star trying to cheer her up. He would tell her "it's okay Annika. . . it's okay Annika. . . it won't hurt. . . it's okay". He is such a sweet brother.

It took about 30 seconds for her to actually cut Annika's mullet - basically a bang trim but in the back. When checking out I was a little surprised to be charge the full amount of a hair cut ($20 for the two of them). I guess I shouldn't have been, but when it take about 3 snips and 30 seconds to cut a kids hair, a bang trim price would have been nice. But as a friend told me. . . better to pay for a full hair cut then to poke out her eye out at home. True, true.

i don't mean to complain

But I am going to for one second.

I know babies are supposed to stay "cooking" for as long as possible for 40 weeks. That is why due dates are calculated as such. . . but sometimes it just feels like E.V.E.R.Y.O.N.E. goes before their due date but ME. And I am not saying that I want to deliver EXTREMELY early, but I am over 37 weeks now. The baby is in the "safe zone" being full term. Why can't I for once be the one that gets to go early? I know two women who were also due when we are - one shared my due date and the other was the day after me. Both are now happy new moms adjusting to life with a newborn. . . OUTSIDE of their bodies. And I hate to complain because being pregnant is such a gift, but #3 has been really hard on me physically. Normally I have been happy as a clam to stay pregnant (well maybe not THAT happy, but much more content then I am now) knowing that life is going to change drastically after the baby comes. But I am VERY, VERY ready for the pregnancy stage to be over and life of a family of five to begin. And people tell me all the time less then 20 days to go. . . which I know doesn't sound long, but when you are at this stage of the game, it seems very, very long.

Okay. Thanks for listening. Done complaining.

"i will never. . . ."

Going into parenthood one will often say "I will never. . . (insert whatever preconceived notion you think you won't do as a parent)" and then when you become a parent you realize a lot of those "I will never. . ." statements actually make your life easier.

Here is one in action for me . . . "I will never let my kids watch TV in the car while I am just driving around town/running errands". Well, now that we have our MV with a DVD player I have completely and totally put my foot in my mouth. It makes my life soooo much easier when I have to run a bunch of errands. . .

our little fairy

numbers

Okay. It is officially the "final stretch". I will be 37weeks tomorrow and 21 days out from D-day. Not too much longer now. . . thank goodness! On Friday at 36w4d I had my first of the weekly visits that happen the last month of pregnancy and progress is being made - which made me feel good. Not to get too TMI, but I am starting to dilate (2cm and 70% effaced) which doesn't mean I will go into labor any time soon. . . it just means my body has to do less work when I *do* go into labor. Might as well get as much done as possible before the pain starts, right?!

In other numbers I am up a total of 30 lbs, which is about 20-25 less then I have gained with the other 2 kids. I didn't do anything different this time around. I ate what I wanted, when I wanted, and how much I wanted. . . who knows. The body does what it needs to do.

I also found out that I am slightly anemic so I was told to up the iron intake. . . which to me just screams "great excuse to eat lots of good steak!" Which I did this weekend! :) Hopefully that will help boost the number a bit before delivery.

So, now we just wait. . . and wait. . . and wait. Have another appointment this Friday and every Friday until my due date. I am very ready to meet this little girl!