32 weeks

Well it's been far too long since I've written an update, but thankfully that's because the last month or so has been fairly uneventful.

Baby is moving around a lot more and his kicks are usually pretty strong and visible from the outside. My stomach is getting bigger and bigger, which I guess is a good thing! I'm just not sure how he's going to keep growing in there for 8 more weeks! Some of my maternity shirts are not quite long enough anymore and I have to keep tugging them down! I'm starting to get some swelling in my fingers which means I am now only wearing my engagement ring. Oh also this past month I invested in a body pillow to help me sleep and it sure has made my already tossing and turning nights a bit more comfortable. I usually have to get up 2-3 times a night to use the bathroom and Randy is frequently reminding me at what a good job I'm doing of being up all night and not waking him up! Despite the frequent wake ups, I have been dreaming like crazy! Just this past week I think I had 3 labor and delivery dreams! I think I'm worried he is going to come too early and we won't be ready yet. Although, I tend to think we won't be ready yet even if he comes on May 2!

There was a period of time a couple weeks ago where his movements slowed down and I didn't really feel much movement for a couple of days. This was the first trip into Labor and Delivery at the hospital. They hooked me up to listen to his heart beat and to monitor any contractions (which I wasn't having). Unfortunately, Randy couldn't be there right away so I was by myself listening to the little guy's heart beat for nearly an hour before Randy got there. The good news is that Baby's heart beat is strong. The doctor wanted to do an ultrasound just to get a look and I certainly wasn't going to object to that! Randy showed up just in time to see the ultrasound. I can't believe how big he has gotten. One of the best parts of the u/s was that the doctor was able to confirm that Baby is in fact a boy! The pictures we got from the 20 week u/s weren't very clear. This doctor pointed out his junk and even gave us a couple pictures to take home.

My first baby shower is next weekend and I'm pretty excited for that. We haven't made much progress on the nursery yet though, although we finally got some carpet ordered. The room is not really cleaned out yet, but it's been organized so that when it's time to move stuff out it should be a little easier.

I also think I have finally gotten my maternity leave benefits straight. Dealing with the County is ridiculous! I have to get information from benefits, personnel, payroll and my supervisor! And of course much of their information isn't consistent. Geeze! I think I have decided to work up until 2 weeks before. Hopefully that will give me some time before Baby arrives to just relax and finish up any last minute things. I am fortunate enough to get 18 weeks of paid time off, so that will leave me 4 months with Baby after the birth.