Oh the Anticipation!!

Here I am ready to pop at 38 weeks after I got home from work today. This is Isaac's little take-home outfit. He's going to be so cute in it!

My super husband was at the mall yesterday while waiting for Sears to replace my car battery. He found these for Isaac, his first purchase for the babe. Isn't that cute?!

Oh the anticipation!!!

38 Week Update...

This is a couple of days overdue, but what the hey...

I had my weekly appointment on Monday and we learned that I'm now 90% effaced and 1 1/2 cm!! Can you believe that? My RN said that she wouldn't be surprised if we have a July baby! All I need to do is go mall-walking or Kevin and I can enjoy some... a-hem, you know, and that should do it! Basically, I could pretty much go at any time!

That all sounds great, and believe me, I'm glad for the progress... if only it were better timing. My Dr. is out on vacation until next week, Kevin has to go upstate this weekend, and Mom doesn't get here until the 1st! So perhaps this isn't a good week to have Isaac? I've been trying to take it easy this week, and I'm under strict instruction from Kevin that over the weekend I am not to do anything strenuous at all. I'm allowed to watch movies and take naps pretty much...

Don't worry, I won't be all alone. I'm going to be staying with Autumn and Krista. It'll be fun! Our last big hurrah together before Isaac comes. And Kevin will be no more than 3 1/2 hours away, so he's close enough to rush home if I call him with the "IT'S TIME" news.

To post a picture later... This may be the last one!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Yesterday was our 4th anniversary! We can hardly believe it has already been four years... my how time has flown. And we are more in love today than we were even on that beautiful day we got married.

Kevin planned our night out, and he did a spectacular job! He surprised me with dinner at The Compass Room in downtown Phoenix. For those of you from Seattle, it's like Phoenix's version of the Space Needle. This round restaurant sits on top of the Hyatt in the middle of the city, and it rotates as you dine.

I was greeted by a beautiful bouquet at our table, comprised of one of my favorite flowers - the gerber daisy - and four red roses, symbolizing our four years together.

Next came the chocolate covered strawberries - yum!

The view was amazing! And as we turned, there were little engraved plates detailing different landmarks and places of interest in the distance so we knew what we were looking out on.

I was feeling pretty special!

My hot date!

There's Chase Field. We could spy a patch of green and the flashing screens of the game going on inside through the windows on the side.

"Uptown" Phoenix in the distance

The rotation was perfectly aligned with the sunset from where we were sitting. Gorgeous.

They wrote special messages on our desserts. We each got the same delicious treat, warm melting cake with some peppermint ice cream. Kevin's said Congratulations for our upcoming little boy, and mine said Happy Anniversary for the occasion.

It was such a special night. We enjoyed the evening together as if we didn't have a care in the world. We won't easily forget it!

Personal Apology and Some Special Attention!

I am a bad friend... how could I forget my best friend's anniversary in July too?? Erica, I'm so sorry!

So I am making a special post for my dear friends Erica and Kevin Rossi. Their anniversary is on July 29th, and I'm so glad they found each other. I can't believe they are already approaching their 2nd anniversary! Where does the time go?? They are a special couple, and Erica is a sister to me. She has always been the best friend anyone could ever ask for, and I love her very much.

Who Knew July was so Popular!

I haven't stopped to think about this in all of its fullness until now...

In addition to celebrating our country's independence, July is quite the month for both of our families, it would seem Isaac would fit right in having a July birthday. Let's see... there's Lisa & Nik's anniversary on the 4th, Karen & Steve's anniversary on the 11th, Rebecca's birthday on the 16th (Happy birthday, sweetie!), our anniversary on the 18th, Grandma and Seth's birthdays on the 24th, Nono's birthday which was on the 26th, and Lynn's birthday on the 29th... am I forgetting anyone? Then throw in our friends too: Ann's birthday on the 6th, Ashley's birthday on the 9th, Ann & Eric's anniversary on the 10th, and Carrie's birthday on the 25th.

Whew! That's a lot of celebration - almost like Christmas in July!

And then there's Julie, who hit the jackpot with having my due date as her birthday! So we'll see where Isaac fits in when he decides to come!

Poor Ankles and Maximum Capacity

Another week, another appointment. This time we met with one of the RN's because Dr. Lindstrom was out on call delivering a baby. Beth is a cool RN, so I never mind meeting with her too. In fact, this time was especially beneficial because she was able to actually answer my question about the sharp and sudden pang that I've been experiencing for the last couple of weeks. After describing it to her, she explained to me that this happens as I dilate. That makes sense! I was so thankful to get a woman's perspective... and one who has had three children and knows what it's like! In addition, Kevin and I were pleased to learn that I have progressed to 1 cm.

Here's lookin' at 37 weeks!

And 37 week ankles! My poor feet!

My last day of work is next Friday, the 25th, and I'm so excited! If Isaac is on time, I'll have that last week of July to rest and get ready for his arrival. It's going to be great. If he decides to come early, then, well I'll be thankful if it happens at home rather than the office.

I'll tell you one thing for sure. I am at maximum capacity... I don't know if I can fit any more baby in here!

Monsoon Fun

Today was a hot one (in accordance with the usual July day in Arizona). After a tasty Sunday lunch with Mark & Autumn and Tom & Krista, we all agreed that an afternoon swim was in order. We each went our own way to let lunch settle, with the plan to meet back up at Tom & Krista's for the swim.

After a little bit of down time, Kevin and I got all ready for the pool, lathering on the 50 spf and dressing down into our swimsuits. Sure, there were some growing clouds looming above, but the wind wasn't blowing yet, and there was no promise of rain.

We set out for Tom & Krista's house, a mere 5 miles away.... Halfway there, our windshield was met with a couple of drops, which were rapidly joined by a subsequent downpour the further west we inched. By the time we arrived, it was torrential! We laughed about showing up at the doorstep in our swimsuits, ready for a pool party. We joked about how we should greet Tom or Krista when they answered the door.

We were the ones in for a surprise as Krista turned the corner from the side of the house, drenched in her swimsuit and surf shorts, with a broom in one hand. "Hey guys!" she said, "Go on in, it's open!" We went to the back yard to find Tom trimming a bush as if it were the most usual thing to do in the rain. These are our crazy friends... doing yard work in the monsoon downpour.

The result of this monsoon madness?

A pool party, Arizona style!

Good thing Kevin put on the 50 spf and remembered his wide-brimmed hat!

Fun times! We felt like kids again!

Moms out there, got any input?

So my "practice contractions" are coming more frequently, most of the time when I'm moving around a lot walking or cleaning the house, sometimes just because I got up from the chair or couch or out of the car or out of bed. And then maybe once or twice a day I have a really sharp pang really low that will stop me in my tracks. Is this normal? I try to explain this to my doctor, but he seems to think that I'm asking him if I will know when I'm really going into labor, like I'm afraid I'll miss it or something. I'm not too worried that I'll miss my own labor... what I want to know is if these new frequent feelings are any signals for getting closer to the real contractions or what? What's up with these really sharp pangs that come and go - they hurt!

Any input?

The Melting Pot

After literally MONTHS of trying to get together with Mark and Autumn for some couple-to-couple quality time, we finally did it!! We started the evening with a home-made dinner of delicious steak fajitas and fixin's. Then we followed that up by dessert at The Melting Pot since none of us have ever gone there. It was a really fun time (not that that would be a surprise)! We laughed a lot, talked a lot, and teased each other as usual. Kevin and his crazy antics. Autumn and her quick devouring of the berries... good times.

The evidence: Yes, it is The Melting Pot!

We had some serious decisions to make... The Original? The Flaming Turtle? Yin and Yang? Pure Chocolate? White Chocolate and Bananas Foster? Just to name a few! The choices were all tantalizing, but after much deliberation, we decided on two: The Flaming Turtle (because the name was cool and it involved caramel) and The Original (because of the promised "crunchy peanut butter swirl").

Mark and Autumn, playing it cool.

Who are these people?

As if he needed any sugar, Kevin ordered a "fru-fru" drink that was accompanied by a sugar crystal stick. The big question was, "How many dips will it take to dissolve the crystal?" Well, he got a little crazy and sporadic with his dips, so Mark determined that the experiment was bogus because there was no control in place. The dips were different lengths, hence rendering an inconsistent result.

WAIT! We need to take a picture of our dessert! Everybody stab something and hold it up for the camera! Awwww, my sweet little blinker couldn't keep his eyes open for the flash.... AGAIN.

Before the temptation to stuff my face completely took hold of me, I had the presence of mind to take a quick snapshot of the spread. It held the precious gems of strawberries, rice krispy treat squares, oreo coated marshmallows, graham cracker coated marshmallows, brownies, banana slices, and cheesecake. Mmmmmmmm, heavenly!

Shock and Awe

Kevin and I went to our childbirth class on Saturday. It was a day-long crash course on everything from the stages of pregnancy to taking care of your new baby. It started at 8:00 a.m., and as a plan to get our attention (which worked), the nurse teaching the class showed us a video of labor and delivery. Okay, so we watch the Discovery channel, and we thought we'd seen it all, but oh no, this video was of a whole 'nother caliber! We saw EVERYTHING.... from angles and points of views that we have never before observed. With a certain measure of shock and awe, we watched with unabated attention at this crazy process called Childbirth. Isn't God amazing in His creation? Isn't this a crazy thing to witness - a little human being coming out of a grown human being? Wow.

Amid the shock, sweet Kevin was glancing back and forth from the TV to me, patting my knee in a reassuring way. His worried glances said, "Everything is going to be okay, Sweetie..." while his mind was racing with, "My poor little wifey is going to have to do this!" After the video, Kevin looked at me in all sincerity and said, "Maybe you should get the epidural." Thanks, Dear. I couldn't help but chuckle at the serious and concerned tone in his voice.

I will admit that I was a little shocked by what I saw in that video, thinking to myself, "Oh my gosh. That's going to be ME very soon. What did I get myself into?!" The fear and trepidation did well up within me at the moment. But then I took the opportunity to specify a few important things to Kevin.
(1) I will not be naked while giving birth. I think I'll be exposed enough, thank you. (For some reason in this video, a number of the women shown were naked! All I have to say is - WHY?).
(2) I do not want a mirror hanging above for a play-by-play of the process. I would likely faint at the sight. No, I'd rather be blissfully unaware of what I look like from that angle and just welcome the little guy when he finally pops out.
And (3) Kevin will kindly refrain from being up in my face as a method of helping me "focus" during hard contractions. After watching some husbands do this in the video, they then explained in subsequent interviews that that they found the "in-your-face method" very helpful for motivating their wives through the pain. Um, they didn't ask the wives what they thought about that method... but if they asked this one she'd say, Heck no! You might regret getting so close if I'm having a "hard contraction."

So on the note of anticipating labor and delivery, I had my weekly appointment yesterday, and we received some relatively good news! I am now 50% effaced and 1/2 cm dilated! It's small, but it's progress! In addition, I've been keeping track of how many braxton-hicks I have each day because they are coming more frequently and feeling a bit stronger.

Here we go!