I'm looking forward to...

I've heard that now is the easiest time to care for and carry a baby...while he's on the inside! And while I think there's quite a bit of truth to that, I still can't wait for him to be on the outside and in my arms.

Besides being anxious to meet and snuggle this little one, there are a few other things I'm looking forward to post partum. I've started making a mental list of what I'm most looking foward to, but what good is a blog if I'm blogging in my mind and not on here? Here's what I'm excited for {besides the sweet baby himself}:

1) Being able to simply round my back and not have a continuous arch that leads to back pain.

2) Being able to bend over - whether that be to pick up something off the ground, squat...whatever! Just being able to get low to the ground with grunting, sticking my butt out, or having the feeling that I'm going to pop a blood vessel in my forehead would be fantastic.

3) Going to the gym and not having to go to the bathroom 3-4 times for every hour I'm there. This is not an exaggeration, friends. I kid you not. For every hour I am at the gym, I have to stop 3 or 4 times and go to the bathroom, even though each trip might not be that "successful"....which leads me to number 4......................

4) Having a normal sized bladder. Oh boy. I can pee and LITERALLY 5 minutes later feel like I reeeeeeally have to go NOW. The second trip to the bathroom might only be as successful as {beware - TMI, I know} a couple drips. Where does urgency and full sensation come from when there are only a few drops in my bladder??? This has been a source of great frustration for me and is very inconveient when I'm in the middle of a a CPR or trauma at work.

5) I miss buying cute, normal-sized clothes. I have found some really cute spring clothes but I can't even try 'em on because I can't get 'em over my tummy! I'm excited to wear cute, non-maternity clothes.

6) I cannot wait to run again. Or have a really great workout. I miss the "runner's high" and feeling like I've really burned some major calories at the gym.

7) I'm excited to have a less-round face. Yep, I think my face is starting to get full and puffy.

8) Being able to get out of a chair, out of bed, off the floor, and sitting up from a laying position without grunting, getting short of breath, rolling, or having Jake push or pull me. :) Doesn't that give you a great visual? I think having a flat tummy fits right in here with this 'cause so much of this is due to abdominal muscles.

9) Being able to really deep-clean my house! Although it's been nice to have the excuse of back pain, I really do desire a deeply cleaned house including floors and bathrooms.

10) Having normal-sized legs. I feel like my thighs are ginormous and they're getting some spider veins. I want pretty, toned, and tanned legs again. This will happen someday, I'm confident. I'm just excited for it to get here sooner rather than later.

Now, while some of you might think I'm complaining, I really am trying not to. Being pregnant has been SO MUCH FUN and such a great experience. Again, the biggest highlight of post-partum will be the beautiful, sweet boy in my arms. And while I'll eventually get all these things back, I've heard a whole new set of post-partum irritations will come around {sleepless nights, anyone?). Oh, did I mention warmer weather will be here or close by the time I'm post-partum?? Lets not forget that! :)

Let me tell you, though that right now I am REALLY enjoying how active this little man is! Whether it's feeling his little butt at the top of my tummy, getting massive kicks to my right side, or feeling his little fingers and hands on my right hip bone...I am loving how active he is and enjoying feeling how much strength he's gained. Even the slightest movement makes my whole stomach move and his kicks can sometimes be slightly painful, but I just love it and can't enough of it!

Welcome to uncomfortable

I really thought this whole pregnancy thing was quite easy. And for the most part, it has been. I've been beyond blessed with very little morning sickness, great amounts of energy, still being able to workout, etc. Just within this past week however, I have started to feel uncomfortable. Not miserable, but uncomfortable. We're only a couple days away from the 34-week mark so I suppose I should count myself as lucky...I can't imagine feeling uncomfortable for months at a time. This back pain I've had off and on is more frequent now and I almost always have a sore back on the days that I work. Bending over is quite a task as is getting out of bed. Have I mentioned, though how wonderful and helpful my husband is?

I think the first trimester Jake didn't really "get it". He didn't understand my exhaustion and lack of energy. The second trimester when the belly began to show itself and he was able to feel the baby move, his sympathy started to kick in and he started helping out more and getting excited. Now that we're well into the third trimester and nearing the end, I am extremely impressed with how observant he is and how he really anticipates me needing his help...or muscles with every day tasks.

I can only imagine that the next few weeks will get even more uncomfortable. I read today that I will be putting on 2-4 pounds in blood volume in the next couple weeks as well as what the baby continues to gain in preparation for birth. Holy cow......pun fully intended! ;)

Classes with my baby daddy

Yeah, I said it...Jake is not only my wonderful husband, but he is also my "baby daddy" and I like calling him that. I don't know why. It makes me sound extremely ghetto but for those of you that remember us when we started dating, Jake thought he was ghetto back then - maybe that's why it doesn't bother him when I call him that. Ha!!

Anyway, Tuesday night my baby daddy and I went to a breastfeeding class which was very informative. They talked about proper latching and gave the baby daddies of the class things to remember when us gals get frustrated or aren't doing it correctly. As you may have read in my previous blogs, I know NOTHING about breastfeeding so Jake and I learned some techniques, learned about pumps, learned when to introduce a pacifier/bottle, etc. We watched a video about proper attachment.....and I cried. Yes, I cried! Why? I don't know - the babies were so sweet and the bonding with their mommies looked so precious....and I cried. Why don't they warn you about these sweet videos before the class starts? I would have brought kleenex!

Wednesday night was Daddy Bootcamp for Jake. Jake came home and talked for a solid 50 minutes about what he had learned and how excited he was for our baby. He got some great tips too - like putting aluminum foil in the crib, basinette, and pack and play so it makes a loud noise when the cats jump in and makes them avoid those areas. Great idea! He got practice at changing a diaper too! Jake finally got in to bed with me and said, "I really wish he {the baby} was here right now so we could play with him." This made my heart swell with love for my baby daddy because it was the first time he expressed a true desire to have him here now instead of saying, "What am I going to do with a baby?" :)

I realized last night that these next 7.5 weeks {give or take a few} really might drag. We have clothes washed, bottles and pacifiers sterilized, suitcase just about packed...and every day makes both of us more and more excited to meet our little one and have him join our family.

"Friends are friends forever"

Last Friday I got together with some of my amazing girlfriends from college. Let me first explain how our group works. It started with Robin, Keri, Tara, Marcie and me all going to Vegas our senior year of nursing school. This intimate little group decided it was be easy to get together for little "reunions" here and there instead of trying to get the whole darn 60+ nursing class together.

Last September for our get-together we added Kerianne {also from Mount Mercy} to the group 'cause lets face it - she really is one of the sweetest gals you'll ever meet and completely fits right in...and who wouldn't want to reunite with her? So we attempted meeting at my parents house and planned on swimming, but it turned out to be too cold and Robin and Keri couldn't make it. Here's a cute little picture of after I told the gals I was pregnant.

Fast forward to January 29th, 2010 - Tara is on a travel nursing assignment in Vegas {of all places!} so she couldn't make this little get together. Can you imagine how sweet our reunion will be this spring once everyone can get together?? These girls are so great. No matter how much time passes, we are always able to pick up right where we left off which is the beauty of true friendship! Anyway, we went to Marcie's house and spent some time chatting and catching up before headed to Fiesta del Sol. Now for you those of you who went to Mount Mercy, you KNOW that Fiesta del Sol is a fav Mexican restaurant in Cedar Rapids that was frequented by us girls at least once/week if not two or three times/week. Seriously, this places is A-MAZING!

Marcie and I were able to spend a little time together before everyone got there comparing bellies, day dreaming in her nursery, discussing pregnancy highs and lows, and planning the next time we can get together which we sadly realized, probably won't be until after I've had my baby...which also was kind of a wake-up call! I was 31 weeks, Marcie 26 weeks. Our time together was precious - being pregnant with one of your best friends is so much fun. She and Chris and Jake and I have all decided that we will either have an arranged marriage for our children or they will be best friends...ha! We've had fun talking about taking family vacations together too since our sweet babies will be so close in age. HOW FUN! I just love it!