Hi guys! I know it's been over a month since my last update... My appointments have been EVERY week... so I don't feel like there has been much (anything) to really update on as the changes are so very, very little. As of my last appointment today (January 6th), everything is still great! Baby's heart rate has consistently been 130-140 every appointment, although baby kicks as soon as they put the doppler on my belly to hear the heartbeat - every time. My blood pressure has remained good, my weight gain has been good... Although the week we drove up to get Tyler, I gained 5 lbs! (from lack of activity and more food than normal) It was great to have him home for this little bit, but was very excited to get back and get it "over with" so to speak. He's doing great (and looks fantastic!) He received a position of leadership, so he's feeling the stress from that, but that also means his Drill Sergeants know who he is (instead of being a wall flower) which is good (and could be bad if he screws up - no pressure!) He enjoyed more than his fair share of junk food, long and hot showers, video games, talking, and just relaxing while he was home.
A really cool thing, while he was home, his Senior Drill Sergeant called twice to check up on all of the soldiers in his platoon... On Tyler's 2nd call, the drill sergeant asked about ME AND BABY! Tyler was blown away by this, that not only did he remember that Tyler is married with a baby on the way, but cared enough to ask... See that position of leadership isn't ALWAYS a bad thing (;
While he was home, we built the crib (FINALLY!!!) and put the bedding on, washed the baby's clothes up to 3 months, washed the bedding, ordered our cloth diapers, packed the hospital/diaper bags... basically we're ready for baby!
We still need to install the car seat, but we didn't want to leave it sitting there for the next three weeks or so without being used and exposed to the temperature. So for now we're holding off.
Now that he's back at training, our cloth diapers have arrived, and are in the process of their preparatory washing (THREE hot wash & THREE dry cycles before they're even used!) I haven't heard from Tyler yet (his first full day back was a Sunday, so no mail...) but I should get a letter in the next day or two to hear how he's doing being back. What was really nice is that I got to meet some of his buddies when we dropped him off. All of the ones I met are in committed relationships and/or engaged so it's been nice for him to have some guys who understand his situation and they can all lean on each other.
Some other things:
Tyler and I have decided to be very careful with posting and sharing baby's pictures. (with the way the world is going, you can never be too careful, and the idea of baby's photo being available to anyone, anywhere, makes our skin crawl) Obviously, that is not to say you will not have pictures of baby! We will be sharing (probably over sharing!) pictures. We have chosen to try and find a safer way to share these with those close to us (family and friends) aside from Facebook, or even this blog. Again, this is just to ensure baby's safety. I am currently working on back posting all pregnancy related pictures to a secure website, and as long as I see no issues with it's security, I will be posting pictures of baby on there as well. Basically what this website is, is a timeline. When I add a picture, it asks for a date, and puts pictures in chronological order. You can see all of the little thumbnails to scroll through, and then once you click on a thumbnail, it opens to a larger picture. This website creates a unique password for each person I share it with, and you can only view the pictures with that password. What else is cool about this website, is that I can revoke someone's password at anytime, and they would no longer have access. Which is nice and adds another sense of security, that IF we were in that situation where I had already given out access, but was no longer comfortable with someone viewing our pictures, I can revoke their access. Tyler and I also plan getting old school printed photos and mailing those out. Basically, we're trying to ensure baby's photo's are shared only with family and reputable people. I know it sounds like we're over thinking everything, but after seeing some very unpleasant things online, it has become a big deal.
I will share that website and passwords once baby is born (currently it's only the pregnancy update pictures - speaking of which I added more to the page up top!)
We're still unsure if baby is breech (feet down) and my next ultrasound is scheduled for my 39 week appointment (January 13th) we should also be finding out in the next few weeks, my scheduled induction date if baby decides to overstay their welcome. We are officially in the home stretch (18 days left!)
Like I said, I'm still doing good. Just sleepier now. Tyler thinks it's funny, but I wake up, eat breakfast and am ready for a nap! I'm very thankful for how easy and complication-free this pregnancy has been! I am a part of a birth group with 38 other women who are due between January 15-31... It's very nice to see how well my body has reacted to being pregnant. I am (at 37 weeks and 3 days pregnant) sleeping great, have had no swelling, no signs of preterm labor, no morning sickness, no headaches, no real complaints (heck, I can still walk multiple miles at a time!)
I'll update again next week after my ultrasound!
But to end this, here's a picture from today... 37 weeks and 3 days pregnant... at Target! (: Still small, and pretty much only belly! This baby is running out of room!
xoxox,
T, H & Baby S!
