Full-term!!

Well, I now am considered full-term. I only have 20 days until my due date!!! Wow, this last month actually seems to be going kind of slow now. :) So with less than 3 weeks to go I feel like I am definitely ready to have this baby. I pretty much have our house unpacked and put together and have everything ready for the baby. I am feeling huge and ready to give birth....but most importantly I am just so excited to see his/her face!!! It is so exciting not knowing what we are going to have. Thad and I go back and forth every week thinking it is going to be a girl and some weeks thinking it will be a boy...we have no idea!!! Most people think I am having a boy by the way I am carrying it all out front and low, but so many people have told me that they carry their boys and girls the same...so who knows?? Any predictions? The baby's heart rate is between 145-150, and everything is still looking great. The head is still down and my midwife thinks I will be having it right on time. My uterus is measuring average and I have now gained 45 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight!!!..wow! :) I have been feeling really good, just tired a lot and my hips have been hurting like crazy in the middle of the night as they have been loosening...but I know it will all be worth it soon. Many people have been asking me if I am anxious or scared for the birth with this being the first time, but I feel like the more educated I have been through out the journey the less nervous I get, and right now I feel very confident and ready for this birth. In our society we don't get to see people giving birth very often, or for some people they have never seen a live birth before, so we base what it will be like on what we see in the movies. After reading and watching many birth stories that are much more positive it gives me a more positive outlook when going into this. I still have no idea what to expect, but I feel very prepared(at least as much as I can be.) The best book by far that I have read during this time has been Ina Mae's Guide to Childbirth, by Ina Mae Gaskin. It has been the most honest and beneficial book to read as far as the mind/body connection in childbirth and also provided many birth stories from all sorts of different people. It really made it obvious that everybody is different, but how everyone got through it with a natural positive experience. It was really empowering. Also lately I have really been focusing on how God's power works through us. This is a verse that I have kept close to me to remember while in labor...
Isaiah 40:31 ...but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
It is so neat to know that the same power that raised Christ from the dead is available to me on a daily basis!
So here is a picture of me at full-term (37 weeks.) I look pretty tired in this one; not the best picture... and hopefully next time you hear from me we will have our little one! yay!

p.s. At the bottom of the page is a sneak peak of the baby's room, I will show more pictures once it is all put together. Enjoy. :)

I was so excited about my Radio Flyer Goodwill purchase of $6.00!! Wahoo... that thing is probably a collectable by now. :)