I am officially on the brink of delivering this little one. Two more days and we'll be holding our little girl in our arms. I haven't written much about this pregnancy. It has been so different from my last two. When I was pregnant with Colby it was my first time and everything was exciting and new. I had a great pregnancy, never got sick. We did baby showers and decorated the nursery and all of the usual baby stuff. I kept a 9 months and counting book to track every detail. With Maci, although it was my second time around, this time it was a girl! A tiny bit of nausea in the beginning, and I carried her very differently. I also kept a 9 months and counting book. No baby shower this time, but I got to re-decorate the nursery and stock up on girly things. Still exciting. This pregnancy was so different and I haven't kept track of anything. I feel a little guilty, but what's done is done. I'm going to give a brief synopsis here, before she gets here and my mind goes blank.
This third baby was long awaited and long desired! I don't want my baby girl to think that she is any less wanted and special because I didn't track every detail of this pregnancy. Give me a little credit, I had 2 busy kids, a husband, and 2 part-time jobs to keep up with through it all. We didn't do baby showers or nursery decorating because it's our second girl in a row - we've got all that stuff covered already. I think that's partially why I didn't bother with the 9 Months and Counting book - there wasn't really much to put in it!
The first trimester - I was sick. Never gone through that before and I don't wish it on anyone. I complain, but mine wasn't even half as bad as some other stories I've heard. For me, it was new and not pleasant though. I was in maternity pants by about 12 weeks. My body just knew what to do and let's face it, I have no stomach muscles. I craved mexican food. Mostly Taco Bell or nachos. I remember doing the same thing with Maci. Should have known it would be a girl then! Fresh fruit (mostly peaches, plums, nectarines) and salad made me sick almost the instant that I ate them. Go figure. I try to eat healthy and not gain a thousand pounds but my body has a different plan!
The second trimester - I felt better - hallelujah! It went by without too much excitement. I started feeling her moving around 17-18 weeks I think. By the end of the second trimester, the kids could feel it too and loved getting high-fives from baby. My belly grew and grew and I often got surprised looks when I would tell people how far along I was - "are you sure?" Um, ya I'm sure. I started getting tons of spider veins and vericose veins (thanks, little one), but pretty much only on my right leg. We got to find out we were having a girl and decided on a name: Hannah Elisabeth. Names were a lot harder this time around. We had always known we loved the names Colby and Maci and once those were used up, we had a blank slate. I made lists and Kyle vetoed pretty much everything - except Hannah! So there was our first name. As we thought about what would go well with Hannah and have some connection to family, one of my best friends, Elisabeth, came to mind pretty quickly. Not a family name, but I really liked it. Before I even told Kyle my idea, he came up with the same one. "I thought of a middle name, but it's not a family name. What about naming her after Elisabeth?" My thoughts exactly! It just clicked. I consider Elisabeth one of my very best friends and a truly wonderful namesake for our little one.
The third trimester - final stretch! I feel humongous and Kyle (and pretty much everyone I know) says that my belly has never stuck out this far before. Either she's going to be a big baby or I have a little extra fluid. Shirts are tight and my back is aching! The veins on my right side are getting worse - I sure do hope those go away - and all the blood backing up on that side make my leg, ankle and foot swell. Again, just on the right. I'm a picture of pregnancy perfection! Ha! Luckily it's winter and pants are a blessing. I had to skip out of work at 32 weeks because the unpredictable 12 hour shifts were making me have pretty strong contractions and were killing my back and feet. Once I stopped working, I really felt a lot better. Aside from being the size of a house, I have enjoyed the last stage of pregnancy. Hannah is a mover! She is constantly kicking and rolling and causing my belly to contort into all kinds of odd shapes. She especially likes to jab into my bladder. Be kind, little one!
Colby and Maci are so excited to meet their baby sister. They talk to her and give her hugs constantly. We started a countdown chain about 2 weeks before her arrival so they could have a visual and stop asking, "When is she gonna come out???"
Kyle is stressed enough for both of us about the actual delivery. Him and hospitals don't mix. Plus it will make a stressful workweek for him - the dairy doesn't exactly give paternity leave. Cows still have to be fed and milked. Plus we just happened to buy a new (to us) tractor and it's supposed to be delivered on Tuesday - the same day as my c-section. But it will all work out and I think that he is pretty excited and ready to have her home safe and sound. I'm not nervous at all to be honest - not yet anyway. Maci's delivery went so smooth and wasn't even that painful afterward. I'm hoping for the same scenario this time, but I realize that it could be the complete opposite. We'll take whatever comes!
My bag is packed, her clothes are washed and put away, all of our baby gear is ready, we're stocked up on diapers and wipes and blankets and burp cloths. My taxes are done and my house is clean (for the moment). I just need to put the car seat in the car and pack clothes for the kids to stay at Nana's and Grandma's while we're at the hospital. So bring on February 24th - we're excited to meet this little lady!!!
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