It is getting close...

I am 37 weeks & 5 days pregnant today. We are getting close to holding our little girl in our arms. I have finally seen my midwife last Friday after not beng able to get in for a month due to her canceling her appointments because of women going into labor. I had my own platelets checked at my NP job since I was getting close to delivery & still not knowing my platelet status. A week ago they were 83K - the lowest I've even been. Sally consulted an anesthesiologist who said he was comfortable with giving me an epidural with platelets > 75K. So I just hope they will not drop lower. The alternative is having a general anesthesia in case I need a C-section due to a risk of epidural hematoma (which could cause paralysis). I have a feeling I am getting close to delivery since I've had such an energy burst since the last week. In the past I would walk wth Gerritt around the block & be ready for a nap. Now I can pull weeds, wash windows, do grocery shopping, make dinner, do laundry, & take Gerritt to a playground all in one day without having to sit down to rest or take a nap. My hubby has been nesting as well. He started to paint our bedroom & is in the process of organizing our closets (installing shelves & racks to use the closet space more efficiently).
Chris & Gerry visited us this weekend to celebrate my birthday a week early. I am going to be 32 next Saturday. Maybe Sophia & I will share a birthday like Chris & her Mom...
I've been working a lot less - only a couple of days a week, & spending much time doing projects around the house as well as enjoying last few weeks of freedom with Gerritt. Part of me is sad that Gerritt's life as an only child will end in a couple of weeks. Like my midwife said you sort of go through a mourning process of loosing your special relationship with an existing child since a new one will change the family dynamics. So I've been enjoying having a lot of special time with Gerritt - snuggling on a couch together while watching his favorite cartoons; spending a lot of time outdoors such as gardening, exploring our neighborhood, & going to our favorite playground at the Robinswood Community Park; reading books, & cooking & sharing meals. It is not like all of this is going to disappear after the baby comes, we just going to have less one-on-one time together. However, I am happy Gerritt is not going to be an only child. Once Sophia is older, they are going to have so much fun together. Even though Gerrtt has a lot of quiet time at home now, he comes alive when he is around other people. He is definitely a social butterfly. After taking 20-30 minutes to warm up & to stop being clingy, Gerritt loves to show off in front of others. He thrives on praises & positive reinforcement. He has learned a few new words in the past couple of weeks: "Fike!" (our dog Spike), "Sausy" (sausage), "Fee!" (fish), puppy, nice, bump & "Mommy!" (instead of his old Nahny). It melts my heart every time he says "Mommy!." His favorite word is "Mmmmore!" (more). He uses it whether he wants to watch a different cartoon (he keeps saying "Mmmmore!" until we put on the one he likes), eat more food, for Daddy to make more bubbles, or to continue any activity he really enjoys.
Weather has been really nice lately - sunny & warm. The flowers & cherry trees are blooming. Such a beautiful time of year to have a baby! Plus we have a summer to look forward to. Gerritt will have lots of outdoor fun. There is nothing worse than being cooped up indoors like when we were snowed in for a couple of weeks during past winter.

Spring is in the air

I am 36 weeks pregnant already. Just when you think you can't get any bigger or more uncomfortable & then you do. My belly feels tight & burns occasionally on the top from stretching. Sophia has been very active, moving around & pushing me in my ribs with her elbows & knees. Sometimes my whole belly jiggles - fascinating to watch. On my last midwife appointment about 3 weeks ago, Sophia was in a breech position, so I had to do pelvic tilt exercises several times a day & visualize her turning head down. When I went for a pregnant belly lab (to help UW midwifery & Nurse Practitioner students to learn about assessing a pregnant woman) a week later, she turned head down (confirmed by 3 midwives). I was relieved, although part of me wished for an "easy" route of a scheduled C-section.
Gerritt goes to his daycare 4-5 times a week now. I am so grateful to have an affordable daycare that he loves (only $40/day). He hasn't been sleeping well for the past 5 days - teething again. His incisors are coming through as well as his molars on the top. He's been needy, cranky, waking up 2-3 times a night, wanting to be held & fed. He still sleeps with his stuffed animals (a teddy bear & 2 dogs) as well as his green baby blanket. It's hard to pick him up with my big belly. I am not sleeping as well either - tossing & turning frequently. Sometimes I can't even turn - I get bad cramps on the sides of my belly & have to take slow deep breaths & wait for them to go away. My husband has to sleep in our guest room sometimes since I am such a light sleeper now & his snoring keeps me up.
Our kitchen remodel is complete & it is sure great to be done with having strangers in the house. I've planted some flowers (peonies & dahlias) in our garden. Too late for spring bulbs, so those will have to wait until fall. I've been cooking & freezing food for the last few days - lasagna, beef & barley soup, oat bran carrot muffins - to have some food ready to eat after the baby comes. I bought tons of Amy's organic frozen meals as well. I've recently just finished reading Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series books (all 4 of them in 1 week!). It is a love story between teenagers - a human girl Bella & a vampire Edward. I literally could not put the books down until I was finished. I little treat to myself before all of the craziness with a newborn... I was even thinking of naming our daughter Isabella after the main character of the book, but my hubby was not so fond of this idea. :-)
Gerritt has grown again. I am not sure how tall he is now, but he is definitely heavier. I've skipped his 18-month check-up & just took him to the Health Department for his shots (those check-ups are just too anxiety-producing for him). When he wakes up in the morning, my hubby usually changes his diaper. After that Gerritt runs to my bedroom yelling, "Mommy, mommy!" I can't linger in bed even for 5 minutes because he gets my red robe off the hook & brings it to me & then says "Amah!" (I am ready to eat). I get up, warm up his bottle of formula & we snuggle on the couch while watching cartoons. Now his favorite one is "Cars." He wants to watch it in the morning & at night right before going to bed. Probably too much TV, but I don't have much energy to fight him or provide another activity that's similarly entertaining. He usually wants to me to sit next to him while watching cartoons, so if am doing something else, he pats the couch next to him & tells me "See, see!" (sit, sit). Gerritt loves anything to do with cars, so he plays with his little toy cars & always points out to cars & buses on the streets. He loves to watch out for big buses while riding in the car & gets really excited when he sees one by yelling, "Bah, bah!" Gerritt loves to help so if you ask him to bring you shoes, clothes or a towel, he'll do it. One of his favorite activities is to look through family photos on the computer. He loves to point out, "Nahny (for mommy)," "Daddy!," "Dog!" or "Baby!" He doesn't like his Korean grandmother as much. If we ask him, "Do you want to go to halmony (Korean for grandmother)?", he'll shake his head side to side & say "Aaah!" (his way of saying no).