33 weeks

It's amazing how slowly and quickly a pregnancy goes. Day by day, life seems to slowly click away. However, I honestly can't believe I'm 7 1/2 months pregnant now! The time really went by much faster than I realized. It's hard to believe that by the end of next month, we will be bringing a new little baby home. Am I ready? Not really in any way. Me and the kids finally cleared out the baby's room--it used to be the kids' playroom. Other than that...all my baby stuff is still in boxes. The crib is still shrink wrapped (from our move a couple years ago). I haven't even looked through my old baby clothes, and I'm kind of dreading it. I'm afraid everything is going to be covered in a nasty yellow color, left over from all of the spit-up. And, I'm definitely not ready for the spit-up.

I'm not the type of person to document my bump size. It's not really something I'm proud of. I'm more of the type of girl who absolutely hates being pregnant and hates how I look when I am pregnant. I pretty much shy away from the camera. But, I couldn't resist taking these pictures. Susie is constantly kissing, rubbing, and hugging my belly. She's absolutely in love with my tummy, the baby, and the idea of being a big sister (and having a little sister for that matter). I had to take some pictures of me and the kids to help me remember the excitement in our house these past few months.

As for the pregnancy...

I've been going to physical therapy for over a month now, and I really believe it is helping. I still have bad days...days when my legs feel so stiff and sore I really think I might crack them off my hips. And, every time I roll out of bed my hip pops so strongly it gives me the eeby-jeebies. But, I typically have more good days than bad now. Much better than all bad. :) I have a 30 minute exercise routine "prescribed" by the physical therapist that I complete every morning and evening. The days when I miss, I really do notice a difference in the way my body feels. I've also started wearing a brace during the daytime to help keep my pelvis inline.

Now, instead of constant joint pain, I've started in on more frequent and somewhat painful contractions. Sometimes they get going pretty regularly, but so far no problems and I've been able to stop them on my own. The other night I actually got in the shower at 1 am to relax the contractions that were keeping me awake. I had the same contractions with Susie, but they didn't start until a few weeks later. By the time they got bad enough, I was 37 weeks pregnant, so they just let me go into labor. I'm afraid this time around I may be suffering for the next month and a half from insomnia because of all the contractions.

The best part of all this is that in 7 weeks, I will be done with the pregnancy. I will have a beautiful baby girl--still yet to be named--to bring home. I'm not sure if I'm up for the challenge, but I'm definitely willing to give it a shot. I can't wait for that instant feeling of love to fall on me when I hold my new baby. I remember how I felt when Susie was born. She was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen (I still believe that to this day!). I loved her so much from the instant they put her in my arms. And, of course, that love has just grown and grown. It's amazing how much room for love there is in your heart. It's endless. I can't wait for my heart to grow a little bigger when this new baby enters the world.