It's Go Time! Baby Samuel arrives tomorrow!

I can't believe we are here and it is officially time for baby Samuel to come out. It is such a surreal feeling full of mixed emotions. On one hand, I can't wait to hold him, see what he looks like, see him with his big sisters, and have him be the missing piece to our family that we have longed for for the past 2 years. But I also am nervous. Not about having 3 kids or even about how things will go once he is here. I am nervous about the actual labor and delivery part. I felt this same way when I had Blakely. I just know things aren't all rainbows and butterflies and the motherly instinct of what if something goes wrong kicks in because I have another child at home to take care of. Blakely cried little tonight when I left her and it just broke my heart.

I am also not sure how I feel about this induction deal. It has been super convenient to clean my house, pack my bags, drop the girls at Gammoe's house, but the anticipation that comes with it is not so lovely. I also know I am going to never be pregnant again so I am just cherishing these last few kicks and the last day of having my belly.

So off we go tomorrow morning to the hospital. I call at 6 am to see if they have room for us first and if they are full they schedule me for another day. I will be so upset if this is the case so please add that to the list of prayers that we get in and get things rolling tomorrow. Then once we are there we will start the pitocin, break my water and hopefully meet Sammy a few hours later. My previous labors were about 12 hours from first contraction to birth. About 8 hours once I was at the hospital so hopefully he will be here by tomorrow afternoon. I would love some prayers that labor progresses smoothly and we welcome a perfectly healthy little boy with no complications throughout the day. Thank you all so much for being on this journey with me over the past 2 years and I have felt the love and prayers throughout. Stay tuned to instagram or facebook for updates on when Samuel arrives and hopefully I will be back next week with a birth story. XOXO

38 Week Bumpdate

Hey guys! I am not doing a full bumpdate with all of the categories I do monthly. I just wanted to touch base with you all and give you an update on how the Doctors went today. I am officially 38 weeks today and I was 2 cm dilated and 70% effaced. The dilation doesn't worry me too much as far as going in to labor ahead of time. The effacement does a smidge though. I just have never been this effaced before when checked with the girls so hopefully he stays put. It makes sense that my cervix is shortening and thinning because he is so darn low. Lots of pressure down there. Dr. Garcia said he will most likely see me next Friday unless my water breaks. I have never had that happen so I am sure I will be fine. I really would like him to wait till Friday so we aren't rushing like crazy people to get kids places, bags in the car, all that good stuff. Not to mention this is the busiest time for Dave so having it planned and his coworkers knowing Dave is out next Friday is super helpful. Lets hope it stays that way.

So thats all that is really going on. We had lots of fun this week. Monday Blakely had her Christmas Show and then we went out to dinner at the Loop. Wednesday was Polar Express Day where they got to wear pajamas. Thursday was Delainey's Christmas party and my neighborhood bunco and today was Blakely's Christmas party and the doctor. We are officially on Christmas Break and won't be back to school for 16 days! The fun will continue all this next week too! The 4 granddaughters are going to the movies tom with Gram and Pops, Sunday we have Christmas Eve church and then dinner at Ruth's Chris to celebrate Marcia'a birthday, Monday is Christmas Eve with my family, and then Tuesday is Christmas! Lots of fun and craziness to be had. I  hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas celebrating Jesus' birth! While you are praying I will gladly take a few my way for Sammy to stay put till the 28th and for a smooth quick healthy delivery next week! The more prayers the merrier! I will hopefully be back on Thursday night before we go in for the big day! Stay tuned to my instagram though for my up to date posts. Talk to you all soon! XOXO

9 Month Bumpdate

How far along are you: 37 Weeks now! I took my pics though at 36 weeks.

Size of baby: We had an ultrasound on Tuesday and big boy Sammy was measuring 6 lb 6 ounces. He was head down and all looked great!

Cravings: I am really enjoying some publix sprinkle cookies, cheese and crackers, and still any pasta. I've been doing lots of oatmeal and coffee in the morning. Nothing I am dying for though!

Weight gained: 34 pounds. Gail the ultrasound lady said he should be gaining about a half pound a week so I am attributing 2 of the 4 lbs to him :) I'm thinking I will max out at 38-40 in the end. I am certainly looking bigger though. My face has started to swell my legs are nice and large. Oh well we've only got 2 more weeks.

Sleep: I'm adjusting to the lack of sleep that will come with a baby. LOL I think I get about a 4 hour stretch then it is hit or miss how much I sleep after that. It takes lots of work and pain to flip from one side to the other so sleep isn't the best these days...hence the coffee. :)

Baby Movement: He is still moving good. He is definitely running out of room though so the movements are more dramatic. My stomach will stretch into a square or I'll get a good jab in my pubic bone. It isn't so much flips and spins like back in the day. He still get hiccups a few times a day.

How Mom is feeling: I'm doing alright. Movement has certainly slowed down. I walk/waddle much slower. I feel like all my joints are softening and loosening so it is causing lots of pain in my pelvis, groin and even my shoulder. I googled it and I diagnosed myself with something called Symbiosis pubis dysfunction. Basically I am realeasing too much relaxin and stuff is softening to early and causing pain. I am surviving though. Key is taking breaks often and not over doing it. Emotionally I feel great though and am super excited about how soon we will get to meet Sammy.

Miss Anything: Nope. I am going to miss him kicking inside me once he is born though.

Nursery Progress: The nursery is officially done!

Best moment this month: All the fun Christmas activities we have been busy doing. It is making these last few weeks fly by though. The girls are doing a little paper chain counting down the days till he arrives. We have 13 more days till the big day! Ahh! This week alone I had supper club, went to see the Elf at the Alhambra with Delainey, Daves work Christmas dinner, the Nutcracker with the girls today and tomorrow we are doing a  hayride at Emily's house. We got our tree and our house all decorated and have been enjoying all the Christmas movies. The girls have one more week of school with each of them having a Christmas party, Blake has a Christmas program and I have one last appointment on Friday. Lots of fun to look forward to.

Looking forward to next month: I can't wait to see if I am dilating at all at my appointment next Friday. I will be 38 weeks and it will be my last dr appointment. I am scheduled for an induction at 7 am on December 28th. :) Hopefully Sammy cooperates and all goes according to plan since it is all laid out so beautifully. It is just so nice having childcare for the girls lined up and for Dave's work. He would be my child though if he came in and said forget your plans and did his own thing! We are also excited for Christmas and all the excitement it brings for the girls!

Look at how precious this onesie I got from my mom's friend Dawn. How sweet! Can't wait to put him in it!

So this is it for the Bumpdates. I will update you guys next Friday on how my last dr appointment goes, but things are crazy around here so stay tuned to Instagram for more frequent updates on what is going on! Thanks for following along on this journey with me the past 9 months and being the best support and prayer warriors possible! I love and appreciate you all dearly! XOXO

Thanksgiving Festivities

So although I started decorating for Christmas on November 1st lol, Thanksgiving wasn't completely skipped. Blakely had a Thanksgiving performance and feast at her school which was great! It happened to be the day we headed to Disney so Delainey missed school altogether and got to come. Dave also did which was his first time ever making it since its in the morning! So we basically had the whole fam there including the grandmas! 

I love our preschool and all the fun perfomances/activiites they do. We had a full thanksgiving lunch a few days early to get us in the Thanksgiving spirit!

 Like I said in a previous post, Delainey and I came down with strep 3 days before Thanksgiving so that put a little damper on our plans, but by Thursday we were thankfully better and able to go to Gammoe's for a lovely Thanksgiving feast! I think she literally cooked 10 things just for the 8 of us! They are amazing! We had a nice relaxing morning at the house, got my car all set up for Sammy (which I love my van by the way. So functional for 3 kids), decorated the house a little more, watched the parade on TV and then headed to Gammoes around 2. The neighbors got a new puppy so we played with her for a while and just enjoyed a cool day outside by the fire pit and a lovely dinner after.

I didn't venture out for any black friday shopping this year, but did complete majority of online. I think I have 2 people left and I am done! Didn't feel like standing in lines for hours. Friday we played with Kelli and her kids, had an oyster roast and just enjoyed the down time.

Saturday we went to watch the FSU game with some friends and then Dave and I did some shopping together and had dinner out while the girls had a sleepover at Gammoes. It was a lovely day. So overall we had a great Thanksgiving break even though it started out a little rough. God bless some medicine! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving too surrounded by all your loved ones! XOXO