39 weeks today!

Anytime you're ready, Evan!  We are one week from the due date and anxiously awaiting her arrival.  It would be AWESOME if she decided to show up this weekend!  :)  The weather will be breaking to cooler, fall temperatures (lows in the 40's!) and the humidity will be gone---my favorite time of the year!  But of course, she'll come when she's ready....as long as she's healthy, I don't care!

Here is what she's doing at 39 weeks:
One uncomfortable complaint of late pregnancy is frequent hiccups. No, not you, your baby. Because there is no air around your baby, when she practices breathing, it can cause amniotic fluid to get into her windpipe, resulting in those regularly spaced thumps that make you think you're carrying a jumping bean in your belly. 

Other news this week:

• The lanugo (an exotic word for soft, downy hair) that used to cover your baby's body has mostly disappeared, but you may find a bit leftover on the shoulders, forehead and neck. Don't freak and think you've given birth to a monkey: It'll fall out soon.
• The color of baby's skin is changing from a red-pink hue to a white or blue-pink color (even in babes with dark skin). These changes are due to the amount of fat your little pudger is putting on. The circumference of your baby's head and abdomen are about the same size now (though you may not be able to tell if your baby's born with the common cone-shaped head!).
• The placenta is lending your Mini antibodies that'll keep him strong and healthy after birth. That said, it's still a good idea to invest in that mega-size bottle of hand sanitizer.
• At this point your little critter is about 19 to 20 inches long and weights about 7 pounds. That's just around the size of a large rabbit. What's up Doc?

I can definitely agree with the hiccups part.  She gets them quite a bit, and they're quick hiccups too. 
Of course, we're ready to see her and hold her....but I know there will be so much that I will miss about being pregnant.  Being able to feel her little legs and arms and all of her little movements (even hiccups) has been amazing.  And nudging Jeff to look and feel my stomach when she's moving....and seeing his face light up.  I'll miss him talking to my belly too!  :)  It's such a weird feeling not having any control over this little person growing inside of me!
I have been EXTREMELY lucky and blessed throughout this whole pregnancy and wouldn't trade it for the world.  I pray that the labor and delivery go just as well.  We will find out hopefully soon!!  :)

the right direction...

Just FYI:
Had a pelvic exam today at the doctor appointment...

1 cm dilated
50% effaced
at pelvic station -2

Woohoo!  Moving in the right direction!  Let's go Evan!  :)

Ready...

Going out to dinner with the Jenkins crew in Hillsborough...

And this is 11 days until the due date....

We're ready when you are, Evan!!  :)

38 weeks and lightening

Today is 38 weeks!  2 weeks until the due date!


Here's what's going on with the little lady:
Your baby's intestines have accumulated a considerable amount of meconium (the code name for black, tar-like baby poop), which is usually eliminated shortly after birth and gives you your first experience with the 100-wipe diaper change. 

Here's what else is up:

• Your baby might just scratch herself in the womb as the fingernails have grown over the fingertips now. Resist painting them hot pink when she arrives.
• Baby's lungs continue to mature and her brain and nerve function are working better every day. The latter two will continue to mature until Junior is a teenager, at which point she'll know it all (or at least she'll think she does). 
• Your baby weighs about 6 1/2 pounds and is around 19 or 20 inches long—as long as a duffle bag (in case you needed an excuse to go shopping for a new bag for your labor gear).

And Evan has definitely "dropped" or gone through the "lightening" phase.  Which is awesome!  I can breathe easier and I am much more comfortable!  She has been moving around like crazy today too. 
We have our bags packed for the hospital and are anxiously awaiting her arrival.  We can't wait to finally SEE her and HOLD her in our arms!  Oh, this youngin' will be spoiled rotten.  :)


We will try to keep this updated if anything changes!

The belly!

The making of Evan...

 

Woohoo!  Excited for her arrival!!  :)

We've got just a couple more weeks until the due date.  We'll see when she decides to come!  :)

Nursery

Before pictures of the nursery (yes, this was our office/workout/junk room):

The "making of" the nursery:

Daddy painting!

Almost done....just have to do the trim!

Evan and Mama hangin out

putting together the crib!

Making a home-made mobile

And the final product:

We made the mobile on the left and the framed letters above her crib!  :)

This was the rocking chair that mom used for me and Robert...she sanded it, painted it white and made the matching cushions for us!  The mirror was done by Jay, Jacy and Jackie!

Love it!  :)

So yep, we are just waiting on Miss Evan to show up.  At some point, I will post before and after pictures of our guest bathroom and kitchen.  They've been painted and look completely different now too.  :)  

Jeff and Jacy are filming a wedding today.  I decided to sit this one out since I really could go into labor at any time and I don't want to risk anything.  So I'm doing laundry and cleaning/straightening up things around the house today.  I hope everyone is having a great, rainy, cold Saturday!  :)

Full-Term Baby!

Here's the update at 37 weeks....

Huge news this week: You're carrying a full-term baby! If you were to go into labor today, all systems would be a go. Woohoo! Even though you can't wait for the little bambino to quite literally rear his head, keep in mind that your bun benefits from every day in the oven. 

Other ticker-tape-worthy developments:

• Baby's growth slows down dramatically this week, which is great news for your birth canal. His bones are still soft and pliable and will solidify after he's born. More great news for your birth canal.
• So if he's all cooked and ready to go, what the heck is he still doing in there?! He's busy practicing for "life on the outside," working on his breathing, sucking, sleeping, gazing and peeing abilities. The only thing he can't practice yet is his ability to scream at the top of his lungs when he's hungry—but he'll do plenty of that in a few weeks.
• At this point babies vary in size, but the average length is between 19 and 20 inches and most babies weigh approximately 6 pounds. About the size of an average largemouth bass caught in Minnesota by your cousin Earl.

  

Pictures of the nursery will hopefully be posted this weekend!  Stay-tuned!  :)

Maternity Pictures!

You have to sign into facebook to view the slideshow of our maternity pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10100322254161898

And if you want to view them individually, you can go to www.studioyouphotography.com then click "enter site", and then on "clients" and use the password jennings0911.

We LOVE the pictures and it's going to be so hard to narrow it down!!  Thank you STUDIO You---Allison & Lianna!!  Cannot wait until Evan is here to take beautiful pictures of her!  :)

36....almost 37 weeks

I know I've been slack on posting updates with everything getting so close!

Here is what Evan is going through at 36 weeks:

Your baby continues to put on weight at about 1/2 pound each week. This layer of fat will help your baby regulate his body temperature after leaving your climate-controlled womb. In fact, your baby will be 15 percent fat at birth (and you ... well that's another story). Even in the womb, your baby can listen, feel, touch and see. The only thing separating him from living in the outside world is a little thing called the birth canal. 

Other highlights this week:

• His gums are firm with ridges that look somewhat like teeth, though his actual pearly whites won't start breaking through until he's between three months and a year old.
• Your baby has definite patterns of sleep and wakefulness—opening his eyes while awake and closing them while sleeping. Your baby will become alert and turn his head toward light and sound just as a newborn would—except when you put on that Celine Dion CD. Then the baby puts his hands up, turns away and gurgles, "Oh no you didn't!"
• Your baby is now around 18 1/2 inches long and nearly 6 pounds—just about as big as a breadbox!

Yep, so she's just getting fatter and fatter!  :)

And here are some belly pics from 36 weeks....in the bare-belly pictures, I had just woken up from a nap and the textured couch cushions left imprints on my back and belly!  haha...oh well, I'll take it if it means I can get a good nap!  :

Our next doctor appointment is tomorrow.  Hopefully everything is still going great.  And we get to view our maternity pictures tonight!  I'm excited to see how they turned out.  :)

Hope to keep everyone updated with new posts and pictures!  Thanks for checking in on us!  :)

Baby Shower #2!

Amanda and Chicky hosted our second baby shower for Evan last weekend.  It was AMAZING to say the least.  The shower was originally planned for Saturday, but Hurricane Irene came that day, so we bumped it back to Sunday and the weather was perfect!  The girls went ALL OUT, and we had such a great time with family & friends.  We can't thank everyone enough!!!
Here are some pictures from the shower:

The belly cast!

I know I am over a week behind, but here is the official belly picture for 34 weeks:

We are hoping to get our hospital bag packed this weekend (Labor Day Weekend) just in case anything happens in the next few weeks!  Can't believe it's getting so close.

We took our maternity pictures on Thursday, and we can't wait to see them!  My only concern now is that there will be too many to choose from....but that's ok.  We only need a few.  :)

We also finished our birthing classes that Jackie was doing for us on Thursday.  We hosted 3 other expecting couples at our house and Jackie filled us all in more on what to expect for the delivery and what all of our options are.  We feel so much more prepared now!

We are finishing up Evan's nursery....and by that, I mean we just have to hang things on her walls.  And then I will post pictures on here.  I've had several people ask to see her nursery pictures, and I will definitely post some pics soon!  :)

I'm typing this at about 6:30am on Sunday morning....been up since about 4:30am and just couldn't go back to sleep!  Guess I should get used to that though!  :)  But at least I can take a nap later on if I feel like it.  Gotta love Sundays!