35 Weeks! Just Call Me Waddles :)

How Far Along:  35 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: 21 pounds

Maternity Clothes: Yep, moving into my fall clothes now!

Stretch Marks: Very minimal!

Sleep: Impossible.  Laying down in any position is so uncomfortable and when I have to roll to another side it takes forever- I'm exhausted all the time, but sleep is just not coming easy

Best Moment This Week: Express Baby Shower & My mom and Taylors blessings

Miss Anything: Being able to get up or roll over or walk or move at all without pain or struggle!

Movement: All day and night- this little boy loves to be active.  Think he is going to be one heck of a soccer player like his daddy :)

Food Cravings: Hmmm....I guess grilled cheese, root beer, and mexican.  I eat less now than I did before I was pregnant- belly is full with baby, no room for food!

Anything make you quesy or sick: Not much anymore

Gender Predicition- BOY!

Labor Signs:Contractions!

Symptoms:   Swollen feet, exhaustion, contractions, back pain, waddling, emotional

Belly Button in or out: Staying flat, still hasnt popped!

Wedding ring on or off: On! So happy about that!

Looking Forward to:   Holding our baby boy for the first time!

Nursery Progress: It is 100% ready- thanks to Mom and Taylor!



Baby is now the size of a coconut!  He should be about 17.2-18.7 inches long and still in the 4.2-5.8 pound range (he is estimated at 6.8 pounds right now though.....).  His hearing is fully developed and responds to high pitched noises.  His kidneys and liver are also now developed.  Most of his basic physical development is now complete- now its just adding on some more weight!

I've avoided almost all swelling so far- thankfully- except for my feet!  I cant wear anything except flip flops now and even those are so tight they leave indention marks on my poor feet.  This might present a potential problem since Fall and cooler weather is now here, but since I'm on so much bed rest- I wont have to worry about that too much :)

I can tell the time is getting closer, because my fears and anxiety have switched from pregnancy related to parenting related.  I've done a lot of research of infant/child development- I want to make sure that we do everything we can to make the best environment for our son and I don't want to be oblivious to signs of potential problems.  I've also found a lot of research about television and infants- and how it is recommended that children under 2 watch zero tv and have no background tv.  ZERO TV in our house might be impossible- but it is something I am taking seriously and will limit very closely with Braxton.  Our pediatrician has told us he needs to sleep in our room (in a pack and play, not our bed) until he is 6 months old to help reduce the risk of SIDS- which we fully intend to do.  But I was thinking how we always watch tv in bed to unwind before we go to sleep...all these little things that we will have to be more conscious of and change.... so much to learn about!  I just hope that I know what I'm doing once we get home from the hospital.  Everyone says it just comes to you- I sure hope so because sometimes I just feel so lost!

We had our CPR and Breastfeeding classes this week- I learned alot and feel better prepared on both topics!  We only have one class left- Infant Massage and then we have completed all our parenting classes together :)

Wednesday was Brians last day of Konnect- I know it was hard on him to stop serving in this ministry- but we just thought with all the complications and being this far along it was best for our family for him to be home with me.  I know I am very grateful to have him home with me at night for these last few weeks in case anything happens!

Thursday Brians work threw us a Baby Shower.  I was just so amazed by them- I dont even work there and they took the time to throw us a shower- how awesome is that?!?  They made a gorgeous hand make baby cake and punch and there was even our first diaper cake.  So adorable!  I knew Express was a great company to work for, but I was just blown away by the amazing people in that company.  They went out of their way to make that hour so special for us and just show us some love!  Big thank you to everyone who helped put that on and who came to celebrate with us!  We got necessities  that we really needed and some super cute stuff for our lil boy!

We also went and got our Tdap shots together- the shot wasn't near as bad as I expected, but my arm was sore for the next few days!  I think almost all of our family has gotten the shot now, which is good.  In order for them to be around Braxton they need to have it at least 2 weeks before he gets here.  (I know there is a new movement to not vaccinate- but we are following our doctors advice and going the vaccination route)

I cant even walk from room to room in our house anymore without awful contractions- and the nursery was in desperate need of organization- so Taylor and my mom offered to come over Sunday afternoon and do it all for me- how lucky am I???  It was so wonderful- I was able to sit in the recliner and help direct (in all honesty they didnt need me- those two are pros at this!) They got everything organized and decorated and completly ready for us to bring Braxton home!

Those two- my mom and The Beard Family have blessed us in our time of need in a way that can only be summed up as a gift from God-  I dont know how to thank you guys enough for everything, but please know we are beyond grateful and thankful for everything.