38 weeks.

Just two more weeks left?! This whole pregnancy things has flown by, and I'm not sure I like it very much, because I know that when this babe comes, time will go by even faster, and that makes me feel like this babe is already growing up too fast, even though it's not even here yet! Slow. the. crap. down. Cripes.

My midwife estimated that my baby is about 6 1/2 pounds now (that's a really rough estimate though). My belly definitely feels crowded, and I'm sure my baby is almost ready to come out. It stretches all the time, like it's trying to bust outta there! And what do you know, it's as big as a pumpkin, right in time for Halloween! I thought that was pretty awesome.

This week, the sudden wave of uncomfortableness finally hit me. Now I wake up in the middle of the night about half the time, and can't get back to sleep for hours, if at all. I've got lightning crotch, but only in my thighs (lighting thighs...?), and my feet and hands get swollen every so often. It's funny at night when I try to take my wedding ring off. I have a tiny cut on my left ring finger from trying to pull that thing off so many times. I breathe like an obese lady who just ran a marathon every time I move, and bending over is almost impossible (and when it is possible, I feel like dying). I think the worst of it, though, is this acid reflux I get, ya know, about fourteen times a day. Yucky.

But with all the bad stuff, there's twice as much good stuff. For example, reading our new books to this little babe (it loves it, and moves around so much to the sound of our voices), and getting the last pieces of the nursery put together, and looking back in the car to see a little car seat (we finally installed it!) and thinking that there will be a brand new baby in there soon! Not to mention looking at all the tiny clothes in the closet, and making a list of what to pack in the diaper bag (I've looked forward to that for so long... don't think I'm weird. I'm a list maker, and a list involving my baby?! Hot dang!), and feeling the babe's little back and bum push out from my belly, and rubbing them (it loves that, too). My life is about to drastically change, and I really couldn't be more excited!

I'm wrapping up my time at work now, too. Today is my very last Monday, and Friday will be my last day ever. I didn't think I would be sad about it, but now that it's actually here, I am feeling quite down. I'll miss the people here. My boss, who shares his dinner recipes with me, is holding a few of them hostage to make sure I keep in touch. I told him that I'd show up unannounced every now and then with my ornery baby and tell him to entertain me while I sit in his office. I think it'll be a good trade.

I can't believe that I'm this close to being done. It doesn't seem real! Soon we'll have a little baby to take care of and snuggle. Zac told me the other night, "In a few weeks, we'll be parents for the rest of our lives." Here we go!

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maternity pictures.

Remember when I mentioned that we got our pictures taken a couple of weeks ago? We got them back tonight, and while we were looking through them over cookies and a Reese's blizzard from Dairy Queen, Zac and I were really digging them! I kept turning to Zac and saying, "Oh my gosh, I love these!" I've made Heather my go-to photographer (she'll be there snapping away when I give birth!), and I'd highly recommend her! She's so much fun, and makes you feel at ease, and makes sure you look good in your pictures. You can visit her website here for more information.

Here are a few of my favorites!

37 weeks.

I had my last baby shower yesterday; a children's book themed shower! It was so much fun, and I got so many good books that I cannot wait to read to this little babe. I am obsessed with children's books, so I was in heaven. It was so good to see everyone on Zac's side of the family, and eat quiches and cheesecake and chocolate-covered coconut almonds.

This week, although I'm not quite at the point where I just want this baby out, I've been getting acid reflux quite a bit. I woke up with it in the middle of the night last night, and every time I bend over, I feel like throwing up, so that's fun. I can definitely tell that my thighs and hips are getting bigger (boo), but I keep telling myself that it will go back to normal after I have the baby (thanks to this little contraption I bought a couple of weeks ago--I've only heard good things about it), so I'm doing pretty good at keeping my chin up about my appearance. 

The popcorn and orange juice cravings are coming back for one last hurrah, I think, because I can't stop obsessing over them! Just trying to get my fill in before the baby comes (we bought 2 jugs of orange juice). Zac and I have also decided to take advantage of Friday and Saturday nights while it's just the two of us, and have been going on lots of dates lately. I'm certainly not complaining. Spending time with that man is heaven on earth.

This baby is somewhere around 6 pounds now. That's how big I was when I was born, so it's hard to believe that I'm so close! Just 3 more weeks! Not to mention I'm considered "full term" now, but I'm still hoping for a November baby. And the full moon last night didn't put me into labor, so that was nice. This little guy or girl is still head down, and sometimes I feel its feet all the way on the side of my stomach. It loves to stretch out as far as it can, and it gets the hiccups so much still. I love them.

For the most part, we've got everything ready to go. If the baby came right now, we'd be fine and have everything we need. We just need to do some finishing touches in the nursery, like hang the book shelves and make more crib sheets and changing pad covers. My hospital bag still isn't all the way packed, but it's close, and the car seat still isn't installed. I honestly wonder if we'll get around to that before I go into labor. :)

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fiore for dinner.

Remember how much we love fire-grilled pizza? This is not a joke. It's the only pizza I'll eat anymore, pretty much. Except for our homemade pizza, because that stuff is pretty good. Well, on Friday night, the Fiore truck was just a couple of blocks from our apartment, waiting for us to come eat their pizza. It was destiny, so we had to go. We walked over in the chilly fall air and ordered a meat-loaded pizza to share (Zac's choice... I personally like the margarita...) and sat on the curb to eat. And it was just as delightful as the last time.

I think the number one reason that makes fire-grilled pizza way better than any other pizza is the burnt edges. I know that sounds silly, but there's nothing like it. It's so tasty. I decided that Fiore is my second favorite pizza. My first is Pizzeria 712, and my third is a three-way tie between Macaroni Grill, Foundry Grill, and Vinto. 

I was never so obsessed about pizza until I met Zac. It's definitely our favorite meal, and we make it a point to try and make it weekly at home. We also just very recently decided that when we buy a house, we will build a brick oven in the backyard to grill our pizzas, and it will be wonderful. Ah, dreaming of a future house with our future homemade fire-grilled pizza...

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so surreal.

I sat at my desk this morning and my baby was moving back and forth and giving my belly little pushes for what seemed like most of the morning. I stopped what I was doing and looked down at my moving belly and just took it in. Lately I've become to used to those little movements, but today I just sat and watched, paying full attention to those slides and feelings that were happening right there in my belly. And then it hit me. There's a baby in there! 

Holy crap, there's an actual infant inside of me, and I get to meet it so soon, and it will be mine, and I'll be a mother! I felt so excited, but full of disbelief, like, is this really happening? Sometimes it's hard to realize, because I can't see the baby. It's easy to forget that's what in there. An actual baby. But this morning, it struck me what I'll be doing in just a few weeks, I'll have a baby. I don't feel ready, but at the same time, I'm so ready.

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36 weeks.

We can mark this week as the week I suddenly became really uncomfortable and swollen. I have to waddle almost every time I walk, and I get so out of breath just walking around the store. My ankles and fingers are swollen (I was afraid my wedding ring would be stuck on my finger forever tonight), and bending over is a huge chore. But really, what can you expect this far along? I'm so glad I made it this far without too much distress!

Everything feels like it's finally coming together. The nursery is this close to being finished, we've got the pack 'n' play set up (although we don't have the car seat installed yet... that's on tomorrow's to do list), and my mom and I spent the good part of the day today sewing things for the nursery (I decided to make my own crib sheets and changing pad covers, because $55 for one crib sheet?!). Not to mention that my hospital bag is almost completely packed. We're just waiting for a few things to come in the mail. We're getting stuff done, and it makes this whole "We're going to have a baby in 4 weeks" thing seem more real.

As for the baby, I think it's ready to come out. Lately it loves to stretch its arms and legs, as I get little pokes and jabs through my belly. It's getting so big; it's somewhere around 5 1/2 pounds now, and 18 1/2 inches long. I'm getting so excited to see what it looks like, and honestly, I'm excited to stay up all night with it (I may regret saying that in a few weeks) and cuddle it.

I've made a mental list of things I'm excited for after the baby is born, and it includes: exercising, using my stomach muscles, sucking in (ha!), sleeping on my stomach, doing belly flops onto the bed, popping my own back, having a flat stomach, wearing my old clothes, and having normal posture again (I found out last week while getting maternity pictures taken that I stick my pelvis out).

I have a guess at what sex Baby Swenson is, but I'd love to know what you guys think! Over on my side bar, go vote and tell me what sex you think Baby Swenson is. I'm curious to see what you think. :)

>>>>>>

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the corn maze.

Last night, after getting some Chinese food at Panda Express I'd been craving all day, we went up to Cornbelly's with Erica and Wes for some corn maze fun! We started the corn maze and kept going around in circles, but eventually we got pretty lost, and climbed atop two lookout points! All the while, we laughed at the corn puns they had displayed, like "Don't get corn-fused!" 

We also played on some tire swings and the giant rocking chair (well, everyone but me... I'm getting more and more immobile), looked at the amazingly-carved pumpkins and watched a light show, smelt all of the delicious fried foods (Zac is dying to try a deep-fried snickers... one day...), and even played some tether ball, where Zac hit me right in the face with the ball. I ended up laughing my head off about that, and gave him a hard time the whole night.

I was so glad I put on layers, because it was so cold and windy. And with 5 layers of tops, 2 layers of pants, 2 pairs of socks under my rain boots, a hat, and some gloves, and slight waddling through the corn maze on top of that, it was pretty hilarious. I kept squeezing Zac's hand throughout the night to let him know to slow down. I don't walk so fast these days.

I'm so excited that fall is here! It's my favorite season, and I'm loving wearing boots and scarves every day. The leaves around our home are turning bright yellow and are scattering the roads, and I love it. I just want to drink hot chocolate and make cinnamon rolls and soup every day for the next few months. That would just be okay.

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35 weeks.

I don't think it's occurred to me that there will be a brand new baby in my house in about 5 weeks from now. And to be honest, I don't think it will set in even when it is here. I think it'll be like when Zac and I got married, where it never really set in, we just got used to living with each other. But nonetheless, I cannot believe that there are only 5 weeks left!

I'm getting a little more stressed as time passes on and I look at the list of things to do and things to buy. "I need to do all of this in a month?!" I'm trying to get it all done as soon as I can, and have the last week or two to just sleep (because, believe it or not, I'm still sleeping through the night... praise the Lord!) and bum around. That sounds like heaven to me right now. Zac and I spent 7 or 8 hours yesterday during General Conference making 3 weeks worth of freezer meals. Seriously. I am set. Remind me to never do that again, because that was the worst day of my life. I was cursing by the end of it, and had Zac massage my feet in bed. But it'll be nice to not have to cook for nearly a month.

We got our maternity pictures taken on Saturday! I haven't seen them yet, but I can already tell that they are awesome. We waited longer than the average time you'd do maternity pictures so we could have the pretty fall colors in the background (because we're having a fall baby!), and did quite a lot (for me, anyway) of hiking and walking. But I think they're gonna be good, so stay tuned!

My baby is around 5 pounds now, and probably about 18 inches long! How it got so big so fast, I have no idea. It's still moving and wiggling and kicking so much, and loves to kick Zac when we hug or cuddle on the couch. I've been having some awesome (read: painful) braxton hicks contractions lately, and every time I get them, my normal walk turns into a waddle. There is no stopping it. When they come, I get just a little nervous, and think, Baby Swenson, please don't come early! Anytime between 39 and 41 weeks would be ideal. I really don't want it to be sooner.

I feel so good this week. I keep waiting for that very-much-talked-about third trimester uncomfortableness/exhaustion/just-get-this-baby-out-of-me symptom, and I'm just not there yet, I guess. I'm still trying to soak all this up, how I can feel the baby's kicks and hiccups and how I still have this cute bump. I think I'm going to miss it, but I'm so excited for this baby to come!

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snow in october.

When Zac and I woke up this morning, he peeked out of our bedroom blinds and said, "It snowed!" Our neighbors rooftops were frosted white and it was chilly getting out of bed. And when I finally got out the door for work, this is what I saw. The first snowfall of winter 2013! So I bundled up in a big, poofy scarf and 3 layers on top, and had to brush it off of my car before leaving.

A part of me didn't like it. Fall just came a couple of weeks ago, and it's only October! We still need to go buy pumpkins, dang it! Half of the trees here are still green, and we're going to a corn maze next week! But a small part of me kind of likes it, because snow means Christmas and hot cocoa and scarves and boots and Christmas records and cinnamon almonds and pretty lights on houses and trees. And that is my favorite, because there's something wonderful in the air. But I'd be okay if fall stayed around for another month or two.

Tonight we're going on a big shopping trip to get things we still need for the baby, my hospital bag, and freezer meals (that I still haven't started on). I think we'll catch a quick dinner somewhere and call it a date, because it is Friday! Our car seat was delivered a few days ago, and we have to install it soon. I'm waiting until we can clean out the car, though, because I like things to be clean. And I think I'll make cookies too, if I can find time tonight. I've been wanting some chewy ginger cookies or some chai spice cookies with pumpkin kisses. Maybe I can pull off making both. That would be ideal.

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we've been eating like kings lately.

Last weekend Zac took me on a fancy date to Goodwood, since we haven't been to a sit-down restaurant by ourselves for months and months. We don't eat out too often, and when we do, we go to places like Cafe Rio and Noodles and Co., because I hate paying tips. But since we hadn't been on a date for a while, and because we had no food in our house (we hadn't been grocery shopping for something like 4 weeks), we decided to treat ourselves to some good BBQ (ribs and chicken crispers!) and talk, because our baby is coming soon, and simple things like date nights will be so hard when it does.

Monday was a hard one for us, so after work, we drove up State Street to The Purple Turtle and ordered an entire tray of burgers, fries and tater tots, and a couple of drinks for dinner. It. was. so. much. food. But those tater tots have my heart, and I'll be back just for those. We laughed at the funny paintings of turtles on the wall, and ate until Zac had to practically lift me into and out of the car. It was a funny sight. This belly of mine is getting huge. It was the perfect way to cheer the both of us up.

The next day, on October 1st, to kick off my favorite season and favorite month, we had Erica and Wes over for some apple slices with homemade caramel sauce, pumpkin donuts, and apple cider. Zac had the genius idea of dipping his donut into the caramel sauce, and if that isn't my new favorite autumn treat, I don't know what is! Cripes, that was delicious! After our feast of desserts, we watched The Legend of Sleepy Hollow with Ichabod Crane. I like that movie. That Ichabod is a funny guy with a funny nose. I think we'll start doing this every October 1st.

And now that it's October, I can finally say that my baby will be born next month! And that just makes my head spin.

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