and 36 weeks 3 days

this last week was super busy busy busy for me. go go go final conference of the grant i work for. a big deal. lots of work, planning, putting together, creating, etc. i like to think of it as glorified party planning for teachers all over the state. what made this conference easier than the rest (besides that mo and i are rockstars at this by now) is having the event on our own campus. we didnt have to shove anything in luggage with weight restrictions or in a car. it was all there.

so friday and saturday were long days for anyone, including a prego. friday i was at work by 830....and by 10am my poor little sausage feet hurt. after clean up around 630pm, we all laid on the floor of the event center, exhausted. we had leftover catered lunch for dinner and waited around for 730 to set up the dance party at the hotel down the street (these teachers love their parties). i had planned on going home since i knew i'd be exhausted by B reallllly wanted to go out (poor guy we've been spending the last 7 months at home getting ready remodeling being responsible adults) and i couldn't deny him that. so he met us there and i fed him left over lunch for dinner. around 10pm (after not feeling very well with the indigestion and the constant feeling that my food doesn't digest) i felt the urge to dance. and there i was, 9 months pregnant, on a 13+ hour day, dancing, baby and all. we had a great time. and it felt nice (and heavy ahaha) i ended up going to bed around 1am.

and up again and 545 to get ready for the final day of the conference. 730am, security is having a 'priority issue' and cant open the doors yet, we have a yoga session and breakfast buffet at 8am... im exhausted. i couldnt sit thru the sessions. ended up falling alseep on mo's couch while she was checking her emails and she let me stay there. i almost missed the end, the sentimental part, of our last conference. i woke up hot and couldnt get up my bladder was so heavy! but i made the last 15 minutes..clean up and went home around 6pm. looooong days. and i got flowers from my baby.

sunday i spent mostly bumming around. not doing my weekly chores. hubby cleaned and vacuumed and everything looks just great! around 545pm, i started getting intense cramps in my lower uterus, strong painful menstrual cramps. took a bath and it helped for the time being. once i got out they started again. i switched sides, sat up laid down, drank water and they were still coming but completely inconsistent.  after 4 hours of pain that i expected to go away, i call D and she tells me i need to call labor and delivery...which i had been avoiding.

so i call and tell them its been four hours, not consistent times inbetween or the length of the pains and she tells me 'its happening now and you should take a shower and make your way in...' and im like, 'are you sure? i mean it's real low in my uterus and not consistent and im only 36 weeks and 3 days...' she says, 'yeah you probably thought you had a few more weeks but, it's time.' hubby and i are like O.O what? what? i had packed hte hospital bag a couple of weeks ago and pinned a list to it of what else needed to be added and he scrambled around and did that while i got in the shower. we hung around the house for 3 more hours, killing time, cleaning, resting, talking, getting ready, waiting. waiting for the contractions to get closer together and longer than 45 seconds. he was so excited, i couldnt help but smile through my contractions which were getting stronger. by the time we did leave, they were 50 seconds or longer and about 3-4 minutes apart. right when they tell you to come in...and now its midnight march 7th. no traffic at that hour. we joked on the drive there that we were exhausted already.

as soon as we get there, the contractions become farther apart, of course. it feels eerie, its storming, windy as heck, leaves blowing across the parking lot, a weird whistling noise, desolute. we both were like, this seems weird. hahah. the security guard makes up sign in as guests, im having contractions there, kinda laughing. we move up to floor two, thru the double doors, and back into labor and delivery check in. we get into admitting and its soooooo hottttttt. my contractions had sloooowed way down, my blood pressure was high, we were nervous and excited. it got to the point where my hubs could tell when the contraction was starting before i did. we get checked in, and the midwife comes in to check my stats. it was a trip to see and hear the contractions on the fetal monitor. his heart rate changes a bit when they start. jack was moving around a lot probably wondering what the heck was happening. so she checks my dilation and cervix and i was only one cm and my cervix was not thinned at all. we were a little disappointed. seemed so strange to have such regular contractions so close together and have to just go home! so its 2am and we go home. i take some Tylenol and we fall alseep but we dont sleep very well. hot, excited, nervous. i continued to have some pains thru the night but was so exhausted i slept thru most of it.

since we went to bed soo late, and were soo tired aaannnd had a regular check up at 845am, B didnt bother going into work at 730. while seeing dr kav we tell her our exciting night time story (which see read on my chart already) and she did another pelvic exam on me. this time, it didnt hurt so much and i was now 1.5 cm dilated and my cervix had almost completely thinned...a huge change from 1am to 9am...she was reeeealy excited for us and got us excited again! the baby could come tomorrow, or two weeks from now. but she said more than likely he'll come soon since i made such progress over night...and he is soooo looooow, i can feel it. she says i have always measured a half a week ahead of where i was week wise, so it makes him full term at 36 weeks and 4 days. she said i might not see her next week, tho she would love it if he would wait till she is on call next tuesday (also his best friend's baby's one year birthday!). and he will probably be 6 pounds, the perfect size for me.  bry and i think he will come sometime this week, maybe his weekend. she told me i could go back to work, or not, my choice. so im going in tomorrow and finish out some paper work and see how it goes from there. next monday was to be the start of my leave....

after the excitement at the dr, B went to work, exhausted and i stayed home, anxious but lazy. took a nap, did all the laundry possible, at one point telling him i wished we had 2 washers. hahaha. after making dinner, he fell asleep, poor guy, while i nested some more. then i noticed i lost my mucus plug...that keeps out bacteria, etc from the uterus. another sign of labor being on the way. i woke him up to tell him and he looks at me like my water broke, poor guy. we just want one or two more nights of full sleep.

and here i am! wow. i thought we had more time. but i guess we are ready. still need to get some things and build the crib but, ready and now we just want the little guy here, ready or not :D so excited.