The "O" word...

*NOTE*
This was typed out a few days ago and I never got the chance to post it. Here is my last PREGNANT post, enjoy! 

Paisley Reece was born healthy on Friday, October 22nd!!
Birth story and pics to come...

Officially 40 wks and 1 day! Yeah, that means OVERDUE. The Dr.'s appointment went well, besides the fact that I am STILL not dilated. Baby girl is doing good, the doctor says that I have a narrow or "contracted" pelvis and that she is a "big" baby. We'll see about that! I had on and off contractions all day yesterday, and woke up to some good ones this morning. Let's hope that means things are happening naturally, but if not, I have induction orders for Saturday!! That is so exciting because either way, I will have my baby girl by this weekend.

At my appointment, they hooked me up and gave me a NST or non-stress test. We passed with flying colors :)

I better not make it to 40.

I'm 39 weeks. YIPEEEE!!! It's 1:30 PM and I haven't brushed my teeth. I've been lost in bloggy land. Oh well, it's a fun place to be :) Hours on the computer will soon be lost. I'm ok with that.

I know I mentioned that I've been trying to take more pictures and learn more about photography. This working from home thing has really given me some time to play. I got my new lens for my 'big camera' and am ready to roll! But I still LOVE my 'little camera', my Canon Powershot SD750. It's just so portable and so fun, and it lets me do things like this:

Now I have both, because it's not always easy to lug around the 'big camera' and I will be lugging around my girl soon :)

I have my weekly appointment tomorrow. *Cross my fingers and toes* that the Doc will tell me I am dilated. I will take anything! I have been experiencing increasingly painful cramping in the evenings before bed and my Braxton Hicks now are so strong, they hurt down in my va-jay-jay! I hope this means something. Because I'm going to see the outside world tomorrow for my Dr's appointment, I'm going to have to get dressed. But here's me as of late:

DIY wall project: Birds

I wanted to do something cute and handmade on this big, empty wall. Now if you know me, you know I DO NOT do arts or crafts. Seriously. I don't know how to sew, don't want to know (well I kinda do sometimes) and hate the way things turn out when I try to "DIY". This idea was from a few different things I saw on ETSY, but none of them were exactly what I wanted, so I made my own!

Frames are from IKEA, like 5.99 or something like that.

This felt is from Papertrey Ink (THANKS, MOM!). It's amaaazing high-quality felt, which I didn't think mattered until I worked with this stuff.

I had originally planned to order some cutesy fabric from ETSY, but I found this 'Grocery Tote' at Kmart in the clearance section for $2. I decided to cut it up and use it because it's perfect!

I took the shape of bird I liked and cut the felt.

  I cut the fabric in the same shape, a bit smaller to lay on top.

WHOA! Voila...there it is! A little eye made of a black felt circle and I employed my mom to sew the fabric to felt all the way around the shape of the bird. (Look close and you can see the stitching on the beak)

Then, I hung them above my baby girl's changing table.

Sorry about the glare, but now this wall isn't so empty!

See this little ugly thing on the changing table? It was mine when I was little and here I am giving it to my little one. That makes me happy.

Still here...38 weeks

I say 'still here' because I feel like I'm cooked. Done. Ready to go. I have to say that there are some people *ahem* that really got me going on the idea of a baby coming on 10-10-10. No, I'm not really into the numbers game, or lucky days, but 2 people (Hi MOM!) guessed that I would have my baby on Sunday. I was so DOWN for that! Buuttt here we are and she is still lounging away in the ever-growing belly. Okay, I'm only 38wks 6days (yes, DAYS count now too!) and it is my FIRST, but I thought mayyybe, just maybe.

EEEeeee! Did I just say 38wks, 6days?! I'm totally in the zone to pop any day. I have been spending my last few days as a pre-mommy just getting ready (mostly mentally) for my little bundle to arrive. I packed my bag. Finished our birth plan, and packed the diaper bag. And FYI, I packed for my girl like I pack for myself. It's all about options. Since we are right in the midst of summer to fall around here, it's not quite snugly, cozy, sweater weather, but it's not shorts weather, either. So a long sleeve sleeper in both sizes (newborn or fatty) and regular wunzies in both sizes. Of course don't forget about the hats, socks, and mittens to match. And a few blankies. My bag has got my favorite pre-pregnancy jeans, a tight tank top, and make-up. NOT. You know what's really in there- the entire line of VS PINK collection, slipper socks, a few copies of our birth plan and the boppy. Other things that I'm gonna throw in are all the cameras, and chargers, and (for reals) my makeup and other hygiene stuff before we go. The hospital is 86 miles away from our casa, so I want to have enough to get us through if we have to stay for 72 hours. My husband is under the impression that we are going to have a baby on the side of the highway, but eh, we'll make it.

Andy installed the car seat this weekend and tested out the pack-n-play. We got the last few items ordered (which every time I do, I realize I forgot something else). This week we ordered our pack-n-play, the swing, which I'm so excited about because I found one that is a swing and a bouncy chair in one! It also matches our travel system that my sweet baby brother bought us. (YES, he's a baby!) We also got another car seat base for Andy's truck, and a Hotsling.

But the most exciting thing yet is that I got a new LENS for my camera.

Canon 50mm 1.4, baybee!

One that is going to help me take a meeellion pics of my little girl. I'm so excited about it. But for right now, I have to take pictures of inanimate objects. Or my doggy. Or my husband when he will allow it for 5 seconds. My photography is something that I am forever thinking about, but rarely practicing. I got my Canon 20D last Christmas and it's really fun (and really intimidating). Wish I was more of a go-getter and self-starter. I hate my lack of motivation to branch out and fail a little for the sake of doing something I really want to do. I'm hoping that this investment (and my new subject) will push me off! Truth is, I really only know a few basic things about photography and more recently have been reading a lot about it. I've learned a bunch just since I got this lens. So hopefully you will see lots of pictures in the future. For the time being, of my dog probably, k? Here's a little bit of fall at my house. I learned a little bit about focus from this post.

Set the focal point to the left this time, see?

Meet Toby. He's scared of mice.

But ferocious in all other circumstances. Really.

Fall @ my house.

Beautiful fall!

Oh yeah, and here's me on my last day of work! I'm running out of clothes to wear and since I'm off work for good (YAY!), I have no reason to even get out of the yoga pants. So I can't make any promises from here on out.

38 weeks

Good vs. Evil - RANT!

Okay, so I'm 38 weeks. That, in my mind, totally gives me the right to complain about everything! Good vs. Evil is the definition of my marriage. My husband is the good. I'm most definitely the evil. Not sure why he married me, I ask him all the time. If he wanted me for my hot bod, that time is SO OVER ;) He balances me in a way that is so perfect. Especially in times like these when I want to rip people's heads off. My husband would remain silent and keep his thoughts to himself. I would rather yell in their face, drop-kick them, and then laugh. 3rd grade bully style. I word vomit, and then feel bad later. He says things in a way that they aren't hurtful or can't not be taken back. He listens. I boil over. He puts himself out for others (and mostly me) and is still strong. I stomp my feet till I get my way. But right now, he keeps me (somewhat) calm, sane, and grounded.

He's all mine, ladies!

I'm tired of being a spectacle. Yeah, I'm pregnant. But I just want to go to the grocery store and not be stopped by every third person to talk about when I'm due, how I feel, how I look like I could pop tomorrow, blah, blah BLAH!! And yes, I realize this is exactly what I wantED at some point, and now its here and I'm complaining. The other thing I realize is that it is all positive attention. But I don't care. No attention would be good. I wish I could go into Wal-Mart with a black cape and do my shopping. (Hey, with Halloween around the corner, maybe this will be ok?) And by the way, QUIT telling me how HUGE my baby is going to be. Only I can say that if I want to. You may not say that to me!

Every day that this little girl stays in the belly, I'm positive a new stretch mark appears. Man, if she would have come out 3 wks ago! I woulda been free and clear (almost).

I want to have the choice of wearing ANY maternity clothes that I own. I'm not just talking about the smaller ones, or the tight ones, or being 'skinny'. I just want to be able to pull a shirt down and have it adequately cover me without it being a male size XXL beer shirt from the back of my husband's closet. On second thought, that's what I'm going to wear everyday from here on out. Watch me.

I'm going to end this with saying that I have the MOST INCREDIBLE, SUPPORTIVE, LOVING, AND ACCOMMODATING people in my life that anyone could ever ask for. I mean, really, I live like a damn princess. And I really truly am thankful to be pregnant. I just can't believe that we have been so lucky to be exactly where we want to be, welcoming a wee one in just days. Sometimes I have to step back, breathe, and remind myself. Let's hope that a relatively easy and enjoyable pregnancy leads to the same type of delivery! ;)

Here's the belly. In ALL IT'S GLORY.

Nursery Reveal-Oh yeah, and I'm FULL TERM!!

I have some people who live far, far away that have been waiting for this...I guess waiting this long was punishment to them for not coming to visit me and see it in the flesh! ;) But since I love ya, (and I'm so excited about this room being done) here's what we got.

First things first: I knew that if I had a girl, I was going to torture her with the girliest, cutsiest stuff I could find. Sorry ahead of time. If you are not vomiting pink by the end of this post, then I have not done my job. Nuff said.

The spot where I will be spending LOTS of time nursing my little darling! (side table is from IKEA)

(lamp is from IKEA as well)

Andy repainted this shelf that we already had and made it polka-dotted! I LOVE IT!

Okay, so she has a few outfits... ;)

This wall is empty now, I'm working on a little craft that will go here. This is the dresser/changing table that matches the BEAUTIFUL crib that my parents gave us!

The wall sticker was purchased from ETSY and I love the way it turned out!

This seems like quite the collection of diapers, but I know it's really not that much!

I'm hoping that these will work out well for some organization in the closet. Love IKEA again!!

These used to be brown and I had hubs spray paint them. I used them in my living room a million years ago and decided they'd work in the nursery.

This pillow was a surprise from my amazing mom. She made it and it just fits perfectly there! (Thanks mom!)

Okay, my precious girl- we are ready for you! I'm counting the days and can't wait to hold you, smell you, and kiss you endlessly. Your daddy is just asking everyday that you come out and meet him!

No dilation yet, but lots of Braxton Hicks and cramping. I think she may have dropped some, because for the past few nights I have been feeling pressure and have achy hips at night. She responds to me patting my belly and I love it! Sometimes I swear a foot is just going to pop straight through my skin! Lots of rolling and movement. She is sitting right on my sciatica and that has been interesting as well. We are definitely in the home stretch and my body is feeling it!