28 Weeks: Moving Right Along

28 Weeks and 6 Days: Dress that I wore to the shower. Oh, and I got a much-needed haircut!

Just a further-back picture of the dress.

So, one of the gifts from my coworkers was a "Moby wrap". It's basically a huge piece of breathable black cloth that can be wrapped around your body in all sorts of positions in order to cradle the baby to your chest in a sling. Well, Ty instantly made fun of me about this gift, saying that I would never use it because I would never take the time to sit down and figure it out. So... Ty took it upon himself to show me how it was done! Pretty impressive, huh? Oh, and Panda cooperated very well with the demonstration! ( :

Just another cute picture of Ty cradling Panda in a different sling position, while studiously examining the instruction manual.

Ty graciously allowed me to play with the Moby wrap, too, frequently complaining, "Well, this isn't really gonna work on you right now because of your belly!"

A picture of my coworker baby shower gifts. Oh, it's not in the picture, but envision a little infant bathtub in there, too! Ty and I feel so blessed!

Sorry, but no movie review again this week! Between my official baby shower and Ty arriving later in the evening in Osceola, we missed the movie theater again. Ty did, however, somehow manage to watch all three of the Back to the Future movies this weekend. Between my bouts of snoring, I probably managed to watch about one and a half of the movies with him! Wow, Ty seriously loves those movies. I think that he has a secret dream to actually be Marty McFly. Now, if he can only find his Doc Brown...

My 28 week doctor's appointment went great. Everything checked out right on target! Beau's heartbeat sounded great. The doctor giggled and remarked about how much Beau was moving around while she was using the doppler. My belly and Beau's growth measured right where it should be. Labs looked good. Pretty boring appointment; thank goodness boring is good when it comes to doctor's appointments and pregnancy! Oh, and the doctor remarked that she was glad that I am "finally" gaining weight. That kinda surprised me. I thought I had gained enough if not too much!

Had my final birthing class on Thursday. I attended class as a...sniff, sniff.... single mother! ) ; It really was too bad that Ty missed the final class.... it was about caring for a newborn, and the teacher lectured about what newborns really look like after they are born. Well, Ty always goes into a fit of giggles when he sees just-born babies on TV. He laughs because he thinks they always look so pissed off and angry.... I say, just wait until he discovers their cone-shaped heads and squashed-looking noses!

Finally, Saturday was my first "official" baby shower. For whatever reason, I was really nervous! Don't get me wrong: I felt very excited and grateful, but I was super nervous about being the center of attention for such a prolonged period of time. (Yes, JR, you read that correct. I sometimes feel uncomfortable being the center of attention. Surprising, right?) Anyway, I calmed my nerves and had a great time at the shower. About 10 coworkers showed up, a couple more sent gifts with those who did attend. Really, it was very laid-back. We just hung out, ate, giggled, and opened presents. The whole experience was a great reminder of how blessed I have been by fantastic coworkers during my two and a half years at Immanuel.

By the way, Ty's first week as chief financial officer/city-clerk of Osceola appeared to go great! Ty applied to become a notary, and he is now authorized to sign city checks. For some strange reason, however, he appeared to be most proud of signing two cemetary plot deeds.... What a sad, strange, funny little man.... ( ;

By the end of Week 28, there are only 78 days until Baby Beau is due to arrive! Oh, and Beau is now officially "squash"-sized, approximately 15 to 17 inches long and 2.5 to 4 pounds heavy!

Coming Next Week: Audrey's Bachelorette Pad and Ty's Disrepectful Attitude toward the Elderly (Oooh, just wait until you hear this one!)

27 Weeks: Time

The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

27 Weeks and 5 Days

At Aaron's confirmation party, we got to spend some time with the neighbor's 4 month old baby boy, Blake. How does Ty look?

I have a feeling that I can expect to see this confused, disconcerted look on Ty's face many, many times in the upcoming months....

Uncle Anthony with baby Blake. Wow, Anthony just can not wait for Beau to arrive...

The assembled crib! With the beloved bedding set!

After we put together the crib and recliner, I kinda wanted to see all of our big purchases so far (minus the rest of the nursery furniture) together in one place. Looking at this picture kinda makes me feel all warm inside!! ( :

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (16)

So, Ty and I weren't exactly chomping at the bit to see this movie. However, I had 2 free movie tickets from work, so we thought "What the heck!" To my surprise, I did not fall asleep during the movie! Despite my drowsiness, lack of interest in the movie, and the film's two hour length, the movie was action-packed enough that Ty's shoulder did not get covered in drool this time around! (Unlike while watching IronMan II last week). It was just one of your typical summer blockbuster films. Nothing special but entertaining enough. Ty and I did enjoy a final nice night out on the town in Omaha. We ate pizza at La Casa, said goodbye to one of Ty's coworkers, and saw a movie. Overall, it was a very relaxing, enjoyable end to Ty's residence in the city of Omaha. (Twin Creek Cinema, Friday, 05/28/10)

Another big week during the pregnancy: Ty and I met our new ob-gyn and toured the hospital where Beau will be born. The new OB and her practice seemed great! Very personable, sweet, accomodating, and professional. And the nurse on our hospital tour spoke highly of their practice, as well. The tour of Mercy was amazing. The nurse was incredibly thorough and professional, providing lots of information and clearly answering all of our questions (plus some!). The rooms are beautiful, with great amenities. Each room has a jacuzzi tub that I am excited to use for pain relief during the early stages of labor (prior to the epidural of course!). And seeing the nursery was really incredible, too. To imagine seeing baby Beau in there....

Overall, Ty and I feel greatly relieved to have finalized the transition to a new doctor and birthing center. But, wow, touring the hospital for me was a serious reality check. While Ty was all chipper and excited following the tour, I felt surprisingly sober and...well, kinda scared! Seeing the room where Beau will be born and the nursery where he will sleep... it just made everything seem very realistic, tangible and imminent! As I write this blog post, I still get nervous thinking about the tour! I don't know that I'm quite ready for Mr. William Beau to arrive yet!

I'm eagerly anticipating his arrival, but I'd be lying if I said that I feel ready for him! I'm really glad that we have 12 weeks left before Beau joins our family. First, I'm really enjoying the pregnancy. It's so amazing feeling him move around. Second, I feel like I still have a lot of preparation to do! I feel like there are so many books I need to read before then! And third.....Well, I haven't quite mentally prepared myself for labor and delivery yet.... Gulp! I suppose that's why pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, to give moms and dads over nine months to prepare.... But suddenly, I'm starting to wonder... where did those first six months go????

Finally, Ty officially moved over to Osceola this week... He is now a resident of (and employee of) the city of Osceola, Iowa. Before Ty left, he wondered whether putting together some of the baby furniture would help keep me entertained during his absence. So, he helped me (OK, let's be honest: I helped him) put together our crib and glider. Again, putting together the crib made the future seem very tangible again... (By the way, I was super pleased with how the bedding looked on the crib.) Just seeing everything together made me very anxious to set up Beau's nursery in our house in Osceola.

During the coming week, I have a doctor's appointment, my last birthing class, and my official work babyshower. Wow, Baby Beau really is coming, isn't he?