39 Weeks

Well, 39 weeks is here, which means that Sprout's due date is only a week away! It seems pretty unreal. I think I've been pretty patient with this whole pregnancy thing up until this point, but this past week, I've had a lot of trouble being patient. I think it's because I know that the 39 week mark means that Sprout would most likely be just as healthy if he/she were born now as he/she would be this time next week. I'm still enjoying being pregnant (for the most part), but I'm ready to move on and meet this sweet baby! Here's the 39 week picture (and my new haircut)!
This has been another busy week. On Monday night, I went out to dinner for one last "girls night" with Leslie, one of my best friends. We had a delicious dinner at the local Chinese buffet, and I don't know about Leslie, but I sure got my money's worth. :) A really bad storm blew in while we were there, so a tiny portion of our dinner was consumed in the dark. It was quite the little adventure. Leslie gave me a little pep talk and some last minute advice about delivery, etc. I have so appreciated her (and my other mom friends) over these last 9 months. They've been so helpful with their advice and recommendations.
Tuesday night was my last night of teaching until after I return from maternity leave! Woo Hoo! I love my job, and I really enjoy the teaching aspect of it, but it's definitely the most stressful aspect of the job. I've got to say that I'm looking forward to a little over 12 weeks of not grading assignments, tracking down students, and all that stuff. I realized today that I have a serious case of maternity leave-itis. I'm just done with work...it's like senioritis to the millionth degree! It's also hard because there are so many loose ends that I just can't wrap up before I leave (due to the nature of the job), and that's just so hard for me to be okay with. I like nice, neat beginnings and endings. I just feel like there will be too much stuff left for my boss to take care of while I'm gone, but I'm doing my best to keep that to a minimum.
On Wednesday after work, I went to get a much-needed haircut. I have the worst habit of waiting until my hair is just straggly and gross before making an appointment, and that's exactly where my hair was this week. The girl I usually go to doesn't work on Wednesdays, and Wednesday was the only day I was available, so I went out on a limb to try someone new, and I'm glad I did. I love her! When she came out to the lobby area to get me, the two receptionists squealed, "Look at you two!" We're both pregnant! Chelsey is due June 24th (David's birthday!), so she's just a few weeks behind us. We had lots to talk about during the appointment, which is something I usually struggle with. I have to say that I'm loving the new cut. It didn't turn out exactly as I had in mind, but it turned out great nonetheless. I even went way out of my comfort zone and let her cut some bangs. That was the best hair decision I've ever made...why have I held out this long?! It makes such a difference in the overall cut. I think it'll be nice and low maintenance for after the baby comes, which is exactly what I was looking for.
There's not too much else going on right now, which is a good thing because I am just so darn tired all the time now. This is what David usually finds if he gets home from work before I do:
Most days, I just can't wait to get home to take a short nap. Just 30 minute's worth of shut eye in the afternoon after work makes me functional enough to get supper fixed and cleaned up and a couple of other chores...then I'm ready to head to the couch again. Sprout is still super-active, so I've decided that he or she is sucking away all of my energy!
A couple of weeks ago, I talked about my cankles...the result of that lovely pregnancy swelling. My feet/legs were really swollen for about 4 days, then it all went away. Well...guess what's back?

Yep, they're back, and they're worse than before. I've gone to my two biggest (widest) pair of shoes, and this is what one pair did to me today. It's pretty uncomfortable, and I feel pretty sure that Dr. Brown will pay close attention to my blood pressure tomorrow morning. I don't really think my blood pressure is up at all, so I'm not really worried about that...especially since if it is a problem, there wouldn't be any problem in Sprout being born at this point.

Speaking of Sprout's impending arrival...I really thought that last night we might be getting there. I'd been having some stronger contractions all day long, and when I got home, I started timing them. They were about 7 minutes apart for over an hour, and I was beginning to get hopeful, but at the same time, I just didn't feel like they were the real deal. And they weren't. I laid down on the couch for awhile, and they pretty much stopped. Yep, just some practice labor. Oh, well! I'll give Sprout a few more days before I start giving him/her the eviction notice. I don't want him or her in there picking out curtains...we're ready to meet him or her! The countdown is on. If I go by my due date, I'll be at 40 weeks on Sunday...and if I go by the OB's due date, I'll be at 40 weeks next Thursday. Either way, it's incredibly close!