It's the Final Countdown

I'm 4 days away from being in THE 9TH MONTH of pregnancy! In some ways it has seemed like this pregnancy has zipped by; this whole year has zipped by. But, I have been pregnant ever since the beginning of January and I'm ready to be done.

I've been having contractions weekly, but not daily yet. Last Friday I had them all day long and it wore me out by the end of the day. I thought that meant that the baby was moving down into the birth position, which typically happens around the 35th week. However, today I read that babies don't usually "drop" in the second pregnancy until you're in labor. So I guess they're just practice contractions to get the uterus warmed up for evicting my little tenant.

The baby shower was a success despite the rain in the morning. The day turned out to be quite nice. The grass was too wet for a 3-legged race, but we did play "Don't break the water" in which we all walked across the park with water balloons between our legs trying to be the one to get the furthest without soaking ourselves. Eleven-year-old Madison won that game by quite the long shot. We also played "Bible Trivia" and "Guess how Much this Stuff Cost". There were plenty of beverages, and I didn't hear any complaints on the amount of food. I know I ate well. And there were tons of gifts! Little Dorian is all set for when he first comes out. There are a few more items we need to get, but they aren't things we'll need right away. He's going to be a very well-dressed little chap. Lot's of people were very thoughtful and got Tristan a gift too so that he didn't feel left out.

Tristan and his Grandma Nana went home to Oregon with his Grandma and Grandpa Knauer after the baby shower. They were gone for 3 days and 2 nights. That was a first for Tristan. I was explaining to him that Eric and I were staying home and he asked, "But who's going to take care of me?" I told him that he would have 2 Grandmas and a Grandpa to take care of him. He said, "Well I think kids need a mom or a dad to take care of them." I agreed that usually that is the case, but that for a few days Grandmas and Grandpas could handle things. He agreed to go and seemed to handle most of it quite well. He doesn't like going to sleep without Mama reading and singing to him... but he couldn't stay awake indefinitely. He also seemed to enjoy his first Amtrak train ride home. It was a good trial run for his being away from us for about the same amount of time when we'll be in the hospital next month.

It was an amazing break for Eric and I. We got a lot accomplished the 2nd and 3rd days. I think we were in shock the 1st day... I mostly slept that day. One of the things I got done was the drawing revisions for our permit application. So that's all turned in, and after talking to the guy that reviews the drawings and comes out for the inspections, I am pretty happy with how things are turning out with this. Nothing that we've done has to be undone, and that's a big relief.

Well, I can still eat full meals without too much trouble. Although I've been getting nauseous when I don't eat often enough, just like the first trimester all over again. I've been getting weird muscle spasms in my right leg, and last night awoke to an excruciatingly painful cramp in my right calf. My outcries of pain woke Eric up and he helped stop the cramp. It's the same leg that keeps feeling like it's falling out of the hip socket from time to time. I don't know if the baby is pinching something or if I'm not getting enough of some nutrient or if I'm not getting enough exercise. Something ain't right with that right leg.

Most of my cleaning projects are done now. Only 2 left that I can think of at the moment. Otherwise, it's just the daily life with extra naps until the littlest Knauer arrives.