Full term

For Christmas we were blessed with a number of gift cards to use as we pleased. Every last penny was spent on items for the baby's room. We even bought coming-home-from-the-hospital outfits - one for a boy, and one for a girl. The girl's outfit is a pink and brown polka dotted long-sleeved onesie with a matching hat and socks and pink pants. The onesie says "I love you" and is adorable! The boy's outfit is blue and grey and is giraffe themed - also bought a matching blue hat that wasn't included in the set. See below for images of both!

Adorable, right?

Super cute for a girl, too!

We also bought a giraffe patterned rug which matches the colors of the bedding perfectly: 

We bought the changing pad and giraffe patterned cover: 

We also bought a few more bibs and gender neutral outfits, a box of diapers, crib pad and sheets, play yard sheets, bottle brush, dishwasher caddy, and Taylor's favorite: a bottle drying rack that looks like grass. It's cute.

The last things I have left to buy are a floor lamp, the canvas image of giraffes that we want to hang on the wall, and a few baskets for organization (which I found at Buy Buy Baby and they match the changing pad cover!) Oh, and the items from Hobby Lobby for our crafty project! It's not super fancy, just a fun little thing we wanted to do. 

I really want to post images of the baby's room, but I also want it to be completely done before I do so. For now I'll leave you with this:

Today we went in for my 37 week check-up. I had an NST first and was mildly annoyed because they had an old, faulty machine that literally PRINTED the results on a long piece of paper, like a lie detector test. I went to a different location to see my doc because of scheduling conflicts so there was no nice, high-tech computer monitor to track everything. Turns out I was on the machine for 40-ish minutes and it wasn't tracking the baby's heart rate. The nurse made it seem as though I should have known better and should have called her in to adjust it. Oh, I'm sorry that I'm not trained to read your ancient seismograph and that you didn't bother to come in to make sure everything was okay. Anyway, we had to sit there for another thirty minutes once she had it hooked up correctly. At least today's a day off from work, but still.

After that I saw Dr. Otto for a pelvic exam. It seems that based on the NST I am having contractions again. No real concern unless they become painful or I notice 5-6 in an hour. I am not dilated, however, my cervix has thinned and she said the baby's head is low. 
Next Monday I have my next appointment with pelvic exam. We will also be able to schedule the induction then! She wants to see if I've dilated any more and to see how ripe/soft my cervix is first. If it's not soft enough I will go into the hospital on the evening of 13th for cervadil and then be induced Monday they 14th. If it is soft enough I will just check in for the induction only on Monday the 14th. SO, it looks like we've got the date set - not 100% for sure yet, but it's pretty much going to happen then. . . unless I somehow go into labor before then. 

Speaking of labor, next Sunday evening we are going to give Scalini's eggplant parm a shot. It's a legend here in metro-Atlanta. Read more about it here: http://www.scalinis.com/Bambino.htm

Lastly, my husband Santa Claus bought me a gift certificate to my favorite nail salon for Christmas. I used it yesterday and got a manicure, pedicure, and eyebrow wax. Every woman has that one beauty quirk that makes her feel pretty. The one thing that makes me feel like an attractive lady is a good eyebrow waxing. I feel so much better about my appearance now! Also, I decided on a pink and blue design for my toes in honor of baby bear.

Weekly photo: 

How far along: 37 weeks

Trimester: Third

Pre-pregnancy weight: 141 pounds

Current weight: 146 pounds  - Thanks, Christmas. 

Maternity clothes: Yes. 

Stretch marks: Nothing new.

Best moment of the week: All of our time spent shopping for Baby Bear.

Movement: Constantly on the go.

Food Cravings: Ocean Water from Sonic, pancakes, funfetti cake, pizza, french fries.  

Anything making you queasy or sick? No. 

Miss anything? Going to repeat last week's response: being able to sleep comfortably.

Other symptoms: Frequent bathroom breaks, swollen ankles on occasion, lack of sleep due to hip and back pain, fatigue, nesting.  

Have you started to show yet? Yes.

Sex: It will be a surprise.

Labor Signs: NST showed contractions today, starting to efface a little. 

Belly button in or out? Outie.

Wedding rings on or off? On.

Moody or not moody? I'm happy.

Looking forward to: Since tonight is New Year's Eve, I am looking forward to 2013 and meeting our baby.