Fee-Fi-Ho-Hum...

...just waiting on a little baby to come!

Thank goodness I look so fabulous. It makes the wait so much easier.

How hilarious is this picture? My friend Kristin has been telling me to send her a belly pic for weeks.My sister made this for me when I was pregnant with Addie and I stumbled upon it the other day. I thought it was good for a laugh. Needless to say, this is NOT me (it's Britney Spears' first pregnancy, I think) and I don't exactly look like this. I have been poor about maternity photographs this time around...and I'm pretty sure it's a Freudian thing, all of my "forgetting" to take those pics. It's not that I mind my belly so much...it's more the jowls that I could do without. Cameras are just not my favorite thing at the moment.

By the way, this is the problem with confident predictions (mine and everyone else's!) that you'll go into labor early. You end up being 39 weeks pregnant (today!) and feeling two weeks overdue. Grumble, grumble. I keep reminding myself that I'm not actually due for another week. Thus far, it's only kinda sorta working.

We have been keeping busy in an effort to pass the time. Our house is becoming (more) organized, with some long overdue clearing out efforts finally coming to fruition. And we've been busy with the usual whirl of errands, classes, and social activities.

This is a picture from the night we went to get our Christmas tree. It was snowing a ton and we bundled up in our cozy clothes for the trip to the tree yard. Since then, the snow has disappeared in favor of some nasty cold rain. I must be becoming a Minnesotan because I'm actually really disappointed in our gray and soggy December. I find myself hoping that it will snow again in time for Christmas, especially since my family is coming out here. If they're going to come all this way, I want them to have the authentic experience!



We also attended the Ortho Dept. Holiday Party, which everyone jokingly refers to as the "Ortho Prom" because we all get dressed up and head out without kids for a night out. I posted a few pictures of our friends on Facebook, but here are a few Tim and I from the night out.




And some of our year, out afterwards. This is courtesy of Nicole Klika's Facebook.


I do have my weekly appt today, and I'm looking forward to it. I love hearing this little one's heartbeat and let me tell you, he/she loves to keep us guessing. Last week the heart rate was in the 140s. Just a mere 30 point difference from the week before! So now I'm wondering if it's a boy (?!?!)

At this point, I just want to hold my baby. I've got no preference other than"come meet us!" Except that when I actually start to wonder if I might be in labor, I get really scared because...y'all...I'm trying to do this naturally. AM I FREAKING NUTS? is what goes through my head a lot of the time. I know my own reasons and think they're good reasons for trying to avoid interventions, but I'm still battling last minute cold feet. Thank heavens my husband is an absolute pro at holding the line, though really, how hard is it for him? :-) Still, I'm lucky that he's the "immovable object" in this situation because labor really is an irrestible force. Fortunately he's working with me, and not against me!

Speaking of holding my baby, I'm holding my big and busy toddler as much as she'll let me these days. Fortunately she is going through a super snuggly phase. She asks me to "hold you" all the time. As soon as I pick her up, I settle her on top of my bump, and she wraps her legs around me (no small feat) and then lays her head on my shoulder and says "Shhhh shhhh" to herself, whether she is upset or not. It's so cute. Her other favorite cuddle move is to bring me a blanket and ask to get "cozy" and "Read books. On the couch." Always in two separate statements. Addie also likes to put her face in our faces and say "HIIIIIIIIIIII" while hugging whatever body part she can reach (neck, knees, arms) as fiercely as possible.

Addie's been working on some big sister skills as well, by mimicking parts of what Tim and I do. Only parts though, as you'll see. She loves to wrestle with her dolls the way that she and Tim rough house every day when he gets home from work. She'll run into the living room holding her doll upside down, dangling by a leg, and shouting "I got ya! I got ya!" as she flings it around and usually drops it and crushes it. And she likes to comfort her baby dolls when they're "upset". I watched her take her baby, bash its head into the wall, and then say "shhh, shhh, it's ok" while she held it and patted it's back. Oh dear. We might have to work on that concept a bit.

And as many of you know, tomorrow is Addie's second birthday. Birthdays are always special, but Addie's is especially great because she shares that birth date with her Daddy. We are having a small party tomorrow night, if all continues on as it is now. If things don't continue on in the same vein, how funny would it be if this baby decides to come on the 16th as well? Tim seems very daunted by this prospect. One baby was cool, but two being born on his birthday kind of freaks him out. But as I told him "You get what you get and you don't pitch a fit" which is one of the more annoying phrases a parent can use. I'm sure he was appreciative of my wisdom.

And here a few random photos from a grandparent/auntie visit a few weeks ago.




Below is a video of Addie from her Romp n' Roll class. This particular part of class is her absolute favorite. It's the very last activity that they do, other than receiving their stamps, and it involves chasing bubbles. She looks forward to this every Tuesday and always eagerly asks about the "bubble chase".




I'll post some pictures of the birthday girl and man from that event, plus some reflections on where Addie is now later on... I hope. Right now, Calum has arrived and Addie's Ca-dar will be waking her up in about 30 seconds to commence the fun.