Who's Ready To Meet Elizabeth Johannah Crombie?!

Here I am at 38 weeks with Ellie Jo!

At my appointment this morning, my doctor told me I'm 4 1/2 (almost 5!) centimeters dilated and 80% effaced! He said Elizabeth will probably come this weekend! AND he's the on-call doctor this weekend, too. :)

I was really, really excited to hear this news, because I've felt really odd this past week. When the nurse asked me how I was doing, I told her that I've been feeling strange. Not bad; just strange.

I've had some contractions, but it's nothing we can time or anything consistent. They go away as quickly as they start, and only happen sporadically. As far as discomfort goes, there are many times that I'm about a 9 on a scale of 1-10. It's like nothing feels comfortable, nothing helps soothe my body, and Elizabeth just kicks and kicks away. Robert has had to do a lot for me around the house these last couple of weeks, because I get little bursts of energy, and then they're gone with the snap of my fingers. It's crazy. I'm trying to use the energy to my advantage, but it's hard.

I lost another 1/2 lb., but the doctor confirmed that Elizabeth definitely gained 1/2 lb. He said, "If you can figure out how to write a book about this net gain/loss game your body has been playing, I bet you'd make millions!" Haha. It's NOT intentional. I absolutely hate throwing up. But it happens every single day. I can't help it. The truth is that I lose a lot of food; this is not traditional "morning sickness." But as long as the baby is okay and healthy, I'll endure it. My doctor also expects that I'll probably lose about 10-20lbs. right after she's born, so I need to make sure I'm taking care of myself because I've already lost a lot of muscle. Poor Robert is going to have to get me some new clothes after the baby is born, because a lot of my regular clothes don't even fit (not talking about my preggo belly here; it's my shirts and pants). 

My mom was at the appointment this morning with me, and when the nurse took my blood pressure and announced that it was 114 over 72, we were both a little surprised. It's really, really good, but it was not what I expected! 

As for being ready, I'm pretty sure we've got everything we possibly can in order! We don't really believe anyone is ever 100% ready for a baby, but we feel like we've done our best. :) The nursery is set up, her beautiful cradle glider is all ready in our bedroom, and we've got diapers, wipes, bottles, clothes, and blankets. Everything else is just going to fall into place as it happens, we think. No need to be freaking out about it all, because we simply cannot predict how things will be with a newborn!

I did make some changes to my work station:

 

I got an exercise ball to sit on while I work, which made things much more comfortable! Sadly, I'm probably not going back to work pregnant, since baby is on her way any time now!

My department at work chose dates they think baby is coming!

This is NOT a bet or a pool; it's just for fun. :)

Today, I plan to finish up the house cleaning I started yesterday and just sort of lounge. I'll probably try to get my gardening out back finished up when Robert comes home so he can help move stuff for me.

Make sure you bookmark our blog, www.crombiechronicles.com , because we probably won't be updating Facebook as much as we update here. (Plus, we can share more details here without blowing up your newsfeed, lol!)