35 Weeks and The Internet.

Ok, so it's been a while since I updated, but it's not my fault, I swear!  Our internet has been so unreliable here and it seems like I can only manage to access it via my netbook, not my usual computer.  This just makes the whole blogging process a lot more difficult, so I've let it go.  Luckily, today the internet gods have smiled upon me and I am here to bring you up to date on all the progress that's gone on!

First of all, I made it to magic number 35 on Saturday!  This means that the docs at my preferred hospital aren't scared of me anymore.  They don't have a NICU there, so they won't deliver before 35 weeks.  So unless something happens and the specialists want me to go to the big scary hospital with the NICU, I will be delivering at my preferred, smaller hospital.  YAY!  Developmentally, Ellie should be about the size of a (small) coconut right now.  At our last measurement on the 10th, she weighed approx. 4 lbs. 1 oz.  Sounds good, right?!  Yeah, still less than the 5th percentile.  We'll get measured again on Monday (yes, Christmas Eve) and talk to the specialist doc about a 'delivery plan' that may or may not include inducing me at 38 weeks.  I have mixed feelings about that, but I talked to a friend at church who was induced at 39 weeks with her daughter (who is now 3) and she had a great experience and didn't even get an epidural, so that's encouraging.  I feel like I'm ok with being induced as long as I can still go to my preferred hospital.  I've had appointments with all the doctors there, know my way around, and that's where we took our baby class so we're even familiar with some of the nurses.  I'd really feel more comfortable there, so there's going to have to be a pretty good reason to make me feel ok going somewhere else!  In other news, she is still head down (thank goodness!) and has started her decent, but has not fully dropped yet, so I'm still gasping for air but glad I'm not waddling too badly just yet.

Last night after choir rehearsal I was surprised with another baby shower thrown by the wonderful choir!  Everyone was so kind and generous and the snacks were AMAZING!  Unfortunately, since it was a surprise, I didn't have my camera with me, so we don't have any pictures to share.  There are a lot more nursery supplies and baby clothes to put away now though!

Ok, on to nursery progress.  There has been a LOT of progress made, which makes me feel SO happy!  The new crib came in (defect free!) and Andy got it put up in about 30 minutes.

That's got to be a record or something.  Mom came down the other weekend and whipped up a beautiful crib skirt for us (the bumpers are still in the works) and we've got a mattress and sheets in there too!

Close-up of the crib skirt that mom made!

We've also got the changing pad all set up on the dresser and tested out the wipes warmer, so that station is ready to go!

Now if we can get the blinds hung and get the valance up around them, we will be in pretty good shape.  Andy's still working on painting the armoire, but I told him that it wasn't 100% necessary to have it done before Ellie is born.  I don't know why I said that.  I think I was trying to be nice or something.  He is working on it, though, and it will hopefully be done in the next few weeks, which is good because it will provide a LOT more organizational space!  Things are just kind of stashed away in different places right now and it's not making a whole lot of logical sense, so I'd like to get all the furniture in there so I can decide where things need to live instead of having to function in this 'in the meantime' state.  Don't get me wrong, I'm still VERY pleased with the progress that we've made!  I just have a desire to feel 'done' before she arrives so that I don't have to worry about tying up any loose ends afterwards.

There's one more project that I'm working on currently and it's one that I'm really super excited about!  My sister came over last week and helped me get started with it and now I'm waiting on a few more things to come together before I can finish it.  I don't want to spill the beans before it's finished, but here is a sneak peek for you . . .

. . . stay tuned for the final result coming (hopefully) soon!  Ok, off to get the house all ready for Christmas!  I've got the shopping done and the presents wrapped, now I just have to tidy up the kitchen and dining room so we have somewhere to eat!