This is what I feel like.....

No...that's not actually me - but it is definitely what I feel like.  I am SO ready to hold this baby in my arms and no longer in my stomach.  Now technically I have a little over 3 weeks left, but I've never made it to my due date.  Paige was 3 weeks early and Caiden was a week early.  (And they weren't exactly tiny babies).  So really....it could happen anytime now, right??????  Please keep your fingers crossed with me!

The anticipation of when and how it is going to happen is killing me.  With Paige, it was all so unexpected.  I really had no idea I was in labor.  I simply went to my scheduled 37 week appointment and my doctor says "Well, geez!  You're at a 5 and your water is about to break!"  Huh?!  She sends me straight to the hospital and sure enough within a half hour my water breaks (all I could think about is how I was going to go to Walmart after my appointment and how embarrassing that would have been!).  Then they tell me the anesthesiologist needs to give me the epidural right then because he would be stuck in surgery for the rest of day.  Fine with me!  I think I only felt a couple of contractions before it took effect.  The epidural slowed things down a bit so while waiting they offered me popsicles and I watched TV.  Then when it was time, I was so completely numb and immobilized that I actually had to ask if I was pushing.  After 2 pushes I heard a baby crying and she was here.  It was so perfect.  Caiden's labor?  Not perfect.  I don't even want to talk about it.  Let's just say it involves an inexperienced intern, 3 failed attempts at an epidural, a large baby with a large head, 3 solid hours of pushing, and ultimately a vacuum.  So I'm praying this time around it will be filled with fabulous drugs, nurses, anesthesiologists, and if it's not to much to ask I really did enjoy those popsicles.

At my last appointment, my doctor said I was at a one, which doesn't mean all that much and with it being my 3rd pregnancy she wasn't that surprised.  (But I'll take it.  It's better than nothin!)  Then, this past Friday I really thought something was happening.  I've been feeling Braxton Hicks contractions for a while now, no biggie.  But Thurs. night they started to increase a bit in intensity and tightness and a couple of them actually started to hurt.  But they were still pretty far apart so I went to bed and all night I felt a constant, yet subtle cramping.  Then all day Friday, I felt the contractions coming and going - some mild and some more intense.  And I was feeling super uncomfortable (more than the usual) and I'm thinking "this is it!!"  (And I'm feeling very proud of the baby for being on board with my plan of having him on Dec. 31 so we get the extra tax write-off and avoid our insurance starting all over again on Jan. 1st - he's so smart!)  So I kinda start to panic because the crib is yet to be put together, haven't found the car seat in our messy garage yet, and still don't have any of the baby's clothes located or washed yet.  What am I waiting for??  So I inform Casey that we have GOT to get this done...pronto.  A couple of hours later, we've accomplished these things and then..................everything stops.  Contractions stop coming and crampiness goes away.  I go to bed that night (and no, I don't sleep - my body seems to have given up on that one weeks ago) but I also noticed I'm not in pain.  Darn.  Then all day Saturday.....nothing.  Then today....nada.  Now I'm thinking this baby is a teaser - and I'm not laughing.

So tomorrow morning I have another appointment and I'm anxious to see if I've progressed at all.  If I'm still at a one, I might cry.  I'm so ready.....