10 Months & 3 Days Pregnant

As promised I am writing to "lament the woes of the tenth month of pregnancy." I am three days past my due date which I am assuming means that the baby has adopted the same philosophy as we have with the remodeling of the house; that dates are more like guidelines than a deadline. However, I must admit that I anticipated being extremely uncomfortable and a bear to be around (although I guess you could ask Brandon for a true assessment about the latter) but for the most part I feel no different in the tenth month of pregnancy as I did in the ninth month of pregnancy. He seems to be making the majority of his progress at night because that is when I am noticing my contractions being the most consistent. Last night, they were strong enough that we debated calling the hospital. However after a hot shower, some shifting positions, and a back massage from B the pain seemed to subside and I was able to go back to sleep. I am hoping all this movement at night is not an indication that he is destined to be a night owl like his Aunt Emily, who can be up all night and then sleep half of the next day away leaving all of us non-nocturnal people wondering how she functions. 

At this point I have made the decision to not go back to work next week baby or not! I came to this realization last week on my due date when I had bent down to pick up a piece of trash off the floor for the tenth time that day, solved three playground squabbles over Rainbow Loom bracelets and evil eyes, and attempted to manage a room full of ten-year olds from the wheely chair behind my desk. As much as I love a challenge I have fully come to terms with the fact that this is one challenge I am willing to let go of for awhile. Don't get me wrong I will miss my students terribly but as they say absence makes the heart grow fonder : )  And thanks to my wonderful teammate Julie whenever I am missing them I can pull out my advice book that all the 4th graders put together to give me their perspective on how to be a good parent. Their advice was heart felt and sincere, which is why I feel slightly guilty that I found it so incredibly amusing. But I will let you be the judge!

In addition to reading advice from my students, doctor's appointments and our remodeling project will continue to occupy most of my time until baby's grand arrival. I had my "final" appointment on Friday where the doctor told me three things: I'm overdue, my amniotic fluid levels are fine, and according to a stress test baby is content hanging out where he is. This is all good news considering it means he is still a healthy, growing baby and my desire to have a natural birth is still attainable. We will be going back to the doctor on Tuesday, and we have a tentative induction scheduled for Friday. Prayers are appreciated! The remodeling at our new house seems to be finally making some progress. This is thanks to many hard working workers, including Brandon who is spending every waking hour at the house trying to get it done so we can move in. Here are some updates that I am particularly pleased with : )

                                                       Master shower tile

                                                  New stairs are finally going in

                        All the rooms upstairs are painted and ready for flooring and trim

Maya has been enjoying lazy days on her new deck and backyard

I am confident that next time I post we will have welcomed our baby boy into the world, so until then here is to a productive and comfortable tenth month (and some days) of pregnancy!

Andrea