IT'S THE FINAL COUNTDOWN...

You know you're getting close to your delivery date when the doctor starts making you come in EVERY WEEK for prenatal check-ups! Today was the 36 week check-up and it was busy! First, I found out the results of my Group B Strep test, and they were negative (which is good news, for anyone not in the know). Then, I found out I am 1 cm dilated (also good news - my doctor says that most first-time-moms don't dilate early). I've been having Braxton-Hicks contractions more and more often over the past few days. Then came the bad news... high blood pressure (and they took 3 readings over the course of 2 hours just to be sure) and trace amounts of protein in my urine (sorry if that's too much information for some of you, but that's how they check my health at these appointments). These are early signs of developing pre-eclampsia... so, they ran some bloodwork, and it all came back perfect (they had actually ordered my results "stat" and had them within half an hour). While we were waiting on the bloodwork, they sent me over to sonogram to have a BPP (that's a Biophysical Profile - the second one I've had now, with the first one being back at the very end of December). Baby James' heartrate was strong at 161 bpm, the amniotic fluid levels were good, and we saw lots of breathing movements, so he scored an 8 out of 8! We didn't get any new photos of the little guy though because he is in some seriously tight quarters! His little feet and knees are wedged up against my ribs on my right side (just like I've suspected) and his head is still down low and in position - it's very unlikely that he'd flip at this point, and that's good news, because there's a good chance I'll be induced next week... I'm home this afternoon on bedrest and am doing a 12-hour urine collection test, then I go back to the doctor with it tomorrow morning. Depending on the numbers, if they determine that I am developing pre-eclampsia, I will be on bedrest through the rest of this week and be induced sometime early next week (when I hit the 37 week mark, which is technically considered "full-term"). On the other hand, if everything looks OK tomorrow, then I'll probably be allowed to go back to work and just "take it easy" as much as possible until Baby James shows up on his own. Either way, I highly doubt we're going full-term (as in 40 weeks) with this little guy! I believe our little lucky charm is going to be a February baby instead...

As for this week's belly photo, I'm sharing the one that Jay took for me on Sunday, at 36 weeks exactly, as my pregnancy keepsake. I'm lucky to have a photographer for a husband...

My belly button looks really tiny on that big belly, doesn't it?

We received an awesome gift over the weekend too, a Valentine's Day present from my Aunt Margie and Uncle Daryl - a handheld color video monitor and the Mei Tei baby carrier. Of course, we had to try out the baby carrier right away, and who better to play the baby than Jude? Hopefully Baby James will like it better than she did!

We also added some more decoration to the nursery over the weekend. Jay finished one of the bookshelves he's been builing, so I stocked that with the baby books we've accumulated thus far and some of the cute toys Baby James has received. And, although they don't have any of our photos in them yet, we hung up the hand-painted picture frames we received from Nicole at our work baby shower (they're the striped ones in the second photo).

And just for memory's sake, here's a shot of Baby James' closet, fully stocked and ready to go (good thing, eh?) Between all the new clothes we've received as gifts (and purchased ourselves), and the awesome variety of hand-me-downs (from our coworkers' kids and little Jagger James), we can only fit the basics in the dresser (0-6 months onesies, sleepers, pants, socks, and bibs). Everything else has been hung up (the rompers, t-shirts, overalls, and jackets). All the 6 months and older clothes have been stored in plastic bins at the bottom left of the closet. We're using the shelf to store blankets (receiving and otherwise), swaddlers, burp cloths, towels, wash cloths, the baby carriers (we have a Hotsling too), nursing cover-up, and the diaper bag. And yes, we have lots of diapers (size N-2) and booty wipes. So, for all those folks who keep asking if we're ready for this baby, we can honestly say that we are, at least as far as his "stuff" is concerned (although we're feeling pretty mentally prepared also)!

One other bit of preparation we did this weekend was to sterilize all the breastpump accessories (thanks again Nicole, for saving us from having to buy the pump!) and a set of 4 oz bottles (just in case we need them):

We'll have one last nursery photo update later this month when we hang the other bookshelf Jay is making and the pirate sign that Taryn made (wait until you see the creativity and talent some members of our family have - of course, they're the ones that married into the family!), and the pirate-themed Caribbean Islands map that David and Taryn sent us. Other than that, this nursery is ready for baby (again, good thing, eh?)

So, anyone who hasn't posted their guess for Baby James' birth date, time, weight, and length on Expectnet.com yet should do so very soon - you may have only one week left! Just click on the ExpectNet.com box in the upper right-hand corner of the blog (under our profile photo and the Upcoming Events) and it will take you directly to our game. Good luck, and may the best guesser win!