Happy due date, Baby Girl! Looks like we made it! I am happy to have reached this milestone, if only to have these 40 Week photos and to celebrate this date that I’ve been telling people for the past nine months. But we’re really ready for her to arrive (like, tomorrow would be good!) so that we don’t have to be induced. While I’m still here, though, let’s take a little trip down memory lane.
Some early second trimester photos around the time we shared the news. Isn’t it great that I really thought I had a big bump at 16 weeks? Ha!
Here is the very first photo (in the first trimester before I even had my hanging chalkboard) and the last!
And here we are today!
Highlights of Our Tenth Month
This Month’s Outings Fit into a Single Paragraph. This has really been the most low-key month I’ve had since I was a kid. Church has been a huge highlight of my week, since we stopped making a ton of plans that we didn’t know if we could keep. Some of the fun things were that we enjoyed the Fourth of July with the Downers, hosted the Porters and Mostellers for a rooftop cook-out and swim on a random Wednesday night, went to a summer evening moms’ Bible study at the Hoburgs’ house, had dinner al fresco with Amber and Taylor, went to brunch in Maryland with the Porters in the middle of Will and Jeff’s long Sunday bike ride, and had a lovely date night at Station 4 before seeing The Originalist at Arena Stage. Then just yesterday, we had two of our aunts in town and had great visits with both. We’ve had some good long walks around the neighborhood in the evenings, and Pippa has never had more exercise.
We Made Some Final Preparations. As far as baby prep goes, we’ve been doing a lot of reading, and last Sunday Will went on a freezer meal blitz and packed our little freezer full of ten meals! I got all caught up on thank-you notes and took a couple online Lamaze classes. Otherwise, we’ve spent a ton of time reading on our rooftop by the pool and by the grills!
We Picked a Name. Just after we turned the 38 Week mark, I was getting really anxious about what to name this baby, to the point where I was getting really worried about going into labor because I didn’t feel ready until I had a name. Will came home from work and said, “I think her name is X,” and I started crying, because it was perfect, and we finally decided. Now, I can’t guarantee I won’t make a hormonal last minute plea for another name in the hospital, but I don’t think I will.
Physical and Medical Updates
We Did a Trial Run. We did have a little scare/trial run at the hospital this week. I called the doctor about something I didn’t think would be a big deal, and they asked me to come into Labor and Delivery because the office was closed. So we packed all our bags (just in case) and ended up in a labor room for five hours with me on an IV of fluids and antibiotics. Thankfully, we ordered some Lost Dog Cafe and went home. 
“Honey we have to take a picture! What if they want to induce me and this is it?” -A Woman Clearly Not in Labor.
Otherwise, Symptoms have been All Over the Place. Lately I’ve had some nerve pain and pelvic pain, as the baby is definitely sitting lower. I thought I felt her drop while we were reading on the rooftop in Week 38. Some days I really waddle and walk super slowly, and others, I feel just great and normal. Similarly, I have had some days where I am really exhausted and just need a nap and others where I want to tackle all the projects. I’m also moodier, from being so upset that we didn’t get a photo on our date night to Arena, to being just giddy with excitement about the baby coming. I hear all this is pretty normal.
What We’re Excited About
Clearly, we’re excited to meet this baby if she ever decides to come out! We have an ultrasound this afternoon, so we will see what the plan is from here. In the meantime, I’m going to start trying whatever I can to help her make her appearance. We’re really excited to have our parents here so we can finally introduce her!
See all my bumpdates here and pregnancy posts here.
