The Day of Reese's Birth

Just as I did our wedding day I have put a lot of thought into what the day of Reese’s birth will be like. Probably too much thought! There are several things that I am sure of on that eventful day

• I am sure that I will be a complete wreck until all the needles are over and my lower body is numb.
  
• I am sure that Adam will appear calm, cool, and collected and doing his best to assure me that everything is okay. God bless the man.
  
• I am sure that although he might appear calm, cool, and collected on the inside Adam will just as nervous as I will be.
  
• I am sure that the moment I hear her cry will be the best moment of my life.
  
• I am sure that the moment she cries I will cry right along with her.
  
• I am sure that the moment Adam sees her he will be completely wrapped around her finger.
  
• I am sure that she will fill a place in our lives that we didn’t know was empty
  
• I am sure from that moment forward she will completely consume my thoughts and prayer life.
  
• I am sure that the moment she arrives our lives will be changed forever…in a good way, of course
  
• And I am sure from the moment we see her that we will wonder what in the world we did before her.

After Adam and I had been dating for a while I came to realize one thing about our future and, Lord willing, the family we would have… Adam would hold us together and I would be the crazy mother. He is as calm and assuring as I am spastic and impatient. I have no doubt that he will gracefully step into the role of fatherhood and give this little girl more love and attention than I thought was possible. Odds are she’ll get plenty of attention from me as well. I currently feel calm about this whole birth process….even if a C-section were to be necessary I will be okay with that…WHAT?? Did I just say that?? I can’t believe those words came from my mouth. But honestly I am on the verge of miserable at the present time. I believe that my current state of misery is God at work in my life. If I weren’t so HUGE, hot, and swelled I would be worrying myself to death over the whole birthing process and the needles of course. So anyway, I would be elated for her to come sooner rather than later, but I know I probably will not get that wish:)

P.S. Did I mention that I am sure we will think she is perfect?

"Did you marry Adam Robertson?"

This question has been ask to me on two occasions in particular. The first time I was hit with this question was a couple of months after we had gotten married. Adam and I had wrapped some change that had been sitting around the house and I took it to the bank. Since we still do business at this particular bank I will leave it nameless for fear of what might be done to our saving account on the off chance that this person is reading this. Anyway, when I got to the bank I was handed a marker and informed that my name and phone number had to be on every single roll of coins. Maybe this is common knowledge to some of you, but it never crossed my mind. Adam obviously didn’t know this either since he didn’t mention it before I left home. So I took the marker and, slightly irritated, sat down in a chair and proceeded to spend the next 15 minutes writing my name and phone number on each roll of coins. I realize the smart thing to do would be to print that information out on address labels and stick them to the coins, but I was young and dumb so we'll overlook what I should have done. When I took my basket of rolled coins back to the counter I was hit with the question,
“Did you marry Adam Robertson?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Oh, well if I had known that I wouldn’t have made you write your name and number on all of these.”

WHAT?? You mean to tell me I just sat in the bank for 15 minutes on a Saturday writing my name and number on $75 worth of coins and it wasn’t necessary?? Slightly irritated turned into something much more. But since this person obviously knew my husband well and clearly thought he was a good enough person not to short change the bank on rolled coins I just smiled and walked away with my $75 in small bills.

Yesterday I was ask this question for the second time. I was headed home from what seemed to be the longest week I have ever lived through. I feel certain that the raging pregnancy hormones and extra 30 pounds I am carrying around had something to do with this being the longest week ever, but I could be wrong. And, of course, the fact that I deal with teenagers all day long. So on my way home it is possible that I was going 52 miles per hour in a 35 mile per hour zone. Now that’s what the police officer, who will also remain nameless, told me…I cannot confirm or deny these allegations since I had my mind on one thing…getting home and propping up my swelled ankles. So when the blue lights started to flash I pulled the car over and started the search for my insurance card. Which I can never seem to find an up to date copy when I need one. Anyway this is how it went…
“Ma’am what’s your hurry?”
To myself I thought, “Well you see…I am clearly about to pop, my ankles are much larger than necessary, and I have been at a school all day trying to control future prison inmates. My hurry is that I am exhausted and ready to be at home.” But I felt certain that statement would get me a ticket…So I just said,
“Nothing really” as I handed him my drivers license. And that’s when I got the question again…
“Did you marry Adam Robertson?”
“Yes, I did. Is that going to get me out of a ticket today?” At that point I recognized the name on the badge as one of the guys Adam graduated high school and played football with.
“Today it is.”
To say the least I was not at all irritated to be asked this question in this particular scenario. Living in a small town can be very annoying at times. The old saying that if you don’t know what your doing everybody else sure does rings very true in a lovely little place called Clay County Alabama, but on this particular day living in a small town paid off. And I had to laugh to myself when he walked away from the car and said,
“Tell Adam I said hey.”
“I sure will.”

So yes, I did marry Adam Robertson and it seems as though that might be a good thing:)

36 Weeks

At 36 weeks Reese is the size of a crenshaw melon weighing about 6 pounds

How Far Along: 36 weeks. In a way I feel panicked when I think about having only 4 more weeks to prepare for motherhood, but in a much bigger way I don’t know how I can stand all of this pregnancy stuff for 4 more weeks.
Weight Gain: I am no longer looking to see how much I have gained. Since last Friday I have started to swell. My ankles are puffy and my wedding rings won’t even go over my knuckles. So from now on when people ask how much I gained I will inform them of the 31 pounds I gained during the first 35 weeks. The book says, “You are feeling very heavy by now…” Really? Who would have guessed?
Maternity Clothes: Yes
Stretch Marks: I don’t think so, but to be honest there are places that I can’t even see anymore. I do not doubt that I have them under my belly button, but how would I know.
Sleep: At least 3 trips to the restroom every night this week which obviously means interrupted sleep.
Baby Movement: Yes
Food Cravings: Nothing in particular since there is no room in there for food. BUT… I LOVE hot fudge cake sundaes from Shoney’s. However in my pre pregnancy life I didn’t indulge in such things due to the enormous amount of guilt I would feel after eating one. Plus I am pretty sure you would have to spend around 48 hours on a treadmill to burn off such a delicious treat. I declared weeks ago to Adam that I would be eating one before this baby comes. And what kind of person would I be if I didn’t keep my word???
What I Miss: Sleeping all night which I understand never happens again once a baby arrives. Good thing I enjoyed my first 25 years of restful nights.
Looking Forward To: Seeing her sweet little face. And I am pretty much ready for this to be over. Staying home all summer and being pregnant was one thing. Going to work everyday and being 9 months pregnant is something completely different.
Milestones: At 36 weeks this is what the book says, “Pack your bag for the hospital. A baby is considered at term three weeks before your due date, so be prepared.” I love this statement. I have just been waiting to pack my bag! Reese’s bag is already packed. We will now be going to the doctor every week which makes me nervous and excited. At 36 weeks Reese weighs almost 6 pounds. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. At this stage the baby is storing as much fat as she can and the cheeks, knees and elbows start dimpling due to fat deposition. Awww how sweet! I love chubby babies.

In other news MeeMaw made the curtain for Reese's room last week.

There are a ton of things that we have been trying to get done before Reese gets here. We decided a couple of weeks ago to put gas logs in our living room. It has been the biggest mess ever! Which under normal conditions would drive me crazy, but I have been too tired to care. In the past I have always helped Adam with any project around the house, but this one was done by Adam alone! I love it! And I can't wait to lay around on the couch and spoil Baby Reese with the gas logs glowing!

35 Weeks

At 35 weeks Reese is the size of a honeydew melon

How Far Along: 35 weeks!!
Weight Gain: Ok, so I was hoping to be the girl that fit the profile in the What To Expect When Your Expecting book. You know the one in the weight gain section…25-35 pounds…I was leaning more toward the 25 pound mark. Well, according to my scales I have officially gained 30 pounds. WHAT! Can I please be in denial about this? Since we found out at the doctor this week that she weighs 5.5 pounds I am going to pretend I have only gained 25 and she is the other 5
Maternity Clothes: Yes
Stretch Marks: No. I ran out of Mothers Friend and I am now using Coco Butter and Bio Oil. I only have one consumer complaint with the Bio Oil…it is a little too oily for my liking. Yes, I know it is called Bio Oil for a reason, but it doesn’t absorb into the skin very quickly leaving me with oily skin for way too long.
Sleep: Other than multiple trips to the restroom every night the sleep is good. Let’s keep this between you and me…but Adam says I snore now… Which I haven’t heard myself snoring so I can’t confirm this accusation.
Baby Movement: Yes. She has her “boney butt”; again those are the words of the nurse practitioner, right under my ribs. Lord knows I am not complaining. I am just glad it’s not her head like it had been. And about the whole “boney butt” thing…those don’t exactly run in my family so I highly doubt she is going to have one either…sad but genetically true. You just can’t fight DNA.
Food Cravings: Food doesn’t have all that much room anymore, but my sweet mother brought me potato soup from Logan’s and it made me very happy.
What I Miss: Being able to paint my toenails...I can not longer get down there. Oh well, that just means I have to treat myself to a pedicure before she comes.
Looking Forward To: I am anxious to see how all of this delivery business goes. I am going to be packing our bags soon and getting the car seat in the car because at the mention of a contraction Adam is going to throw me in the car and speed to Anniston. He has already told me if all that stuff isn’t already in the car it will be left and my parents will have to bring it. But then again this is the same man who wants to move to Anniston around the first of September just to be close to the hospital. This could be the one moment in our lives together that I will be calmer than Adam. Milestones: At 35 weeks it is likely that she will no longer be doing somersaults since her space has become limited….good…she needs to stay right where she is at. Over the next few weeks her lungs will mature and she will put on weight.

Maternity Picture Preview

One of my friends, and now coworkers, Amy Daniels made some maternity pictures for us last weekend, and I think she did fantastic! Once she gets them all edited I will be adding them. But until then here is a little preview:)

Prayer and Old Wives Tales

Never underestimate the power of prayer…and old wives tales. A few weeks ago when Dr. Ballard told me it wasn’t good that Reese had been in the breech position for so long she also made a few recommendations. She said that her first child was breech and a couple of times a night she would prop on her knees and elbows to help the baby turn. She said it was nothing more than an old wives tale, but it couldn’t hurt to try. So….for the past two weeks I have obeyed the doctors orders. Then a few of you gave me more recommendations

• laying with my feet over the back of the couch with my head toward the floor
  
• putting a frozen pack of peas on the top of my stomach because her head would move away from the cold…I used broccoli because we were fresh out of frozen peas
  
• and I have been preparing for my final attempt to turn her…turning on an electric toothbrush and letting it vibrate her head which would cause her to move…

We had a doctor’s appointment yesterday and I, of course, wanted to know if she was still breech. They thought she had turned so to be sure we had a quick sonogram. I could have kissed the nurse practitioner who did the sonogram when she confirmed that Reese is in the correct head-down position!!!! I almost jumped off the table with excitement! Now I realize this doesn’t necessarily mean that a C-section is out of the question, but it sure makes me feel better. My main fear of a C-section is that I would have to go to the hospital in no pain whatsoever and be ready to lean over a table and get an epidural. Look, I may have come to terms with all of this blood taking, but a needle in the spine is something completely different. I feel as though I will be able to openly accept a needle coming at me from behind if I am in pain…as opposed to showing up at the hospital at a designated time to receive my punishment. Adam said she overheard me talking about sticking a toothbrush to her head and she headed south. I have no idea when she turned, but what I have thought was a round head between my ribs was actually a “boney butt”- those are the words of the nurse practitioner. She also appears to have quiet a bit of hair and a “pug nose.” She weighed 5.5 pounds, and the nurse practitioner felt like in another month she would weigh around 6.5 pounds. So for now I would like to thank all of you who have been in prayer with me over this matter. Mostly, I would like to thank God for answering not only the big requests in my life, but the small, insignificant ones such as this. I think He even knows that this could have put me right into some sort of mental institution! Plus Adam was getting really tired of hearing me talk about this all the time. I think he secretly wants a C-section so that he can sit behind a curtain with me while all of the "gross" stuff goes on....refer back to the post "Elena, I have no medical experience..." concerning how Adam feels about labor and delivery:)

Those of you with husbands...

I guess you don’t really have to have a husband in your life for you to understand what I am about to say. A son, boyfriend, male cousin, brother…any of these will do. Or maybe I am wrong. Maybe my sweet, sweet husband is the only man who does this. And did I mention that I love him more than words could ever say? Seriously, I LOVE this man. He has brightened my life from the day he drove up to pick me up in an F150 wearing boots…ya’ll know how I love a man who wears boots. Anyway, why is it that a TV can get their attention so quickly? If Adam walks through the living room and the TV is on, no matter what channel, he ALWAYS stops to watch it. Always. If I have it on a show I like such as A Baby Story (which currently is my most watched program), The Notebook, or Cooking with Paula he stops, sits down, and watches. Then proceeds to complain that I watch the dumbest shows! If I were in the yard screaming for my life and he was running to my rescue I can assure you he would hesitate in front of the TV momentarily before coming to check on me. And I am not just saying this. I have proof. See picture below.

With only weeks left until the delivery of our first child we have decided to put gas logs in our living room. Adam works on this project most afternoons when he comes home from work….but as you can see if the TV is on he can’t seem to pay attention to anything but that! Is it just him?? Are others this impressed with this thing called a TV??

Did I mention that I LOVE him anyway!