17 Days Left to Go-GO

I hadn't realized until yesterday afternoon that I really had begun to hope and believe this baby sweet potato girl of ours would be arriving before her due date... Anytime after Tuesday the 3rd, before the 18th, and I'd be thrilled.

Well, I saw my OB and in a week's time, my cervix has only dilated the width of his index finger's tip - - that's not even a centimeter. When he told me this, honestly, inside, I felt like bursting into tears = I'd been hoping for 2 centimeters = some real progress. When he told me, I said to him, "She's going to arrive on her due date, isn't she," spoken more like a statement of fact rather than a question. He simply smiled and nodded yes, and then he saw my face fall a little bit, and he piped up to add, "Who knows though, she could come this weekend - we just won't know." I again repeated, this time nodding my head, "She's going to arrive on her due date." And once again, he smiled a wide grin and nodded, yes.

This is good news! I do recognize this! Our baby girl is going to get her due time baking in the oven. Especially when there had been so much worry that she'd be small and have troubles and arrive early - - but she's reached 6 pounds now, we haven't had any developmental troubles, and we have only 17 days left. She's come a long way and done well. This is all good... BUT...

#3, I want to meet her! ~ #2, I want to hold her! ~ And in general, #1, I want her NOW.
And somewhere amidst all that, I'm simply tired of being pregnant: My back is the primary issue for me, really... I shouldn't complain and I really can't complain (as I sit here, quietly moaning about my back and ribs hurting).

Okay - For about 5 minutes after typing that last statement, I set my laptop down, slid myself off the couch to the floor on my hands and knees, and I began to cry = I let my back pain take me over. My honey-man ran over and proceeded to rub my back and ribs and to offer me pillows and his heartfelt sympathy. And now I'm fine. *sigh*

We're soooo fortunate for how things have turned out despite my initial stay in the hospital, and our 2-vessel umbilical cord, and in general. Actually, things have been going REALLY well...

And in terms of the physicality of pregnancy, my body has handled the changes rather smoothly, overall:
1) Sure, my skin was initially uber greasy, but that mellowed out soon enough and my skin's been practically perfect since. 2) I didn't really have many tricky troubles with food aversions or smells. 3) The frequency of my nose bleeds was initially alarming, but tolerable once I learned to expect them, and in the last month, they only happen now once or twice a week. 4) Despite the recent significant increase in midnight visits to the bathroom, I'm able to fall right back asleep after each trip. 5) And although 2 weeks ago, when sleeping at night had become an impossibility due to the crazy increase in both pelvic and back pain [For 3 nights in a row, I'd had less than 7 hours of sleep!], I figured out how to best use my Snoogle in combination with a downy pillow placed lengthwise beneath my tummy to relieve the side strain upon my back muscles due to my belly's weight, and I've been sleeping a lot better since. 6) I haven't been having any water retention issues. 7) Any swelling of my hands and/or feet happens only if I'm either standing or sitting around too long without a change in position. 8) I did go through some fierce sciatica pain, both my left and right, off and on for a couple months, but that's subsided significantly over the last month. 9) And rarely have I had any headaches - - only a handful of really bad ones. 10) And in 8+ months, I've gained only 20 pounds, most of which is the baby and her surrounding habitat. Oh, and one bit of news to note here: In the last couple weeks (basically right after I'd proudly noted I was without), the stretch marks appeared (pictures later), but even with those, I've seen a lot worse! Mine are pretty dang tame so far (fingers crossed).

So yeah, I'm doing well. In fact, I see so many other pregnant women who seem absolutely miserable. Not that I can make any direct comparisons, but I think I've had it easy, if not at least for the fact that I NEVER experienced any morning sickness. I really can't complain. I just need to be patient now.