ALL HALLOW'S EVE

37 weeks, 1 day

Gwen is officially full-term! While that doesn't mean she's ready to greet the world just yet it would be a nice surprise if she made her appearance sooner than later. I'm thinking a Halloween Baby would be fantastic! After all, it is her mommy's favorite holiday!

This year for Halloween, assuming I'm not in labor, I found the cutest shirt to wear as a costume!



I wish I had bought it sooner because now it's far too late to order so I am going to attempt to replicate it. I've bought a black t-shirt and puffy paint but I'm running out of time. I don't think it will take too long to complete I just need to get started on it. So cute ♥

FOUR SHORT WEEKS

36 Weeks

I am in the home stretch with *hopefully* four short weeks to go until we officially become a Mommy and a Daddy! I really don't know where the last thirty-six weeks have gone! Amazing how quickly time has passed. I'm hoping it continues this trend right up until birth. I want to make a point of treasuring every single moment I am home with my daughter on maternity leave because I have a sneaky suspicion that those eight weeks will also seem very short.

Now that I am down to the last month of pregnancy I will have weekly visits with my obstetrician. How exciting! It used to feel like such a long time between visits when they were on a monthly basis.

In just one week Gwen will be considered full-term! Which, while unlikely, means she could arrive at any time! My guess, however, is not before her estimated due date and I have a feeling (call it a mother's intuition?) that this little girl is going to be fashionably late (she'll get that from me). So place your bets now - closest guess to her actual birthdate wins!

EXCITED AND NERVOUS

34 weeks, 6 days

Today leaves 35 days until my due date. We finally got the car seat installed yesterday and things are slowly falling into place. I am starting to feel "ready" to meet our daughter...well, at least as "ready" as I'll ever be!

One thing for sure, I am starting to feel both excited and nervous!

I have my moments where I'll feel her move, glance down at my belly dancing, and get SO excited knowing that it won't be much longer until she's dancing in my arms. That feeling of excitement creates a sense of confidence. I can visualize myself in labor from start to finish and I already feel so accomplished. There were times in my life where I wasn't sure if I wanted to have children, however, I can honestly say I have never been more sure than I am now that this will be my greatest accomplishment and that I was meant to be a mommy.

I also have my moments where I'll feel her move, glance down at my belly dancing, and get SO nervous knowing that it won't be much longer until she's dancing in my arms. That feeling of nervousness creates a sense of overwhelming responsibility. This new little life we are bringing into the world will be dependent on us for everything. We will need to provide her with not only clothes, food, and shelter, but love, stability, and structure. It's a big undertaking, but one I am truly looking forward to.

Years from now I am sure I will reflect back on how I felt in the few final weeks before Gwen's arrival. I can't wait to see the person she grows to be. I am sure she will make both myself and her daddy very proud, but more importantly, I wish for her to be proud of herself.

SIX MORE WEEKS

34 weeks, 1 day

I find it hard to believe that in just 6 weeks, give or take, I will finally be meeting this little person I've had growing inside me. I am trying to make it a point to treasure every day of my last weeks of pregnancy. Who knows if we will ever do this again so it could be a first and a last. That's not to say we absolutely won't have more children, but I am certainly of the mentality of taking one day at a time, and for now, Gwen will be our main focus.

With that being said, I am truly enjoying every kick to my ribs and head butt to my bladder. There have been so many times when this little one has made me randomly laugh out loud while sitting at my desk. I'll admit that I am starting to physically become quite uncomfortable, but with so little time left, I'm trying to focus on the positive and not the negative. I feel like I know her already. She has her little routines - certain times of the day she is more active than not - and I swear she loves hearing my voice and dances along when I sing out loud. I can't wait to meet her face to face. It won't be long.

READY, SET...

32 weeks, 1 day

While I still have roughly eight more weeks to go, I am starting to feel the crunch of getting everything ready for Gwen's big arrival. Technically, I have about four more weeks to get the nursery completed and hospital bags packed because I have told myself that I want the last month of my pregnancy to be as relatively stress-free as possible. Besides, IF Gwen decided that she wasn't waiting for November to make her appearance, that would mean even LESS time to finish preparing. Nesting already? Maybe a little. But I am determined to NOT procrastinate on this matter like most other things in my life in which I do. If you'll remember from my first blog entry I consider myself to be a World Class procrastinator.

I have a very good start to my list and a few things are almost complete. I have already received many clothes in the form of hand-me-downs and shower gifts. The majority of newborn and 0-3 months outfits have been washed and put away, although I still have several "piles" left.

Some of Gwen's laundry

Most of the nursery decor is in place except for a few artistic finishing touches. I would really like to paint a small mural above her crib.

Owl-themed nursery progress

The sun room off our bedroom needs to be turned into a temporary nursery for the first few weeks of Gwen's life when she will be sleeping in her bassinet. In addition, there are a few "projects" around the house I would like to accomplish such as cleaning out the garage and a few storage closests. I will save packing my hospital bags until around week 36 so that will be the last task on my list to be completed.

I know two months is still plenty of time, but like I said, I really want to accomplish everything in a matter of weeks so the last month I can hopefully just be "Zen". How exciting and crazy to think I am in the home stretch!

MAY YOU ALWAYS THRIVE

31 Weeks

At my baby shower we tried something new - a Baby Bead & Blessing Ceremony. I wish I could take credit for this but I came across the idea from a poster on Babycenter.com who in turn found the ceremony on a maternity blog. The idea is that everyone who attends your shower brings a handpicked bead and a blessing to bestow upon the mother and baby-to-be. The beads are then made into a necklace or bracelet and can be used as a focal point during labor and as a reminder of all the love and good wishes for motherhood.

A friend who attended my baby shower gave me a string of beads during the BB&B Ceremony that spells out our chosen name for Gwen - "Gwenyth River Gordon" and pointed out that the word THRIVE can be found in the center of her name. I was absolutely thrilled with the discovery.

Thrive
-verb (used without object)
1. to prosper; be fortunate or successful.
2. to grow or develop vigorously; flourish.

I cannot think of a better word when it comes to the hopes and dreams I have for my future daughter.

In just about 9 weeks I will meet my baby girl for the first time. There are no words to express the joy and love I am feeling for this little person growing inside me. With each passing day I grow more and more excited, and when I am surrounded by negativity I simply think of the journey I am about to embark on and everything else seems insignificant.

If I could send a message to the baby in my belly it would be simply this: To my daughter Gwen - May you always thrive. Love, Mommy

SHOWERING GWEN WITH LOVE

29 Weeks, 5 days

I had my baby shower with family and friends this past weekend. It was such a wonderful day! Bryan, Gwen, and I are certainly loved by all. We received so many nice gifts that will come in handy and lots and lots of clothes! This little girl certainly won't be going naked! Gwen also received her very 1st teddy bear thanks to her Nanna and Grandaddy! I hope it's something she keeps all her life.

The food was delicious and we played some cute games, but my favorite part was the Baby and Bead Blessing Ceremony. Everyone brought me a bead that had meaning to them and shared their blessings and wishes for Gwen and I. It was so touching and special! I plan on making a necklace or bracelet with the beads and keeping it with me during labor for encouragement and support.

It's hard to believe that in a couple of months Gwen will be here! Having my baby shower made it all that more real! Now the fun part of washing, and sorting, and organizing all the wonderful things we received can begin! The sooner everything is ready to go the better! Usually, everything I do is last minute so I am going to try really hard to have most everything complete with time to spare and relax!

Thank you to EVERYONE who helped make my baby shower so special!