My Butt is a Shelf on Which to Store Things

I have about one more month to go until our baby girl is set to arrive (deep breaths, Amanda, deep breaths) and for the most part am still feeling pretty good. Everyone has said to beware of the last several weeks because things can get really uncomfortable. I'm starting to see a few signs of that, but for the most part I feel good.

A couple of nights ago, I could NOT get comfortable. I don't know if it had to do with the fact that David and I switched sides of the bed or if it was the start of a month of restless nights, but I tossed and turned relentlessly. I also woke up with an extremely sore lower back. As a result, I took a 2 hour nap yesterday afternoon and then did various yoga positions while Dave fixed dinner for us. While the yoga positions made my back feel better, most of them involved my tail-end being higher than my head and shoulders (such a great visual image for you all), and thus, the afternoon snack I had eaten rested nicely in my chest. Ahhhh, the heartburn. Seriously though, it wasn't too bad yet, and I've been trying to combat the problem by drinking lots of water. Uh huh...can you see where I am going with this? My bladder, which is now compressed by a 5 pound baby (who, I swear is enjoying playing Whack-A-Mole with it), is taking a beating. But, I really don't have room to complain because I can still move around and if/when it gets bad, I'm able to kick back on the couch and put my feet up and relax.

I went to the doctor yesterday and she was able to tell that the baby was head down...something I had suspected for awhile. Our hope is that she will stay that way for the final weeks.

I have been reading up as much as possible on the actual birthing experience. Up until recently, I wasn't able to do that. I would read books all the way to the point of delivery and then put them away, but I've come to the realization that the Labor Fairy isn't going to point her magic wand at my belly and present me with our daughter, so I better suck it up and prepare myself.

Some of you may know that David and I want to try and have as natural a childbirth as possible. I know it seems really crazy, but it's something we'd like to try. Our hospital is really supportive of it and so we feel like we've made a good choice there. We can't predict how it will turn out, so we are open to all possibilities, but we have been learning about various pain management strategies that don't involve drugs. The benefits on the baby are enough motivation for me to try and deal with the pain for as long as possible, and hopefully that will be the entire delivery. Keep your fingers crossed for us, or at least David because I may try to make him feel as miserable as I do during the labor process.

Here's my latest picture...if it's any indication of how our belly shots from Sunday turned out, I'm SERIOUSLY scared. You'll be lucky to get a 9 month shot out of me. I don't think it helps anything that the shirt I am wearing is a non-maternity shirt or that we are in a hurry to get out of here. Oy, EXCUSES, EXCUSES!