false alarm.

well. little miss has a flair for the dramatic already i guess.  heads up that this may be a bit TMI, but it's mine to record!

about 3:30pm yesterday (after my mani/pedi, where i said "okay, i can have a baby now! fresh toes!") i headed to target to pick up a few groceries & last minute toiletries for my hospital bag.  i was almost done with my shopping and OF COURSE at the very back corner of the store when i felt a rush of fluid all of a sudden, like my water was starting to break. it wasn't the big heavy gush i had with brady, but it was definitely not normal & i thought maybe my water was breaking slowly.  either way, i immediately started pushing my massive cart as quickly as i could towards the bathrooms. while doing the waddle trying to hold my legs together. and while being VERY thankful to be wearing black yoga pants that are forgiving to fluid leaking!!  i grabbed a package of massive pads, ripped it open, and threw one in my purse while running into the bathroom (giant full cart left haphazard outside the bathroom - hope they caught all that on target surveillance video haha).  i was having a ton of discharge, more than usual, and couldn't exactly tell if my water had broken. i wasn't soaked like with B, but my underwear was definitely wet.  told you, TMI.  i hightailed it out of there, checked out & headed home.  i had booked my sitter for another couple hours so i asked her to stay while i laid down for a little while and tried to figure out if my contractions were steady.  they were definitely painful, and my braxton hicks usually aren't even though i have a lot of them.  i timed them and they ranged from 4-12 minutes apart, so very inconsistent but i was having more than usual.  mike was playing golf so i texted him the heads up and told him to keep playing until i knew for sure.  we had joked a bunch this week that baby would interrupt/cancel his golf tournament just like brady did (mike was leaving for a tourney in denver the morning i had brady, haha!).  i'm sure he was like "are you kidding me?!" when i sent him the first text:)

he got home about 7pm and we decided it was probably better to go get checked out in case my water HAD broken, even though i wasn't really having a ton of fluid.  just a little leaking, it felt like.  my contractions stayed inconsistent but painful.  they would be consistently every 5-6 minutes for an hour & then die down again.  so confusing!!  with brady it was so obvious & intense.  anyway, i took a shower & we settled brady in with rob & suz, and headed towards MCR.  we made a quick stop by taco bell on the way for some dinner because both of us were hungry at that point!

headed in under a stormy sky (it unleashed 30 min later!)...

baby and i had some monitoring & she looked great.  i had some strong contractions while there and she responded with good accelerations in her heart rate which was good to see.  i was dilated up to 3.5cm and still 50% effaced.  the doc on call (because OF COURSE my doc is out of town friday & saturday night this weekend, seriously!!) suggested i walk the halls for an hour to see if anything changed with my dilation, so off we went.  at that point it was almost 10pm and i was just ready to go home to bed if this wasn't the real deal.

at 10:15pm i was checked again, unchanged, so we were discharged home and told to hydrate plenty, rest & come back of course if the contractions got worse/closer together or if my water obviously broke.  we sent the doyles home, crawled into bed by 11, and besides a few strong ones through the night i slept well and woke up this morning kind of wondering what last night was all about haha!  i guess baby girl isn't ready yet...probably because she knows we don't have her name picked out! :)  

time will tell when she arrives, but i will not be going back in unless i am spewing amniotic fluid, i'm just saying.  mike finishes up his final round of the golf tourney at noon today and is off the rest of the weekend so i'm really hoping she comes in the next 24 hours.  he leaves a week from tomorrow for two weeks & i really want us four to have a few days together...please baby!

bestie bumps.

suz & i got mani/pedis today.  hopefully my last before baby comes:)  we took a belly shot selfie afterwards just to compare what 37 weeks & 25 weeks looks like.  i'm taking a pic like this every time i see her since any day now, my bump will be replaced by a sweet little babe!

pool day. and ready for babe!

we joined our neighborhood pool this year & i'm sooooo glad we did! had our first day at the pool yesterday & it was quite the hit with little man. helps that there is a zero depth entry side where he can play endlessly in shallow water.  and the water is heated.  we laughed lots & had a great time.

big mama, almost 37 weeks!!

i had an OB appointment this morning & am dilated to 3cm and 50% effaced. baby girl may arrive any day!!! we seriously need to name her. otherwise, i feel like we are pretty ready for her otherwise. all the baby stuff is out & ready, and we'll install her carseat once the fam all heads home later this week if she hasn't made her appearance by then.  i feel mostly excited & somewhat nervous about our family transition in the next few days/weeks.  overall though, i just really can't wait to see her sweet face & snuggle her soft cheeks.

every single morning.

i eat this for breakfast every.single.morning.  haven't gotten sick of it yet.

ate multiple bagels with cream cheese every day my entire first trimester & haven't had a bagel since, hahaha!  hoping the almond butter/strawberry jelly faze doesn't end soon though because it's soooo good:)

working out.

so thankful i've been able to be super active this pregnancy!  i find myself at the gym doing barre classes or working out on the elliptical 4-5 days a week still (before wedding week...it all came to a halt for the festivities).  while julie was in town we even snuck in a workout!  i love being able to work out and feel like it's contributed to much less weight gain & water retention this pregnancy.

hello, baby bump!

the sisters & i did some shopping this weekend - of course! it's what we do.

i noticed while standing in the dressing room hallway how massive my belly looks all of a sudden! i've definitely popped in the last few days, and i feel like baby girl has dropped.  i'm 36 weeks-2 days now.  today is the first day i've really "felt" the end of pregnancy.  i'm so tired and my legs & pelvis are super sore after kate's wedding yesterday.  i think that's to be expected though after a long day on our feet & in heels no less. last night when we got home from the wedding everything in me throbbed and my feet were swollen for the first time this pregnancy. but today the swelling is less which is good. trying to keep my feet up & rest as much as i can while i have family in town to help me these last few days. i feel like she could come any day now...so exciting & a little bit scary!!

wedding excitement.

our beautiful kate got married yesterday!!! it was the most perfect day & they threw an amazing FUN party after the ceremony.  sooooo glad baby girl stayed put through the wedding weekend, i was afraid she would make an early debut & i would miss the wedding. i woke up this morning more sore than i imagined but i did dance my LEGS off at the reception and wore heels for most of the day, so i think that's to be expected at 9 months pregnant :)

congrats aunt kake!!! we're so happy for you!!!