39 weeks

Hi Junior,

Here we are at 39 weeks and 1 day.  You're moving around a lot these days, sometimes sticking your little feet in my ribs (yes, that's me pushing your foot back and your dad flicking you in return) and last night I swear I felt your little fist against my hand.  Pretty cool.  I guess it will be even cooler when we actually see your little fists in person!

I worked from home today and did your first load of laundry.  You inherited four huge garbage bags full of clothes from your older sisters at church, and we've sorted them all from newborn to 24 months.  These newborn clothes are SO. SMALL.  I keep looking at them and thinking -- how does a person fit into this? Surely she can't be that small.  Guess we'll find out soon enough.

We're just waiting for you to arrive... our hospital bags are packed, your daddy is still working on reading his "Heading Home With Your Newborn" book, and I find myself trolling the internet for advice on breastfeeding and changing diapers.  Your aunties at church have also been giving us a lot of helpful advice, which has been helpful.  But I cannot help but think that we've just got to go through it with you to really know how everything works.  I'm really nervous about that, because it's really hard to prepare for--and I don't like being unprepared (you will eventually learn that at some point in your life).  But I guess I am also learning to chill out a bit and kind of go with the flow, too.  You can't prepare for everything.

In other news, your mom is making waves at work by taking a deposition this Thursday, next Monday (your due date) and next Tuesday -- assuming you remain in utero and she remains able to handle this stuff.  Most people's eyes get really wide and they start to look very concerned when they hear about this.  I guess, in a way, I also was not expecting work to be this intense, this close to your arrival.  But I want maternity leave to be with you as long as possible, so... I'll keep going. It's not so bad.  Some days are harder than others, but overall -- months 7 and 8 were the absolute worst, and nothing could be harder than those were, even with the perpetual aches and pains that come with late third-trimester pregnancy.

In still other news, I hope I didn't confuse you too much with what I've been feeding you.  Your mom loves carbs.  Loves them.  And was merrily feeding you lots of them until week 36 or so, when your doctor said she should probably stop eating carbs.  "Chicken, fish, and vegetables," she said.  :-p  Boooo.  So that explains why over the last 3-4 weeks, you've been consuming lots of cheese, chicken, kale salad, greens, lentils, honeycrisp apples (lucky you!), greek yogurt, and blueberries.  Hope you're not too confused.  But truth be told, this is probably good for you.  (And it's been good for me, as it has kept my weight gain steady at 28-30 pounds.)  

Anyway, anytime you want to come out, just start doing your thing.  We're as ready as we'll ever be, and 39 weeks in -- I'm finally ready to meet you.  Your dad's been ready for a while.  And you have lots of aunties and uncles and cousins at church and in your parents' community who are really excited to meet you and have been praying for you for many months now.  You are already blessed -- try not to forget it.

Love,

Mommy

P.S. I've been doing a good job of not co-opting your stuffed animals.  Your dad didn't think I could -- but I've been really good!