Maternity Pics

Our talented friend, Preeti, was kind enough to meet us on Capitol Hill a few weekends ago to take a few maternity pictures. Preeti works in interior design by day, but by night she's all sorts of creative and photography is just one of her many artistic skills!

We love how the pictures came out and are glad we will have some photos to show Baby Wotring when she's older! Here are a few of our favorites!

3/27 -- Baby Wotring's due date (since passed)

Thank you, Preeti! We are so lucky to have a friend as talented and willing to take photos of us on people's front steps as you! 

Baby Wotring - 40 Weeks!

Happy Due Date Baby Girl!

This week Baby Wotring, assuming she's similar to the average newborn, weighs around 7 1/2 pounds and measures about 20 inches long -- the size of a small pumpkin! Her skull bones are not yet fused, which allows them to overlap a bit if it's a snug fit through the birth canal during labor. This so-called "molding" is the reason baby's head may look a little coneheaded-ish temporarily after birth.

Times up baby girl! 

What to say this week? I can't believe I made it to 40 weeks! After my 37 week appointment, the hubs and I thought we'd be holding our baby girl within a week or two (if not days!) but somehow we've made it to our due date! Words cannot describe how excited and anxious we are to meet the little nugget. The hubs checks in on me daily at work to see how I'm feeling and if "anything is happening." Sorry hubs; not much to report!

40 weeks! 

My stomach has been really sore this week, especially the area just above my belly button. The doctor told me it's because baby girl's butt is pressing up against that part of my stomach making the skin stretch like crazy and making it really tender for me. Despite the cramped quarters, she's still moving around quite a bit which is always reassuring.

Sleep this week has been all over the place. Some nights I wake up only once and wake up feeling rested. Other nights I've been up and down all night mostly because I've been dreaming I'm in labor. I wake-up thinking I'm having contractions but clearly it's all in my head right now! Given the fact I'm 40 weeks pregnant, I think my energy level is pretty good and most days I've been taking Brownie on at least two 20 minute walks plus getting in a walk some days on my lunch break and of course yoga.

Jelly beans are a food group, right?

My weight is holding steady around 28 lbs over my pre-pregnancy weight. Food hasn't been super appetizing lately. Well, unless you count dark chocolate and jelly beans which are the only foods I feel like eating. Don't worry, Madre. I'm making sure to eat some well-balanced meals so Baby Wotring doesn't come out asking for candy ;)

At today's appointment Baby Wotring was in good position and the doctor did a little "sweeping" procedure to see if that helps baby girl along. Fingers crossed there's no Week 41 post but it's possible our little nugget wants to be an April baby like her Grandma! The doctor suggested scheduling an induction for next Thursday but I got them to push it to 10 days past my due date to give the little girl some time. At least we know she'll be here by Monday, April 7th!

Baby Wotring - 39 Weeks!

Here we are again....another week gone by and no baby!

This week Baby Wotring is just waiting to greet the world! She's measuring around 20 inches long and weighs a bit over 7 pounds -- still about the size of a small watermelon! Our little girl continues to build a layer of fat to help control her body temperature after birth and the outer layers of her skin are sloughing off as new skin forms underneath. Baby girl's brain is still growing at an astonishing rate, a pace that will continue for the first three years of her life.

The belly is definitely making me feel like I'm 39 weeks pregnant right now! My mobility has taken a hit the last week or two and it's obvious when I try to bend over or get up off the couch. On Tuesday I was on Capitol Hill for my last hill meeting before baby and was pretty ticked off when Capitol Police made me take off my boots to go through the metal detector! All winter I've been wearing these boots and never have I been asked to take them off and now, when I'm 39 weeks pregnant, I'm forced to. Ugh! There is no way the officer didn't sense my annoyance with his request especially when I bitterly asked if there was somewhere I could sit to put them back on. I mean, hello, it's not so easy for a pregnant lady to balance and put on tall boots while standing! I know they are just doing their job but do I really seem like a threat?!

Ready to be a Big Sister! 

At our 39 week appointment this morning the doctor was once again very surprised that baby girl hasn't arrived yet. I'm still 3 cm and 90% effaced so he said it could be anytime (which is obviously what they keep telling us!). We are trying to be patient and reminding ourselves that we haven't even made it to Baby Wotring's due date so there is no need to rush the little nugget quite yet.

Weekends and donuts just go together

Last weekend we met up with one of our super talented friends on Capitol Hill to take some maternity photos. I had debated in my head whether we should take pictures for awhile now but I'm glad we did it and I'm excited to see how they come out! Basically I wanted a few photos of me and the hubs that we could look back on since going a pregnancy is quite the journey to go through together as a couple! I'll share as soon as we get them from the wonderful Preeti!

Baby Wotring - 38 Weeks!

Well, we made it to week 38!

This week Baby Wotring weighs 6.8 pounds and measures 19 1/2 inches long - about the size of a watermelon! Our little girl has a firm grasp, which we'll soon be able to test when we hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb. When our little nugget is born, if she has brown eyes they will likely stay that way. If she is born with steel gray or blue eyes, they may stay that color or change. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after birth, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue.

Last belly pic before baby??

Well we waited patiently anxiously all week to see if Baby Wotring was going to make an early entrance but momma's instincts were right - no baby. I get the sense that she's pretty content where she is and don't get the feeling that she's coming anytime soon. I've been having more braxton hicks contractions this week than normal and some cramping with the occasional contraction but nothing regular and no swelling or back aches to complain about. I'm definitely feeling more and more pregnant though. The belly is huge but I guess that's to be expected when you gain 26 lbs. The last few days I have been waking up more in the night (usually 2-3 times) which I think is bothering Brownie more than me. I've also noticed I'm more tired in the late afternoon so I guess the whole third trimester exhaustion has caught up to me.

When in a Senate office building bathroom, take a selfie. Obvi. 

Exercise is now confined to walking and yoga (self-imposed). I've been spending a lot of time on Capitol Hill the last couple weeks so that is helping me stay active (and probably is contributing to some of my tiredness!) and being busy is making the days go by fast as we wait for baby girl. We had a frantic weekend getting our car seats checked by the Fairfax Sheriff's Department, cleaning, making baby meals for the freezer, hanging out with friends and getting lots of other little things tied up in anticipation of Baby Wotring and we now feel prepared for her arrival...whenever it may be!

This weekend I have big plans to clean our windows but we'll probably also go out to dinner and enjoy what could be our last weekend as a family of three!

Baby Wotring - 37 Weeks!

Oh baby, we are getting close!

This week Baby Wotring weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches -- about the size of a bunch of swiss chard! Our little nugget won't be considered "full term" until 39 weeks which will give her brain and lungs a little more time to fully mature. Baby girl is busy rehearsing her big debut, inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid (to get her lungs ready for that first breath), sucking, blinking, and turning from side to side.

WARNING: TMI AHEAD. The hubs and I went to my 37 week appointment this morning. After waiting a bit, I got called back to check my weight (officially up 25 lbs) and blood pressure (normal at 120/77). My doctor saw us pretty soon after and asked how I've been feeling. I told her really good except I think I was fighting a stomach bug at the beginning of the week and explained the symptoms. She said given that I was already 1 cm last week, the "stomach bug" I thought I had might actually have been contractions and my body preparing for baby. Upon further examination, she said that was probably the case because I am at 3 cm! HOLY!

The doctor told us to be prepared for the little one to come sooner rather than later given how I've progressed over the last week but she said there is always the possibility I stay at 3 cm for another few weeks. She walked us through what we need to pay attention for and when to call the doctors if we think I'm in labor. I don't think the hubs nor I were prepared to hear Baby Wotring could be making her arrival soon so it took a few minutes for us to process the information which is both exciting and scary!

Leaving the Hill at 5pm and getting caught in rush hour calls for a treat #pregnancycraving

I had a slew of meetings on Capitol Hill in the afternoon which helped keep my mind off the fact that we still have a few things (stocking the freezer with meals, cleaning, a pedicure for momma, etc) we want to get done before Baby Wotring arrives! I think baby girl is pretty content where she's at and won't be making her arrival for at least another couple weeks.  The hubs is pretty sure she'll be here by next weekend. I guess only time will tell!

See you next Thursday for the 38 week update....if not sooner!

Nursery Tour

Baby Wotring's room is done! We spent the weekend putting the finishing touches on it and both admit -- we love how it turned out!

Baby girl's room used to be the hubs' office but we always knew we'd turn the room into a nursery when the time came to start our family. Our other bedroom is larger than the nursery and because of that, we wanted to keep it as the guest room especially since we suspect we'll be having more visitors with the little nugget's arrival. 

If you know me, you probably know my favorite color is purple so of course when I started pinning nurseries on Pinterest I gravitated towards purple rooms. I just love the look of purple and this aqua color together so it didn't take long for me to settle on it and get the hubs' buy-in. And by "buy-in" I mean forced consent :) 

We went with a more modern looking crib and bought a regular dresser to use as a changing table (don't worry, the hubs secured the changing pad to the dresser with some industrial strength velcro).  Both are pretty gender neutral so we can use for any future Baby Wotring's that come along. 

Baby Wotring already has quite the book collection so we got a cute little bookshelf from Target. We'll probably need to relocate this to another place once she's standing and more mobile since it could prove to be hazardous, but for now it works next to her crib. 

Love the handy teal cart we found at Ikea

We are both OBSESSED with our glider from Babies R Us. It glides, swivels and reclines and will surely get a lot of use in the months to come. 

Baby Girl's view of her mobile

I DIY'd the mobile above her bed which was a really fun project the hubs helped me with. My inspiration was a mobile I saw on Etsy but instead of paying $60 I figured I might as well make my own and I'm really glad I did. 

Love this! 

I loved the idea of doing a little gallery wall in the nursery especially since it allowed me to combine a moose with a few craft projects. I DIY'd the heart hoop that's part of her little gallery wall and I have a few other fun craft projects I want to add to the wall once Baby Wotring has a name! The lovely little shadow box was crafted by BFF Randi and will get filled in with a new picture and her name and birthday once baby girl arrives. 

Messages to Baby Girl from guests at the VA baby shower

Cute closet organization

There you have it. Baby Wotring's nursery is complete. You can arrive anytime, little one. Your Mom and Dad are ready to meet you!