Happy Friday! Celebrating the moments of the week…

(From left to right)

1. So, Chick-fil-a Cow Appreciation day was last week… and this was my cow costume. Needless to say I got some laughs… and some free Chick-fil-a. Winning!

2. Still working out! I’m not doing much other than cardio at this point. 30 strong minutes of cardio and I feel accomplished… so I’m not trying to push myself too much. It’s definitely one of those, “It hurts so good” situations. I’m really hoping to keep this up until I go into labor.

3. The wonderfully fabulous (and GORGEOUS new mom) Katie from …For Lauren and Lauren sent Baby Stillman a gift this week. So thoughtful!

4. Speaking of gifts from thoughtful people… the amazing Stephanie from Ooh Baby Designs surprised me and sent a gift for Baby Stillman… a 100% totally unique and handmade diaper bag. The pictures don’t do it justice. It’s gorgeous. And so perfect. It brought tears to my eyes. I can’t wait to use it!

5. So, my wedding rings no longer fit. And I took them in to Wentworth & Sloan, the jeweler where we got them, to get cleaned and Ken, the owner, was so sweet and gave me (as a gift) a sterling silver band to wear since I can’t wear my own rings. The gesture was so sweet and really made my week. My hand no longer feels naked!

That super cute boy you see in that photo above you? Yeah, that’s my nephew and he turns the big THREE today! THREE YEARS OLD!! AHHHH! Happy Birthday, Kyle! You have grown up to be such a sweet, smart, and funny young little man. You bring joy to everyone around you. I can’t wait for you to meet your cousin! Aunt Molly and Uncle John love you so very much!

How far along: 37 weeks, 2 days. We’ve got a full-term baby, y’all!

How big is baby: About 6.5 pounds and about 19 inches long. Fruit and veggie scale says “watermelon” and it sure as heck feels like it.

Weight gain: Welp. Folks. I promised I’d be transparent here and that I’d share with you my struggles and all that good stuff. I’ve gained 50 pounds. And I feel every single pound. I know, I know. A LOT of it is swelling and water weight. But the fact of the matter is, it’s 15 pounds above what I wanted. I feel huge. I look huge. With the exception of my belly (which I don’t hate right now… I think my pregnant belly is beautiful) – I hate looking at myself in the mirror. My face is round. My arms are round. My legs are round. Everything is just… round. And I just want my body back. However, my midwife says I’m healthy and baby is healthy. I’m going to the gym and working out four, sometimes even five days a week. I’m doing everything I can. The fact is, right now, my body is not mine and it’s doing a lot of work creating a human being. So, I’ve just opted to give it over to God and say, “Lord, I’m going to continue to do what I need to do. You can handle the rest.” And, if in the end that involves gaining this much weight, then so be it. There. There’s your truth, people.

Sleeping: Yeah, what’s that?

Food cravings: Surprisingly nothing really this week.

Food aversions: Japanese food still.

Symptoms: All of them. All of the symptoms! The big two are:

• Back / hip pain – middle and upper back are much better now… it’s my lower back that’s a real doozy. The worst thing right now is this hip pain and pelvic pain. Every step feels like I’m being stabbed. And the hip pain really makes it impossible to get out of bed or even roll over. My husband has to help me out of bed. 🙁 That’s embarrassing…
• VERY swollen feet and ankles.

Miss Anything?: My body. Feeling like a normal human. Sleep.

Doctor’s appointment: I’m going to the midwife every week now… I had my Group B Strep test last week and I did find out that I am positive for GBS. Basically, from what I have been told, it’s fairly normal, it just means that as soon as I go into labor and/or as soon as my water breaks I have to go to the hospital right away and get on IV antibiotics. But other than that, should be fairly normal.

Wedding Rings: Yep, lost these this week. But, as I said above, Ken at Wentworth and Sloan came through… 🙂

Clothes: Yes. Clothes.

Movement: They keep saying baby’s movements should be slowing down now… however this kid refuses to slow down. That’s my girl / boy!

Best moment of the week: Having a BBQ with our small group on Monday night!

What I’m looking forward to: Meeting our baby! I am just SO anxious now!

What I did / Got for baby: Started planning what I’m going to pack for the hospital and we are pretty much 99% done with everything. We just need a lot more diapers and clothes.

What I learned this week: Once I found out I was GBS+, I read a ton about it… just want to know what I’m dealing with. It really seems like it’s no big deal, which is good.

Prayer requests: Comfort in these last few weeks. Definitely for sleep. We’re also still praying very specifically for a few things with regards to the labor: I’m praying that both John and I are able to soundly and consciously make the best decisions when it comes to everything during the labor process, I’m praying that I’m able to focus on my labor and pain management techniques and get through the whole thing without any medical intervention or drugs and be able to give birth 100% naturally, I’m praying that all the herbal remedies / exercise / etc. that I’ve been doing will help speed the labor process along in addition to making it efficient so that no intervention is needed. I’m also praying for a few other things, but I’ll keep those between me, my husband, and the Lord for now.

Thank you guys for your support, encouragement, and kind words along the way over these past 8 months… y’all are the best. <3

Linked up with Lauren and Jeannett today!