The Belly

This is me at 38 1/2 weeks. Tim took them last night. The update is that I'm dilated to 2 cm. Woo-hoo - 2 down and 8 to go! The doctor told me that if I come in on Monday for my next appointment and have dilated to 4 but am not showing signs of labor then we're going to look at something to help get things rolling. I'm assuming we'll start with the whole membrane stripping deal...joy. I guess it's better than Pitocin. I dilated a centimeter and a half in the last week so that's why he's keeping an eye on how quickly things are happening now.
Personally, we're just praying it happens soon. By the weekend. Now would be great.
And, yes, I know, I'm not even to 40 weeks yet, but this pregnancy has been something else on my body and I'm ready to be done. We're also more than excited to see what this little munchkin looks like.
Can you tell I got my haircut? Yep, chopped it to my chin right before Valentine's Day. I love it. It's so easy and the best part? (This will probably be disturbing to some of you.) I can wash and dry it one morning and then not have to wash it again for another 2 days and it looks better each morning I wake up. There are times I could pull off another day, but then I get to feeling disturbed. I remember reading that you should really only wash your hair one day a week anyway to keep it healthier, now I just have a hairstyle that will actually let me do it! It will be perfect for after baby is born and I don't have time to shower let alone wash my hair for a couple days.

Getting Closer!

Well, folks, there are less than 3 weeks left until my due date. You fellow mothers know what that means - the nesting has kicked in. The fact our weather has been so spring-like has also helped in the motivation to clean things I normally wouldn't on a regular basis. Although every night before I go to bed I want things to be picked up, Tuesdays have become my crazy cleaning day. I find myself doing things I don't do. Proof is in this conversation with Tim from last Tuesday (first thing you should know - I hate scrubbing floors. Yes, hate. I know it's a strong word and that should tell you how strongly I feel about it.)
Me: Well, I did more nesting today.
Tim: Yeah, Noah told me you cleaned out the van and vacuumed it.
Me: I also got on my hands and knees and scrubbed the bathroom and kitchen floors.
Tim: You don't scrub floors.
Me: I know.
Tim: Did they even need it? You just had me scrub them a week ago and we can't even remember the time before that they were done.
Me: I don't think they actually needed it but I couldn't help it. It was like I was possessed and couldn't rest until the floors were scrubbed by me on my hands and knees.
Tim: You got on your hands and knees instead of using the Swiffer thing?
Me: Yeah, that just doesn't really clean it well.
Tim: How do you feel?
Me: Exhausted.
Tim: You need to rest tomorrow.
Me: Yeah, sure, I will.
My body was so sore that I could barely move in the middle of the night. I could hardly get out of bed to go to the bathroom (multiple times) or roll over.
What is it with this nesting instinct we expectant mothers have? I almost feel like this is the worst I've ever had it, actually I know it is. Part of me thinks it is because I can remember how hard it was for me to keep the house clean after Ellie was born and how much that bothered me. So mentally, I'm telling myself that if I can keep it really clean now, it will take longer to get to the not-clean state. Is that a warped way of thinking?
So here are some picture updates of what has been going on lately:

We don't own a TV, but the kids do occasionally watch movies on the laptop. There are times I clean while they're watching a movie. However, I also want them to learn responsibility and chores and to share in on the cleaning (since they're part of the mess-making) so there are times like these:

Ellie helping Daddy vacuum. Ellie actually LOVES to clean so it's not hard to get her to help. Noah is to the point where he only wants to do certain things.
The Tuesday list
Ellie "cleaning" the cupboard doorknobs with a baby wipe. I clean with all-natural products, baking soda and vinegar so I'm not worried about them touching or getting into any of my supplies because they're not toxic. However, I usually just give them a baby wipe and tell them to go wipe something down.
Cleaning out the van. Noah really got into this one. Ellie thought it was more fun to pretend to drive.

Non-nesting related news:
I had my 37-week prenatal appointment today and am dilated almost to 1 cm. Almost. I'm not one who gets caught up in the whole dilation thing since I know it doesn't actually predict when you're going in to labor. I just like to know how much work I have behind me when the real thing does start.

At the end of February we got dumped on with some more snow. The kids and I decided one afternoon to make snow cream. I was not that impressed but the kids liked it.

We broke Ellie of her binky habit a couple weeks ago. We do this with our kids by taking them to the store (Target in Ellie's case) and having them "buy" a toy/stuffed animal with their binky. Ellie picked out a baby doll that came with a binky. Then every time over the next couple days that she started to feel withdrawal she would put the doll's binky in her mouth, hence the picture above. It was ridiculous in that it's just a small stub of plastic. Thankfully, she only tried this a couple times. She actually kicked the habit in less than a day and is sleeping so much better at night than she has since she was born. Go figure.
That's all for now!

A Sunday Afternoon

*I just found this while looking through the documents on our computer for something different. I wrote it last May and thought I would share it since the spring weather is right around the corner (at least it has felt like it lately!)*

The sun is streaming through the windows making it seem warmer outside than what it really is. There is about a half hour until I need to start dinner and I can tell Eleanor is not going to make it. I grab a bowl of animal crackers and, taking her in my arms, carry both over to the couch. I settle her on my lap and she happily starts in on the menagerie in the bowl on her own lap.

As we bite the heads off elephants and legs from giraffes, I look outside. The breeze is causing the tree branches and leaves to sway gracefully. Although they cannot hear the Sufjan Stevens album playing in the kitchen, it is almost as if they are dancing to it. As “Tahquamenon Falls” fills my ears, I relax even more into the couch pillows around me listening to what sounds like wind chimes in the song.

Eleanor turns to offer me a bite of lion and then shoves it happily into her mouth before I can accept or refuse. Just a bit louder than the beginning notes of “Holland” is the pounding coming from outside. I look out one of the windows to the west and I can see Tim each time he stands to move to a new position. He is nailing landscape timbers to the ground for the perimeter of our garden with his “helper” in the form of a preschooler, Noah.

All is right. I forget the present financial woes of the country. In this moment my mind is not littered with thoughts of unemployment, health care, broken down vehicles or other downers. In this moment I am thankful to God for what I do have. In this moment, I am cherishing my blessings.

I know that the next song will bring forth with it reminders of all that is realistic but right now I just want this: calm. I want to snuggle my daughter and kiss her delightful cheeks. I want to savor the mental snapshot of a father and son in their work gloves, one pair black and gray and the other blue and orange with Diego the Animal Rescuer on them, laboring over a project together. It is not just any project but one that was designed and is being carried out together as a family, trying to involved the kids whenever possible.

Eleanor has finished the last of her zoo and is now trying to put the bowl on her head. She looks at me and laughs hysterically because she knows she is. Inside I just about burst with all that surrounds me – sunshine outside, laughter inside, childlike playfulness and labors of love. More important than all that, what can cause all that, is one more thing.

There is peace in my heart.