35 Weeks

Is this really what I look like? 35 weeks and I'm starting to shock myself with these weekly photos. I guess I don't typically see my profile other than these shots, and the bump is not as "in your face" when you're just looking head on in the mirror. 

So apparently this is the "large and in charge" phase of pregnancy. Not 18 weeks like my sad little self thought way back in October. And actually, as this week has progressed, I've gotten exponentially bigger. Everybody told me, "just wait until the last month...you grow so much more and at a faster rate," and I'm beginning to understand. My skin feels like it is begging for mercy, constantly tight and pulling. My ribs "sting" if I bend forward (I realize ribs don't actually have feeling, but let's not get too technical here). And I think getting in and out of my low-to-the-ground car is a sight for any onlooker. BUT! All that really means is that the end (or beginning!) is drawing near. And that makes it all worth it. These final weeks I'm trying to relish the last of pregnancy, the last of 'life as just a couple' and the last of spoiling Millie like she's the center of our world (which she is). But the expiration date of that is drawing near and I think she's starting to figure that out. She snuggles with me in my new nursery chair and I wonder if I'm going to be "cool" with that when Baby is here. We shall see...

Baby is the size of a coconut, rounding out my big ol' belly. We've been to a few more classes at Sanford now, all of them moving us closer to feeling as ready as we can be. We went to Lamaze February 8 and 9 which was helpful. A lot was redundant of the Labor and What to Expect class we went to in January, but it was still good. We got a more extensive and more informative tour of the family birth center which we both really appreciated. And having Aaron learn massage techniques and practice on my shoulders and arms while I was NOT in labor was not a terrible way to spend a Saturday morning.

We also recently attended the "Caring for a Newborn" class at Sanford and both learned a few things. Aaron was most excited to learn how to soothe Baby when he or she has gas since that is something  he is very empathetic towards! We also stumbled our way through our swaddling lesson (wow, we have some practicing to do) and Aaron changed his first diaper EVER on a doll. I guess teenage boys don't babysit like teenage girls do, so practice rounds haven't been a part of his life. Something tells me he'll figure it out though. And then he'll show me a thing or two about effective techniques.