Boy, it must be cozy in there!

Dear Camden,

I want you to know that I have absolutely loved carrying you in my belly for nine months (and a few weeks), and I am so happy that you are healthy and getting ready to make your appearance in the world. I know that it must be very cozy in Mommy's belly, what with all of that warm amniotic fluid and great tasting food that I have been eating for the two of us, but I promise you will still get to enjoy the great food that I eat when you arrive! I will also make sure you stay warm and cozy, I will wrap you in a swaddling blanket if you like, and I will hold you and love on you all of the time. Plus, your dad wants to meet you, hold you, and keep you warm. We will even change your diapers and give you baths to keep you clean and smelling good! Your grandparents, aunts, and uncle want to meet you, too! Also, there are two sweet puppies at our house who will cuddle with you when you arrive - they love the smell of babies! So, we would love for you to make your appearance whenever you are ready, because Mommy is really getting tired of carrying you on the inside of her body - I want to carry you on the outside!

Love, Mommy

That's just what I would say to Camden right now to encourage him to come on out! Even though I still haven't reached my official due date, I am ready to meet this little guy! But, more on that to come - we do have some exciting news on that front! This weekend, Neal and I took it easy - he played golf with some guys from our small group which will probably be one of the last times he will do that for awhile. I pretty much rested on the couch for most of the weekend. Neal did spend a large part of Saturday afternoon cleaning, which made me laugh, because I should have been the one "nesting." Instead, he was cleaning our bathrooms, bathing the dogs, cleaning the kitchen, and using his special tool (from Home Depot) to clean out anything that might have been hanging out in our bathroom drains. I just appreciate that I didn't have to do any of that hard work - it made me tired just watching him!

On Sunday, I was able to help host my friend Stephanie's baby shower! I had actually done my part of the shower help in the weeks before just in case I happened to go into labor before the 19th, but since I am still pregnant, I was able to attend. Let me just say that it is so much easier to be just a guest/hostess at a baby shower than the person being "showered." I felt much more relaxed, less swollen, less hot, and I was able to eat more of the yummy snacks than I ate at my own showers! It was so great to enjoy this special day with Stephanie and friends! Here we are comparing bellies - this is also my 39 week picture! I am less and less excited about taking belly pictures as I am now ready to get rid of this belly! By the way, Stephanie is due in November - that's why she is so much smaller than I am, and her little boy is going to be one of Camden's very good friends - I just know it! It has been nice to have her as someone to commiserate with throughout this pregnancy, and it has been nice to get to know her better through our small group and church!

On Tuesday, we went in for our weekly appointment with the doctor, and something interesting happened. When the nurse first took my blood pressure, it was a little higher than usual, so she asked me to lay down on my left side to see if it would go down. She also warned that if it didn't, I might have to check in to the hospital for them to monitor my blood pressure and make sure everything was okay. At this point, Neal became a little bit hyper - he put down his book, stood up, rubbed my back, walked around the exam room, and grabbed a pregnancy magazine to look at some of the advice and and advertisements. He was hilarious! But, the nurse came back in and took my blood pressure again, and it was normal, so no need to worry! She said that several women who were close the same due date as me came in with higher than normal blood pressure that day, too, so it could have been something in the weather or just a coincidence. I'm just happy that I didn't have to go to the hospital! When our doctor came in for her part of the exam, the first thing she discussed was scheduling a date to induce. She suggested Friday of this week, but we decided to go with Tuesday of next week, which is one day after my due date. So, if Camden does not decide that he wants to come earlier, I will be induced at 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday, September 28th! Obviously, I hope he decides to arrive naturally before that date, but I am fine with scheduling his birth - I am just so ready to meet him and move on to the next phase of our life. I will admit that I am nervous about what's to come, but so ready! Also, here are my current stats: 2 1/2 centimeters dilated (can be stretched to a 3), 80% effaced, my uterus measured 39 centimeters, and Camden's heartbeat was 130 beats per minute. Everything still looks good!

This morning, I did wake up with a lot of joint/muscle/nerve pain in the area where my pelvis connects with the top of my thighs to the point where I was dreading walking to my alarm clock and to the bathroom to take my shower. I also had a really hard time rolling over and switching positions while I was trying to sleep last night. Thankfully, I actually felt better after walking around school today. I am hoping this pain won't return tomorrow. I also told my kids about Tuesday, so they have an idea of when I will start my leave, and some of them were so worried that I wasn't going to come back. I assured them that I have to come back to school - it is not an option for me to stay home at this point!

So, unless something happens in the middle of the night tonight, I will be at school tomorrow where I will get to enjoy a pizza lunch, and I may even get to finish the week - we'll see! My doctor is on call this weekend, so I am fine with something happening over the weekend, too! We will keep you updated! In the meantime, please pray for a safe, easy delivery!