So close but so far!!

Alyssa and me - Bump to bump - April 25th

Mackenzie and me - Baby to bump - May 10th

I started off my pregnancy with a group of fellow pregnant gals. It's been so much fun sharing our experiences and anticipating the future with them. On March 1st, Merry had her baby... then on May 6th, both Alyssa and Tammy had their babies.

And so... I am the one left behind.

I do know several others who are expecting (hooray!)... and I find comfort in knowing that my baby is due BEFORE theirs (hehe)... but I gotta say, my prego life is a little different now that the above ladies have delivered their babes. While I do feel closer to the finish line... I also feel destined to be pregnant for-eeehhh-verrrr.

In spite of this feeling, I love having her safe and sound inside my belly and sometimes I wish I could just keep it that way. I can easily bring her with me everywhere I go and I don't need to worry about the big scary world harming her. But as my Mom pointed out, this would mean never getting to meet her and watch her grow and discover her personality... it would also mean that I would literally be pregnant forever. No thanks. I miss wearing high-heeled shoes and jeans that button at the waist...

and sushi...

and wine...

and dirty martinis (extra dirt please).

So my point is, I'm one confused and abandoned prego! But I sooo love these new babies that have come into this world and in a gazillion years (prego time = about 1.5 months real time), my sweet girl will join them. Yay!

By the way...

I wrote my last blog entry on Tuesday but didn't get a chance to post it that day because we had our first "Preparing for Child Birth" class that evening and didn't get home until 8:30. I forgot to load the belly shot picture, and just went to bed.

The next morning, I awoke at 5:30 to the WONDERFUL news that my baby niece was on her way into the world! Without a moment (or a shower) to spare, Mike and I got to the hospital with barely enough time to visit with Colin and Alyssa before the nurse came in and said, "Okay, she's ready to come out!" We gave them their privacy and headed for the waiting room where we were soon joined by my equally excited parents. Around 8:35, Colin came out to announce that Mackenzie Hale Campbell was born at 8:19! She is perfect and healthy and tiny and adorable! I love my niece so much!! My daughter must've been jealous of all the attention her cousin was getting because, that evening, I started having multiple Braxton Hicks contractions. They weren't particularly painful, but definitely annoying... and I became worried when they were occurring every 5 minutes. I called the doctor and she told me what to do - take 600 milligrams of ibuprofen (I'm a worry wart, so I only took 400), drink lots of water and lay down. I did that, and once again forgot to post my blog. The contractions stopped though :)

Yesterday, Kelly and I went back to visit my newest and sweetest family member, then we went to meet our husbands at Kate's Pub for some cheap happy hour dinner (I think that'll be my last time in a pub for awhile, the looks are really getting to me!). I was so tired when we got home that I completely forgot about my blog.

Now it's Friday and I'm at work. You know what that means?? Time to do something (anything) other than work! I finally loaded that darn belly shot picture and posted my blog. Leaving the date as Tuesday, March 5, because technically, that is the day I wrote it (and that is the day I was officially 30 weeks along).

So there's my long winded, overly detailed explanation for why my last blog was posted late. Really, I just wanted to share the news that my sweet baby niece was born!

30 Weeks!!

Do I really only have 10 weeks to go (or less)? That's just craziness! Although, if you ask most people, the real craziness is the fact that I STILL have 10 weeks left. My belly be big!

Baby got the hiccups the other night. It was the first time I felt them. I was worried initially - I thought maybe she was in distress and was convulsing or something. I woke up Michael and made him feel my belly - he calmly agreed that it felt like the hiccups. Then my girl made some of her normal movements and I was allowed to marvel at the cuteness of it all. My silly little baby, chillin' in my belly, hiccuping like a drunk. How adorable.

Being in my third trimester has brought on a calmness in me. I worry less about the "what-ifs" and instead I daydream about the "for-sures." Like the first time I get to see my baby's face. The first time I get to kiss the bottoms of her tiny little feet. The look I get to see on my husbands face as he holds his daughter for the first time. Those are moments in my future that I cannot wait to experience. They are the moments I focus on when those pesky "what-ifs" attempt to creep back into my head.

As my third grade teacher put it, "if you're going to worry about the 'what-ifs' in life, you needn't bother getting out of bed in the morning." So true, Mrs. Frohning.

I really wish I had started off with a different outfit for these belly shots. I thought it would be fun to wear the same thing each time to see how it gradually fits me differently. But the tanktop I chose is so not right for the job. Something a tad longer would've been nice :)