Surprise!!!

It's a quiet morning here at the house. Simon begged me to sit with him on the couch as he watched Super Why, and so here I am with my feet up and my fingers flying across the keyboard as the sunshine kisses my face. 

Last week I had a couple of surprises. I love surprises and in truth it's hard to genuinely surprise me. So when it happens, it's a big deal. 

Thursday, I went in for my 36 week checkup. I came out of my checkup in shock and awe. After examining me, my midwife informed me that I could go any day...90% effaced and the baby is in the right position, with his head engaged.  My body has been hard at work and I'm ready to go! I wasn't expecting that. I've gone back and forth throughout this 3rd trimester. Part of me thought I would go early (I've thought this from the very beginning). I think partly because I started showing/feeling the baby move so early on and partly because I started having contractions at week 30. It turns out those contractions have indeed been doing something. The other part of me had this fear of going over. This fear didn't come from my mom going 4 weeks over with her first 4, but rather since I've been pregnant, I've had a few friends that have gone over. Seeing them go through the waiting process has made me realize how difficult that would be for me. I SO yearn to hold my baby.  Anyway, hearing that news on Thursday really lifted my spirits. I'm hoping that my body waits until the beginning of March (March 3rd would be fabulous!) to go into labor.  That's weird for me to type out as I can hardly wait to hold my baby. I mostly want to wait for silly reasons (my fascination and history with the number 3), but also because it would be less stressful on my husband's work schedule. We'll see. March 13th is my official due date.

Saturday, we had plans to go over to Matt (Peter's brother) and Jackie's house for dinner and a movie. We were all excited to see them and to hang out. Simon was especially excited to see his little cousin, Penny. As the time drew nearer, I started to get tired. I decided to get comfortable, slip on some comfy m-pants (gross) and some slip-on shoes over my SmartWools (again, gross). I also put on my glasses and didn't even bother to spruce up my face. Anyway, I felt like being comfy...and why not? Dinner and a kid movie with family = perfect time for casual wear...right? Wrong. Haha. I walked into their house only to find Peter's entire family standing in the living room shouting out SURPRISE!! It took me a minute to realize that everyone was there and that they were there to celebrate my little baby.

I had no clue. I looked over at Peter and immediately noticed his big grin. He had been in on the secret all along. As I was taking my jacket off, Jackie spoke up and told me to keep it on. All of the girls were taking me out to eat while the guys stayed back with the kiddoes. At that moment I realized what I was wearing and suddenly felt self-conscience of my lack of style. :P I mean really? The one evening I go out in yucky m-pants, flats/bulky socks and glasses. Haha! Peter offered to drive me home to change, but I declined.  Everyone assured me I looked great (thank goodness I was wearing a black shirt - that kind of dressed me up a bit...lol!).  On the way over to the restaurant snippets of conversations that I had with Peter during the day came back to me. "what are you planning on wearing tonight?" "You're taking your contacts out?" "Oh, you're changing clothes?" "You're not wearing your boots?". lol, if it wasn't for how tired I was feeling, I probably would have noticed his unusual interest in my wardrobe/appearance.

The girls were so sweet and treated me out to a fabulous dinner at Pazzaluna in downtown Saint Paul. Such a beautiful place and the food is amazing!

We went back to the house and had delicious (owl!) cupcakes (thanks Beth!!) and yummy snacks/drinks. I also opened up pressies for Miles - such a generous family I have. A special thank you to Jackie for coming up with this amazing surprise. I'm still in shock. ;)

Aren't these the cutest cupcakes?!

Ruthie made this adorable blanket for Miles...they're even his colors! And look what else I got...the Skip Hop Owl that I've been drooling over for so long - thanks Beth!!  And of course my shower wouldn't be complete without an elephant. Miles is going to love his soft elephant toy from Grandma G. :)

Today, I'm trying to take it easy as I woke up at 5am with pretty consistent contractions. This was the first time that they were that intense and lasting for over an hour. They simmered down around 6:30am, allowing me to get a little bit more sleep. As I was concentrating on the contractions this morning, I was also concentrating on my HUGE todo list of projects I still need (want) to get done before the baby comes. I still have to finish up packing my hospital bag, make sure baby's diaper bag is all set, clean, clean and clean some more...not to mention making sure Simon is all set for a few days away from us. :( The bassinet still needs to go up and I want to knock out a couple more dinners to put in the freezer. Oi vey. I promised Peter I would take it easy today, so we'll see how much I get done. :-/ It's so very crazy (and amazing) to think that I could be holding my little baby this week. Ah, I can hardly wait.