Just a quick little update.  I saw my midwife on Friday for my 38 week check-up.  Everything is looking good, in fact I am already 90% effaced and 3, going on 4 cm dilated.  Although this is no indication that labor is imminent (I was hoping it was), it is nice to know that things are progressing in the right direction.  As my midwife said it simply means that when the labor contractions do start I don't have nearly as far to go as some women.  Many women  labor for hours with painful contractions just to get to where I already am.  So for now I am just going to consider myself a lucky lady and hope things continue on in the right path.  So far I have not had any painful contractions, just Braxton-Hicks contractions which are just painless tightenings of the uterus.  It's basically the uterus practicing and warming up for the big event.  I've had these throughout most of my 3rd Trimester but lately they seem to be a little stronger and more frequent, but still painless.

My energy is up and down these days.   On the days that it is up I often have an intense urge to "nest".  I do weird things like clean out the freezer or organize a random closet that's been taunting me for months with it's clutter and disorganization.  Or I prepare a little extra food to have around the house for when we are in the throws of newborn feedings, diaper changes and utter exhaustion.  So far I've managed to make and freeze one very large pan of baked penne that will easily feed us dinner for at least three nights and 3 loaves of quick bread for breakfast or snacking.  Then there are other days when I'm happy to just lounge about and don't feel like doing much of anything.  Today is definitely one of those days.  So far I've only managed to unload the dishwasher, do a small load of laundry, and start getting address labels typed up for birth announcements.  Hey, at least I got something done today. 

The nursery is still coming along.  We finally got the nightstand that was back ordered and that matches our crib.  Phil has been working on painting a tree on the wall, which if you have any experience with painting then you know it always ends up being a bigger project than you thought it was going to be.  And we've recently added an antique dresser to the mix.  The dresser was mine when I was a kid, my Aunt's before that, and I am pretty sure someone else in the family had it before her.  And since my parents seem to have accumulated a plethora of dressers we decided it would be nice to have a little antique family heirloom to pass on to our daughter.  Unfortunately the dresser was in really rough shape, as you can imagine after being around for so long.  (My Dad loves to remind me of how I spilled nail polish remover on it when I was younger.)  But fortunately my Dad is also very skilled at woodwork and he kindly took the time to strip, sand and stain it, and now it makes a lovely addition to our nursery. 

And here is a picture of the tree so far.....

And of course one of the soon to be parents.  I know.  Scary!

Baby Love looks crowded in there don't you think!?!?!

We'll keep you posted on my progress although I am sure you all know more about my cervix than you had ever hoped to know!  And I think I've shared more than I had ever really planned on!