"Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish." ~John Quincy Adams

TGIF!  I'm late on my post this week, oopsy.  Honestly, this last week kinda feels like a blur because I've been so exhausted.  Just when I think I've reached the limit of this fatigue, the exhaustion goes to the next level. le sigh.  It's not easy! Just knowing I'm that much closer to D-day and finally meeting our little babe, motivates me to just take it a day at a time.  I think I've been day dreaming a lot.  I wonder what she is going to look like.  What color eyes will she have?  How much hair will she have?  How big will she be? [yikes!] My bed time dreams have been about going into labor and being so ready to do the damn thing.  I think I'm just really anxious to meet her, not to mention I feel like my body is falling a part. haha. Oh well, I'm glad she will still be an October baby, and so is Rob.  It's been a challenging month at good ol Infusionsoft, but it looks like the Robulator has made the magic happen.  Last week of the month can be rough, he has been "burning the midnight oil" as my FIL says.  Is it October yet?

One exciting thing about this week was getting my "push present". I've never heard of this until I read it in my Baby Center birth board.  It's a present your hubby or significant other gifts to you for "pushing". Haha.  I'm honestly excited to just have our little baby join our family, but have graciously accepted my new, shiny iPhone 5.  Thanks babe!  Oh, and a few things I ordered for Sofia came in the mail. This blog will be more of a photo bomb.

I ordered this girl sock monkey knitted hat off of etsy for the newborn photo shoot. ohemgeeeee, can't wait!

I ordered this adorable AZ Cards onesie and matching headband through Chunky Monkey Creations (http://www.facebook.com/ChunkyMonkeyCreations/info?ref=ts). Thanks again Erika!

Kindra and I had a random craft session last weekend and we made these cute headbands. I have a lot of pink and wanted to get ready for the fall season. Now I need to find matching outfits, hehe

I've been meaning to post about the beautiful necklace Rob got custom made for me.  It is simple, but elegant and has our baby girl's name on it with the loveliest font.  I added my wedding ring, since I'm unable to wear it these days.  It was the last gift I opened at the baby shower last month and was a really sweet surprise.  I love having such a thoughtful husband.

Aaaaaand I put together this belly growth comparison collage.  I used InstaPicFrame before uploading to Instagram.

I'd like to make a note that my absolute fave belly pic is the bottom left @ 18 weeks. ((i'm literally glowing!)) This was the very day that my All Day Sickness went away and I felt on top of the world.  Man, that was the best week ever.  My birfday, the gender reveal party, and feeling good.
I'm hoping I will have one more post of a belly pic/update after today, since I take a new one tomorrow.  Hopefully the post after that will be a photo bomb of Sofie's arrival. A girl can dream, right?

Belly stat time!
How far along: 38 weeks 1 day
Baby is the size of a: leek?(19.75 in & 6.8 lbs)
Total weight gain: officially 50, bah hum bug
Maternity clothes: non-maternity comfy skirts and comfy tank tops. or naked (my preference! haha)
Stretch marks? Still the same ones on the bottom of my belly, and on each hip.
Sleep: not great, oh well. prepping me for sleep deprivation with a newborn right?
Best moment this week: going in the pool, feels so good rest my achy/swelling body
Miss Anything? boy, do I ever.
Movement: yup, my little night owl
Food cravings: I don’t even know if they are really cravings. I crave to eat junk food because it tastes so yummy
Anything making you queasy or sick: nothing different. still feel icky after most meals. suuucks
Gender: Girl
Labor Signs: Nope. A few Braxton Hicks.
Symptoms: the usual: back aches, arm/leg cramps, tons of pelvic pressure(ow!), carpal tunnel, tummy ickiness, burps, fatigue, swelling (the fingers on my right hand have been tingly/numb for quite some time) And more fatigue, WTH! Oh, and a new one: my knees are starting to hurt. basically, I’m falling a part
Belly Button in or out? Kinda flat, sometimes pops out depending on how I’m sitting
Wedding rings on or off? Off. My poor, tingly sausage fingers.
Happy or Moody most of the time: happy AND moody, I am pregnant people! haha
Looking forward to: holding and cuddling our precious Sofia, whenever she decides to make her grand entrance.
One last picture, for shits & gigs. A picture of me from date night last weekend...

Haha, jk.  I feel like Princess Fiona with my ogre cheeks and hands. Gahhhh. Ok, I lied.  Just one more pic, to end on a positive, happy note.  The ying & yang of our household.  150 lb Great Dane & 3 lb Chihuahua BFF's

Time to bounce on my ball and encourage baby girl to drop even further down the rabbit hole. Haha

Until next time,

Lex

PS
Congrats to all the ladies that had their babies recently.  Especially our friends Steve & Nikki welcoming their twin boys.   It was a week for boys to be born, I suppose.  Maybe Tanicka and I can start the trend on birthing the ladies soon!