Week 34!

Week 34 has been a very busy but good week so far. I am winding down with it and figured I'd give the "DL" on how it has been so far!

Well first off, I got to enjoy seeing so many loved ones this past week while I was in Reno. We had the baby shower on the 15th and I was so touched by how many people showed up to celebrate the coming of my little Finch. I can't even begin to count how many gifts or hugs or laughs I had with all who came, but it meant so much to each of you who made it and said hello. Thank you so much. It really was such a wonderful party for us and I definitely made out like a bandit with all of the gifts. I don't think I need to shop for baby clothes until Finch is at least 9 months lol. So again, thank you all for your love and thoughts and gifts in our behalf :)

My friend, Sarah, and I! It was a mustache themed party and she was a great sport about it all!

It all seemed like it went by so fast. Too fast. My mom went out of her way and beyond to make it a beautiful affair with mustaches, balloons, red, black, white, and silver everywhere. All of my favorite foods and treats were there, and we had so many fun games. I have been so very blessed. Plus, it was just so much fun to be able to spend time with my parents. They are definitely loving being empty nesters these days, and it was so nice to just get a chance to relax with them and get a little mommy/daddy/daughter time with them before Finch comes along. Because let's face it, as soon as my baby bird is here, he will be the king of the roost. I was blown away by all of the beautiful blankets that my mom has already started making for him, and how funny it was for her to be trying to talk to him to make sure he would know her voice and move for her. He was a little shy at first, but then he started to move after a day or two and then he would move when she would talk around me. I guess he already loves his Grandma Mary :)

34.5 weeks along, Finch is the size of a canteloupe :)

Funny and wonderful stories for the week: We went to Costco to get some last minute stuff for the shower and the birthday party for my niece, and there was a lady giving out samples for Corned Beef. I am very Irish and I LOVEEEE corned beef and cabbage. But I had just eaten, and it didn't sound good so I was trying to stand back far enough from the sample booth so other people could get some samples while I waited  for my mom to pick out the best sized corned beef she could find. The sample lady looked over at me and said, "Come here honey, your baby wants some yummy corned beef! Come feed that little baby some corned beef". Needless to say, I didn't walk over, but it was rather cute/creepy/awkward/funny for her to say that. I have never had someone use my baby bump to sell stuff, but I have to admire her for at least trying. Then when I was at the airport to leave, I was walking around an airport bookstore, looking for a book to read on the plane. When I got to the cashier, she and her mother who both work there told me how beautiful I looked, that I was simply glowing, and how much they loved my hair. I know it wasn't a big deal to them, but it meant a lot that they said it, I felt so much prettier after and it was just a nice little uplifting moment on a stressful day of traveling. Pregnant women love compliments, we need them, we keep getting bigger and it makes a huge difference to us (pun not intended).

This last week we also were able to sell our contract to our current apartment!!!!!!! The manager at our place saw how many ads I had been posting for our apartment and let us know about a couple needing an apartment before or around the 1st of April and she wanted to know if we would be interested in moving out a little earlier and if it were possible. We definitely could, and we have been able to get everything squared away and are staying with friends while we wait for our new apartment to open up in April. It will be fast, and it won't be easy, but I have learned that when it is the Lord's will, things work out so much better than when we plan for ourselves. We not only get out of our contract earlier than we expected, we will get our rent prorated back to us for the days we are out of the apartment before April. I never could have imagined such a blessing, and I honestly could never have planned a better way for this to work out before Finch arrives. 

Sunday, we celebrated my youngest niece's first birthday. Technically today is her real birthday, but we had so much fun watching her blow out candles and smile and be oh so sweet. I can't believe she is already a year old now. We did a Shrek Theme for her party because she is named Fiona, and it was just darling!

Happy Birthday Fiona!

After the party on Saturday, and the party on Sunday, I was absolutely worn out and needed lots of rest. I have been traveling home to Rexburg since Monday. I got to the aiport to fly to Denver and then to Salt Lake (Don't ask, that was the ticket, it makes no sense to me, I'm just the passenger) and found out AFTER getting past security that the flight was delayed two hours. After waiting for a while we finally got on the plane and then we flew to Denver. Getting to Denver we only had about 20 minutes to get to the gate, and then we were off to Salt Lake. My wonderful in-laws were so fantastic and came to pick me up and then even drove me back up to Idaho yesterday and stayed the night to help us pack. I have been so blessed to have such supportive and loving family. 

Pregnancy wise it has been a harder week. My braxton hicks are more regularized now and if I get some rest they aren't too hard to handle. I have started having some major foot and leg swelling and some abdominal pain that was a little scary. The Lord truly has been so good to us and I feel very blessed though because He has led us to the right people to help us and has been so merciful and making sure things are okay. I got to Salt Lake on Monday night and woke up in the middle of the night woke up to a searing pain in my sides from my pelvis up to my ribs on both sides. After the travels I didn't know if it was a really intense braxton hicks or a muscle spasm or not, but it lasted for about 20 minutes with non stop pain. After a prayer and some rest I was able to go back to sleep and when I woke up the next morning called to make an appointment with my doctor as soon as I got back. When we got to the doctor my blood pressure was 138/96 (which is high for anyone who doesn't know) and mine is usually 110/70 kind of range which is pretty low. I had gained 6 pounds of water weight with my swelling, and they were definitely concerned because those are signs of Preecclampsia which is a condition that occurs when the placenta begins to become toxic to the body of the mother, causing the liver to break down proteins, raising blood pressure, causing bad headaches, and extreme swelling in the legs, arms, and face. It can develop really quickly and can be life threatening to the mother and to the baby if left untreated because it can progress to Ecclampsia which causes seizures, coma, and death if left untreated.  Kind of really scary. I had a couple of the red flags so my doc checked on Finch who was doing fine, redid my blood pressure and had me to a urine sample to see if I was excreting proteins (which is a way they can check to see if the liver is breaking down proteins and the kidneys are unable to filter them out of the urine). With divine intervention, my blood pressure had gone down to 119/90 which was much better. Still a wee bit high, but so much better, and my urine sample showed very small amounts of protein but nothing to be concerned about. Our doctor said to keep an eye on things and to look for the other markers that indicate possible preecclampsia developments and to keep resting and keep my feet up and to be careful. 

We felt so blessed as we left the office, and I was so glad that Finch was just as active as the little monkey he is proving to be and that everything was okay with us both. I have to be really careful because we are moving in the next week or two and not push myself, but the blessings I have been given have definitely been a relief. We seriously love our doctor, and he was so good to check everything. He said the pain in my sides was probably from straining my back and abdominal muscles and possibly having a Braxton Hicks during the spasms in my back and sides but nothing to be concerned about and he told me he was glad I came in and did the right thing. I have had so many strange things happen the past two months and I feel like they are so sick of seeing me in the office so often, so it meant a lot that he reassured me and told me I wasn't just a paranoid mommy-to-be who was hearing hoof beats and thinking they were zebras . We love him, and I feel so grateful that the Lord led us to a doctor so perfect for our little family.

I had to travel from Reno to Salt Lake with just socks on because my feet were so swollen my shoes wouldn't fit. I know I looked weird, but oh it was so worth it to not hurt as much. A prego girl has got to do what a prego girl has got to do :)

Coming home has been wonderful. My husband has missed me and I have missed him, and my little cat has been my little shadow in everything. When I held her earlier today, she was purring and Finch began to kick and move around again like he does whenever he hears her nearby and all just felt right with the world once again. Despite the scares and the fatigue and the fact that we have a week to move out of our apartment for the next tenants, we have been incredibly incredibly blessed and I know that we are always being watched out for by holy ones. It's been a busy, wonderful, stressful, and scary week 34, but I am glad to be at the end of it seeing how many things have come together for us and how protected and loved I have been. I truly know that Heavenly Father is so aware of our needs and that He is always watching out for us. I am so grateful because there have been many times when things could have gone very badly and instead have gone so wonderfully. 

Thank you for your prayers, your love, and your encouragement. I am so very lucky to have you all in my life. Until next week :)

Liz, Ben, Finch, and Zola