4 Weeks to go...

I'm officially 8 months preggs. Whoa. I've now entered that stage where everything is "this is the last ______ before baby Grant is here". Yesterday when Bailey and I left church, I said "IF grant makes it to his due date, I'll only be here 3 more Sundays", since we'll be at home for 1 out of the 4 Sundays left. I've been counting down my commutes since we got back home from vacation "Only 10 more Mondays..." This is CRAZY, and I'm so excited (and terrified). I just keep repeating my mama's words "Millions of women have given birth before you, and millions will give birth after you. You aren't the only one, and you can handle it."

This week was a busy (surprise) and fun week for Bailey and I! Tuesday, we had our new parent's class at the pediatrician's office we were considering. After visiting the office, I genuinely felt comfortable with the staff and history of the office, and know that this is the office we'll use for Grant! The goodie bags that I was so excited about? Meh. Nothing too fun, which was sort of a bummer :) Thursday night, Grant experienced his last concert in my belly - next time I take him he'll be able to experience it in person. I kid, I kid - he won't be attending another concert for a long, long time. I had a girl's night with Elizabeth, Brooke, and Shanna to see Jake Owen at Gwinnett Arena. Such a fun night - thanks for the tickets, Brooke :)

Friday, Bailey and I celebrated our anniversary with a day date to Blue Ridge. We go every year to get apples (and apple pies - duh), and end up spending way too much money on crap we don't need. But it's so hard not to! I'm a typical white girl who loves all things fall and apple-y, and I fall right into their hands every time. At the orchard, we sat on the back of the tailgate, chowed down on apple pies, and chatted about all things baby. Bailey has picked November 13th as his guess for Grant's due date, and I've picked November 17th. Anyone else have any picks?

We wandered around downtown Blue Ridge for a bit, then came home and got some things done around the house. We met some friends for dinner on Friday night and stayed out WAY past my bedtime. On Saturday, we headed to Hartwell to the Waters' farm for an afternoon of food and friendship (that may be the cheesiest line you'll read in this entire blog this week - so sue me). Come to think of it, we stayed out way past my bed time 3 nights in a row. WHO AM I?

Sunday, after church, Bailey and I finally (almost) finished Grant's room. The monogram is hung - YAY! Bailey sanded and secured the puzzle to the frame he made and let the glue set last night. We should be able to hang that above the changing table today.  Once we get his bedding in (cross your fingers that it's soon!) we'll be pretty much good to go. Oh, and we need a changing pad. And a baby monitor. And a couple of shelves on the wall. But after THAT, we'll be good to go :) I'll post more pictures once it's completely done, but here are a few of the things we accomplished yesterday.

My fabulous SIL made a tractor print in 3 different colors to match his room...once I print those, they'll go in the frames we hung yesterday.

Oh, and did I mention Grant had another fun mail day on Saturday? Check out these cute outfits!

I packed our hospital bags last night - AHH! And because I'm a chronic over packer, we probably have too much. I only packed clothes for Grant, because everyone's told me that the hospital gives you everything you need for the baby, and pretty much everything you need for yourself as well. I packed my bag for comfort (, and Grant's bag for cuteness. Even Bailey & Coop have bags packed and ready to go! Cooper will be staying with my friend Brooke while we're at the hospital, since she lives so close (and gets along with Brooke's baby, Bella - thank you Brooke!!). I'm still obsessed with Grant's diaper bag, and want to use it as a purse so incredibly badly.

So the closer we get to this baby's due date, the bigger my belly gets (obviously). People keep asking me how I'm feeling, and in all honesty, I feel great. I'm starting to ache a little more each day, but nothing unbearable. However. I am feeling larger by the minute. I had to take my wedding band off this morning, as it felt like my ring finger was going to fall off. The size 2x men's tshirts I bought to lounge around in when I first started showing? yeah, those are now starting to show the bottom part of my stomach. My lips and nose (which are big enough as it is) are starting to spread across my face. I woke up yesterday and looked in the mirror - my top lip looked like I had taken ibueprofen the night before (if you don't know, I'm allergic to ibueprofen, and it makes my lips swell quite large). I wore a cute pair of booties to work last week that had laces to be tied. I didn't put them on until I got to work. Let me tell you - that's the last time I wear shoes that have to be tied. The effort it took to bend over? Not worth it at all. Plus, because my feet are a tiiiiiiiiiny bit larger than normal, it was a pain to tighten those laces. Nope - sticking with my slip-ons and boots for the next 4 weeks. This belly is also giving me trouble in the kitchen. Every night, I have a glass of hot tea. And by every night, I just mean every night for the last couple of weeks. Well, our microwave where I heat up my water is above the stove. As I was reaching up, I heard a couple of clicks and then saw a flame out of the corner of my eye. Apparently my stomach has grown large enough to have a mind of it's own, and turned on the stove. This baby can not get here soon enough.

This week's edition of "what made Brittoni cry":
1. Absolutely nothing. Literally. Nothing. I was driving home from work last Wednesday, and just started crying for no reason. I'm not talking about a solitary tear rolling down my cheek. I'm talking full-fledged-couldn't-control-it-waterworks. Embarrassing.
2. Thursday on my way to work, I realized I didn't even hug Cooper that morning. Usually, I snuggle with him before I get up and get ready, and then I give him a hug and a treat before I walk out the door. I forgot because I was running late, and then thought "what if he's already feeling neglected, and the baby isn't even here yet?". Judge away.
3.  Listening to this song last week at work. Such a sweet song. I can't wait to see Bailey as a dad - my love for him has already grown tremendously just in the last 8 months as I've watched his excitement over being a dad grow. I can see him being every.single.thing. in this song, and can't wait to watch it happen. :)
4. Typing this week's edition of What Made Brittoni Cry. I've gotta get over this.

This week is going to be a busy week for us as well (surprise). Tuesday, I've got my appointment with the high-risk perinatal doctor for another ultrasound. Mama gets to go with me to this appointment since Bailey can't - I'm excited that she'll get to experience one of these appointments with me! On Friday, I have another appointment with my normal doctor, Dr. McDaniel. Hopefully after these 2 appointments we'll have a little more direction on Grant's impending arrival. Saturday, we've got our second to last shower - I'm super excited about this one (just as I've been with all of the others :D). This is all of my girlfriends and family, so it should be fun!! Here's to hoping I can find something in my closet that still fits by then!

I forgot to take a picture this morning. So we'll use a picture from the farm on Saturday instead :)

How far along: 36 weeks

How big is baby: Grant is still the size of a "Large Cantaloupe" - however this cantaloupe is apparently gaining .5 lbs per week. Anyone tried pushing a cantaloupe out of their body lately? Nope. He's currently "6 lbs".

Total weight gain/loss: 22 lbs at my last doctor's appointment. Probably lots more this week.

Maternity clothes: I get so bored of answering this question every week. obviously.  

Sleep: Eh, so, so. I'm ALWAYS tired, but sometimes I have trouble sleeping at night. ESPECIALLY with this carpal tunnel. I didn't sleep at all last night because my right arm was so numb it was painful from my shoulder to the tips of every. single. finger.

Best moment this week: PACKING OUR HOSPITAL BAGS!!

Food cravings: apples. it's a good thing we bought 3 bushels of them this weekend!  

Food aversions: No real aversions, although I do get tired of getting so full so quickly.

Gender: Again, he's still a boy.  

Labor signs: I've been having a few pains in some "birthing areas" these past couple of weeks, which a couple people have called "labor signs". I wouldn't call them that just yet, but I can definitely tell my body is getting ready to have this baby SOON!

Pregnancy symptoms: Heartburn, swelling, and carpal tunnel.

What I miss: My ankles and normal sized hands. I just want to be a girl who can wear her wedding rings.

What I am looking forward to: Holding Grant in just a few short weeks :D