Josiah Neal {37 Weeks 3 Days}

It would be an understatment to say that we are ready for Josiah to get here! We have had two baby showers thus far and we now aquire everything and more than he could possible need.  Our church family here at Clear Lake Baptist threw me a shower last weekend and this past weekend, Nana and DeeDee had one for me at their house.  We are so very thankful for the Lord's provision. 

My appointment today also went well.  I was tested for Group B which I will get the results back for at my next appointment on Wednesday. I have to say that I am getting very uncomfortable.  I thought that being off work would help but it seems as if the aches and pains are worse when I am at rest.  So I have been keeping very busy getting everything ready for our little guy's arrival. 

Here are some pics from our baby showers:

CLBC Shower:

Mount Shower:

Josiah Neal {35 Weeks 1 Day}

Today we got to see Josiah! Through an ultrasound, that is.  Everything looked great!  There still is the concern that Josiah is going to be too big for me to deliver naturally but the Lord has given me a peace about it. 

Josiah is also still in the head down position which means that he will probably stay in that position until birth.  My Braxton Hicks contractions have become much more intense and my doctor said that that was a good sign.

On another note, my appointments are about to become weekly now that we are getting closer to the end!

Destin, Florida {2009}

We had a wonderful time in Destin with my mom, dad, Steven, Trevor and Ashley.  Jordan and I even celebrated our one year anniversary while we were there.  And no one mistook me for a beached whale!...that I know of anyway...

Josiah Neal {33 Weeks}

We are at 33 weeks today!  My doctor told me at my appointment on Friday that Josiah was probably going to be a big baby.  We will be having another ultrasound in a couple of weeks so I guess we will find out for sure then.  This is just a little bit scary because my doctor said that he would recommend an induction around 38 weeks to avoid Josiah getting too big and having to do a c-section. This is definitely a concern for me since I want him to come naturally. 

I've started having a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions and even some swelling in my legs.  The swelling is from being on my feet so much at work.  I won't have to worry about that too much longer though.  We are leaving for Destin, Florida on July 4th and coming back on the 11th.  When we return, I will only have two more weeks of work left!

This morning at church, Jordan and I had to leave half way into the sermon because I started feeling like I was going to pass out. I feel much better now though. I just think it was a combination of my anemia, not eating enough breakfast and how hot it was in the sanctuary. 

As for Josiah, he is in the head-down postion and he shifts his little booty from my left side to my right side all day long and his little feet always find their way into my ribs.  Needless to say, things are getting just a little bit uncomfortable in there!

Josiah Neal {28 Weeks 5 Days}

We are in the third trimester now! Not too much longer to go! Today, my doctor gave me my glucose results from the screening I had on Tuesday and my sugar levels are perfectly normal! However, he said that I was extremely anemic, which wasn't much of a surprise to me because I struggled with anemia before this pregnancy as well.  So he prescribed an iron supplement for me to take twice a day. 

As far as the pregnancy goes, I've been experiencing the normal third trimester stuff like heart burn, leg cramps and back pain.  Besides that, everything is great!

Josiah is as active as ever.  I can feel him kicking and punching all day long off and on.  He even wakes me up during the night with his movements. 

This past month, I gained a total of 13 pounds.  I thought that this was ridiculous but my doctor was very pleased because he said I was making up for not gaining very much before.  So that puts my total weight gain at 29 pounds. 

Now that I am in the third trimester, I have to start seeing my doctor every two weeks.  At my next appointment, I will be receiving my Rhogam shot. 

Josiah Neal {24 Weeks and 4 Days}

I went to the doctor today and I am thrilled to say that everything is progressing as it should and without any complications.  I cannot believe that six months have flown by so fast! Jordan and I get more and more excited about meeting Josiah everyday. It's hard to believe that he is going to be here in just three months!

As far as the appointment goes, I have gained three pounds this past month which puts my total weight gain at 16 pounds.  The thing that we found most interesting is that Josiah is already measuring 24 cm long.  Our doctor said that this is above average in length for babies at 24 weeks.  So it looks like Josiah may end up with his daddy's long legs...That explains his feet always ending up in my left rib cage!

And boy, has he been super active lately. I absolutely love feeling him wiggle around and Jordan is constantly putting his hands on my tummy to feel the movements himself.  I even think that Josiah is becoming accustomed to Jordan's voice because he starts punching and kicking like there ain't no tomorrow when Jordan starts talking to him.  We are both enjoying this experience so much!

I also had a long conversation with Dr. Nguyen about having a natural child birth.  For the past couple of months, I have been doing a lot of research on having a natural birth with as little intervention as possible.  The main thing that I want to avoid is being given an epidural.  This means that I will have to endure a ot of pain, but there won't be any loss of sensation or alertness.  I would be completely awake and active during labor and the birth.  Plus, I would not be at risk for nerve damage from the epidural.  Also, many times when women are given an epidural, their labor slows down and stalls.  In reaction to this, Pitocin is given which intensifies and makes the contractions much more painful and longer.  This often causes the baby's heart rate to drop.  Sometimes, the drop is so low that the doctor will opt to do a c-section.  To me, this just seems like a downward rollercoaster of un-needed interventions.  With all that said, I am very happy that my doctor said that he would do whatever I wanted and that getting an epidural was completely my choice. We also discussed inducing labor.  I told him that I felt like you would come when you were ready and that I didn't want to be induced.  He said that he would only recommend an induction if I got to be 43 weeks without any progress or if another complication arose before then that required delivering Josiah early. 

Josiah Bump {22 Weeks}

Well, as Josiah gets bigger, so does the bump! Here's the bump at 22 weeks: