34 Weeks and counting...

I know, I know...it's been forever since I posted...I'm the worst blogger in the history of the world. People have been on my case to post some new belly shots, so here they are! I can't believe that it's already been seven weeks since I posted my last photos...today I am 34 weeks exactly, and it's starting to get pretty real that I'm getting closer and closer to actually having a baby. What a trip! I'm getting SO big...I'm a little bit worried that my uniform might not fit in a few weeks...I'm not sure exactly what I'll do if that happens, so I'll just have to cross that bridge when I get to it. At least I don't have any stretch marks yet...fingers crossed my poor tummy can hold on for 30 more days or so!

I had a doctor's appointment this morning, and the doctor said the baby looks great. I'm measuring right on target, weight gain is still good (well, by "good" I mean not completely and totally out of control), heart rate is right where it should be and he or she is already head down (hopefully going to fully engage in the pelvis soon...I could really use the extra breathing room, and I'm pretty over getting kicked in the ribs all day long!).

A little bit of bad news -- the doctor thinks that there is a possibility that I have pre-eclampsia, a condition in pregnancy that is characterized by high blood pressure and can be pretty serious if left untreated. I'm exhibiting a few of the symptoms (high blood pressure in a person with no history of that, protein in the urine, mild swelling, etc), and my mom had it while she was pregnant with me, which increases my risk. So basically, they're going to do some tests Wednesday to find out for sure, and after that we'll go from there. If I do have it, I will have to be monitored more closely (probably at least weekly visits), and may have to be induced early (since the only "cure" for pre-eclampsia is delivering the baby). So please keep me and the baby in your thoughts and prayers for the next few days. Hopefully the tests will all come back fine and everything will progress normally, but if not maybe Baby Brown will be making his or her debut sooner than we thought!

That's it for now...hope everyone else is doing well. Love you all!!

PS -- My good friend (and cyber-stalker) Jessey actually crocheted me a baby blanket, which just blows my mind because (as a completely un-handy/crafty person myself) I am totally amazed by anyone who can actually make something useful and beautiful!! I've pasted a picture of it below, because it is SO cute, and it's also her first baby blanket, so she is rightfully proud of it! Thanks so much, Jessey...Baby Brown will love sleeping under it (and, as you can see from the photo, Chloe is a fan as well)!!

No Real News...

Happy Belated 4th of July to everyone!!! I hope you all had a fabulous holiday weekend. Even though I have no real news, I decided to go ahead and post anyway, since everyone keeps asking me when the next post will be up!! Geez, who knew that I had so many cyber stalkers?! ;)

So to get everyone caught up, I've been at my new job for exactly 17 days (if you count today), and they're finally starting to figure out what to do with me! I've been pretty useless and bored for the past couple of weeks, but it looks like I'll be pretty busy in the future, which is great if you're me (because nothing is harder for me than being extremely bored). I've been trying to put in the hours even if there really isn't much going on for me yet, since I feel a little guilty about the fact that I'm going to be leaving for two months of maternity leave when I've only been there for two months total! Either way, the people are really nice and the job seems easy and low-stress (if a little time-consuming), which is exactly what I need right now with a baby on the way!

David was here visiting all of last week, which was amazing. I hadn't seen him in twelve weeks, and he couldn't believe how huge my belly has gotten! We spent a night in Orlando and went to Sea World and Pleasure Island, and we got to eat at one of our very favorite restaurants (Texas de Brazil). The rest of the week we just spent fishing, hanging at the beach and lounging by the pool...it was fantastic. I miss him so much when he's away, and (as cheesy as it sounds) seeing him again is always a little like falling in love with him for the first time. He had so much fun feeling the baby kick and move around, and he talked to him (or her!) every night before we went to sleep. Needless to say, it was horrible to watch him drive away on Sunday...I feel like we're always saying goodbye. I might not see him again for eight weeks (until the baby is born)...but at least after that we'll be together for weeks and weeks!

Baby is doing great...kicking a LOT, and starting to actually hurt me. He (or she) is always trying to squirm up under my ribs, which is even more uncomfortable than it sounds. Sometimes I get kicked so hard that my whole stomach jumps, which makes the whole "there's a little person in there" thing much more real! Other than that, I'm feeling great...starting to get a little tired but nothing unmanageable. Unfortunately, I think I've started to waddle...which I was really hoping to put off until at least 35 or 36 weeks. Oh well...it could be worse I guess! We've pretty much settled on our two names -- Samuel Patrick for a boy and Fiona Susan for a girl. And don't any of you worry your pretty little heads about giving me "ideas" or "suggestions," because we are a little past that point now...and we did it that way on purpose! ;) I'm starting to get excited about meeting this little person, and I'm ready for the day to actually get here already!!

Well, that's all for now...in a week or so I will post another belly shot, so that you can all point and laugh at the enormous circus freak that I've become ;). Love you all!