D-Day

Happy due date baby Wiegratz! I had my 40 week appointment yesterday morning and everything is still going well. Blood pressure, weight, temp and all that jazz are good. Baby’s heart rate was going strong at 150. I have made some improvement in the dilation department & I feel like things might be "progressing", but it's hard to know. We made a 41 week appointment for next week, but let’s hope I don’t make it there. My doctor doesn’t think I’ll make it to the point where I’ll have to be induced. Music to my ears, but of course you can never be 100% sure. The waiting game continues, my friends. 

I’ve been having a hard time staying focused at work, but I still have a lot to wrap up. I’m finally starting to feel somewhat in control, but can you ever really feel prepared to take 12 weeks off? I don’t think so.  My coworkers threw me a “Good Luck, Erin!” party this week, which was very nice. One of my coworkers kept snapping random photos of me serving cake. I wanted to tell her to get out of my face, but I smiled ;). I think everyone assumed it was a goodbye party because today I've had no less than 12 people ask me why I'm still here.

Other than that, it’s evening walks & home cooked dinners with just the two of us.

Dave took a picture of me "nesting" last night. Too bad right afterwards I nearly collapsed from a leg cramp. I'm a mess.  

Cheers to 40 weeks of pregnancy down & hopefully a baby before next week!

Erin

39 Weeks

Well, here I am at 39 weeks pregnant. Again, wishing I wasn’t wearing a shirt that could spontaneously curl up over my stomach.

I had my 39 week appointment Friday afternoon and everything is looking good. My doctor checked me and said "You're maybe a pinky dilated". So we're not making much progress on that front. She checked baby's butt again and thinks we're in the 7 lb range right now...a little peanut. 

Other than a little more discomfort, I feel pretty much the same as I have for the past several weeks. I’m sticking with my original estimate of going past my due date. 

With that being said, this could be our last, relaxing weekend at home. I better plug through those last two Madmen episodes…

Cheers!

Erin

Home Stretch

 Hospital bags are packed...

Projects are complete....

Camera is charged...

Boy and girl outfits purchased...

And Dave's "hunter" instinct has kicked in...

I'd say we're ready to meet baby Wiegratz whenever he/she is ready to be born ;)

XXOO

Erin

38 wks, A Birthday & Love

*I'm going to apologize in advance for the poor picture quality of my photos in this post.

 

Did I not just post about 37 weeks? Wow, time is going quickly.

I’m still feeling relatively comfortable & haven’t had any real moments where I’ve wanted this pregnancy to be over with. I take that back. I have wanted a glass of wine pretty much every night for the past five months. It’s a small sacrifice for this child, but you better believe I’ve got a bottom bitch that’s sneaking wine into the hospital for me. Is it illegal to drink alcohol in a hospital room? That’s probably kind of trashy, huh?

 

My 38 week appointment was yesterday and all is looking good. Heart rate was the same as last time & my doctor doesn’t think I’ll go into labor earlier than my due date. It’s a funny thing, having a baby. It’s one of the biggest moments in your life, yet you don’t know when it’s going to happen. To keep from getting anxious, I’ve been focusing on all that I can still do without a child: hour long trips to Target, staying a little later at work without feeling guilty, a stop at Patina just to look around, & quality time with Don Draper…I mean, David (we’re plugging through season 5 of Mad Men right now like it’s our job).  

Here I am at 38 weeks. I waddled into the nursery for this shot:

And here’s Dave at 38 weeks. I think he's pretending to hold a baby, ha:

Other happenings this week: we put the final touches on the nursery. The pillow I ordered from Urban Outfitters arrived & we added in some shelves from Ikea. In case anyone wants to know, these shelves are in the frame section. We looked everywhere BUT there & then inadvertently ran into them while trying to dodge the kitchen aisle.  I have such a love/hate relationship with that place:

Final shot of the completed nursery...done creepily with a "panorama" app, but you get the idea:

It was also my dear old dad’s 57^th birthday yesterday. He happened to be near my office for a meeting so I took him out to lunch. Happy Birthday, dad!  As my brother Adam said, “Here’s to a long life, & a merry one. A quick death, & an easy one. A pretty girl, & an honest one. A cold beer- & another one!”:

Happy Valentines Day today! I woke up to the prettiest winter scene this morning. Even our oversized tree looked nice. 

Cheers to heart-shaped candy, pregnancy cankles & another week down!

Erin

37 Weeks and a Full-Term Wiegratz

Well, we’ve reached the 37 week mark, which means we’re “full term”. Basically, if baby were to make an early appearance his/her lungs should be fully developed & ready for some Minnesota air. This week sleeping has become a little more uncomfortable. I’m also feeling more Braxton Hicks throughout the day. Nothing painful, just some subtle tightening.

I had my 37 week appointment this morning and all appears to be on track. Head is down, my blood pressure & weight are good & the baby’s heart rate is holding steady at 141. It sounds more like a human heartbeat vs. an alien to me now. My doctor doesn’t check for dilation again until 39 or 40 weeks so I’m not sure how things are progressing on that front. I did get a tetanus booster, though. Apparently new recommendations came out in the past couple of weeks saying preggo women should get one to pass along to the babe while in utero. So, other than a sore arm and some tight pants that I’m trying to squeeze into for a few more weeks, I’m feeling pretty good. Oh, and my doctor guessed our baby will weigh about 7 lbs 6 oz. at birth. I don’t think she can really tell right now, but if her prediction holds true, the babe will be the same weight as me when I was born ;).

Here’s a 37 week shot….. in the bathroom at work again. I’m trying not to make any sudden movements today as my sweater is just barely covering my belly. We don’t need my half-outie giving any shout-outs to the Exhaust & Emissions business unit.

Other happenings in the Wiegratz household this week; we had dinner out with friends two nights in a row, so the week went by quickly. This makes me think the end of the month will be here before we know it. Dave continues to be in daddy nesting mode. He took on the task of painting our basement bathroom without my even mentioning it. He also met up with “Sharon from Andover” to pick up this Craigslist find for the nursery. I had been wanting a little rocking chair for the room...I may be nesting a bit too, I guess:

I’ve been pretty calm & relaxed as of late. I’m now wondering if it’s an illusion that Dave has created by being so productive and helpful, ha. Hey, whatever works.

So we’ve got a couple small things we’d like to get accomplished over the weekend, but otherwise we feel pretty set for this baby’s arrival. I’m not anxious yet as I hope this child spends at least the next 3 weeks staying healthy and getting chubbier before entering the harsh reality of a Minnesota February. Plus, I borrowed season 5 of Mad Men from a coworker and I’d really like to finish it without any interruptions. Baby's understand parent's needing "me" time, right?

Love this banner that my friends made for my shower a couple weekends ago! & the nursery art from aunt Sara ;). I love how everything is in place right now...I should take a picture 6 months from now when baby is on the move, ha. 

Cheers to the weekend,

Erin

Saturday Baking

Grandma Ruth's Valentine Cut-Out Cookies














Ingredients
2.5 Cups Flour
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
1 Cup Sugar
1 Egg
3/4 Tsp Salt
1 Cup Crisco
1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
4 Tbs Milk

Combine flour, baking soda & salt and stir together. Mix sugar, Crisco, egg & vanilla until combined, then add in dry ingredients. Stir in milk at the end. Roll dough into a ball and let sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour. Once cooled, roll onto a floured board, cut with cookie cutters and place on non-greased cookie sheet. Cook for 9 minutes at 350 degrees.

Frosting
1/2 Cup Butter
1# Box Powdered Sugar
1 Egg White
3 Tbs Maraschino Cherry Juice

Wait until cookies are mostly cool, then frost with above mixture. Bring some to the neighbors to keep your glucose levels in check.


*I had to set some cookies aside for Dave so he can experiment with a glaze ;).

Happy Baking!

XXOO

Erin