Less than 10 weeks to go!

Wow, time sure is flying by! We started our childbirth classes a few weeks ago. This Thursday will be our next to last class. These classes have been very beneficial in showing us what to expect when I go into labor and the different outcomes that may or may not happen for us. Although I've been reading a lot, it's nice to go to a class and have it reinforced and I think it helps Andy to know the reasons why I have made some of the decisions I have in regards to what I what I want to try to do during labor and delivery.

The nursery is coming right along too. I made some letters spelling out Hudson's name, now we just need to hang them, which should hopefully be done soon :) Other than that , I'm waiting for my showers to finish organizing the closet and dresser and then to start deciding what we will still need to buy before Hudson's arrival!

That's about all in the baby updates. I do have an exciting update for work. I applied and interviewed for the CTO position (Communications Training Officer) and got the job!! So I will now be working on different training projects and training new dispatchers as needed. This will be a nice change and hopefully a new challenge for me since I was getting into a bit of a slump. I have a couple week long classes to take in the next month and a half too, so that will be nice to get done before Hudson is here and I'm off work for a few months! And a negative about work...we bid for our new shifts this week and I will be going back to working 22-08 (10 pm-8 am) with Sun/Mon/Tues nights off. So I got ok days off, but the hours are gonna be killer. My only choice was the same shift I'm on now (6pm-4 am) or a 22-08 shift. Andy and I decided this will work out best for us with Hudson/childcare etc. So hopefully we're right and I can get some sleep during the days when Hudson is with Nancy or Andy! And I will only be working it for a few months, so it's not like I have to suffer too long if it doesn't work out.

Here's a little pregnancy survey too, just for fun cuz I'm bored!

How far along are you? 31 weeks!!

How much does baby weigh? according to my latest email about 3.5 lbs and 16 inches long already!!!

Maternity clothes? Yep!

Stretch marks? None yet...keeping my fingers crossed

Sleep? waking up a lot to use the bathroom and due to back pain, but it's not too bad..

Best moment this week? Finding out how much we get back from our tax return!!

Movement? All the time!!

Food cravings? Still haven't really had any

Milestones: Less than 10 weeks to go!!

3D/4D ultrasound and Belly pics!!

Since I haven't been posting many pictures lately. Here are some new ones! :) Last Tuesday we were able to have a 3-D/4-D ultrasound at our Dr's office. It was so amazing to see Hudson's little face!!! He has the cutest chubby cheeks and Andy thinks he has my nose and my 'grumpy' face, lol. This ultrasound really made things seem so real and made us so excited to meet him!! Only 11 more weeks (give or take..)

And here's my belly!! It's getting big and definitely causing some major back pain!

New valance in the nursery :)

And Maverick had to be in the picture too:

A new year and the 3rd and final trimester!!

Wow..another year gone. I can't believe it's 2010 and it's been 10 years since the new millennium!! Time sure flies.. Speaking of that, this pregnancy seems to be flying by as well. We officially started the 3rd trimester this past week!! How the heck did that happen??!! Hudson's going to be here before we know it :)

Week 27: This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with his legs extended. He's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing his eyes, and perhaps even sucking his fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if he were to be born now. (excerpt from Baby Center)

The only notable milestone this week was that I felt Hudson's first case of hiccups! I knew that's what it was because it was a continuous rhythmic pattern for 5-10 minutes in the same place. Kicking is much more random and sporadic than that :)

This week I had a very fun 'girls night' with my best friends. We went to Katie's parent's house where we ate an "Anne of Green Gables" themed dinner prepared by Katie and Gisele, watched part of the movies and opened our Christmas presents while catching up on some much needed girl talk. We were all very excited to see Sally's engagement ring and hear the details of the proposal as well!! Congrats Sally and Ryan :)

Thursday we rang in the New Year at my cousin Bryce's wedding. The wedding was held at a catholic church in Tacoma and was very nice. Then we all moved to the Best Western in Gig Harbor for the reception where we enjoyed some good food and good company. I visited with a lot of my cousins and family on my mom's side that I hadn't seen since our wedding (and didn't even get to visit with most of them then either!). Overall it was a great way to ring-in the New Year, and I'm hoping to keep in touch with my cousins and get together with them more often.

Week 28: By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese Cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of his head to his heels. He can blink his eyes, which now sport lashes. With his eyesight developing, he may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. He's also developing billions of neurons in his brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world. (from Baby Center)

This week I had an interview and presentation to apply for the CTO (Certified Training Officer) position at my work. I had been preparing my presentation and going over interview questions for a few weeks, but was still nervous when Tuesday morning rolled around. Luckily both the presentation and interview went off without a hitch! There were 2 separate assessors from outside agencies for each aspect of the process. I found out Thursday afternoon that I was accepted into the CTO program!! So my 'training' will officially start January 16th and hopefully I will be able to start training some new dispatchers before leaving on maternity leave in March/April.

Wednesday morning I had my 28 week OB appointment with my Dr. I also took the 1 hour Gestational Diabetes test. I had to drink a super sugary liquid, then have my blood drawn exactly 1 hour later to make sure my blood sugar wasn't high. They told me 'no news is good news' so when I received a call from the nurse the next day I thought for sure I failed and would have to take the 3 hour test, but luckily she was calling to tell me my Iron was low and to ask if I was on extra Iron supplements, which I am...I've just been horrible about remembering to take them. So I've been trying to remember to take these twice a day, spaced out with my thyroid medication and prenatals...it's a lot to remember! And most of them have to be taken with food or else I'm nauseous on top of it! But overall, baby Hudson is growing right on track (from the measurements of my uterus the Dr. took) and his heartbeat sounded good (although he was bouncing around a lot thanks to the extra sugar!)

Thursday we started our first Childbirth Class. There are 7 couples in the class, including us. And somehow I managed to know 2 people in there! What are the odds! :) We learned a few new things and I'm looking forward to practicing the relaxation techniques and getting ourselves ready for the birth!! I think Andy will even benefit from this, as skeptical as he was at having to go at first :)