11 days!

We are almost down to single digits!  Yesterday was my weekly doctor's appointment.  Still at 1.5 cm and 70% effaced.  Hopefully something happens soon!  The doctor said that I was early for a first time mom to have any progress in the first place at 36 weeks and now it seems to just have stalled.  He also guessed that it will be a pretty average size baby between 7-8 pounds.  I have tried just about everything on the list of things to do to help start labor, I have been walking a lot, had Italian (they say it is not the magical eggplant in eggplant Parmesan but more likely the oragano and basil), accupressure, relaxing, you name it I have probably tried it.  Every time we get a new book or two I read it to the baby right away.  Everything is ready for the baby, room all set up, house is clean and puppies are even clean, just no baby :)  We honestly are trying not to be impatient, but hey that is just not us!  Apparently the baby wants to be super subborn.  Stubbornness runs pretty deep in our families, hard to say who the most stubborn is, but at the moment, I am feeling that it is the baby.

No progress :(

No progress at the doctor's today :(  We are a little disappointed, but at the same time know that is the way it goes with babies!  They will come on their own time, God already knows baby C's birthday, we just have to wait.  My belly measured 37 cm and I am 37 weeks so it seems to be right on target.  I am running out of books to read the baby though, I have read everything to it in our collection, except the Velveteen Rabbit, which we bought yesterday.  So back again to the doctor next Monday, until then back to walking and trying to relax until this baby comes!
Saturday we lost a family friend, Miss Joan Ward.  Our prayers are with the Ward family and all of her friends, she was a sweet woman and will be greatly missed!  

Anticipation :)

Yesterday I went to the doctor and I was 1.5 cm dilated, 70% effaced and the baby is head down at -2 station.  I was pretty excited that there was some progress towards labor.  I know it could still come at anytime but it makes me feel better knowing that my body is working towards getting the baby outta here ;)  Over the weekend we did a lot to prepare for the baby.  We bought a bookcase and also got the changing table.  Bryce built both of those so the nursery is pretty much complete now, just missing the baby :)  I washed all of Baby C's clothes labeled up to 3 months, so we really are ready at anytime!  I go back to the doctor on Monday and hopefully will have another good update with some more progress!

Nursery Pictures

Happy New Year :)

Happy New Year!  2010, it is the year of Baby Ciancio (well for our families anyway :) Mom and Dad came last Sunday and stayed here for a week.  It was wonderful having them here and we got a lot done around the house in preparation for the baby coming.  It was also nice since Bryce left on Monday to go to the Auburn bowl game and was in Tampa all week.  While they were here Dad painted the chair rail and finished touching up the paint and they also bought the crib.  Harold and Bryce built the crib last night so the nursery is really coming along.  It is pretty exciting and I will definitely put up pictures soon!  I was hoping to buy the rocker while Mom and Dad were here but Target stopped carrying it in stores because it was recalled.  So I found a similar one online and order that, hopefully it will be here soon.  Apparently Koter bug did not learn his lesson about eating random crap because Mom and Dad found him with a tape roll three different times while they were here.  He is apparently trying to teach Nala and Pudge his mischievous ways.  Mom found Pudgy eating a tissue and Nala threw up some hard piece of plastic!  Last night we celebrated Christmas with Harold, Lise, Grandpa and Kristen.  Bryce and I received his grandmother's china.  It is beautiful and I can't wait to get a hutch to display it in.  I had a doctor's appointment today.  I measured 34.5 cm and I am just over 35 weeks so right on target.  Baby C could be here anytime between now and a little after February 6th.  After speaking with a couple of nurses I think I have had Braxton Hicks contractions.  I have experienced an uncomfortable pressure in my pelvic floor which the nurses believe are the BH contractions.  They told Bryce they don't really feel like labor contractions, but is just your body practicing for labor.  I will definitely update on Monday after I go back to the doctor, we are down to every week now :)

Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone!  We had a wonderful Christmas.  We stayed here in Phenix City and Harold and Lise came for dinner.  This morning I made us French Toast then we opened gifts from each other.  I got a beautiful scarf, some nice sweaters and an insta-read thermometer which came in handy today for the turkey.  Bryce got a picture of Wrigley Field, a coffee table book about Auburn and a camera.  The camera has already been put to good use ;)  We also got lots of good stuff for the baby too.   We had dinner around 6, then opened gifts with Harold and Lise.  They got us a Dyson which I know will be put to good use with all the puppy hair around here!  I spoke with PopPop and MomMom earlier today, they both seemed to be doing well.  I am sure MomMom was happy to have everyone over and to be home for Christmas.
Koter bug turned 3 years old yesterday.  He has felt the need to spoil himself.  About a week and a half ago he ate a roll of athletic tape (which we had to take him to the vet to get a laxative in order to pass), then while I was gone he helped himself to a blowpop and today he had a milkshake.  I asked the vet when Dakota might stop eating random crap and the vet asked how old he was, when I answered 3, you could have knocked the vet over with a feather.  It doesn't look like the prospect of him stopping that habit is very good.  Oh well!  

End of Semester and Snow!

Friday was the last day of the first semester.  I can't believe the school year is half over.  It also means that baby Ciancio will be here soon, Saturday marked 33 weeks!  Right after school on Friday Lise drove me to Atlanta so I could catch a flight home.  I landed just as the snow started coming down here.  The offical measurement ended up being 20.5 inches, 3 would have been plenty for me!  Yesterday was a pretty lazy day seeing as it was too bad to go out anywhere.  I was able to visit Mom Mom and Pop Pop though.  Mom Mom seemed tired, but considering everything she has gone through she seemed to be doing well.  Other than that Mom and I made some cookies and watched Rudolph.  The snow finally stopped about 10 last night, hopefully we can do something today :)
Between last Sunday and Monday morning the baby definitely dropped.  I woke up Monday morning and felt like I could breath again, which was nice!  Wednesday I went to the doctor and he said I measured at 33 cm, which is right on target.  They said I should measure the same in centimeters as I am weeks.  We finally got to meet the two new babies in small group.  They are both super precious!  I know it makes Bryce all the more excited to meet Kaylea/Jack.  Monday night we had our second child birthing class.  We went to the hospital to visit the maternity ward so we would know what to expect.  Fortunately every room is private.  We got to see the labor and delivery rooms and then the recovery rooms.  After looking at the rooms, they took us by the nursery.  There was a nurse swaddling a newborn, he couldn't have been more than a few hours old.  After she swaddled him and got his knit hat on, she put him in a stocking to take his picture.  It was too cute!  I don't know that the child birthing classes have made me feel anymore ready to give birth, but people do extraordinary things when they have to, so I figure hormones will take over and I will be ok.