38 Weeks

38 weeks today.  Eight days until I get induced.  I'm telling you, I feel so much less antsy this time around.

Not much has changed, really.  No contractions to speak of, just pains at night I think from the day and also from Jack moving all over the place.  Sometimes I hurt in the mornings too, so I try to rest up more.

Knowing I have so little time left has helped me to be more proactive.  While I always feel like my house is a mess despite my non-stop efforts, I've been cleaning a lot.  And doing other things too, like trying to keep all of the towels clean, all of the bills paid far in advanced, all of my grading done early, all of the dishes done and put away, all of the cars washed (when your "nesting" extends to the cars, you know you're close), and the pantry full of food.  I want to have everything ready for me to take a little "leave of absence" as coordinator of the home while I'm in the hospital.  I want our home to be ready to receive company at all times.  I can't keep everything straight in the house like I've been trying to, but at least it's better than it could be.

We took our maternity photos a few days ago, which I wrote about.  I think they look great!  Our house still doesn't have much in the way of our photos hung up on the wall, which I plan to change (they're just packed away in a box), but I am so excited to frame some of these and hang corresponding photos of me pregnant with Eliot.

I hadn't been nervous about hardly anything with this pregnancy or adjusting until recently.  Last week, I was nothing but excited and anxious.  I have felt so ready to be un-pregnant.  Now as we approach Jack's arrival, I am feeling a little worried about if I can handle everything--the birth, the adjustment, having a newborn again.  Can I do it all and do it well for our Jack?  I shouldn't worry, though, because I managed to do it the first time and now I know so much more.  I remind myself that I felt the same way when Eliot came.  I was so excited, but then when I sat on the hospital bed waiting for my pitocin to begin, four days overdue, I thought to myself, "I don't know if I'm prepared for this."

Eliot is so ready to be potty trained and I feel a little guilty about that.  He tells us when he is going sometimes and asks for diaper changes.  He breaks in on people in the bathroom and asks for his turn.  However, I don't want to start now, just barely a week before Jack comes, and then be inconsistent since I'll be adjusting to a newborn.  It's not like he's behind or anything--he isn't even two and a half--so my plan is to see how things go and aim to potty train him by the time Jack is a few months old.  Then I can really give Eliot the attention he deserves during the process.

I suppose I might have one more weekly update left before Jack comes.  Right now, he is moving all over the place, kicking, and adjusting.  I can't wait to meet our boy, settle into a routine as we find our new "normal," and be a family of four!