The time is drawing near

I can not believe it is almost D-Day! Where did these past 8 1/2 months go? Time sure has flown by, Al and I had our last baby shower last night that Katie, Jessica and Allison hosted here at our house. It was so nice and relaxed. The girls made sure that I did not do anything, which is easier said than done. But I think with enough yelling and hair pulling (kidding) they finally got me to sit down on the couch and relax while I watched them take over and clean the house and decorate for the shower. It was a lot smaller shower than the first two which was nice, I think the bigger my belly gets the less entertaining I become.  Chance's nursery is basically complete the only thing I would like to get is a baby monitor and a diaper stacker oh and of course I do need to still purchase a lovely breast pump...yay!!
   Al and I drove out to Arlington today to have lunch with my best friend Jessica, her fiance Jay and their daughter (my god daughter) Gwendolyn. There was a few times I looked over at Al and saw him just starring and Gwen. It was so sweet, I asked if he was studying her patterns and he just laughed and shook his head no, and said he was just watching her. He told me later in the car that he has a good feeling that we are going to have a great kid that is not going to cry much and just be really laid back and cool. I laughed and told him that I am recording this moment in my memory bank so when things are chaotic I can find humor in the moment of chaos.
   Overall I am feeling great, there have been moments here and there that my feet are super swollen, and times were I get winded easier but I honest can not complain. I feel really good and still have a lot of energy for the most part. I will say that it has been frustrating trying to find pants that fit, especially going into the colder season on the year, so yoga pants have been my best friend for the most part. Poor Al really does not see a very attractive Shauna anymore around the house. I am all about comfort these days, I have my moments of trying to dress up but even those times there is definitely not a 100% effort and they are few and far in between. Hopefully, soon enough I will get somewhat of a figure back after Chance is born. Just need to make sure I am laying off all the amazing chocolate chip cookies that I have been baking.

The Turkey is Cooking!

I feel as though time has flown by in the past couple of months and time is ticking away and there is still so much to do. To do a little updating the nursery is pretty much complete. I have had the hardest time getting the letters to his name up on the wall. They either don't stick or my new way of getting them up on the wall is using picture mounts... well when nailing the mounts on to the letters the wood snaps in half. So off to JoAnn's again to buy more letters for Chance's name. I am hoping that this last round will work and the final product will look like this one here, which was right before the A dropped and broken into pieces on the floor.
Earlier this month Albets' mom, aunt and cousin hosted a family baby shower for us. It was a wonderful shower with tons of his family and family friends. My sister and family were the only people that I invited to this shower, which was nice, since I was able to be introduced to new family members and friends that I had not met yet. Al is truly blessed with such an amazing large and warm family, they were all extremely open and wonderful towards me. Chance received tons of clothes, snuggle buddies and Al got the awesome diaper bag that he registered for!
A highlight since the last entry on my journey of pregnancy is I was diagnosed with PUPPP/PEPS aka the Rash of Pregnancy. Oh my goodness was it miserable!!! I thought it was heat rash initially but when it spread half way down my stomach overnight then started covering my entire belly and moving towards my back the following night I knew something was not right. I went in to my doctor and she told me I had PEPS. She said that it is common with women in the first pregnancy in the 3rd trimester and those women who are expecting a boy. Oh how I always love my chances of these things!! She also told me that the cure would be giving birth!!!!!! WHAT!!!!!!! EXCUSE ME!!!!! Oh and that the rash would just continue to spread until he was born....but don't worry, there is no harm to you or the baby. Well wasn't that just great... I almost started crying on the way back to work from my appointment, realizing that I had not taken my maternity photos yet, the rash was going to get worse and oh did I mention how horribly miserable I felt because my whole entire belly was one big itch! When I got home that night I was determined to find a cure because if there wasn't one I was ready to make a scheduled C-Section ASAP. I found to my surprise on babycenter.com (which by the way I love this website, it has helped me with so much stuff throughout my entire pregnancy...highly recommend it.) There was a mom forum about PEPS and all the women having the same symptoms and being just as miserable as I was. They said there was this great product called Grandpa's Pine Tar soap that helped a lot of them and took away the rash entirely for some. As I said I was determined and desperate. I picked up a bar for $3 at Whole Foods and guess what, my PEPS what gone in less than a week. Nothing..poof, disappeared!!!! I think I am going to become a spokes person for this product, I was so so happy!!! Also, loved the doctors appointment I had last week to tell my doctor all about it. Use Grandpa's Pine Tar Soap!! It's a miracle!
Al and I have one more shower next weekend that Katie, Jessica and Allison are throwing for us. It is suppose to be very laid back and they tell me that I am not to do anything but relax and enjoy myself. So much easier said than done, but I will try my hardest! But all of this is coming down to the end. Monday I will be 35 weeks and counting. Nine months seems like a long time but to me it has felt like it has flown by. So much to do still, find a pediatrician, which I have as a goal to do by the first week of November, assemble and install the car seat and buy the second base, wash all of Chances clothes before he arrives, set up a savings account. I know there is tons more, but as I keep telling myself, one day at a time.