Last Update Until D-day!

Update
It's official. Liam's not even going to make it to May. His eviction date has been set to the 29th, but we're praying he has his bags packed and he'll be ready to make a move on out before they come and get him! =P

By the way, the only reason that both my OB and high-risk doctors decided for an induction at 39w3d for me is simply because of general lupus risks, and nothing more specific than that. Of course, our prayer right now is for him to want to come out right before on his own, without any force or intervention. At this point, he seems ready, so the chances are good. Your own prayers are much appreciated. :)

Waiting

This will probably be the last post until he arrives, since D-day is getting so close! I can finally tell what a contraction is, as they're getting stronger and stronger. Sleeping is getting less enjoyable (maybe this is nature's way of weaning us off of a regular sleep cycle?). I'm awakened by sore and numb muscles and joints due to the pressure of the baby's weight, so I would have to subconsciously roll over throughout the night (and "rolling over" is no easy task! lol). I think this is also God's way of getting me more excited for his arrival since I really wouldn't mind lightening this load! :) Car seat's installed, hospital bag's packed, and the house is as tidy as can be! All I need to do now is run a marathon to get him going... haha, just kidding!

Preparation
I think the best advice I've received (in a nutshell) about delivery day is "It's gonna hurt..." Haha. Our subconscious has a way of wishing for the nearly impossible and putting us in denial. I think the best way of coping with something like this is to first accept the obvious, then work on coping strategies after. I guess now's a good time to expand on that piece of advice. "It's gonna hurt... but it's going to be the best feeling ever, and your experience is going to be your own, not anyone else's." That's what I've taken away from ALL the stories I've heard and read over the past nine months. It's so easy for everyone to swear on their own personal experiences, but in the end, God gave us our own, unique story, and it's up to us to experience it in it's fullness.

Thankful

Reflecting back on the past nine (or so) months has made us very thankful. There's no mistake his name will be Liam Jireh. The Lord has provided for us in every area we could and couldn't think of. Even though delivery day isn't here yet, there's not a tinge of fear for it because of the assurance God has provided us thus far. The medical care we have been receiving has been impeccable -- I've been receiving medical care for as long as I can remember, and this is, by far, the best care I've received yet! Of course, as the mother, I'm going to lose my benefits about a month after Liam's birth, so the hunt continues for me. But at this point, what matters most is providing quality care for our child, and by the grace of God, he's definitely taken care of -- and I have no doubt I will be taken care of too!

On top of that, school has also been going amazingly well. As I mentioned before, I took my oldest brother's advice and loaded the bulk of my hours into this semester, while Liam's still on the inside. ;) It's tough finding the motivation and energy to study for exams and complete assignments when all you want to do is sleep. Not to mention having to battle pregnancy brain at the same time, haha! I feel like it takes a lot more effort for me to grasp concepts and learn new information. Praise God, I still have A and B averages in all my courses... and that's even after lowering my standards just to stay healthy and  avoid disappointment, haha. I'm also thankful for understanding professors who are allowing me to take exams and finals early, just so I can focus more of my attention on Liam when he arrives. Thank the Lord for his mercy and favor! Graduation is coming soon!

Liam's Room

Back in November, I blogged about wanting to document the progress of the transformation of our tri-purpose room into Liam's nursery/room. Turns out, I'm not one of those super-bloggers with the leisure time I was hoping for, so all I have documented is the before and after. =P I'm happy to say we've accomplished both goals -- style and budget. It's exactly as we imagined it to be. Lots of bold, contrasting colors (courtesy of the human development side of me!), and the majority of the items are gifts and old items around the house. We have been incredibly blessed! We hope Liam will grow to love it as much as we do.

BEFORE

AFTER

Alrighty, time for more picture updates! (More pictures HERE)

My pregnancy timeline is finally finished! It's amazing seeing the transition all at once!
(Good thing I chose a SUPER stretchy top!)

Doing my weekly (now bi-weekly) NST (non-stress test).
Trust us, it's not as exciting as it looks! =P

For FTMs (first time mothers) with little exposure to babies, these infant-care classes are great!
I love that Liam's newbie aunties are just as dedicated! Thank you so much! :)

Project Nursery

As I've been researching for decor ideas for the nursery, I've been really inspired by some of the blogs I've run across. As a visualizer, I love the thrill of seeing before and after pictures, especially from long-term projects like this. Seeing all the possibilities and changes that can come just through one space is truly motivating, and if it was a product of your own sweat and labor, then it's definitely rewarding!

Therefore, I wanted to try something similar, and document the progress of this project of ours. I've never really had to "transform" anything -- I've always had fresh slates to work off of. Decorating our home after we got married was lots of fun, but it wasn't as challenging as this. In regular rooms that are already set and built, there's only a handful of purposes for a living room, dining room, kitchen, bedrooms, etc. In addition, most of us has had experiences in living spaces that contain those types of rooms, so we already have an idea of what we want and need in each of our spaces.

When it comes to special rooms with "special needs" like a nursery, it can get a little challenging, especially if it's your first child, or even first experience with caring for a baby. It's hard to know the differences between what you need and want, so budgeting can get a little tricky. It takes a lot of researching and interviewing, so thank God for Google and very reliable internet sources such as BabyCenter.com. I've worked with and cared for 18 - 36 month olds at my previous job at a Montessori school, so I'm relatively familiar with their routines and necessities. However, newborns require several different things in addition to the usual diaper changing and cleaning up after, so research was definitely necessary on my part!

This is a challenge I've definitely been invested in lately, so I wanted to share my progress and things I've learned along the way. Below are some challenges in addition to the aforementioned:

• Budget = This is our biggest priority, aside from providing the baby with everything he/she absolutely needs. We don't have a number, but we're sticking to a "lowest possible price" goal, along with a "necessities only" goal. Of course, who's to say I will know for sure what my baby will absolutely "need?" That's where all the fun comes in! ;)
• Style = What's the point of making the effort to decorate if you're not trying to accomplish something aesthetically appealing as a result? My personal challenge in this is actually trying to find a particular style and theme, and just STICK with it. There are SO many beautiful ways to decorate a nursery, and I've even lost count of how many pins I have on my nursery board! My goal here is to figure out what I want to portray and accomplish with my style, and go through with it (because we all know "Indecisive" is my middle name)!

In regards to progress, I would say Phase 1 is complete -- the purging of the old (Phase 2 was complete, until this happened!). Since I didn't plan to document this project until now, I had to dig up whatever I could find of the old room. (I took the photo to send to my family so I could show them a rearrangement of the room at the time).

I think this was the most painstaking and UNexciting phase of the whole project. It took me about  a week to complete (with my pregnant and very tired self), and of course, this phase ended with me in bed for recovery, lol. Our second room was being used as a his/her office, guest room (with a queen bed), AND storage room. You can only imagine how not excited I was to begin this task! Well, as they say, "work hard now, play hard later," and now that all is said and done, I admit that I'm very excited and ready to play hard with this room! ;)

Our tri-purpose room obviously was lacking major space!
Contents: 1 queen bed, 2 work stations, and lots & LOTS of stuff!