38 week check-up

Officially I'm not 38 weeks until tomorrow, but today was my appointment day, so that's what we'll call it! I was right about my progress... Not a whole lot, but definitely some - I'm now 2 cm dilated & 60% effaced. Dr. Briones wasn't worried about it at all. She was kind of concerned b/c I've been having times where my entire stomach gets rock hard & stays that way for quite some time. Apparently, that's called a hypertonic (I think its hyper- and not hypo-) uterus & can be bad for Rachel. Anyway, if it happens for more than 2 minutes I'm supposed to lay down & rest. If it still doesn't go away - or if it keeps up, I'm on my way to L&D again. Hopefully, I'll be good.

The big news today is that we've decided that Rachel is going to come on or before November 26 (her due date). If she's not here before (hopefully not) I will be 'augmented' in my labor on Thanksgiving day! I did the same thing w/ Simon and didn't have any trouble what-so-ever, so I'm hoping to continue that trend! Its funny the coincidences between Simon's pregnancy & this one... I had some problems early on where I thought I was going to lose Simon - same w/ Rachel. Then everything was pretty smooth sailing - same w/ Rachel. I started progressing around 34 weeks w/ Simon - same w/ Rachel. I was on 2 weeks bed-rest w/ Simon - same w/ Rachel. I was offered the option to augment my labor w/ Simon on his actual due date - same w/ Rachel. Simon's due date was a holiday - same w/ Rachel. Simon's due date was a Thursday - same w/ Rachel! I think its meant to be! :-)

Tomorrow is a red-letter day for a completely different reason. I get to try out my horse & cart tomorrow! Andrew brought the cart home yesterday afternoon. He put the bench seat out of his dad's Dodge Raider on the frame of my old cart. He even included both seat belts so that when I ride w/ kiddos I can strap them in to keep them from standing, climbing, and falling! He fabricated a new pulling bar & attached it for me. He also looked at all the welds, bolts, nuts, etc for wear and tear. Hopefully, if the weather is nice (its supposed to be) I'll hitch Febe up and go for a drive! I can't wait!

On a more serious note... I want to mention how grateful I am that we have men & women who are willing to risk their lives for our freedom & rights. Even if its not popular or safe for them, they willingly step up and protect this wonderful country of ours. Its amazing to me that I've got so many military people in the family... A brother & brother-in-law, two cousins (different sides of the family), my grand-dad, my dad (Coast Guard counts in my book), and I'm probably missing more. I wasn't called to be one of them, but my prayers, thoughts, and support are present & accounted for these fine individuals! Its heart-rending to think of the lives lost recently at Fort Hood as well as those lost in the Mid-East and other locations around the world. However, it is wonderful to know that their lives were not in vain. They will live on in our hearts, souls, and memories as heroes. God bless!