here's me at 38 weeks with ethan and 36 weeks with caroline.... 
as if that weren't bad enough...
here's the same picture of me this week compared to me at 40 weeks... on my DUE DATE....with ethan...
thanks for your prayers as i get thru the next few uncomfortable weeks!
slowly but surely, things are getting done to prepare for caroline's arrival! my mom and i finished her name sign for her room... i'm happy with how it turned out! i love the little mary engelbreit letters (they're actually magnets). now we just need to paint a shelf white, and we'll hang that and her sign above the changing table. that's pretty much it for her room... then i'll post some pictures. (i'm sure brian is laughing because i will find something else that needs done in her room as soon as we hang those things!) ethan already loves playing in her room. he is rediscovering all the little toys he had last year, and he also is enamored with the baby swing. he figured out how to get in it by himself, and he knew he was too big for it! he gave me this look like "hey mom, look! i'm being silly!" i almost caught it on camera.... 
kristie and i had lunch at nana's with the kiddos yesterday. ethan always has fun playing with the toys in her little play tent, and of course, the dog is always exciting (till she waps ethan in the face with her tail!). we tried to do a mommies and cousins picture, but as you can see, ethan was not exactly thrilled about being pulled away from the toys!
that's about all that's happening around here... just waiting for our little girl to come. i'll keep you posted. have a great rest of the week.
well, caroline and i are beginning to make progress... i had my dr's appointment today, and he was "very encouraged by my exam". so glad i could encourage him. :) ha! i was dilated 1 cm and not effaced the last time i was checked (4 weeks ago), and now i am dilated 1.5 cm (still not much), 70% effaced, and her head is at station -2. SO that is progress, my friends. i looked in ethan's baby book, and that is exactly where i was with him 4 days before his due date. (actually, i was only dilated to a 1 with him...) and here we have over 4 weeks to go. i'm not getting my hopes up that i'll go much earlier than my due date (nov. 14), but at least my body is starting to work toward labor. i realize i could walk around just like this and not dilate anymore for the next month... so yet another lesson in God being in control of everything in my life! even dilation and effacement. :) please continue to pray for a safe delivery and healthy caroline.
ethan is starting to notice babies more and more (have i mentioned that already lately? sorry if i'm repeating myself). it's so funny b/c when cousin karina was born 2 months ago, he was more interested in the buttons on auntie kristie's hospital bed than the cute bundle wrapped in pink! today, kristie and karina were visiting, and he just couldn't keep his hands off her. he was so excited and kept exclaiming, "bay!" (for "baby")... he didn't really appear jealous when i was holding her, but i will say that it was quite a challenge to ward off his quick little hands from attacking delicate karina! i think i just had an elbow free, and i'm not sure how i managed to keep that baby safe. :) ha. so i got a little taste of what it will be like around our house very soon. but at least i won't have this big belly in the way!! :) we are so looking forward to the growth of our family and to watching ethan love his baby sister.
here's a picture of karina today on her personal ottoman-- my belly! (looks like she's gonna be a thumb-sucker like her cousin!)
i just had to share that i had a GREAT night's sleep last night! what a blessing it was to wake up feeling refreshed and without an aching back! thank you if you've been praying for me to get some rest. i think the key is that i went to bed before my back started hurting (which translates: "before i've done too much around the house and before midnight")... i was comfortable for the first time in several weeks. so yay for sleep!!!!!
it's been a busy place around here, getting final things ready for caroline's arrival. i keep intending to post more often, but i've just stayed busy cleaning out and fixing up... that nesting has surely kicked in! i still want to post that sermon from joshua harris... i'll try to do that soon (i know... i said that almost 2 weeks ago!)
all is well here. i have a dr's appointment in the morning, so maybe i'll be back tomorrow with exciting news of how i'm progressing. i'm trying not to get my hopes up, but it just doesn't seem like she can stay in here 5 more weeks! i'll let you know. :)
actually, ethan has been quite wonderful today (unlike the pouncing children on the couch in this comic!)-- i am blessed that he played by himself very well this morning... i did not sleep well at all last night, which means i am taking every one of my child's sleeping moments to catch up on my rest. which means that by the end of the day, my living room will look like this lady's, and hopefully my hair won't look that bad! ha! i am thankful that i have a very understanding husband who knows that my daily housework has to suffer on days like these so that i am somewhat rested and comfortable. it will probably continue to suffer for the next 6 weeks as i get more tired and more achy... but praise God that my justification is not in what i get done in any given day! praise God that my justification comes from Christ alone! joshua harris has a wonderful message about this very thing... once i can figure out how to link to it, i'll post the message on here for you to listen to. so check back soon.
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