Not Such A Raisin

Matt's decided that Skylie's gotten cuter since she was born. At first he thought her purple wrinkley skin made her look a little like a raisin.

She is Here!

Skylie Rose Pitcher arrived at 8:39 this morning! Erin and Skylie are healthy and doing well (Matt is hanging on by a thread). We are excited she is here and will keep people updated.
She is 6 lbs. even and 19 inches. Thanks for all of your well wishes.

Last Belly Picture

Some guy told me a few days ago that I look ready to pop. At first I thought he was rude for saying that, but now I'd have to say that I agree. Here's the belly a few days shy of 39 weeks.While we had the camera out I tried to get a cute shot of Matt and I together. It's kind of hard when half the people in the picture are making weird faces, so this is the best I got. :)
Life is good. Driving home after work yesterday I couldn't help but think that life is pretty great. I don't know how I got so lucky, but I hope the dice keep rolling in my favor.

P.S. I think this baby is sucking the brains out of me. Seriously.

As requested...

Last Sunday a few friends made bets on when Baby Pitcher will arrive. The winner gets an amazing prize. Want to join in the fun? My due date is August 31 or September 2, depending on the calculation method.

Aug. 18 - Amanda R.

Aug. 19 - Mark E.

Aug. 22 - Auprielle E.

Aug. 23 - Gavin R.

Aug. 24 - Jamie O.

Aug. 26 - Matt P.

Aug. 27 - Nikki H.

Aug. 28 - Eric L.

Aug. 30 - Amber O.

Sept. 3 - Erin P.

Sept. 4 - Kristelle L.

I've waited 23 years...

...for a baby.

(Doesn't every little girl want a baby of her own?)

So why do the last few weeks have to pass so slowly?

Confession:
Before becoming pregnant I told Matt all the time that I'd never complain and just be happy to be having a baby if I was ever pregnant. I thought all the whining of pregnant women was a little overdone (No offense—it's all about perspective, right?).

But now I'm eating my words.
I TAKE IT ALL BACK.

Matt's heard me complain about pretty much everything! (And the worst part of it is that I know I've had the easiest pregnancy in the world so I have ZERO room to talk.)

My latest moanings have been about how S-L-O-W these last few weeks are going. It's not so much that my body's uncomfortable (although it is that, too); I'm just so impatient and want to hold our daughter in my arms at last! I'm hoping she comes any day, but I'm trying to get used to the idea that it could still be almost four weeks before she makes her debut.

At 36 weeks I was dilated 2 cm, and now (as of Wednesday's 37 week appointment) I'm at 3 cm and 90% effaced. It's cruel, really cruel, when the doctor says, "You could go in to labor tonight or it could be a few more weeks." Dah!

I don't mean to sound ungrateful, because I am—really grateful. And I know that a couple weeks of waiting really is NOTHING. I guess I'm just...really, really ready for our baby to come.

P.S. That nesting urge people talk about—it's INSANE! This week I've maxed out our freezer capacity preparing over a dozen dishes, and I can't go to bed at night without picking up the house "just in case".

Baby Shower

Two great friends, Kelly and Sara hosted an awesome baby shower for me the other weekend. Everyone has been so thoughtful and has helped us more than we deserve.

Here's some pics:

The food

My sister, Amber and I

Mariah and Robyn

Shalise and Margaret

Kelly

Charlie and I

Cassie and Jamie

Amanda and Nikki

Kristelle

Auprielle and Teairsa

Sara managed not to get in any pictures, so here's one of her I stole from their blog.

{She's the adult, not the one-year-old.}

All the loot I came home with:
{Click to enlarge. Notice the cute diaper cake in the middle that my sister made for the shower. I don't think that was caught in any earlier pictures.}

I can't get over how cute baby stuff is and how crafty so many people are. {I am definitely behind the game in that arena.} This girl is going to be the cutest baby the world's ever seen!

While I'm at it I'll showcase some stuff from Grandma and Grandpa Zane:
On top of all of that, so many friends and family have given or lent us baby items, hand me down clothes, money, etc., etc., etc. People have been so generous to us, and we definitely owe everyone big time.

Thank you. Thank you! THANK YOU!

Now if this baby would just do me a favor and get here soon! :)

36 Weeks and Baby Update

Belly Pic:

Here I am at 36 1/2 weeks. I'm really wondering why I ever thought it was a good idea to post pregnancy pictures on here where the whole world can see my massiveness.

Baby Update:

She's a shrimp.

Since the fundal height has been measuring exponentially smaller than is normal (I measured about a month behind at my 34 week appointment.), the doctor had me get another ultrasound to make sure everything's okay.

Everything looked good during the ultrasound; our baby's just tiny.

As of 35 weeks:

• Overall she's in the 14th percentile.
• Her abdominal circumference is in less than the 2nd percentile.
• She weighs 4 lbs. 6 oz. (Average weight at this point it about 5 lbs. 4 oz.)

It's hard to believe our bambina could be here this month and that she'll definitely be here early next month!

On another note:
We're not getting any closer to coming up with a name for our little one. Any suggestions? PLEASE!

"Staycation" Week 2

We missed not being able to see family this summer, but our staycation turned out pretty great. It's just too bad that it had to end. Matt started his pediatric rotation on Monday at Blank Children's Hospital and is sure he'll like rotations better than the first two years of med school.

A quick recap of our last week or so of freedom:

Wednesday, July 22

Thursday, July 23

Friday, July 24
We should've taken pictures before becoming drenched in sweat/water and getting helmet hair. But we didn't. :)
The only half normal picture we managed to get:So we figured we might as well just look goofy, since we're so successful without trying.
Saturday, July 25

Monday, July 27
America Party for new U.S. citizen, Nathalie
And Goodbye Party for Pinegar's and Racker's :(
{A few of us girls. Click to enlarge.}

Wednesday, July 29
BBQ to say adios to Rencher's :(

Saturday, August 1
Farmers' Market
Sister and nephew in town
Baby shower {pics coming soon}