We’re officially in the home stretch of this pregnancy. My due date is less than 2 weeks away!

Naturally, I have found myself thinking a lot about labor and delivery. Our son was born at 39 weeks, so my doctor and everyone else, myself included, has been anticipating baby girl coming before her due date. I’m so anxious to meet our baby girl. I guess we’ll see what happens in the next couple of days.

How I’m Feeling

Not only am I physically tired, but work has been mentally exhausting. My plan is to continuing working until I deliver, but at this point I’m definitely ready for maternity leave. I’m looking forward to having some time off and adjusting to life as a family of four.

Physical Changes

I’m still dealing with pelvic pain, some days the pain even makes walking and getting out of bed or the car very difficult. My hope is that the pelvic pain doesn’t impact labor and delivery too much.

In the last few weeks, I’ve also experienced a lot of Braxton Hick’s contractions. One day they were so frequent that I called labor and delivery, just to be safe. After lots of water and rest, the Braxton Hick’s calmed down. I have also started feeling more labor like contractions, but they have been far apart and haven’t progressed any further.

Over the last week or so, my belly has been itching and I have also noticed the development of a few stretch marks.

My doctor started cervical checks at week 36. At that point, I was 1 cm dilated and about 30% effaced. At my 37 week appointment I was still only 1 cm dilated, but had progressed to 70-80% effacement. At 38 weeks, I was still only 1 cm dilated. I can’t lie, I was a little disappointed that I hadn’t progressed a little further, but I know dilation and effacement aren’t a true indicator of when baby will be born. Labor will occur when my baby and body are ready.

Looking Forward

For now, we are anxiously awaiting our baby girl’s arrival. We can’t wait to welcome her into our family!

Check out her DIY maternity photos here