37 weeks!

It feels both completely normal and completely surreal to say that today I am 37 weeks pregnant . . . full term by many counts. Full term.

As in, you are welcome, baby girl, to make your appearance whenever you feel ready.

We had our weekly appointment this morning, our second one. I was curious to see whether any progress had been made over last week. I haven't really felt anything going on this week, other than some uncomfortable menstrual-like cramping a couple of times a day. After pondering it for a moment, your daddy felt confident that there would be progress. I am still thinking that you are quite comfortable in there, and that my body is quite comfortable being pregnant, so I was not as confident at my body making such early progress. Turns out a *little* progress was made! I am now one centimeter dilated, and about 10% effaced. So, slowly but surely, my body is in fact calmly preparing for your exit . . . or perhaps we should say your entrance.

The first nurse who took your measurements this morning showed you weighing only 6-something pounds and being a little behind in your growth. This was a huge shock considering last week you were measuring 2-3 weeks ahead and at 8 pounds! It just goes to show how different measurements can be depending on who takes them. My instinct was telling me that her measurements were more inaccurate than last week's, though, and the doctor, who served as sort of the tie breaker, backed up this motherly intuition. According to him, you are about 7.5 pounds, right on track to be a 9-9.5 pound baby. That sounds right to me! He also told me that there's an old obstetrician saying that a woman can "comfortably" deliver a baby that is equal in pounds to her shoe size. Well, baby girl, your momma wears a 9.5, so it looks like we are in perfect shape to do this!

Not only is my body totally ready (or, at least, capable . . . and getting itself slowly ready) for you, but your dad and I had a wonderfully busy weekend getting our house and car ready for you, too! We made trips to Target and Babies R Us and finished purchasing the few things we still felt we needed for you. Your dad installed your car seat in my mom-mobile. We made our phone list for when the time comes. We practiced our relaxation techniques, and we were able to realize that we aren't scared anymore of what labor and delivery are going to be like! We are of course a bit anxious about the unknown, but more than anything we are so excited to finally, finally, after all this time, meet you face to face.

Your dad is getting more and more attentive to me, more and more insistent that I take it easy and focus on relaxing. It's not an easy thing for me to do, especially when I feel bad that me doing less means that he has to take on so much more. But there's something driving him that will never let him tire, that will never let him resent the extra responsibility that's been placed on his shoulders. It's love. It's his love for you, and his love for me. I've never seen him so productive, so calm, so indefatigable. I've been feeling bad about not being able to do so much around the house as I used to, especially with all the new things added to our to-do list. But this morning at the doctor's office, when we saw you on the screen again, healthy and wonderful, when we heard how perfectly you were actually measuring, when we felt once again confident that we are on track for a beautiful labor and delivery and that we would be holding you in our arms soon enough, he turned to me with wet eyes and said, "Thank you. Thank you for growing our daughter so perfectly." You see baby girl, it's love. It's his love of you, and his love of me, that lets him remember the important work that we are both doing during this exciting time.

So here we are. 37 weeks. Ready for the final stretch, the final big push (yep, pun intended) that we will have to go through to finally reach the end of this fabulous 9-month journey. Your room is ready for you. You have a safe place to ride. My body is right on track. You are right on track.

Whenever you decide you're ready . . . we are, too.

I love you and can't wait to kiss your sweet little cheek.

Mom