38 weeks

A lot has happened since I last updated about my pregnancy. Our baby boy is growing, growing, growing! At my last few appointments, my doctor started showing some concern about Benjamin getting too big. My last baby, Caleb, was also a big baby at 9lb 4oz. My doctor started talking to me about inducing early. Initially I was not on board with being induced. My last experience with being induced was not a good one. When I was pregnant with Julia, I feel like my doctor at the time talked me into being induced out of convenience. And then the induction was so fast and furious that when Julia was born she had bruising all over her face. I promised myself I would never choose to be induced unless there was a really good reason for it. Well, a big baby is a good reason. I talked to Gabe about it and I prayed about it. After asking my current doctor a lot of questions about how he induces, my questions were answered and my fears alleviated. So I am scheduled to be induced next Monday. November 19, 2012 - sounds like a great day to be born!!

This pregnancy has been so different than my previous pregnancies in so many ways. Today I added yet another difficulty to this pregnancy. Over the weekend I started noticing that my taste sensations were a bit off. It felt like I had burned my tongue and couldn't taste things the right way. Yesterday, I had a lot of twitching in my right eye. Then today I noticed that the right side of my mouth wasn't working properly and my right eye was bothering me. I went to my doctor and he diagnosed me with having Bells Palsy. It should go away sometime after I give birth, but in the meantime it is very annoying and frustrating. It is hard to drink, I can't really taste anything the way it should taste (even water tastes funny), and my right eye is all droopy and won't close all the way so it is always watering and irritated. My doctor said I could take prednisone but I opted to wait it out and see if it goes away on its own after Benjamin is born. Even though prednisone is said to be safe during pregnancy, I don't want to chance it. I can endure anything for one more week!

The kids are so happy that their baby brother is finally going to be born. Over the last couple of weeks I have been able to take each of my kids out on a date by themselves. I always try to do this when a new little one is on the way. It is special time with each of them. I know I am about to get really busy and distracted for awhile with the new baby, so I wanted to give them some extra attention now.

Caleb was first up. I took him to get some dinner and then we went to a park to play. He soaked up all the attention and we had fun playing together.

Next I took Isaac out. He opted for a date at Orange Leaf - his absolute favorite! We had a great conversation and he even opened up to me. He voiced his concerns about how different things will be when Benjamin is born. Surprisingly he doesn't really remember what it was like when Caleb was born. He was only 5 then.

And just the other day, I took Julia out for a lunch date at CiCi's Pizza - her favorite. Her mantra when going to Cici's is, "I am going to stuff and stuff until I've had enough" That's my girl!! We also had a great conversation. She too had some questions about how things will be different once Benjamin is born. She is such a sweet girl and a fantastic sister. I think she is going to love having a baby brother around!

So we are on the final stretch. I finally got the hospital bags packed this past weekend. I have a few other little things to get done, but mostly I am going to try to relax and rest as we approach Benjamin's birthday. Praying for his safe arrival.