37 Weeks (Ryan's Perspective)

Hey Everyone!  This week instead of me blogging, Ryan is going to do it...

37 Weeks
Quick synopsis of what's happened since the last post:

• Jacksonville shower - The shower was hosted by my cousin, Julia Lawless.  Beth's parents and my Grandma McCarthy made the trip down.  They helped assemble items from the shower and finish setting up the baby's room.  We are so blessed to have such loving family and friends that have been so generous and just as excited about Baby Huntley as we are.
• We have completed 2 of 3 childbirth classes.  Both classes have been informative and interesting to hear other couple's prospective.  Something new I learned in the class was about the epidural procedure.  It's actually a catheter, not a shot. 
• Interviewed the pediatrician.  I think we got it...one interview=one pediatrician.  Beth and I both really liked her and felt really comfortable with her.
• Tour of the hospital.  This was actually a lot quicker than I thought it would be.  Pretty simple, we toured the waiting rooms, nurses areas, patient rooms (where Beth's going to be the whole time) and the nursery.  One thing we took away from the hospital tour was that babies do not stay in the nursery.  The baby's stay in the room with his/her parents basically the whole time.  I think we only saw 1 baby in the nursery (for circumcision) and all maternity rooms were full.
• Doctor's appointment.  Really not a whole lot happened.  Dr. came in, measured Beth's stomach, listened to the heart beat and told us she will see us next week unless Beth goes into labor before. 

Something Beth hasn't shared with everyone are the names we have picked for the baby. 

Girl:  Mollie Bryant Huntley (after Beth's grandmother, Mollie Darwin, and Bryant is my mother-in-law's maiden name).  My wife is from Mississippi where I think it is the law to have at least 1 child with a double name, so we will call her "Mollie Bryant."

Boy:  James McCarthy Huntley (McCarthy is my mom's maiden name and James after my Grandfather Huntley, Beth's dad, brother and grandfather).  We will call him McCarthy (or Mac).

Due Date: October 4, 2011
Size of the baby: Baby Huntley (according to my book) is almost 6.5 pounds and total length is about 21 inches.
Weight gain/loss: Beth had a doctor's on Thursday (9/8) and had gained 6 pounds since her last appointment (2 weeks ago).  That brings the total to...36 pounds.  I told her she looked like she lost weight. 
Maternity clothes:  She is wears a lot of the same outfits over and over. I guess she has slim pickings.
Gender: Don't know.
Movement:  The baby is moving a lot.  I have actually seen her stomach move when the baby moves.  In the past I had to put my hand on her stomach to feel it.  She told me today that the baby was moving a lot while she was at work. 
Sleep: I would say Beth is sleeping good.  Her snores and groans have increased in the last week.  She is not getting up to go to the bathroom as much, which makes me nervous.  Charlie has moved to my side of the bed due to the lack of room on Beth's side. 
What I miss:  I think she misses a glass of wine every once in a while and being able to bend at the waist.
Cravings: Picasso's, a restaurant by our house. We eat there once or twice a week and she craves anything on the menu.
Symptoms:  Swollen ankles, tired, heart burn, weight gain, grouchiness...just joking
Best moment of the week: Getting together with my parents for family dinner and Beth's parents being there. 
A few pictures from the weekend: