Drop, Baby, Drop

One more week down. 37 weeks never felt so good... Except for the fact that I am so ready to not be pregnant anymore. Haha.

Don't take that the wrong way. There are so many things that are sweet and only able to be experienced through pregnancy, however, when you reach the end, you are more than ready to welcome your new little edition to the family. In fact, let me share with you some of the sweetest moments of my pregnancy:

37 Weeks!

1. There is no better excuse to redecorate a room in your house (or, in our case, apartment)
2. Your husband will talk to your baby and hope for a little kick or nudge in return
3. The little rolls, kicks, punches, and other little movements become reassuring and you look forward to them
4. Those hiccups, even on the inside, are so stinkin' cute...and powerful!
5. You are always being served, whether it's getting first in line at a buffet-style meal or having someone there to pick up everything you drop on the floor
6. You won't have to do all the chores because there are just some that you can't do with a ginormous belly. Thanks be to your husband ;)
7. Baby showers are fun and really help you build your stock of things that you know you couldn't purchase or make all yourself
8. At family gatherings, people will flock to you because you are the woman with the belly ready to pop
9. You really become so excited (and terrified) to become a parent to this new little life over the course of your pregnancy
10. You will undoubtedly receive so much love and support from the people around you, finally understanding the love that your parents have had for you since the moment you were first born

Along with these sweet pregnancy moments, I actually made a meal this week that I would love to share! The name of the game is Tuscan Chicken Skillet. YUM.

Tuscan Chicken Skillet

Ingredients:

My Tuscan Chicken Skillet served with Garlic Biscuits

• 1 Tbsp + 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 lb. Chicken Breast Tenders (or chicken breast that has been cut into smaller chunks)
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp Oregano
• 1/2 tsp Thyme
• 1/2 Yellow Onion, diced (about 3/4 Cup)
• 3 Cloves (1 1/2 tsp) Garlic, minced
• 12 oz. Mushrooms, sliced
• 2/3 Cup Sundried Tomatoes (or Roasted Red Peppers), chopped
• 1 (15oz) can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 (15oz) cans Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes
• 1 Tbsp Sugar
• Parsley for Garnish

Instructions:

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in large skillet over med-high heat. Add chicken and brown (about 3 minutes) on each side
2. Remove chicken and set aside. Add 1 Tbsp olive oil to pan with mushrooms. Brown mushrooms and set aside.
3. Add onion to skillet and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and sundried tomatoes. Sauté for 2 minutes and stir in diced tomatoes, spices, beans, and sugar.
4. Transfer chicken back into skillet and spoon some sauce and vegetables over the top. Cook, covered, for about 10 minutes. Return mushrooms to the pan, and salt and pepper as needed.
5. Garnish with parsley and serve hot!

Oh! I got so wrapped up in the food that I forgot to tell about the most exciting news from this last week! 

My husband and I went to our regular doctor's visit and as the OBGYN was checking to make sure everything was on the right track for delivery, he was surprised to find that I was already dilated to 3cm! Normally, at 37 weeks, women are dilated only to maybe 1 cm. But with that news, the doctor informed us that everything was ready for delivery except that the baby needed to drop just a little bit more. Once she dropped, labor would most likely be started on its own before the due date! YAY! This, of course, was excellent news. 

If by chance, however, that labor does not start on its own, by 39 weeks, the doctor would probably be able to induce labor without have any complications. So, we will see what this next week brings (crossing our fingers for this baby!!) but we are hoping that at least by September 4th, we could have our little girl in our arms :)

Waiting

We are basically just waiting for this little girl to arrive...

We've done all of our purchases, we've set up the nursery, we've even washed all the baby clothes and cleaned all the pacifiers and bottles. Now all we need is Lilly...

This week was mostly filled with work for Kaleb and my History independent study class. Basically, largely uneventful. However, come the weekend, we headed to Salt Lake City and enjoyed exploring the City Creek Center. We had fun as we shared some memories with Kaleb's younger brother as well and enjoyed Chinese food (courtesy of Mom and Dad Kjar :) as well as a little treat from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. The day ended as we watched numerous small children play in the splash pad fountain at the mall. I think seeing all the giggles and screams just made me and Kaleb want this little girl to come even sooner!

As for myself and this pregnancy adventure, I have been experiencing some of the early signs of labor and an increased consistency of Braxton Hicks contractions. Though I am sure that we won't have Lilly tomorrow, I hope that the time is nearer than we expect. At 36+ weeks, I am ready for this healthy little girl to be ours :)

A Little Tongue

This last week was full of random happenings and lots of time with family--which we love!

Kaleb started his first day of work at his new job: BYU Information Technology Project Manager. With twice the amount of hours and a decent pay raise, we are feeling pretty good about this job change and are grateful for the financial boost :)

I started up my independent study History class again and am determined to finish before this little baby comes...which I may or may not be successful in. Wish me luck!

My old workplace threw a waffle breakfast for me as a going away party (even though I stopped working about a month before...) and it was fun revisiting coworkers and eating great food. Yum, waffles :P

Lilly at the 34 Week Ultrasound :)

We also had the special opportunity to get our very last ultrasound of Lilly before the big delivery day. At first it seemed that we weren't going to get a good look at her little face because her arms were covering it from all sides, however, in a split second she moved one of her arms and we got one of our very favorite pictures of Lilly--silly face, tongue out and everything :) We are indeed in love with this little girl. We cannot wait to hold her in our arms!
We also got the additional good news that she is right on target with her due date of September 11th and is head down (relieved about that...). At our next appointment next week the doctor will begin to look for dilation. We are so close!

Amelie and Uncle Kaleb

On Friday, Kaleb and I headed up to Farmington to celebrate our sister-in-law's brother's wedding. It was fun to see family members and catch up after several months of not seeing each other. One of my very favorite moments of the evening, however, was when we went out to a late dinner and smoothie run after the reception. Amelie (our adorable niece), got so comfortable as to fall asleep on Kaleb's lap for the entire evening. It was more than precious. By the time we had to leave, Kaleb was reluctant to let go and his desire to have our own little girl intensified. Needless to say, we are so ready to have Lilly :)

By the end of the night, my pregnant-lady feet had had enough. In fact, I normally have pretty slender feet. However, these last few weeks have been rotten in the way of swelling. I don't even have to be walking anymore to have my feet swell up like a balloon. I even discovered that my right leg and foot swell twice as much as my left leg and foot. I learned that, because of the pressure of your ever-growing baby onto your vena cava (the largest vein in your body that also happens to be on the right side), your right side will tend to swell more than your left side. Hmm. Good to know. That's another reason why it is preferable to sleep and lay down on your left side as opposed to your right.

On Saturday we spent our time with Kaleb's family (only missing a few of the whole family). We began the day in Salt Lake City and participated in an Escape Room. The basic premise of this "game" is to solve the clues in order to reach the end goal and get out of the room within 1 hour. With only 5 minutes to go, we reached the last clue and just barely didn't make it in time. But with us being so close, we considered it a win :) This was something that I had never experienced, however, it was so much fun! We also had a fun time discovering how well we all work with one another. I think we did pretty well :)

35 Weeks!!

Last, but not least, we returned to Salt Lake City on Sunday evening to celebrate the upcoming marriage of Joe Ostrander and Blake Bartter. We gathered with the Kjar family and enjoyed many conversations as well as games, food, and laughter. We are excited for these two to make that commitment to one another and enter into this new adventure called marriage :) This gathering, though mostly for the benefit of the two getting married, also benefitted me and Kaleb. During the gift-opening, each member of the family was to provide some marriage advice. On the drive home, Kaleb and I talked mostly about the advice given at the family event and discussed different areas that we were willing to work on in order to strengthen our relationship. What a blessing it is to be a part of a family that has such strong family values and understands the important of family relationships!

I am so grateful for my husband and his family. I am also so grateful for our opportunity to have our own family and add to it within the next few weeks (come on, Lilly!). This marriage truly has been an adventure worth taking :)

A Little Laughter and Swollen Feet

I feel like I very appropriately titled this post. With shopping, errands, and family adventures abound these last two weeks I am completely wiped out! I have also never seen my feet so swollen. Even Kaleb told me that they had looked as if I sprained or injured them because of how uncharacteristically large they were. However, with only 5 weeks and 4 days to go until the due date, I am just happy that I can walk at all :)

33 Weeks!

Since my family has been in town, we've been blessed to be treated many times to lunch and dinner, so we didn't do a whole lot of cooking, however, we have got some great recipes to share :)
Before those recipes, just an update on our family happenings...

Two weeks ago we went in for another OBGYN appointment and both my husband and I were laughing as the doctor couldn't get a good reading of Lilly's heartbeat. She was moving so much that even the doctor could see my belly moving and just had to laugh. The good news is, she is more that healthy.

The following Friday, Kaleb and I made an impromptu decision to spend the night with my family up in Park City. Decision = bad. We had fun staying up and playing with the family, however, because of my missing body pillow and even comfortable clothing to sleep in I got a total of maybe 3 hours of sleep. By morning (early morning), I had convinced Kaleb to come with me to Walmart so that I could purchase some comfy clothes that would help me get through that next day. Needless to say, sleepovers aren't really my thing right now. Haha.

34 Weeks with this Active Little Girl :)

Last Week we made an appointment to meet with our local WIC (Women Infants Children) Office and were deemed eligible for some aid throughout the remainder of the pregnancy and even for a few years after Lilly is born! This was a huge blessing to receive. Now living off of one very low paycheck, it is nice to know that we will at least have the aid necessary to get the basic foods we need and even healthcare assistance.

Last (but certainly not least) is our baby shower. This past weekend I enjoyed the company of many family members and friends for our second and last baby shower before Lilly arrives. We all had so much fun talking and catching up with one another as well as playing games that my mom had so creatively put together (judging play-doh babies and guessing how round my belly was). I am so grateful for the generosity of others, especially since we have so little.

Okay! Now for these killer recipes!

1. Homemade Garlic-Ranch Chicken Pizza

This pizza is worth every single bite. I don't think I've ever been more excited to eat leftovers! We used our own family pizza dough recipe, however the sauce on this pizza is to die for!! A must try.

2. Spicy Roasted Vegetable Mac & Cheese

This recipe was also super delicious! It is a pretty clever way to hide those vegetables into a meal and they taste so good! We did make a few changes to this recipe: only 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper and no red pepper flakes (this gave it the perfect spicy kick without burning everything in your mouth) and we used regular pasta instead of whole-wheat. Overall, it is one meal we will definitely be making again :)

3. Apple Oven Pancake

This was a perfect meal for me and my husband. Along with a little bit of fruit, this "pancake" was eating in a matter of seconds (really...) and I was left wanting more. A definite keeper.

With some good recipes to share and lots of time with family, it has been an excellent two weeks full of laughter and swollen feet. But I'd say that the swollen feet were worth it :)