36 Weeks

Three weeks from yesterday and Olivia will be here.  I don't know if it's just the fact that once she's here things are going to be crazy and scary or that I have a two year old keeping me busy but this pregnancy has gone by so fast.  I don't feel like it should be that close.  But, looking at me you can definitely see that I'm close.  And I'm finally starting to feel it! 
Olivia has run out of room.  She's definitely up in my ribs but I've lucked out.  This girl is quite the mellow little thing.  She really just likes to stretch out occasionally and rarely will actually kick.  It's kind of weird.  Ella was such a little maniac (explains a lot, right?) She was always rolling around and pushing, shoving, and kicking for more room.  Olivia on the other hand has been in the same position for months now.  She likes to push her little bum up but other than that she rarely will do the alien in the stomach thing.  If I didn't feel her little bum pushing on me all the time I'd worry.  Between that and the hiccups 3+ times a day I know she's just fine in there.  She's just a snuggly, mellow little thing. 
Well, maybe not so little.  We had our last ultrasound today and our little punkin is measuring around 6 lbs 8 oz.  So the technician is betting she'll be about 7 lbs 13 oz by the time she's born.  WAHOO! She's long and has her mother's small head.  Overall it was an appointment full of good news.  The tech that helped us today was so funny.  She was determined to get a good 3d shot of Olivia.  As she put it, "Everyone from Logan to Salt Lake has taken a look at this girl and I'm going to be the one to finally get a decent picture of her face."  Well, Olivia proved that she's a stubborn little thing and stronger than any of us adults.  She had her little hands in front of her face the WHOLE time.  We jostled, jiggled, and even had me roll over onto my side and she wouldn't budge.  But, the tech did some fancy maneuvers and we got a pretty ok picture of Olivia.  You can see her eyes and nose really well but her hand is front of her mouth so you can only see the corner.  It's still a cute picture and if I didn't have to plug in the scanner I would show you.  But since I don't you'll just have to wait a few weeks more to see her. 
Also at the appointment, we proved once and for all that Olivia absolutely adores her daddy.  Andrew was actually able to go with me since his job today wasn't until later.  We ended our appointment with a non-stress test.  Andrew got comfy reading a Readers Digest and I turned on the news.  Olivia's heart rate went up once during the first little while but she was still relaxing.  The nurse came in at one point to check something so I turned off the TV and ended up just leaving it off.  So Andrew and I started talking about stuff and the girl went bonkers!  It was one of the best alien in the stomach moments we've had with this girl.  When the test was over the nurse came and asked if I'd had a good breakfast.  I was a little confused so she pointed out all the heart rate spikes after she had left.  So basically once Andrew and I started talking is when Olivia had gotten all excited.  And I know it wasn't because of me since I'd been talking to the tech during the ultrasound and she wouldn't budge.  It wasn't until daddy started getting talkative that she really felt like moving.  We told the nurse that's what we thought it was rather than the small boring breakfast I had had.  The nurse thought that was the cutest thing ever and Andrew got that cocky "I'm my daughter's favorite" look on his face. 
It was a great appointment and left me feeling pretty optimistic.  Still scared, but hopefully the mini panic attack I had last night won't return until later if ever.  Andrew is feeling pretty good too.  Today was his first time meeting the Dr who'll actually deliver Olivia and he really liked him.  Dr. Andres is a very happy-go-lucky guy but also realistic.  He's feeling pretty optimistic about everything Olivia so even if things get a little difficult during labor and delivery it'll be nice to have someone in there to keep things positive and still grounded. 
Throughout all of this we've been really blessed with the Dr's we've been referred to and all the different people we've met/seen, which is more than some people can say.  It's been very overwhelming but I feel like we are in excellent hands.  This is probably just the optimistic high I'm on talking but I think we might actually be ready for this.