Progress

Well the pieces and parts of the nursery are coming together, slowly but surely. The crib is together and now includes a mattress, sheets, and some snugly toys and pillows. I'm still waiting on the crib blanket I ordered from etsy. It's handmade and the perfect pattern/colors.

Above, you can also see the Ikea Nightstand (behind me) where Sophia's extra blankets, sheets, changing pad covers, and baby supplies are kept.

I FINALLY got a dresser for Sophia, and I'm very pleased. I got it at the Fort Hood Thrift Store for $70, and it's a very reasonable size (big enough to hold all her stuff, and small enough we were able to fit it in Stephen's car), real wood, and wasn't too hard to clean up pretty well. I also got her a changing pad to put on top, along with two covers from a nice lady here in Killeen for only $10 off craigslist. The covers are pink, but I'm not complaining for the price I paid!

You can also see our grey rug from Ikea and the matching footstool for the glider we have on it's way.

I've been working on some decorating projects for the room too, but the one I've finished is a mobile for over Sophia's bed. I'm working on some artwork too, but it's not done.

They are little yellow, grey, white, and black stuffed bird toys I sewed and hung from an embroidery hoop. It's really more for decoration than for playing with, but hopefully they will be fun to look up at for her.
I will have better pictures of everything when it's all done, but I thought it might be fun to show some of our progress. I'd say the nursery is 90% functional, and 75% complete. Really, if she was born now, we'd be alright. But as we all know, babies rarely come on the schedule we set.
I'm getting to the point where I really feel it all the time. It's definitely just mostly uncomfortable. My OBGYN confirmed that I've been having Braxton-Hicks contractions, so at least I have an idea of what to expect when the time comes. I plan on having the nursery done by Valentines Day, and then from then on, doing all those things that people say helps start labor. Violet is going to love all the walks we're going to go on, and I'm going to enjoy all the fresh pineapple and spicy curry I can get my hands on. I won't do anything drastic, but a few small efforts won't hurt in these final weeks to possibly speed the process along. At this point, I'm fairly sure that Sophia has turned upside down like she is supposed to around this time in preparation for being born. I'm pretty sure it's her feet kicking that I feel right around my ribs, and her hands/arms that I feel around my belly button area. And there is still some part (presumably her head) that presses against my bladder and major arteries near my lower back and makes me feel dizzy! I know she's getting cramped in there, so I try not to take it personally, but this is not always fun for me either!
I'm nervous for the whole labor part of this deal, but I know that once it's over, there will be a beautiful little baby girl there and it will (hopefully) seem worth it. I still need a few things for my hospital bag, but I'll get those soon. I want to get a nice soft, but not too thin, night gown, some granola bars or other snacks, and to pack some toiletries. Stephen got me my other hospital bag requirement for Christmas: Fuzzy spa socks. I keep thinking I need a cute bag to put it all in, but in reality I have plenty of bags, I'm just looking for an excuse to buy a cute bag.