34 week belly pics & dr. appt update

we took these belly pics right before we left for my dr. appt. i was only doing belly pics every 4 weeks but who knows how much further i'm going to get before baby arrives so we figured we'll do 'em every 2 weeks from now on. it's getting harder to get out of bed/bend over/etc. but i'm so happy to have this big baby filled belly that i don't mind.

dr. connelly checked my cervix again and i'm still 3cm dilated and 80% effaced. basically no change which is good. she is so pleased that i've gotten to 34 weeks and wouldn't be suprised if i went into labor soon. it'd be great if i could make it to 36 weeks but who knows if that will happen. i voiced my concerns about the risk of stillbirth and she said that yes, i do have an elevated risk of stillbirth (based on my first trimester screening results) but that the risk is still way lower than 1%. she assured me that they are doing everything they can to ensure that doesn't happen by keeping such a close eye on me and baby (twice weekly NSTs, weekly dr. appts, kick counts, etc.). i was really freaking out a couple of days ago but she made me feel better.

she also said that it's ok for me to start increasing my activity level as long as i continue to pay close attention to everything that i'm feeling as far as contractions, etc. she said to always make sure i have a ride to the hospital at any given point in time and to come in right away if i notice a change in contractions or if i start bleeding or leaking fluids. we agreed that i wouldn't do too much and she said it would be fine to go to the movies, babies r us and church (the top 3 things i've been wanting to do since being on bedrest). but i'm only going to do one outing a day for now. so tomorrow i think john and i are going to go to the movies, saturday we'll go to babies r us and on sunday we'll go to church! i'm so excited. :)

after the appt we went over to the NST area for my nonstress test and i was having a few contractions. not big ones, but still contractions. so to be on the safe side they sent me over to L&D observation and they kept an eye on me for a couple more hours. after a while of nothing happening they sent me home. we spent a total of about 4 1/2 hours at the hospital today. oh well, at least they sent us home and baby has decided to stay put for now.

when i got home i noticed we had a package on our front porch and i thought it was just something i had ordered online. john brought it in and it was addressed to baby bennett! actually, it was addressed to J.D. Bennett (the name my co-workers have chosen for the baby. it stands for Jacob Debbie! hahahah. sorry girls, i don't think john would ever agree to that one!) hee hee. my wonderful co-workers sent me this package filled with all of these adorable clothes, bibs, socks, onesies, baby gowns, washcloths, a gift card, a baby bible, etc., etc., etc! i had so much fun and was grinning from ear-to-ear. i love my Cardinal family! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! you guys totally ROCK! baby bennett is all hooked up now in case he arrives early. below is a picture of everything laid out on my kitchen table. i feel so loved. :)