Tick Tock...

Bart and I are pretty much counting down the days to when baby Jack will arrive...and it looks like he will arrive sooner than our sidebar countdown leads us to believe.

I had my first weekly appointment today and everything is still dandy. I lost a pound, which the nurse assured me was pretty normal since my appetite is dropping off to prepare for labor. That's fine with me...one less pound to shed when Jack is out. :)

Have I progressed, you ask? According to my nurse I have:

Dilated: 3 cm Effaced: 75%

She thinks a couple of good contractions and I'll be well on my way to the hospital. In fact, if I'm still progressing by my next appointment, my doctor is more than likely going to send me to the hospital to "get the ball rolling" (...but with my luck I will stop progressing this instant and go a week over my due date...).

I found out that Jack-Jack's head is down, which is a huge relief. I was also informed that he will probably be a good 7 - 7.5 lbs if he is born within the next week or so....so cross your fingers. I don't know if my body can handle a bigger baby than that.

So all is well with the Hatch family and baby boy. If you notice a drop off in postings it's probably a sign that our little one is here...or I just got really lazy. :)

All the Best!

An Uncontrollable Urge.

I need to take pictures of something...now!

I don't care what it is, as long as I can be creative with it.

Although, I don't know how my body will be able to cope with a photoshoot. But again, I really don't care. I have an itchy trigger finger.

Just another reason why I want Jack-Jack to come soon. So I can have a subject when I have these urges.

And I hate posting without pictures!!!

So, any suggestions as to subjects or remarkable places for picture taking would be greatly appreciated.

All the Best.

Some Advice

"Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it."

--P.J. O'Rourke

Jack-Jack Attack Update

My last two-week appointment was today, and to celebrate the doctor decided to check my cervix to see how I was progressing. So how am I doing?

Dilated: 2 cm Effaced: 50%

That's right ladies and gentleman, I am well into the early stages of labor. Depending on how active I am, I really think I can crank this baby out of me at anytime. But that's just the inexperienced pregnant lady speaking...who knows when Jack-Jack is really gonna come.

Speaking of my activity level, I've been doing absolutely nothing lately. Last Saturday and Sunday I was having contractions pretty close together (not to mention the ligaments below my stomach were killing me) so I had to take it easy. Since then I've had to shorten my work day (only by two hours...no biggie) and live out my nights lying on our couch so baby Jack can stay in my belly and fully develop (I'm barely hitting 37 weeks on Saturday). Let's just say my new best bud is Netflix (which is streamed through our Xbox).

So that's my life in a nutshell...lazy but great. Everything is still excellent with the pregnancy, and I couldn't be happier. :)

All the Best.

P.S. I found stretch marks on my stomach and I'm trying to be positive about it. Key word: trying.

Inspiration for a Rainy Day

"Good habits are developed in the workshop of our daily lives. It is not in the great moments of test and trial that character is built. That is only when it is displayed. The habits that direct our lives and form our character are fashioned in the often uneventful, commonplace routine of life. They are acquired by practice."

--Elder Delbert L. Stapley

Motherhood: Good for Your Soul.

OK, you guys asked for them...

So here they are: pictures of me and baby Jack-Jack, taken by my wonderful friend Bernadette.

warning: shameless plug ahead.
Bernadette did an awesome job portraying the relationship between me and my little boy...and her ideas, poses, and props were amazing. And she was so patient with my cheesy smiles and always-blinking eyes. Her full name and contact info can be provided upon request :).

This pregnancy has been a great experience. Of course I say this when my sides aren't aching, Jack isn't kicking me in the ribs, I'm not waddling to the restroom for the 10th time in two hours, and I'm not worried about all the baby fat I'll have to loose when he's finally out of me. But really, being able to carry my child has been an eye-opener.

For those of you who don't know, I am the last of six kids in my family...and all through my life I've been known as the "Baby Brat". Needless to say, I have some selfish tendencies. And now all of you mothers out there are chuckling at me, because you know what kind of rude awakening I'm in for. Selfishness doesn't show up anywhere in the Mommy Gene...especially when you have a newborn crying at 2 am needing to eat. What a great way to cure my vice (and disguise the tedious process in the form of children whom I can't help but love).

Just some very brief thoughts on motherhood that were floating in my head. This doesn't even begin to cover everything else I'm thinking...but most of you would rather not know. :)

All the Best.

Recommendation

I love "self-help" books. When you find me reading, (or listening to audio books...also my favorite) 95% of the time the book will try to help you in some sort of subject. So this book I'm about to recommend is no exception.

The book:

(image from: www.5lovelanguages.com)

How I heard of it: I was listening to a motivational speaker who specializes in the mortgage industry talk about how he "made it" (as in become super successful) in the mortgage world. I was prepared to hear the typical answers consisting of: "I worked 20 hour days" or "I didn't listen to the pessimists" or "I was persistent", etc. which are all well and good, but his real answer shocked me. He said the three sources that made him so successful was his religion, some organizational book, and lastly the The Five Love Languages. My thoughts: Really?! How in the world did a book about love languages (whatever they are) help you to become so successful in the mortgage industry?!?! So I asked for the book for Christmas (as an audio book, of course).


What it's about: Pretty much how to keep the love in your marriage alive. Gary Chapman, the author of said book, believes there are five ways (languages) someone can express love to their spouse. They are:

• Quality Time
• Words of Affirmation
• Gifts
• Acts of Service
• Physical Touch
  

Mr. Chapman believes the key to a successful marriage is finding the love language that matches with your spouse and expressing your love through that channel. It's a great book! Cheesy at times, but overall it really struck home. Here is what we (Bart and I) have discovered so far:

Bart's love language: Gifts
Ashlee's love language: Acts of Service

And you don't have to read or listen to it just once...I'm working on my second take and still discovering things I didn't hear the first time.


Now if you're still wondering how in the world my motivational speaker used this book to become successful in the mortgage industry, let me enlighten you. He was able to apply this theory to others around him, therefore showing them (co-workers, clients, friends, etc.) how he cared for them. Pretty ingenious I must say.

So, enjoy! I hope it helps you.

All the Best.