36 weeks!

Less than one month to go! I had my '36 week appt' last Friday - a little early due to scheduling issues - and everything with baby looks good. Heartbeat was in the 140s, head down and comfortable! I'm not having any 'symptoms' of impending labor, other than the occasional Braxton-Hicks contractions which I've had off and on for weeks. I am feeling a bit more ready for baby to come as I've actually managed to make some lists of things that need to get done, and even marked a few off the list, such as getting the majority of a hospital bag(s) packed. Still have plenty to do, so baby can stay comfortable in there for awhile yet! For example, we should probably get out the infant car seat and at least put it in the trunk, just in case! Of course, that does require a working car - Bob has taken apart the car to replace the clutch. He did a great job this past weekend getting everything taken apart, and the big pieces all cleaned and reassembled. Reassembly should be complete shortly with the additional parts (some bolts, pins, etc.) that had to be ordered from a Honda parts store and arrived today. I love having a husband who can do these large mechanical projects, but I will be twice as happy when the car is back in working order!

In other pregnancy related news, baby has been pretty consistently active these days. I usually just have to sit still for a minute if I want to feel the baby move around. I am feeling the effects of being pregnant, my hips and pelvis have been sore for weeks, I do not sleep well between trips to the bathroom, crazy hormonal dreams and general comfortableness, and I've officially gained 30 lbs this pregnancy. I'm having much less fun playing with Colin at his little table or on the floor, simply because I can't breathe or sit in the same position for more than a few minutes. Baby doesn't like to be 'squished' and the only way not to squish is to be semi-reclined or reclined, neither of which Colin likes :P Often times during the day, i'll sit down on the couch to rest for a bit, and Colin will be right beside me asking me to get up. I love that he wants me to help with things or interact with him, but a pregnant lady also needs to put her feet up for a minute! We've compromised a lot by sitting to read books or sing songs for awhile instead ;)

Colin had a great several days in a row where you could almost forget that he is 2! He's been so helpful with things around the house, such as laundry or making dinner, he's been able to entertain himself with toys, and has been generally agreeable. Of course, when he gets tired or over-stimulated, he resorts to typical 2 year old behavior, but I want to acknowledge the good along with the frustrating! His communication skills have also really taken off. He gets new words daily (at least I can discern the words, but he still only says the last half of many works) and he makes full sentences with strings of 4-5 words. He's doing great identifying letters of the alphabet - he surprised me the other morning, I was wearing an army tee with large A R M Y on the front, and he came and sat down on my lap and correctly identified all of the letters in order! He can identify most colors (though many words still sound very similar such as the words for pink and black) and has recently become interested in trying to make numbers with his fingers. He can do 1, 4 and 5 easily, but struggles with 2 and 3 as he wants his fingers to stand straight up, but can't seem to do that and hold other fingers down with his thumb. Right now the most frustrating thing about his communication is 'yes' and 'no'. He says this sort of 'nah' word for whatever you ask him, and it is not clear if he means yes or no, and often regardless of which one he specifies upon request, he often changes his mind a second later. I'm not sure if he just doesn't get the meanings or if he just likes to be in flux.

This week is project week for my students at school, followed by spring break week next week. Should be a nice relaxing few days at work this week without a lot of lecturing, and hopefully I can find motivation to get things done for the last few weeks at this job! I'll try to also find some time to get pictures off the camera :)