Seven days until D-Day and I’m still pregnant. I’ve reached the point where if I call someone the first thing out of their mouth is, “Is this baby coming?!” The good part about this is that people answer my calls no matter when/where they are, but are quickly disappointed when I am just calling to say hello or to have them send me a recipe or something.

At least I’m not alone. This week’s email from Pregnant Chicken says, “It’s right around this time that there’s a slooow shift from you being perceived as a glowing woman that is creating life, into a fat husk that’s hoarding that adorable baby they all want to see.” (By the way, if you’re pregnant, definitely subscribe to the weekly emails she sends out – they are awesome and hilarious.)

Remember when I had ankles?

Not much is new this week. I’m still uncomfortable and not sleeping very well. My feet look like sausages half the time and my fingers are so swollen I can’t wear my wedding rings. Geoff put a pillow under our mattress so my feet are elevated while I sleep, and that has really been helping a lot.

We had our weekly doctor appointment on Monday, and we did another blood draw to check on my low platelet count. I’m at 135 now, so they have gone up slightly since last time, but the important thing is that they are staying steady in the 130s and not dropping near the 100 mark (which is when you have to see a hematologist to determine whether or not you can get an epidural). I think that was my last blood draw until baby comes, so yay for no more needles!

According to the doctor, I’m now 2 centimeters dilated and still 50% effaced, which is not really a change from last week’s appointment. I’m weirdly disappointed that I’m not further along, since I started dilating three weeks ago. I have two more Monday appointments scheduled, so cross your fingers that I’ll either have the baby before I have to go to both of them or that I’ll be further along at the next one so I don’t feel like I’m just waiting for something to happen.

People have started asking me if I’m nervous for labor, and the truthful answer is that I’m really not. Maybe it is because I know I’m in good hands, or because I’m very prepared as to what to expect, or because I can always get an epidural if I can’t handle the pain, or maybe I’m just excited to get this show on the road, but I’m not afraid. I keep expecting a wave of panic to set in, but it never comes. I mean, there’s no point in being afraid anyway, since I can’t really get out of it now!

We’ve had lots of guesses for the date of baby’s arrival. If you’d like to join in you can comment below or send me a message and I’ll add you to the calendar I’ve started.

This week according to What to Expect:

Your baby’s weight and height have probably increased only a little from last week (and your overstretched skin at 39 weeks pregnant is probably grateful for that). But his or her brain is still developing rapidly (a pace that continues during the first three years of life), with changes you’ll be able to recognize firsthand as your baby’s skill-packed bag of tricks expands almost daily. 

Heard that babies cry a lot?  There’s definitely truth to that rumor — as you’ll find out soon enough (and usually during the middle of the night).  But what you may not have heard is that tiny babies don’t produce tiny tears when they cry, since their tear ducts aren’t open for business yet.  While you’ll be consoling your crying baby right from the get-go, it won’t be until sometime after the first month that you’ll be wiping tears off those chubby cheeks.

Your baby’s skin has now finally changed from pink to white (no matter how dark-skinned he or she will be eventually; pigmentation will occur soon following birth). That’s because a thicker fat layer has been deposited over the blood vessels (making your baby’s cheeks —  both kinds — pinchably and kissably round).