4 Days to Go....

I just came home from my final OB appointment. The final weigh-in was less than inspiring and I am grateful the numbers should start to go down now! Dr. Kramer says there is nothing doing down below, which makes sense being that I am not even 38 weeks yet (Tuesday- the same day as my delivery.) Never mind that walking has become an exercise in moving forward while somehow preventing baby from falling out of me. "They" say this is impossible, and I know that to be true, but "they" clearly have never had a baby head down in their birth canal before. Regardless, I should, much to the surprise of friends and family who think otherwise, make it to Tuesday without any signs of labor. And, with four days left the to do list will hopefully, somehow, reduce in length, the boys will miraculously stop being clingy and start sleeping again, and with the help of the elves whose holiday is now over all the furniture needed for baby will get cleaned and moved. I will also get the food shopping done and all of the laundry, in addition to finding a suitable name for our child. Since this is beginning to sound like a list of resolutions for the new year, I should probably add that the baby weight will shed from my body simply and easily.
It is a strange concept, understood only by those with scheduled c-sections or inductions, knowing exactly when your child will be born, almost to the hour. It is strange when people say "when are you due?" To answer matter-of-factly, "I am having a baby on Tuesday!". My life has never been so planned. We've always been a bit more on the fly and have had a knack for letting things pan out. This organization is kind of nice. Ironically, I could tell you exactly, almost to the hour, when the boys were conceived, yet their birth came as an unexpected surprise at 35 weeks. This time around the conception is a mystery and it's the birth that we can plan on.
As my pregnancy ends here is what I won't miss about being pregnant:
The daily injections of blood thinners that burn like hell when injected and bruise my legs. The swallowing of three pills daily, one of which is a horse pill and causes me to gag.
I won't miss the inability to bend over, or the difficulty involved in picking up the boys or getting up off of the floor. I definitely won't miss being this large and the need for an oxygen tank when I walk. I doubt I will miss baring my watermelon shaped belly, particularly in the middle of the winter. However, despite this list of won't miss's there is also a list of things I will miss when I am no longer pregnant: I will miss that moment of delight when you first see the positive pregnancy test. I will definitely miss hearing the heartbeat for the first time (and all times thereafter) when it sounds like a herd of horses are heading into my exam room. I will miss ultrasounds, and watching my baby morph from an embryo to a baby passing through, of course, the alien phase. I will miss the smiles passed by strangers when they see my belly, simply because they too know that pregnancy is a beautiful miracle. Mostly, I will miss the feeling of life inside of me. The flutters, the flips, the kicks, the jabs. Yes, I will miss most those moments that can only be had between me and my baby and only those who have been through it before can understand why. I know the trade in is beyond fair, I part with these wonders for the blessing and miracle of my child, and life will be that much better because of this baby. Of course, I'd rather have the baby than just the feeling of it, but it should be noted that these final moments between myself and my pregnancy, me and my baby, are cherished beyond these words.
I bid farewell to my pregnant self and anticipate with much delight the welcoming of my baby!!!