The One Where Rachel is Late

I have to admit that I am a fan of "Friends". I don't quite have all 10 seasons, but I am getting there. We have bought seasons according to our own seasons of life: engagement (I bought the one with Monica and Chandler planning the wedding and getting married), pregnancy (of course I have the one after the wedding where Rachel is pregnant), new mommy hood (again the one after the baby is born...do you see the trend?) and quite randomly I have a few of the earlier seasons. So naturally, I have been watching season 8 quite a bit lately so I can share in Rachel's pain when she is overdue and crabby. I know I am not overdue...but my baby is huge and my belly is huge so I feel overdue. I'm getting a wee on the cranky side and praying my brains out that I don't give in to those emotions. This is most likely the last time I will be pregnant and I want to eat it up. It's special and I don't want to waste a minute whining about being overweight (I know it's mostly baby, but I saw pictures of me in some shorts and my thighs are out of control right now!!!), or unable to breathe, or tired...it's just part of the process. A process I am blessed to experience. So to get me more in the spirit, here are some pictures of my (church) baby shower. (Two friends wanted to throw me showers so we had one for mostly church ladies and another out to eat dinner with mostly ladies I went to high school with - both were so fun!)

Isn't she precious?! This is my wonderful friend, Angela, who threw the shower for me. It was perfect: a fun afternoon of snacking and chatting with dear friends. Angela has such a sweet spirit. She invited Raegan and I over this week so I can sit and let Raegan play and be distracted without going crazy. I am sure I will take her up on it if I don't go into labor today! She is quickly becoming a dear friend that I cherish and am so thankful for.

Remember when I went to Amy's shower and we took belly shots? I decided it would be fun to have another one ;) She worked out throughout her pregnancy (uh...yeah...me too!) and looks amazing. Her baby is only about 20 days old when this was taken.

Speaking of baby Allie: Amy brought her and was willing to let us all man handle her! She is so precious!! This is my lovely Mama and she was in heaven! I've never seen a woman love babies as much as this lady. I used to tease her because in public she is not shy about oohing over babies and she gets completely distracted if babies are present. She told me once while I was teasing her that her love of babies is a special gift from God. She lost four and for so long wondered why God allowed her to go through such pain. Her love of children now just shows how far she came in the healing process. Amazing woman, my Mom.

And on a random, very scary note: my niece, Emily, got her driver's permit this month. Ahhhhhh!!!!!!! Isn't' she beautiful?! I was 13 when she was born...it's fun to watch her and Raegan because Emily was 13 when Raegan was born. She loves her cousin, but we don't get to see nearly enough of Em, so Raegan is a bit shy at times. We're working on it!
Well, I should try to lie back down before Raegan wakes up. I am not sleeping great: last night I had dreams about Guy Fieri and my water breaking...intermittently. Strange. I have my last Dr. appointment today. One more Non Stress Test and perhaps another invasion by the Dr. to attempt to get things moving on their own. My personal Dr. is out of town until Friday so it I go into labor before then, I am at the on-call's mery. That's exactly what happened with Raegan and everything was just fine. Since the Dr. really only comes in to "catch the baby" I don't care much who is there...as long as someone is!!