I am 37 weeks today!
That means Hollis is considered FULL TERM!
WAHOOO!
Ross and I are so thankful that Hollis is still hanging out in my belly!

The belly continues to grow…
which IS the whole point of pregnancy – to grow a baby.
But for me, this is HUGE!
and even though it is virtually impossible for me to get comfortable,
I am loving every second of growing another life inside of me!

{36 weeks}

I had a doctor appointment last Tuesday for a BPP and to get my cerclage removed.
Hollis passed the BPP again receiving an 8/8!
We are so thankful she is doing so well!
…but we were unable to get any good ultrasound pictures of her this week…
she just wasn’t feeling a photo shoot that day!

{36 weeks 3 days}

The second the cerclage was removed, I immediately dilated from 1cm to 3cm.
But Hollis decided to stay put!

I have been taking it easy since the removal of my cerclage and am so thankful to have Ross who is amazingly supportive and who has been completely running our house since last Tuesday! I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband and daddy for our children!

{36 weeks 5 days}

This week I have been VERY uncomfortable.
Lots of contractions (obviously Braxton Hicks), back pain, etc!
I am not sleeping at night and have NO energy…
Thank goodness I am able to lounge around in my PJ’s all day and take it easy!
So, when I went to see Dr. Keeton on Friday morning for a NST and to get checked, 
I was CONVINCED I would be at least 4cm dilated and Hollis would arrive this weekend…
NOT the case!

{36 weeks 6 days}

I am still 3cm dilated!!!
(Honestly I am kind of relieved because I know the longer she stays put, the better!)

… The wait is on!…

I cannot believe I am 36 weeks pregnant today!
That means NINE months pregnant.
I swear we just found out yesterday that Hollis was going to join our family…
where HAS the time gone?!

This week I have been feeling a lot of pressure… sometimes to the point where I can’t even stand up or walk because it hurts so bad.
On Tuesday, Dr. Keeton checked me and told me I was 1 cm dilated with my cerclage in.
She said we would recheck on Friday and see if it needs to come out then or next week.

(sorry for the bad pics… the were all taken on my phone)

{35 weeks 3 days}

Harper MAY be warming up to the idea of Hollis…
just a teeny bit.
She has been playing baby a lot lately and she has finally agreed that I can nurse Hollis!
(Harper is strangely possessive of my “nursery nees” even though she has not nursed in 16 months…)

{35 weeks 3 days}

Everyone that knew me when I was pregnant with Cliff and Harper cannot believe how big my belly is this time around!
Seriously, it is HUGE for me!

{35 weeks 4 days}

This week Hollis passed the BPP with flying colors!
YAY!

{35 weeks 3 days}

And she also passed the NST!
I am so proud of her “good” behavior this week!

{35 weeks 6 days}

Dr. Keeton checked me again today and I am still 1 cm dilated and there was no change since Tuesday!
So, the cerclage will stay in until next week!
YAY!

{35 weeks 6 days}

This week Hollis would not let us see her face…
surprise, surprise…
but we were able to see other things:
(sorry these are are horrible quality… I forgot my DVD this week and so I took phone pictures of the ultrasound pictures…)

Here is Hollis’s ear!

{35 weeks 3 days}

And her foot!

She really liked showing off her feet… So here is another foot picture:

Hollis’s hair seems to have grown even longer!
Yay for bows!

{35 weeks 3 days}

We were able to see her adorable profile in 2D this week!

{35 weeks 3 days}

Here are Hollis’s STATS at 35 weeks 3 days:
Weight: about 6 pounds
Tummy: measured 35 weeks (46%)
Head: measured 37 weeks (95.3%)
Leg: measured 35 weeks 4 days (41.4%)
Her overall size in the 66% and measuring 36 weeks.

We are so thankful that Hollis is doing so well!
Ross and I are praying that she will stay put for a few more weeks!
I can’t wait to meet her, but I know that the longer she stays in my belly, the better!
Thank you all for your prayers and support throughout this pregnancy!

I seriously cannot believe that I am 35 weeks pregnant today!
This pregnancy has FLOWN by!
Baby Hollis will be here in about 3 weeks… at the latest!
WOW!

This week I am feeling much better (physically) but I am mentally exhausted which means that my poor littles have a tired, stressed, grouchy Mama…
I am REALLY trying to have patience with them and remind myself not to take my exhaustion out on them, but sometimes I find myself snapping at them before I even have time to think!
Stupid hormones…

This week Hollis passed the BPP (ultrasound) PERFECTLY within 10 minutes!
Of course, this was the highlight of the week!

{34 weeks 3 days}

My bestie, Jill and I went on a girly date, with our baby girl bumps and had
the BEST time EVER!
It was so nice to sit and chat over a fabulous meal
without being interrupted every 3 seconds!
Then we went to a movie and Jill was shocked to see that you can SEE Hollis move…
even in the DARK! Ha!

{34 weeks 3 days}

My belly is officially the biggest it has ever been!

{34 weeks 5 days}

And I am so thankful!

{34 weeks 6 days}

I was so nervous about the NST this week…

…thankfully with a little rolling on my side, then on my back again,
Hollis passed!

This week we weren’t able to get a good picture of Hollis’s face because she had it smashed against the placenta (ewww…. I hate that word…)!

But, her heart rate was perfect, which is most important!

And we were able to get a picture of her cute toes!
My second toe is longer than my big toe and it looks like Hollis’s is too!

We are so thankful that Hollis stayed put another week and are praying she will stay put for at least three more weeks!

Be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead!
I Peter 1:6

(WARNING: This is for sure the LONGEST baby update EVER…)

I am 34 weeks today!
Yay!

{34 weeks}

We are so so so SO thankful that Hollis is still growing in my belly where she belongs!
We are praying she will stay put for another 4 weeks or so!

{32 weeks 2 days}

My belly is seriously the size it was when Harper was born at 37 weeks…
(Ross is having a LOT of fun with this fact… ha!)
I am so thankful that Hollis is growing and is healthy, but my back is KILLING me, I do not sleep and my belly feels like it will split open if I take in a full breath of air (not to mention eat a meal)… then there is the humid summertime southern heat and the fact that every time I bend down to pick something up off the floor I have a major contraction!
Combine all of these “issues” with raging hormones and I am a WHOLE lot of fun these days!
(Wanna come hang out with me?! LOL!)

{32 weeks 4 days}

I am now going to see Doctor Keeton twice a week.
I get BPPs (Biophysical Profiles) and NSTs (Non Stress Tests) to make sure Hollis is doing well and being in my belly is a safe environment for her.
At 32 weeks, Hollis passed the BPP (ultrasound test) with a perfect score of 8/8!
Then a few days later, she did not pass the NST… so I went in for ANOTHER BPP and thankfully she passed!

The highlight of the past few weeks was when I discovered I could still manage to squeeze into one of my size small dresses!
(Yes, this made me jump up and down, squealing like a school girl!)

{33 weeks}

Now that the time for Hollis to arrive is seriously close,
I am making crazy, unnecessary things for her like this big bow hat…

Poor Ross is struggling with his pregnancy symptoms too…
His heartburn, sciatica and weight gain are relentless!
POOR THING!
(Yea, RIGHT…)
Then one night I was on the laptop and when I looked over Ross’s shoulder I saw he was lacing a shoe lace through the little holes in Harper’s shovel.
I asked “Babe, what ARE you doing?!”
He responded “Cross stitching!”
…and I fell onto the floor then just about went into labor!
Even Mr-all-things-manly Ross is “crafting!”
(WHAT is happening to my Hubby?!)

At 33 weeks, I had another BPP (it was SUPER early in the morning hence the face…) and was thrilled when Hollis received another 8/8!
I also received two doses of Celestone Shots to help boost Hollis’s lung development just in case she arrives early!

My super sweet and dear friend McKeever monogrammed a bunch of lovies and goodies for Hollis!
She sent me this picture of one of the lovies and it made everything soooo real since Cliff and Harper both sleep with their Angel Dear lovies every night!
Thank you McKeever for the goodies and making Hollis’s lovies so special!
I am so blessed to have you as a friend!

Then came…
Happy 4th of July!

{33 weeks 4 days}

And the next morning I was back at Dr. Keeton’s office for a NST…

Hollis failed the NST again,
so I went back to see Dee Dee (the BEST ultrasound tech EVER) who scanned Hollis for about 45 minutes. Hollis would not practice her breathing despite me rolling on my side and Dee Dee “buzzing” my belly… so she did not pass the BPP.
Her combined score for the NST and BPP was a 6/10…

They decided I needed to grab some lunch and then have another NST…

…thankfully, this time Hollis passed (sort of) and we were cleared to go home!
YAY!
(No worries… I go back to the doctor in a few days for another BPP)

Now that we have had two weeks of Hollis not “preforming” her best,
I am CRAZY creating everything I can think of to keep myself busy and somewhat sane.
Ross has been wonderful with supporting my crafting craze because he knows this is how I channel my anxiety…
(This is not even half of it!… maybe I HAVE already lost it!)

Here are some ultrasound pictures from the past few weeks!
(I had 4 ultrasounds in 2 weeks)

Hollis has a head FULL of hair which is perfect because I have about 100 bows waiting for her to wear them!

{32 weeks 2 days}

She is so big now that sometimes only one body part is visible on the screen…
like her ear!

{33 weeks 5 days}

Dee Dee was able to capture Hollis grabbing her foot with her hand!
(The video is soooooo neat!)

We were FINALLY able to get some decent 3D shots of Hollis last week!

Here is a silly face!

I can’t wait to feel this sweet hand wrap around my finger!

Seeing Hollis will NEVER get old!
I just love being able to see her so often and literally watching her grow from 4 weeks all the way until she is born!

God is so good!
We are so thankful for everyday Hollis stays in my belly!
Thank you all for your prayers and sweet messages!

Oh yea,
and if you actually made it to the end of this post…
YOU ROCK!
(and I love you!)