You are due in two days. Your dad is working tirelessly on house projects, finishing up the floors in your room and painting baseboards so we can move your things in. I am relishing in the change in seasons and have been baking and cooking quite a bit. Applesauce, marinara, chile verde, carrot ginger soup, oatmeal raisin cookies...I hope you love food as much as we do. I get choked up when I think about how close we are to meeting you and naming you, I'm 3 cm dilated and 80% effaced, making progress. My midwives think it may happen within the week. I'm not sleeping great, particularly between the hours of midnight and 3 a.m., but I'm still swimming every other day and trying to nap as much as possible. Our days have an unhurried pace to them, and I feel happy and content. My body feels good, I'm not in any pain and I'm much more comfortable than I have been in weeks past. You are low in my pelvis and are no longer taking up real estate in my ribs, which is a relief. Getting closer!
pregnancy
waiting for baby
A woman at the grocery store asked me if I was nervous about giving birth. I told her I'm not. "Really?" she pressed, "you're not nervous at all?" Really, I'm not. But it sounds like you are, lady. I have felt really calm throughout this entire pregnancy, and I'm hoping the peace and serenity continue into early motherhood.
That being said, I feel like I'm waiting for a train, and I have no idea when it's going to get here. It could be two days, it could be three weeks. The train is going 100 mph, and once I get on, I'll never get off.
I'm really excited to watch Jeffery become a dad. And I can't wait to meet our baby. I'm trying to swim every other day so my feet don't swell and nap daily. I got a pedicure and finished editing my August wedding. I have more thank-you-notes to write and I'm working my way through this novel. I'm mostly sleeping okay, as long as I prop myself up with lots of pillows. Tomorrow I'll be 38 weeks.
maternity photos in our garden
My friend Jasmine snapped these photos of us at the end of July, and I'm so glad she did. I was 30 weeks along and our garden looked incredible. I am now 36 weeks, and the garden is overgrown, but finally producing more than it was. We have had a really hot summer, and the plants aren't happy. The heat wave is continuing into September, and hopefully after this things will cool down.
This blog has largely been neglected the duration of my pregnancy, and though I have lofty plans to blog the weddings, engagements, families, lookbooks, and portrait sessions I have shot this year, but I'm not sure if it will actually happen once baby arrives. I will need to market myself for when I'm ready to get back to work, and I imagine having another mouth to feed will be the motivation I need, so I'm optimistic.
Baby Curry is very active, and I think he or she has dropped because I'm feeling more pressure down in my pelvis and less pressure up on my ribs. We finished up our birth classes last week, learned a lot and are feeling prepared, considering. I still have a lot of editing to do in the coming weeks, but other than that I'm trying to swim and nap as much as I can. Overall, I'm feeling grateful that I don't have a lot on my plate right now, but time will tell if the next four weeks creep by.
Baby Shower Invitations with Paperless Post
At first, I was so consumed by this pregnancy that that I didn't think there would be a moment in all 40 weeks where I could possibly forget I was housing a small human. Maybe I've settled into my largeness, because I find myself momentarily forgetting. And then I'm reminded as soon as I stand still and the baby moves (like a little sea creature turning flips), or my hand gravitates towards my belly, or I bump into something, or I catch sight of my reflection in a pane of glass. It is nice to have a bit more head space, and I feel extremely lucky that my second trimester has been so smooth.
I'm 26.5 weeks, officially 6 months along, and with less than 100 days until my due date, the reality is sinking in that this baby is going to be on the outside really freaking soon. And once it is, our entire world is going to change. There are a lot of people who are looking forward to this little one's arrival, and now that the shower invitations have been sent out, the excitement is pouring in and it's contagious.
My mom is throwing me a baby shower in August and we decided months ago that we would send out digital invitations via email. So when Paperless Post reached out to collaborate, I was very excited to see the designs they offer.
Paperless Post carries designs by dozens of reputable designers, including some of my favorites: Rifle Paper Co, merimekko, Liberty fabrics, and Kate Spade. They have so many pretty invites, I had trouble choosing a favorite! In the end I wanted to be practical. I have a tendency to lean towards girlier, floral designs, but the gender of our baby is a surprise, and because we're having the party in our garden at the peak of the season, we decided to go with the vegetable theme (bottom right), which is by Happy Menocal.
The Paperless Post website is really easy to navigate. I was able to completely customize my invites, add a link to our registry, and ask guests for their mailing address so that I won't have any trouble getting thank-you-notes in the mail (before baby comes—no guarantees I'll get anything accomplished after). There is also a comment wall where guests can ask questions or share photos and the website keeps track of RSVPs and allows the host to easily contact the guests. Overall, it's extremely user-friendly. The designs can also be easily ordered in paper form to mail to grandparents (or anyone who doesn't use email) or to save as a keepsake—we ordered 10 for this very purpose. If you are interested in creating beautiful invites for any event, be sure to check out their designs.
With a party to look forward to, I know the next couple months are going to fly by. And I hope they do, because I really want to meet this tiny person.
This post was published in partnership with Paperless Post. ❤
on growing a baby
Last year I wrote this post, about being childless on Mother's Day. And this year, I'm 20 weeks pregnant. Halfway there. Typing those words brings tears to my eyes, because it's something I've wanted for as long as I can remember, and I am so grateful to be growing this child inside of me. It's the hardest thing I've ever done, and I keep thinking about all of the women all over the world who do this alone, or who do this even though they don't have enough food to eat, or who do this because they don't have the choice not to, and my heart breaks for them. I feel connected to every mother who has come before me and every one who will come after.
My entire life I have wondered what it would feel like to grow a baby. At first it was crippling nausea and exhaustion, and no motivation. Now it's much better. Some days I don't even feel pregnant, I just feel bloated. But it definitely doesn't feel like an alien has invaded my body, which is what I imagined as a child. It's still my body, and the human growing inside (now the length of a banana) is an extension of me. It is part of my body, and I think I will always feel that way.
I have felt the baby move a few times, always like a little butterfly fluttering its wings. I look forward to the kicks becoming more regular. Sometimes I sit and try to will it to move, and it doesn't. It's just another lesson on this path to motherhood, that I have no more control over this than anyone else.
This pregnancy has had a calming effect on me. I have never felt this relaxed or at peace in my life and I am really happy. The gratitude overpowers any negative thoughts that creep in. It's shocking how much my body has changed in such a short amount of time, and when I look in the mirror I try to replace any critical thoughts with gratitude for what my body is capable of. I am in awe.