Week 36/37 -Almost full term

I am almost full term! And thankfully baby G is still holding tight. I need him to stay put for at least another week -especially since Huge is out of town this coming Sunday and Monday.

Today I had my doctor's appointment and growth ultrasound. Things are looking good and baby G is head down and growing. They estimate he is already 6lbs 8oz, so he'll be somewhere in the neighborhood of 8 lbs when he's born. If you remember from my last ultrasound in Feb, he had a large head that was measuring a few weeks ahead of his gestational age. Well. he has continued to grow that way and although his body is in the 40-50th percentile, his head is measuring a few weeks ahead and is in the whopping 95th percentile! I'm hoping some of it is hair, but this is going to be a big headed child. I better start doing tummy time on his first day so we can get those neck muscles working! Other than that the doctor's was easy. I had by Group B strep test, blood draw and the regular routine. At this point baby G is about fully cooked, but I'm hoping to keep him in there another couple of weeks.

Here's the weekly update:

Weight: Still gaining, but it does seem to be slowing down. I only gained 1 pound according to the doctor's, but my scale at home shows me up a couple. I am definitely heading to the 50 lb mark, but I'm just praying it doesn't go above that.

Maternity clothes: Pretty much exclusively, minus cardigans and things w/ elastic waists.

Stretch marks/belly button: Still no stretch marks and the belly button hasn't popped full time, but if I'm really full and baby is active then it does the half pop.

Baby Movement: Lots of limbs and rolls around. My doctor today commented that because I have an anterior placenta (the placenta is in the front) it acts like a cushion and absorbs a lot of the movement. I wonder what it would feel like if I didn't have that and maybe that's why I don't really have a lot of the painful movements people talk about.

What do I miss: Walking without limping. I have self diagnosed myself as having plantar fascilitis in my left foot and it's definitely getting worse and I think it's starting a little bit on the right too. I also miss being able to close my hand in a tight fist without pain. My joints are a bit painful and the swelling is starting up. It's still not too bad, but it's there.

Other: Huge's coworkers threw a shower for me last Friday, which was really lovely. I should do a whole post on it and show you pictures of all the amazing onesies that they decorated for baby G. I'm a little nervous to wash them because I'm afraid to ruin them, but they are super adorable and I know baby G will love them.

Here's this week's picture. I'm trying to decide if I've "dropped"... I know I'm big as my shirts are starting to not be so long!

Week 35-36: In the home stretch

So much has happened this past week!

• Huge and I finished our baby classes -we took our infant/child CPR and first aid class on Thursday night and Sunday was our breastfeeding class. The classes were definitely informative and I'm glad we took them. It's made me feel just a little bit more prepared.


• My girlfriends threw me a shower luncheon yesterday. It was such a fantastic day and just reinforces the fact that I have such amazing friends and baby G is so lucky to have all these people that already love and care for him. We got some adorable clothes, our high chair, our bath stuff, bottles and lots of other goodies. When I get pictures, I'll have to remember to post them. The food was amazing too! Yum, if only I could eat a brunch like that every week.

For the weekly update:

Weight: Still going up, but it seems to be slowing down/leveling off (hopefully).

Maternity clothes: Same as before.

Stretch marks/belly button: Still no stretch marks and the belly button hasn't officially popped full time. Sometimes it pops out halfway or will be really flat, but it goes back in after awhile when baby G moves or when I've digested the last meal.

Baby movement: We're getting a lot more limbs poking out. Huge was convinced he felt a foot including the toes the other night, but I didn't feel it. Baby G has been "playing" with Huge where he'll stick out something, Huge will push it a bit and then baby G will either push back or move and stick it out again. I'm sure we're annoying the crap out of baby G, but the poking and prodding is kind of fun!

What do I miss: Nothing new.

Other: Hm... nothing really exciting or new. Huge is going away for a couple of days in a couple of weeks (beginning of April), so I'm hoping baby stays put until after that date, but otherwise I'm feeling surprisingly calm about everything. I'm starting to get my "to to" list together, but I'm still not feeling a whole lot of urgency -do you think I'm still in denial? One thing I do need to do asap? Our taxes!

Here's the pic for the week -definitely growing!

35/35 and other updates

I have reached another pregnancy milestone 35/35 -I have completed 35 weeks of pregnancy and have 35 days left until my due date. Holy moly... that's just about a month at this point! I really should get cracking on my to do list. I would say I am generally a laid back person, but this is taking it to a whole new level! I guess part of the reason is that I know it'll be fine in the end and the actual taking care of the baby thing has never fazed me... the one thing that is stressing me out a bit? The visiting parents! haha. But, really, I should "prepare" myself and the house. I keep reading online all these April moms-to-be having their babies already, so the month I have remaining might not be that long at all.

In other updates, Huge and I attended our infant and child cpr and first aid class so now we can do cpr and help a chocking infant or child. Our next (and last) class is Saturday and my girlfriends here are throwing me a shower/luncheon on Sunday. Lots of baby things going on this weekend!

Week 34-35

Hey, guess what time it is... another pregnancy update. I have to say that these are pretty boring (although I have a feeling it's probably been like that for awhile).

So here goes:
Weight: Up, but I went to the doctor's and the scale claimed I didn't gain -which after last appointment's 8 lb gain, I better not have! It's still under 50 lbs (yes, that's my new barometer, so clearly my standards are low), but above the 35 average.

Maternity clothes: Pretty much, although the shirt and sweater below are not. So anything long and loose can still fit over the pooch.

Stretch marks/belly button: Nope, but the button is getting close.

Baby movement: Lots of rolling and poking still. Sometimes I swear I can feel actual limbs sticking out. He's been getting a lot of hiccups, which I read was good b/c it means he's practicing his breathing and swallowing, and there seems to be some sort of spasm-ing going on, but that's pretty infrequent.

What do I miss: Nothing new. Same old.

Other: I've really got nothing. I had a quick doctor's appointment today and everything looks good. No weird symptoms or problematic things to report. My next appointment is in 2 weeks and we'll get to take another look at the little bugger and then from then on I'll be full term and going to the doctor's weekly. Crazy times!

Lent

I know I'm a few days late with this post, but that seems to be the story of my life when it comes to this blog!

Wednesday marked the beginning of the Lenten season (for Catholics) and although I'm not super religious I do follow certain Lenten practices -Gorging myself on Fat Tuesday (what, that's not part of it?), ashes on Ash Wednesday, no meat on holy days and Fridays during Lent and of course giving something. I also usually fast, but decided that this year since I was pregnant I didn't have to -I didn't go to the official Catholic rule book to see if this was accurate, but I figured the big guy would understand. I usually try to give something up for Lent and I figured this year it would be the perfect time to kick some of this sugar habit I've developed while pregnant, but because I'm reasonable (and kind of a wimp), I didn't give up all sugar/dessert... just certain ones. Is that cheating? Probably, but I figure it's better than nothing and it IS a sacrifice...

Anyway, this year Lent has a little extra meaning for me because the end of Lent is Easter and for me that means my due date! Maybe baby G will wait to be delivered by the Easter bunny :)

Week 33-34

I feel like I just wrote one of these, which I guess technically I did since last week's was so late. We are back on schedule this week, so here's the updated on me and baby G.

Weight: Still up. I'm not sure what it is officially... but it's definitely still creeping upwards. On my scale at home it's not too bad. We'll have to wait and see what the doctor's says next week.


Maternity clothes: Yes

Stretch marks/Belly button: No stretch marks still and belly button is still in (except for when baby G decides to kick it out at night).


Baby Movement: Still the same. Lots of rolling and poking and sometimes rhythmic tapping. He's still really shy though and will move and bounce around, but once the video camera comes out he stops. And once the camera goes away he'll start back up. Little does he know, he better get used to having a camera around otherwise he's going to have one unhappy dad!


Cravings/Aversions: I keep reading about all these first trimester symptoms that are supposed to crop back up during the last and so far (knock on wood), I seem to be symptom free. I'm still eating a bunch of sweets (including inhaling the boxes of girl scout cookies that are lying around), but that's not so much a craving as an indulgence. The good news is that I am going to give up cookies for Lent -which is kind of a cop out since it doesn't include candy or other dessert substances, like cake and ice cream, but I think cookies right now are the biggest problem (and most accessible) so giving them up for Lent is a step in the right direction. Of course that means I have today and tomorrow to get my fill -fat Tuesday is going to be taking on a whole new meaning!



What do I miss: Hm... nothing new.

Other: Rings are still on, but the tightness in my hands is still there. I also think my feet are starting to swell a bit-nothing too major, but I think I can see it. By the end of the day my belly is sore from stretching and is visibly bigger than the morning. It's obviously not all baby as there's some food, liquid, bloat and gas in there and by morning it deflates a little bit. But it's still growing daily. We took our first class yesterday and it's reinforced the fact that we're in the home stretch!

I did this week's picture in a dress because I think the bump is more visible and defined. I also have ridiculous hair going on in this picture -definitely time for a haircut!

Great Expectations

Today Huge, baby G and I attended our first baby class at Northwestern. It was an all day affair that covered a wide array of topics including the different stages of labor, pain coping techniques and what to do on the big day. Our teacher was a labor and delivery nurse and she was really great -I'm kind of hoping she's on duty when the time comes!

Although we didn't go into it in too much details we did talk about different ways to cope with pain during labor including drugs that would be available. I'm not completely sold on going all natural, but I do think I want to try to go as long as possible before getting the epidural. If it happens that I think I can do it without than I will, but otherwise I'm ok with getting the drugs. I'm actually a little afraid that I either won't be able to get one because of my wonky lower back or that it won't work. Because of that, I think I need to step up my knowledge of alternative pain coping techniques. I hope Huge is prepared! :)

We also got a tour of labor and delivery, and the different rooms -triage, the labor room and then the post-partum room. I definitely feel a little bit more prepared for baby G and it makes it feel like the day is getting closer...

Week 32-33

Weight: So I'm not sure what to think. I'm definitely growing, but I went to the doctor on Tuesday and nearly had a heart attack. She weighed me in 8 lbs over what I weighed in at home! Usually I'm about 2-3 lbs heavier b/c of my clothes/water/food I consume before I get there, but 8 lbs! That's crazy talk. So according to my doctor I've gained 8 lbs between appointments -which are only 2 weeks apart. I'm hoping her scale was wrong, but my doctor thinks I'm starting to retain some water, which might be true as my hands have been hurting a bit, but I'm just not sure it's 5 lbs worth. Sigh. If I hit 200 lbs, I might cry (well, let's be honest, I definitely will cry). I guess it'll make for a better bouncing back from pregnancy story! I can talk about how I lost over 60 lbs!
Maternity clothes: Yup
Baby Movements: He has been going crazy in there. It's been fun "playing" with him before bed -mostly it consists of Huge or myself poking him and he'll retaliate by either poking us back or rolling over to the other side of my belly trying to get away from his crazy parents. He's definitely getting big and I'm sure he's going to run out of room soon. If I lie on one side for a long time he curls up and I end up with a lopsided stomach and he also likes to stretch out as far as he can and poke me from all sides. We're trying to capture his movements on video, but usually by the time we decide to videotape him, he's decided he's had enough.
Cravings/Aversions: Same old story -too many sweets, too many carbs (also contributing to the 60+lbs I'm gaining. haha).
What do I miss: Hm, I'm going to say my clothes. My wardrobe is starting to get really limited and since I'm so close to the end I don't want to buy any more maternity clothes.
Other: Well, I'm starting to retain some water, which is making my fingers swell a bit and some pain in my hands, although some of it seems like joint pain. It's not so bad that my rings have to come off, but I'm not sure they are going to survive another 2 months. Also, I have this weird pain in my left heel. It hurts to apply pressure on it directly -so walking around barefoot is pretty painful. I'm also actually starting to get concerned about my weight. I know at this point there isn't much I can do, but I'm afraid that after I have the baby I'm not going to fit back into my clothes -and that would be sad! Otherwise, everything is progressing nicely and I don't have much to complain about. Everyday it seems like there is a noticeable difference in the size of my belly. I'll be interested to see how big it ends up!