37 Weeks

• She's practicing some skills: inhaling, exhaling, sucking, gripping and blinking.
• She's getting his first sticky poop (called meconium) ready for his first diaper.

Baby is the size of a winter melon.

I am thinking we bought a really small watermelon, right?  Because my belly is looking GINORMOUS next to it!!

I can't believe I am now FULL TERM! 

Woot! That means that baby could come anytime now and she would probably be fully developed.

Not much new has happened this week.

The only sign of labor I have had is Braxton Hicks contractions.

I also feel like the baby is dropping a little lower as my belly pretty much rests on my legs when I'm sitting down and it just looks lower to me.

I also have stretch marks now.  Or at least what appears to be purple-ish marks that are spreading across my lower belly.  They look more like blood vessels, but I'm pretty sure they are stretch marks.  Just trying to think of them as "hugs" from my little one.  Haha!

I have been loving ice cream this week and I seem to be thirstier than usual.

The hospital bag is ready to go and the car seat is being installed this afternoon.

I think I'm ready for her!

36 Weeks

 Baby is the size of a honeydew.

• She's getting closer and closer to being able to breathe on her own.
• Her skin is getting smooth and soft and her gums are rigid.
• Her liver and kidneys are in working order.
• Circulation and immune systems are basically good to go, too.

 I'm going to go with the survey style update today so here we go!

How far along?: 

36 weeks

Maternity clothes?:
Heck yes. Even those are getting too tight.  My jeans have a full coverage panel for the waist and it does not come up high enough to cover my entire belly anymore.

Sleep:

Not the best.  I am too hot.  I have to turn over multiple times so my hips don't hurt as much.  I have to pee once or twice every night.  Basically I am prepared to be up all night when the baby gets here.

Best moment of the week: 

Nesting!  I even cleaned out my baking kitchen cabinet.  I have a whole list of projects and organizing I want to do the next few weeks.  

Movement:

She is definitely getting squished in there so her movements are different.  Rather than a fluttering feeling, I can feel her all over when she shifts positions.  Her kicks are hard when I lay down on my right side.  She is starting to respond to loud music, which is fun!

Gender: 

Girl

Belly Button:

 My belly button is starting to poke out a tiny bit.  Not an outie but definitely not flat anymore.

Rings:

 I can't wear my rings anymore.  My fingers are just too swollen to take them off comfortably at night so I am walking around with naked fingers.

Weight gain:

35 lbs

Appointments:

We had an ultrasound on Monday.  It w as probably our last one before we get to see her in real life.  The cyst has remain unchanged and the baby is measuring in at whopping 6 lbs 11 oz!  Of course this is only an estimate and they are often wrong.  but at that rate, baby will be a good 8.5 lbs at birth if I go to 40 weeks. The tech said she has a chubby belly.  I also had a check up with my doctor.  I met a new one this week.  His name is Dr. Crouch.  He is younger and seemed nice.  He took his time and did not seem in a rush at all, which I like.  They did all the normal weight, blood pressure, urine specimen, measuring the uterus, checking heart beat, etc.  They also did a blood finger prick test to check my hemoglobin levels.  All was good there.  They also did the strep B culture swab that will determine whether or not I need antibiotics when I go into labor.  Many women grow extra bacteria when they are pregnant so I will get those results next week.  Now I will be going to the doctor for a weekly check up until I go into labor.

What I miss:

Sleeping on my stomach, being able to do everyday activities without feeling exhausted.

Labor signs:

Braxton hicks come and go now.  Sometimes I will get three or four in a short period of time, then none for the rest of the day.  It usually happens when I switch from sitting to standing or vice versa.  Being hydrated is key, I think.  Some days I have some very intense back pain.  Not sure if this is a labor sign but ouch!

What I am looking forward to:

Packing our hospital bags and installing the car set this weekend so that when I go into labor, we will be ready to go!

Weekly Wisdom: 

Trying to remind myself everyday that "this too shall pass" when my back hurts or when I feel like the heart burn is going to kill me.  Then I feel her move around in there and I smile because I know that I will get to meet her very, very soon.

Milestones:  

One more week until baby is considered full term!  Then she can come anytime after that if it was up to me. :-)

Here is a look back on my months of pregnancy in photos.

I have now completed 8 months and am in my 9th month!

35 Weeks

Baby is the size of a coconut.

Now, her hearing is fully developed, and she responds best to high-pitched noises. 

 Time is flying. Today is July 14 and I am due on August 16.  How crazy is it to think that in about a month from now, I will become a mom?  It just doesn't seem real to me.

This week, I've not felt too cute.  I feel so big.  I can't tie my shoes.  If a pen falls on the ground, I don't pick it up and I struggle to reach the bottom row of charts in the file room at work.  I've been extra thirsty and trying to drink tons of water this week because I've been having more Braxton Hicks contractions..  They are nothing time-able, but every now and then my stomach tightens up and gets really hard, making it uncomfortable enough to notice but not hurt.  My hips are killing me when I wake up, and I must say that the night Matt was out of town this week was heaven being able to roll over in bed with all the extra space. 

The baby has not dropped yet.  I am feeling her move up in my ribs area but it has not been too uncomfortable this week.  She is definitely running out of room in there so when she tries to change positions, it is weird to feel her move all over.  I have been doing a lot of research on natural childbirth and still can't decide if I would want to do it without an epidural.  There are pros and cons to each side and I'm keeping an open mind when it comes to my birth plan because you never know what may happen.

Yesterday, my "old" coworkers threw me a small shower/party.  I love these girls so much! Even though we n don't all work together anymore, we are still a tight-knit group.  Thank you Maria for hosting!  You are such a good party planner and tacos are always a hit in our group! :-)

Now that all the parties are over, I am ready for baby girl to arrive.  Her nursery is almost set.  I just love going in there and looking around.  Ah, the anticipation.  Even her closet is ready with all her clean clothes waiting to be worn.  Eek!  So excited.   

PS- My friend Ally had her baby yesterday! (On her exact due date!) We took this last belly picture together on Thursday, she had a doctor's appointment Friday morning, and went into labor on Saturday!  So so happy for her and her little bundle of joy.

34 Weeks

At 34 weeks, she's recognizing and reacting to simple songs, if you're singing them. (If you're not, start! She may find them soothing after birth.)  

Baby is the size of a butternut squash.

Happy 4th of July!

This was another great week, mostly due to the fact that I only worked for two days total so that was nice to have some down time to relax.

I have been super tired lately.  It seems that just taking a shower and putting my makeup on for the day is a task anymore, not to mention shaving my legs.  That just doesn't happen very often anymore.  I would say it's close to the exhaustion I felt in the beginning of the pregnancy, but now it's not as comfortable to take naps on the couch because, well, there's a huge bowling ball on my front side.

It's hot! It's humid! I'm staying inside 99% of the time and thank the Lord for air conditioning in the summer.  The sad thing is this summer has not even been as hot as it normally is but it still feels unbearable.  As long as I can still get in an evening walk, that's about all the time I need to spend out there.

Not a whole lot of new symptoms this week.

I have gained a total of 32.5 pounds. I think that's about all I need to gain, but I've read that the baby is putting on lots of weight right now so more poundage is inevitable. 

I only had a few Braxton Hicks contractions a couple weeks ago, but as of now, I haven't had any other signs of my body preparing me for labor.  Baby is still up very high and in my ribs.  No signs of her dropping yet.

We still need to get a few more things for the nursery so we might be making a run to Target soon to spend some gift cards that are burning a hole in my pocket.

It will be time to install the car seat in a couple weeks as well as start packing a little hospital bag.

These are signs that the end is near and we will be holding our baby girl in no time.

Countdown:  40 days til estimated arrival!

Maternity Photos

During our trip to Illinois last week, we got the chance to have a maternity photo session with Priceless Image by Tisha.  You can visit her Facebook page here.  We did all the pictures outside, which was hot, but I love how they turned out!  Here are some of my favorites.  Hope you enjoy!

Thank you Tisha!  You did an excellent job.