How far along? 33 weeks
Updates on baby: (Thanks to BabyCenter) This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.
Maternity clothes: The list of things that fit continues to get shorter and shorter. I think my waist and hips went through a little bit of a growth spurt this week so my pants are starting to squeeze me a little bit on top which is never comfortable or flattering. However, I am LOVING the cooler weather. Everyone around me is complaining about it, and I am just so thankful to be able to wear comfortable sweaters, leggings and scarves. I guess having a higher internal body temperature helps you to not mind the cold weather as much :)
Symptoms/Body changes: My belly button has popped out! I wore a T-shirt to the gym on Thursday and you could totally see my belly button through it... hilarious. My belly just gets bigger and bigger each day and even though I know that is good it makes me a little nervous. How much bigger will it get?!? When I walk around campus and the math department these days I get obvious looks and stares, which doesn't bother me, but is just funny. I just want to let everyone know that I am not about to give birth, I still have 7 weeks left, and that everything is good. I think that the majority of people aren't around really pregnant women very much so they don't realize how disproportional that belly really gets. I had one of my good guy friends this past week tell me I look hilarious and I know what he means! With my little legs and arms and then my huge belly I do look pretty funny.
So I guess my body just continues to look funnier. Everything else is the same: aches, pains, swelling and fatigue are a part of my day to day. This Tuesday I got a terrible migraine which is out of the ordinary, so since I don't teach or have class that day I stayed in my PJ's, rested until the headache was gone and then worked from home. Sometimes I just need to sleep... and at this point when I feel like I could fall asleep I usually just do. Sleep is a precious thing :) My nausea is also creeping back in. I feel sick after I eat most of the time which obviously has an effect on my appetite. I haven't gotten sick yet and I am really hoping it doesn't get back to that point.
Exercise: I exercised this week.. yay! On Monday I walked 3 miles and then did 40 minutes of pilates... it felt wonderful! Afterward I took a warm bath and then slept pretty well that night. On Tuesday after the migraine subsided I took a 4 mile walk with my friend Sarah and that also felt good. Thursday I made the trek to the gym with my sister and got stared at big time while I lifted weights, did some abs and walked on the treadmill. Thursday it didn't feel good to workout; it was just hard. But, I am glad that I did it. I hope to do some pilates again today or tomorrow, and that will made it 4 days this week that I legitimately exercised... yay!
Movement: I keep reading that at some point she will get too big to move so much anymore, but our little one isn't slowing down anytime soon. She is always moving and since she is so big now when she moves, she moves everywhere. I simultaneously feel rolls in my lower abdomen, a butt stick out on my right side, a kick on my left side and a punch to the ribs. I love it, but it is hard to ignore at this point. Sometimes it stops me in my tracks and I find myself with my hand on my belly all the time feeling her without even realizing it. As she continues to move it just makes me realize how big she is. There is a real baby in there!
Cravings/Aversions: Still craving everything in the world that is sweet. I try to choose healthy things, like lowfat chocolate milk over oreos, and I try everyday to get enough protein. Nuts and meat just don't sound good anymore but I know they are really important at this point. In general eating is very enjoyable because the only things that sound good aren't very healthy but I make a point to eat well each day since I still can't keep down a prenatal vitamin. I have just had to shift my perspective about eating: I see it as fueling my body and helping to grow the baby rather than something that I look forward to and enjoy. This is probably a good shift to make anyway, but I can't wait until I love to eat again :)
Getting ready for baby: We didn't do very much this week because we both continue to be so busy. Once our last baby shower is over (i.e. next Saturday) we will be ready to start organizing and washing things so that will be exciting! I have started saving diaper coupons... I guess that is something.
What I miss: Having energy after school. I know that I should feel good about an 8-5 day at school, that I should see it as an accomplishment to have worked for that amount of time. But I miss the days when I would be more productive during that amount of time and then I would come home and still have energy left; to clean, cook, exercise, and hang out with people. But now I get home and all I can do for the first 30-45 minutes is lay down with my heating pad on the couch. My husband is absolutely wonderful.. I really don't know what I would do without him. He is understanding, and most days after he also has a long day he comes home, walks the dog and gets dinner started while I rest. After dinner if I am lucky I will have a spurt of energy when I can finish up some homework or do a load of laundry. But then by 9 p.m. I can barely hold my eyes open. I just feel like each day is so much shorter, and I am way less efficient than I used to be. It makes for some more stress... but I just try to take a day at a time.
What I am looking forward to: Next weekend: we have a doctor's appt. on Friday, then I am getting a pedicure with my sister-in-law, then we have our last baby shower on Saturday with David's dad's side of the family!! This weekend is going to be awesome too though. Today we are going to a wedding and then tomorrow my parents are coming down to Lexington to visit. We will hang out and have fun, but they are also going to help David and I out with a few things around the house. My dad is going to help David caulk our bath tub and my mom is going to mop my kitchen and bathroom with bleach for me. Have I ever mentioned how blessed we are to have such a supportive family? They are amazing.
Have a fantastic Saturday and a good weekend :)
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