How far along? 36 weeks
Updates on baby: Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.
*On a more personal note: Our little girl is head down! Yay!! I went to the doctor on Friday and the doctor checked to see that she is in the delivery-ready position and she is. It was very relieving, although I had suspected for a few weeks that she was head down. I had been feeling her little feet and knees up high, plus with her being such a mover I figured she had maneuvered herself into the correct position. It really is amazing how all of pregnancy works and how naturally these things happen. The doctor said that since she is head down at this point it is very unlikely that she will move and become breech before delivery. Such exciting news!
Labor signs: Nope.. none. I am still not sure if I have had a contraction. I am attuned to any kind of cramp or pain in my stomach and I definitely feel some, but it is hard to know if it is a Braxton hicks contraction, a real one or just my food digesting. The doctor also checked to see if I have made any physical progress toward labor on Friday, and thankfully I haven't. Even for how uncomfortable I am, I very much want our little one to arrive right around or after her due date, i.e. after finals.
Symptoms/Body changes: My belly continues to grow, and actually on the day that this picture was taken I had 4 different people comment on how big it was. They were all very polite actually, and I don't really mind the comments since, yes, my belly is huge. I hope it looks huge in comparison to the rest of me! The best comment came from one of my freshman boy students. He said, "Wow, your baby is getting really big!". It was cute and honestly I am starting to enjoy the fact that people are noticing that I am pregnant and treating me as such. I have been surprised at how few students, professors and colleagues have asked me/talked to me about my pregnancy and I try to not talk about it very much to others. But I think it is exciting that now all of the sudden people aren't ignoring that fact that I am preggo :)
Other than the bigger and bigger belly not much else is changes. The pains in my back have moved a little bit lower which I actually find to be more bearable than the round ligament pain I was having in the middle of my back so much for a while. I am kind of swollen in general, but especially in my hands, ankles and feet and especially after standing for a while or eating something that is really salty. I haven't been able to wear my wedding ring all week which is a bummer, but I knew this day would come. Despite the swelling my blood pressure is perfectly normal, which was good to hear on Friday also.
Exercise: This past week it was nice outside for about 3 days and so on those days I got out and walked twice for 30 minutes each with my pup. Other than that, I don't do very much, other than carry an extra 25 pounds up flights of stairs and all around campus of course. Now that my crazy week is over I want to fit a prenatal pilates session in 3 times a week and I really think I can keep reach this goal for the next 4-ish weeks, as well as trying to walk frequently.
Movement: She has finally started to change in her movements a bit. The punches and kicks don't have as much velocity behind them anymore since she is running out of room, so they aren't as painful as they were a few weeks ago. However, she continues to move a lot, with a lot of rolling around going on. I feel her little feet and hands all the time, and often I feel her rear end poking out one side of my stomach, which makes me all lopsided. I love feeling her move and I just can't wait until I can see her move!
Cravings/Aversions: I ate most of a bag of tortilla chips this week with salsa... yum! On the aversion side, there were 3 different days this week when we planned to eat chicken and I just couldn't stomach it, which was weird. Hopefully the Thanksgiving turkey will agree with me.
Getting ready for baby: Finally some updates here! David's mom came down on Sunday and helped us to rearrange our bedroom furniture to make room for baby. We live in a small two bedroom apartment with the second bedroom functioning mainly as an office. I know that at first I will want our little girl right next to me, plus with her napping so often and David needing a quiet space to work more than ever we decided to start her out in our room. She won't have any kind of nursery here; we plan on waiting to have a real nursery until we move (most likely in May) to a bigger place. So we just put her pack and play with the bassinet as well as a little shelf in our room. Oh yea, and the rocker is in there too. It is definitely... cozy. But I am sure I will get used to it.
In the second bedroom we have a dresser to store her things (or more likely some of our things since we will probably clear out a few dresser drawers in our bedroom for her little clothes). Our life group got this dresser for free and put some new handles on it for us. I really like it, and fits perfectly.
I should have taken a before picture, because before Saturday our second bedroom was just overtaken with all the baby things we had gotten. But now most things are in their place. On my to do list before Thanksgiving is to wash the newborn and 0-3 month clothes as well as blankets, wash cloths, towels, burp clothes, etc. and get them put away. Also, we need to pack a hospital bag!
Another thing that we did this past week was went to visit the hospital where I will be delivering. It was fantastic. It isn't a super nice or new hospital, but it is truly a great one. It is all high tech and has the best NICU in the region and all that since it is the University hospital, but I was very impressed with how natural they liked to keep normal deliveries. As long as my delivery goes as expected and our baby is perfectly healthy they are all about immediate skin-to-skin contact which David and I prefer. We thought we would have to request to have the baby on my chest right away, but it is actually hospital policy that the baby gets her vital signs checked while on my skin, that she nurses within the first hour and that within the first 6 hours she isn't taken away from David or I. The pediatrician will even come to our room rather than taking her away. Of course if she needs anything special or if there are any complications these plans change. But I was just very impressed with their desire to keep things very... human I guess, and less sterilized. The rooms were nice, we are all pre-registered and we know exactly where to go. It feels much better to be prepared in this way.
What I miss: Being able to confidently put my boots on by myself. Yep, we have reached the point where sometimes I need the hubby's help :)
What I am looking forward to: Do I even have to tell you? Thanksgiving of course!! We leave Wednesday to go up to NKY to be with the family all the way through Sunday. Since Christmas this year will be quiet and spent entirely in Lexington, we decided that our Thanksgiving break should be spent around family and friends. I am looking forward to seeing everyone, the awesome food of course, and the time to just relax.
Oh yes, and last but not least the picture comparison. Below: weeks 16, 26, and 36. You can tell me that it is "all in my belly", but really, my face has gotten a little chubby :) But I don't mind.
Since I do hope to have some more free time starting Wednesday I hope to blog quite a bit. There are a few things I have been wanting to write about, one of which is the name we have decided on! So be sure to check back soon... If weekly updates aren't your thing you have most likely been bored, but it should be better this week.
Buenas noches.
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