Weekly Update: 39 Weeks

ONE MORE WEEK!?!?! (Plus or minus a week.)

At 39 weeks, baby bird weighs over 7 pounds and is about 20 inches long. She is the size of a mini watermelon.

I went to the doctor this past Tuesday. BP was fine so they weren't worried about my one swollen foot. It's probably just my little girl laying on that side. I've been working from home all week and being very diligent about keeping my feet up, which has really helped the swelling. She also checked me for dilation - my cervix is really far back there and closed. The OB said, "yeah, you ain't having this baby this week." I've always thought I'd be late (Nov 30 is my guess) but had been hopeful that I was wrong lately (been having contractions for a week, *thought* I lost my mucus plug, and just feeling overall blech) but I doubt that'll be the case. I'll have family in town next week from Wednesday through Sunday, so I am sure she'll come on Sunday when everyone is packing up to go home and back to work. ;)

I'm just ready to meet my baby bird!!!

Weekly Update: 38 Weeks

TWO. MORE. WEEKS!!!

Has this really happened? Ok, yes. It has felt like I have been pregnant forever. But also...didn't I just get pregnant? And now that I am at the end (and pretty miserable), I am still kind of sad that it's about to be over. This is the last time I will experience this and I'm actually going to miss it. I've had women confirm my insanity so I *think* I'm with the norm here. Maybe the crazy norm. Carrying a child is a special thing. I am growing a life, y'all. Yes, I get the irritating comments, but I also get the smiles and the beautiful comments. I'll miss this.

BUT I will get to see that sweet little face soon! I'll get to hold her and nurse her and smell her. My boys will get to see their sister they've been highly anticipating. The mister will get to kiss on his little girl. And that's pretty awesome too.

At 38 weeks, she is the size of a leek at over 19.5 inches long and weighing about 6.8 pounds.

I will be checked again for dilation next week, but again, I could go from 0 to baby pretty quickly for this 3rd baby (instead of 1cm one week, maybe 2 the next...). I'm having lots of irregular, random contractions. And I am swollen to the point of no return. My feet are swelling, especially the right one. Actually it kinda freaks me out how much more swollen the right one is (see picture). My hips, tailbone, and pelvis hurt, especially when I sleep (I dread going to bed now because of how painful it is to lay there) and I'm pretty tired.

Today is my last day in the office, and I will begin working from home until she comes.

I think everything is ready unless I am forgetting something. The nursery is ready, hospital bag is packed, diaper bags are packed and in vehicles, car seat bases are installed, leaves of absence have been started for both of us (Christopher gets 2 paid weeks on the company - isn't that awesome?), call lists have been made. What else?

Eeeeeeek!!!!!! I can't wait to meet my baby bird!!!

This is my pensive look (Photography credit: Landon)

WHY is my right foot so much more swollen???

The Miracle of Life

Click on the picture to get an enlarged view.

Weekly Update: 37 Weeks

With only 3 weeks left, Miss Wrenn weighs 6 & 1/3 pounds and is a bit over 19 inches long. She is the size of a bunch of Swiss chard (BabyCenter email) or a watermelon (Baby Countdown app).

At this week's appointment, they checked me for any progress. I am still closed and up, however, she said that doesn't really mean much for a 3rd time mom. Apparently, baby #3 doesn't progress slowly like a 1st or 2nd might. Basically I could go from nothing to having a baby. I have been highly discouraged against travel at this point (which makes going to VA by myself this weekend a bit challenging...in other words, not going to happen). My Group B Strep test came back negative as anticipated. No weight gain since the previous week (again, take that mean doctor!). I think I am holding steady at around 38 pounds (remember...56 pounds with Landon and 50 with Carter).

I am officially scheduled for an induction on Dec 4, which is at 41 weeks. Hopefully we won't need that.

My niece, Gracie, has sworn up and and down from day 1 that I am having this baby on Saturday, 11/8...her birthday (her sister, Elizabeth, shares a birthday with Carter and called that one too). Then I went for my routine dental check-up last night and the hygienist said that it's an old tale that dental check-ups can put a woman into labor. Now...I'm not one for believing this stuff, especially since I don't think I'm going to go early, BUT Christopher and the boys are going to be camping this weekend and I will be by myself. I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous.

My hips, pelvis, and butt hurt a lot. I'm having Braxton Hicks contractions almost every day. I wake up in the middle of the night (several nights during the week) feeling so queasy and like I'm going to get sick. And I am just overall tired and ready. Ready to meet my sweet girl!

I've been working more and more from home (at least 2-3 days each week) and after next week, will start working from home full-time until the baby comes. I can lay on the couch with my feet up while I work. Hopefully I can get the swelling in my right foot to go down (it's just my right foot...very weird).

Christopher sanded and painted the crib this past weekend. Now I just have to vacuum up the mess and put the crib back together (mattress, bed skirt, etc. back). The hospital bag HAS to be packed ASAP. I will do that this weekend. The last piece to the nursery is hanging a hook in the ceiling to hang a hot air balloon from (wonder if I can get up there and do it this weekend?). I'll get Christopher to install the car seat bases within the next week or so. It's not the end of the world if those don't get in before baby. He could always run home from the hospital to grab it. I may make a trip to BRU this weekend and pick up a few odds and ends, but I think I have everything I need for Wrenn.

The waiting game...

Weekly Update: 36 Weeks (1 Day Late)

At 36 weeks, baby bird is almost 6 pounds and more than 18.5 inches long. She is the size of a head of romaine lettuce.

I had my regularly-scheduled weekly check-up yesterday, which was a good thing because I had a little fall the day before. Hokie's beard drips water on the kitchen floor near his bowl after he drinks and I came through the kitchen a little too fast and slipped on it. I fell straight onto my butt, obviously doing something weird with the left side of my body because I was sore, sore, sore from my left toes up to the left side of my neck. My bootie was especially sore. It's starting to feel better today. I felt the baby move a few hours after the fall but was still a little nervous because she wasn't acting her normal busy self. Everything checked out ok at the doctor and he deemed her in much better shape than mom.

I've lost a few pounds since the previous week (take that, mean doctor!) and had my Group B strep test done (I'll find out the results from that next week, but basically just have to get antibiotics during delivery if I am positive - I was negative with both boys and they expect it to be the same). We officially unscheduled my 39-week induction and have me scheduled for 41 weeks (December 4). Hopefully she'll come on her own before then. I am predicting a November 30 birthday! :)

The handsome mister and I went to a Bradley Gilbert concert on my 36-week mark!

Weekly Update: 35 Weeks

F.I.V.E. weeks to go. Five. One, two, three, four, five. Holy smokes!

At 35 weeks, baby bird is 5 & 1/4 pounds and 18 inches long. She is the size of a honeydew melon. Most of what she'll be doing development-wise from here on out is just getting fat. (And apparently mama too - 7 pounds gained in the past 2 weeks...yowzers!)

I had an OB check-up yesterday and the doctor I spoke with was very supportive of my choice not to induce at 39 weeks. He agreed that babies can get stuck, whether they are small or big, and that it was really hard to predict. He also said that he, and the other doctors in the practice, are very skilled at getting a stuck baby out (although that is obviously not the ideal situation because it does carry risks). He said that it was absolutely up to me and not to lose sleep over the decision. I had made my decision, but our conversation was very reassuring. I got my flu shot while there and he confirmed that Miss Wrenn is indeed head down. :)  I'm at weekly appointments now, which blows my mind (and is so hard to schedule around my training schedule at work)!

My feet are SO swollen. And it is so very painful. Some days I start out with ankles and the swelling sets in over the day, but some days I wake up already swollen (like yesterday...I put on cowboy boots for work and quickly realized that it was not going to work because of the swelling, but I couldn't get them off and Christopher had already left for work. My toes were numb by noon.)

People ask how I am feeling and the best I can answer is, "35 weeks pregnant." Oy.

Weekly Update: 34 Weeks

34 weeks! SIX weeks to go! It's hard to believe that this pregnancy is quickly coming to an end. It's very bittersweet for me...I'm starting to get really ready to have my body back but I know I am going to miss pregnancy, especially since this is my last one. I'll never feel those kicks/punches again. I'll never have that growing belly again. I'll never experience that joy of growing a life.

I'm starting to feel pretty dang miserable and slow down a bit. My feet are swollen and hurt at the end of the day (thank you, Christopher for the foot rubs). I have a hard time standing in the kitchen after dinner packing lunches and such. But I'm trucking along.

At 34 weeks, my baby bird is 4 & 3/4 pounds and almost 18 inches long. She's the size of a cantaloupe. She's in good shape as far as lung and central nervous system development and if she were to be born now, she's be okay.

Diaper bag is packed and I am pretty sure I have some coming-home outfit options ready! I went to a local consignment shop and picked up some NB-size clothing that should get her through her first month or so. I still have to pack my hospital bag, install the car seat bases, and get the crib sanded/painted. I also still have to get flu shot (everyone else in my house has had one) - my OB was out last week when I went. Hopefully they'll have more in next Tuesday when I go for another check-up; if not, I'll just go somewhere else to get it.

Until next week, my friends!

Weekly Update: 33 Weeks

32 weeks & 6 days (All day, I pulled my shirt down and skirt up)

Wow o wow o wow o wow! SEVEN weeks to go!

At 33 weeks, little bird is a little over 4 pounds and 17 inches long. She is the size of a pineapple.

Things left to do: sand and paint crib (where paint is peeling), pack hospital bag, install car seats, and get a few more odds & ends.

The nursery is *almost* together. I just ordered these hot air balloon crib sheets which have been unavailable since I registered for them. They just became available yesterday (I check every day) so I quickly ordered those as they are a staple of my decor. Once I get this changing pad cover and dust ruffle, the nursery will be good to go - I need some gray and yellow in there to balance out all the pink. I'll order those soon (and holy smokes, Target shipping is SUPER fast).

I don't have much newborn-size clothing (that aren't gowns or PJs) so I'll probably need to get a few outfits. Even Carter, who was 8 pounds and 14 ounces, wore newborn for a few weeks.

So I am scheduled for an induction on November 20 (at 39 weeks), but I'm most likely going to cancel. Two doctors at the practice have told me that they'd like to induce me at 39 weeks because I have big babies and they don't want to risk her being so big that she gets stuck. Although, they also say they can't estimate how much she is going to weigh. This last doctor (who is my least favorite due to her lack of bedside manner) told me it was basically because I had gained so much weight. She was extremely rude. I told her I thought I had been doing awesome this time around...30 pounds so far (and most likely to land at a total of 40) when I was at 56 and 50 with the boys. Apparently, mom weight gain equals baby weight gain. So...if that's the case, I'll have gained less this time around so my baby might be smaller than my previous two which I pushed out just fine... It's really about the shoulders getting stuck, which can happen in a small or large baby...it just matters which way they come down the birth canal. I'm not 100% convinced that the doctors aren't just trying to avoid a lawsuit in the case they have to break her clavicle to get her out if she's stuck. Elective inductions have stats to support longer, harder, more intense labors and increased risk of c-sections. I know that there's plenty of women out there induced and they have wonderful birth stories. I just don't really see compelling evidence to bring her out a week early or before she's ready unless there's something going on like blood pressure issues, extremely overdue, etc. Let her come when she's ready. My body has done this before on its own time and I am completely confident in my body. Yeah, it'd be great to meet her a week early and great to have it scheduled and great to know with certainty that I can get the epidural...but I just don't see the undeniable evidence that it's a necessity. I'm going to see how this next month goes and talk to the other doctors at the practice and get their opinions (I'm at EOW appointments now), but most likely, I'll be cancelling the induction and let Wrenn pick her own birthday.

Weekly Update: 32 Weeks

31 weeks & 6 days

At 32 weeks, my baby bird is 3 & 3/4 pounds and about 16.7 inches long. My weekly BabyCenter email tells me that she is taking up most of my uterus. NO KIDDING!!!! She's the size of a jicama (I had to google that - it's a Mexican yam).

From here on out, I should gain about a pound a week and half of that will go right to her. She's fattening up!

I had the most perfect little baby shower this past weekend (details and pictures coming) and felt so loved! But my nursery is starting to become very pink...I've got to get some other colors in there to balance it out.

Feeling about the same...heartburn, tired, pains, etc. My next OB appointment is this coming Monday and then I go to every-other-week check-ups.

As you can see from my 32 week picture and my 30 week picture (same outfit!), I am starting to run out of clothes that fit and my options are pretty slim!

I finally got around to attacking the linen closet (nesting). I'm not sure what my next victim will be, although it really needs to be my shower. But getting down on all fours in my 4x4 stand-up shower just ain't happening.

I'm starting to freak out a little about having a baby in the winter time when colds and flus are at a high (and not to mention this Enterovirus going around now). We haven't had a great track record with respiratory junk (Landon had RSV which caused him to wheeze for years, and Carter had pneumonia). They were both about 6 months when that hit since they were summer babies. My sweet girl is going to be a tiny little thing during all this upcoming yuckiness. I'll go ahead and apologize in advance if I shower you in hand sanitizer or hand out a mask (only halfway kidding about the mask). Should I just get a bubble to keep her in until spring?

I can now say that we meet our bird NEXT MONTH! Well...unless she's late and comes in December. But soon! I'll have her in my arms soon!

Weekly Update: 31 Weeks

Baby Wrenn has been baking for 31 weeks!!! She's over 16 inches long and about 3 & 1/3 pounds, heading into a growth spurt. Right now, she's the size of a coconut.

It definitely feels like there is a coconut in there...a coconut with lots of pokey things. Girlfriend is very busy (especially during the middle of the night - uh-oh) and likes to poke me from the inside.

I just cannot breathe most days. Well...I mean, obviously I am breathing but not well at all. She has pushed my innards around where I have hardly any lung capacity left (apparently the only relief for that is to have the baby - very helpful). I get heartburn when I eat the wrong things. But my sleeping has me really down right now. I am having a problem going back to sleep once getting up. So when she tells me it's time to pee between 2-3am, I usually lay in the bed awake for about an hour or two afterwards. Then I finally fall back asleep to have to pee again at 6 (or if it's a super fun night, for Landon to come get me around 5 to tell me he wet the bed - we're back at that again...I'll write a post dedicated to that after his urologist appointment next week). So I am getting about 4-5 hours of sleep each night and it is killing me. I guess she's prepping me for what's ahead. I really hope her activity now does not indicate her awake periods once she's here. If so, we are IN TROUBLE!

I have a baby shower this Sunday. I am so excited and looking forward to spending time oohing and aahing over all things pink with my family and close friends!!!

Weekly Update: 30 Weeks

30 weeks (technically 29 weeks and 6 days)

At 30 weeks, baby bird is 15.7 inches long from head to heel and weighs almost 3 pounds!!! She is the size of a head of cabbage.

She seems to have taken a liking to sitting on my lungs. I cannot breathe. It literally feels like the room has been deprived of oxygen. And I think that is making me really tired and slow. There have been some nights this past week where I've just gone home and crashed on the couch. I could barely put one foot in front of the other. I've managed to get the boys lunches/snack packed and homework checked but that's about it. There's been a lot of cereal, PB&J, and Spaghetti Os for dinner - the boys aren't complaining and I am past the point in feeling guilty.

10 weeks to go. Where that feels like no time at all, it also feels like forever.

I filed for my leave of absence at work and have the nursery well on its way (if you missed yesterday's post - check it out...partially-complete nursery tour plus NAME ANNOUNCEMENT). I washed all of the baby clothes, equipment, blankets, etc and put away (I had forgotten how good Dreft smells). Still nesting...I've purged/cleaned/organized the kitchen, nursery, and boys' room. The linen closet is next on my hit list. But I've got to save up the energy for it. And I'm going to try really hard to ignore our bedroom. Really hard.

I told Christopher last night that we need to get our hospital bag together, I need to add the "I'm in labor" number to our phones, and I need to type out details for school pick-up/drop-off for the boys for my caregivers while we're in the hospital. Oh, and I just realized that I need to check/replace batteries in baby stuff.

I have a baby shower coming up next weekend that I am really excited about!!! My SILs (Beth and Ash) and BF (Amy) are throwing it for me. ::blushes::

Partially-Complete Nursery Tour (and a NAME!)

We FINALLY got the guest bed taken down and out of the spare room so we're starting to have something that looks like a nursery. After purging the closet, reorganizing it, and washing and putting away all baby clothes, we put the crib together and (I) put an excessive amount of nail holes in the wall hung some decorations. (It took a full day and me purging the nursery and the boys' entire room and closet - nesting - to find the bag of crib screws IN THE GARAGE WHERE THE MISTER SAID THEY WERE NOT.) Nonetheless, the crib is together, although it is need of some serious TLC. One end has such bad peeling paint from where we sat the humidifier at the end of the crib when Carter was in it (dumb move). We're going to sand that down and paint in the next few weeks.

With the exception of needing to move out a big TV, the room is together-ish. I still need some things like a crib skirt, rug, sheets, lamp, and laundry basket.

Here's a tour of the partially-complete nursery, but I will definitely post more pictures once it's 100% together.

The walls were already painted a perfect pale yellow. It looks more golden/dark in some of these pictures, but trust - it's perfection.

Standing in the doorway, I have a high/low dresser (that I've had since Landon) with the changing pad, a wastebasket, and a Diaper Champ (wall to your left). I need to add a lamp on the high part for those late-night diaper changes (I have my eye on an adorable vintage hot air balloon lamp that I've spotted on eBay).

On the wall directly in front of you while still standing in the door (moving clockwise), I currently have an antique table which I am contemplating what to do with. Her hamper will go here. And I have three adorable wooden hot air balloons on the wall that I custom-ordered from Etsy.

Continuing to move clockwise, in the corner is my glider and footstool (again from Landon) with a nightstand complete with the essentials (lamp for late-night feedings, clock and CD player (for breastfeeding time-keeping and classical music for my baby girl), and books). I am keeping the white eyelet valance and added a beautiful homemade blanket that I found in a homemade blanket stash from when Landon was born. Not sure who made this one, but I can guarantee it was some cute little church lady. Also, the dead plant will be removed.

Then on the wall to your right when standing in the door is her crib with peeling paint and toy box that my Papa made. The toy box looks like it would be a good place to put a humidifier, but don't be fooled. It isn't. Oh, and above her crib is the other hot air balloon beauty that I custom-ordered from Etsy. Wait. What does that garland say???

Let me zoom in for you.

Wrenn!!!

Yes, baby bird will be called Wrenn Annalise. We chose this name because we simply liked it (just like we did with the boys). Wrenn is a version of Wren, the bird. And Annalise means full of grace (Anne) and God is my oath (Liese). The boys have already taken to calling her Wrennie (after giving up hope that her name would be Violet (Landon - I like that too, L) or Elsa (Carter - after Elsa in Frozen).

We've still got a little more to do but I wanted to share our progress and baby bird's name.

Weekly Update: 29 Weeks

29 weeks!!! Holy smokes. This junk is getting real, y'all. Next week, I will be in my 30s when it comes to weeks pregnant. Whoa. Cuz you know 40 is it, right? Gulp. (Or maybe 41...)

Sweet girl is fattening up in the home stretch. She is 2.5 pounds and a little bit over 15 inches long from head to heel. She's the size of a butternut squash. She is trying to crawl of out my body kicking a lot and HARD, to the point of being pretty dang uncomfortable. I feel pretty good though, minus the pelvic pain and tiredness.

I am nesting. Bad. Even I recognize the ridiculousness of it all. I purged my entire kitchen this past weekend (of small appliances, Tupperware, etc.) and wiped down the cabinets, inside and out. Then I started wiping down the chair railing. And this and that. It's absurd. I was so tired and my feet were killing me but I kept on. AB-SURD.

I had an OB check-up this past Monday, which included my glucose test. I passed! I also got a Tdap vaccine to give the baby a boost of antibodies against whooping cough as she won't get her first vaccination against it until she's 2 months old. This is something that they've started recommending over the past 2 years to pregnant mothers as well as primary caregivers and siblings of newborns with the recent rise in whooping cough (and fatalities among newborns). You can read about it here on the CDC's website. Christopher had a tetanus shot, which also included whooping cough, in 2013 and the boys are up-to-date. (Side note: GET YOUR KIDS VACCINATED, PEOPLE & STOP SPREADING THE YUCKIES. MODERN MEDICINE, YO!)

I haven't been paying attention to my weight at all during this pregnancy. I gained 56 pounds with Landon and 50 with Carter, so I just expected to gain a lot this time around too. Well, when I stepped on the scales and glanced down at the number (that number is not relevant to the story), I thought, "Huh. That's a lot lower than what I expected." So I asked the nurse what my starting weight was. Y'all...I've only gained 25 pounds so far. I am actually tracking with their stupid recommended weigh gain. Pretty sweet! (I guess I can attribute a lot of that to me being so sick the first 22ish weeks).

We also talked about a possible induction as early as 39 weeks. So...I'm not a fan of induction, unless if medically necessary. I refused to be induced with Carter (and had him at 41 weeks on my own, even though I WAS SO READY TO HAVE HIM OUT). However, the doctors are a little cautious to let me go over 40 weeks because of the size of my boys. And with being due around Thanksgiving, she said I need to decide and schedule in the next few weeks because everyone will want to be induced and home before Thanksgiving. Okay...the pluses. I will know when I am going into labor so I can have childcare for the boys arranged with some notice (and not a middle of the night call to my SIL). I can know for sure that I will be able to get the epidural. I'd go in, get the fluids and epi going while being induced. I'm very scared that this little girl is going to come so quickly (3rd baby and assuming she'll be half the labor time of Carter who was half the labor time of Landon) that I won't be able to get the epidural. I barely got it with Carter. As I said before, I love modern medicine (and so do my girl parts). Buuuutttt...I just don't know about being induced. I think (again, unless there is a medical reason) that baby will come when baby is ready and you shouldn't mess with that. Plus, I could have a longer labor with induction. I don't really care about the whole timing thing with Thanksgiving...it doesn't bother me if I am in the hospital over Thanksgiving cuz somebody better be bringing me some turkey no matter where I am. I'm still mulling it over and talking with Christopher. We'll make a decision (soon).

Christopher and I have been talking a lot about what we think baby bird will look like. I just cannot wait to see her. She's going to be so perfect. Squeeeeeeeee!

Thanks for reading and going on this journey with us. Until next week, my friends!

Weekly Update: 28 Weeks

28 weeks! Wow! Only 12 weeks to go!!! It blows my mind to think that in just 3 short months, there's going to be a baby in the house again. I just can't wait to meet my sweet baby bird!

At 28 weeks, baby bird weighs 2 and 1/4 pounds and is about 14.8 inches (how specific of BabyCenter) from head to heels. She is the size of a large eggplant.

She has eyelashes!!! Hope they are long like her biggest brother (Landon has THE BEST eyelashes).

And hello, 3rd trimester. You came in like a wrecking ball...wrecking my body and wrecking my mood/emotions (just ask Christopher). I'm just really uncomfortable and my body hurts, especially my right hip. I'm not too hungry and experience heartburn when eating spicy foods (taco night was good last night, but not so good about 2 hours later). But I'm not sick anymore (and still off the NVP meds)!!!

And yes, Christopher...I AM NESTING. So what? I have cleaned out all boy clothes from our attic and gave away to other mamas - 6 Rubbermaid totes and 10 garbage bags from sizes 0 months through 4T!!! And yes, I cried a little. We got down (with the help of my sweet FIL - thanks, Grayson!) from the attic all the baby stuff like bouncie seat, bath tub, swing, Bumbo, Diaper Champ, bassinet, etc. etc. etc. Y'all...babies come with A LOT of stuff. Guest room (soon to be nursery) still isn't cleaned out but I feel like we are making progress. (But we HAVE to do that soon, Christopher!)

I go to the doctor for a regular check up and glucose test (yuck) this coming Monday.

Weekly Update: 27 Weeks

At 27 weeks, my little bird is almost 2 pounds (!!!!) and is about 14.5 inches long from head to heel. She is the size of a head of cauliflower. And definitely feels like it! Sometimes it feels like she's going to kick right through to the outside. I've seen that 27 weeks officially starts the 3rd trimester, but I've also seen it at 28 weeks. But only 13 weeks to go!!! EEEEK!

I am officially off of my NVP medicine and actually feeling pretty decent! Yay! Plantar fasciitis is feeling much better as well. New development...charlie horses during the night. I wake up 3-5 times a night now with terrible, but quickly passing with a good stretch, charlie horses. Someone at work recommended drinking a little pickle juice before bed. Um, ok...you know I don't mind trying that out!

Perhaps we'll start cleaning out the guest room this upcoming long weekend to start readying it for the nursery? (I'll have to see how my mister is feeling - he had a rough biking (bicycle, not his motorcycle) accident last Friday night where he strained his pectoral muscle (confirmed nothing broken via xray, thank goodness) as well as getting pretty banged up. He's still healing from that.)

This dress is tired...jacked up in the front, front buttons pulling open, & stretching tight on the sides (from belly to bum).

Growing a Baby

(Click on the picture collage for an enlarged view.)

Weekly Update: 26 Weeks

NO! THERE'S NOT 2 IN THERE!!!

Oh, hi. So...yeah. Been hearing a lot of grief lately on my belly size...people saying my due date is not right or that I am having twins. I can assure you that my due date is spot on. When you try as long as we did to get pregnant, you know. And the whole twin thing...after 3 ultrasounds and countless heartbeat listens, I think that would have been discovered. I'm just big and beautiful...the way you're supposed to look when you have another human being inside you.

I brought it up to my doctor at my check-up last Friday as well. She looked at my measurements from my ultrasounds and confirmed that the baby's size was tracking spot on with my due date. In addition, my tummy measured right where it should.

The doctor gave a good listen to my lungs at my visit and said they sounded clear. She said I just still have a little respiratory junk left from my bug plus the normal junk that you get with pregnancy and that it should continue to clear up. No worries.

Heartbeat was good and strong. Tummy measurement was on track. Weight? Eh. Not even paying attention.

My next appointment is in 3 weeks and is the dreaded glucose test. Yuck. I don't mind the stuff you have to drink. I do mind the crazy jittery sugar rush I get that makes me feel sick and the hour that you have to wait to get your blood drawn (coupled with my crazy incompetent veins). But I'll make it.

I've been off of my NVP medicine for the past 3 days and I feel...okay. I still get moments of nausea but have found that it's usually when I need to snack on something. So I am just trying to keep something in my system all the time like fruits, veggies, nuts, etc.

At 26 weeks, little bird is really starting to fatten up. She is 1 and 2/3 pounds and measures 14 inches long from head to heel. That's the size of a scallion (BabyCenter email) or eggplant (phone app). 14 weeks until I meet my sweet baby girl. I have been daydreaming about her...about what her face will look like, her sweet baby smell... I am READY to see her!

Geez...we've GOT to start on the nursery...

Weekly Update: 25 Weeks

At 25 weeks, little bird is 13.5 inches long from head to heel and weighs a pound and a half. According to my babycenter email, she is the size of a rutabaga. For those of you, like me, who have never seen a rutabaga...let's go with my phone app that says she is the size of an eggplant.

I have a check-up today at lunchtime but wanted to go ahead and post this update since I will be busy with a house guest all weekend. I'll update you next week on anything new from my OB appointment.

This has been a rough week for me. I have been exhausted - falling asleep at work, coming home early from work so I can nap, etc.

15 weeks (ish) until we meet our little bird!

Weekly Update: 24 Weeks

The weeks are starting to fly by for me now. I'm starting to get a little more nervous as the weeks go by too... labor (will she come too quickly that I won't be able to get an epidural? - I barely squeaked by getting one with Carter), sleepless nights, diapers, nursing/pumping (will I have that crazy enzyme deal with my milk again?), managing 3 after going back to work (packing 2 lunches plus daycare bottles each night, 2 kids with homework, juggling the boys' extracurricular activities with a newborn, etc.). Deep breaths.

Let's focus on my little bird! She grew 4 ounces since last week taking her up to one and a third pounds. She's still about a foot long and is the size of an ear of corn. I am really starting to feel little feet and hands and elbows! She really likes to streeeeeeeetch, especially up into my rib cage.

I'm starting to feel better from this bug I had all last week, although I am still pretty snotty. Plantar fasciitis is still there and in full effect (ouch). I've halved my dose of NVP medicine and seem to be doing ok...going to attempt to stop that all together soon. Cross your fingers!

Y'all, I've been on Etsy. I ordered a wooden name banner with hot air balloons (OBSESSED with hot air balloons) on each end for her nursery wall. The lady is also going to custom make 3 larger wooden hot air balloons to match the banner for the opposite wall in the nursery. That's being made and shipped from Poland so perhaps I'll show you the name banner in the next month or so. :)  We've still got to get the double bed taken down in the guest room and get the crib set back up. The rest of the things (glider, table, and dresser will stay). The walls are already painted yellow and I plan to leave it as is. Maybe we'll tackle that after my mom comes for a visit next weekend.

I may have also ordered the cutest little crocheted hat with changeable flowers for her on Etsy. Christopher just shook his head. But she's got to cover her little head (in style) this winter when she's brand new! Oh, and I may have also started a favorites listing on Etsy with things like crocheted barefoot sandals, football leg warmers, and monogrammed bloomers! (Yeah...I'm getting used to this girl thing.)

My sweet sisters-in-law and best friend are planning to throw me a baby girl/essentials shower (I'm so excited!) so I went ahead and started a registry at Target with a few things (you can do all that online now!). It's been a while (8 years) since I've done all this and it is really fun! (I didn't really do any of this with Carter since he was another boy and just 3 years after Landon.)

Next OB check-up is next Friday, August 15.

Weekly Update: 23 Weeks

Baby girl is 23 weeks today! She is a little over a pound and almost a full foot in length. She is the size of a large mango.

She's starting to kick so hard that you can see my stomach move now. Landon has seen it, Christopher has felt her, Carter doesn't care. LOL Nah...I'm sure he would...he's just never in the right time at the right place.

I've been suffering from a terrible cold/virus/sinus infection/crud since Saturday night and am not feeling much better. It started with a terribly sore throat for 2 days. Now it's moved into constant blowing of green junk and coughing and sneezing and just all around feeling bad. I think I've run a fever off and on, which makes my heart race when I do (which scares me). My breathing is pretty labored (sick + pregnant makes for extremely bad breathing). I hope to get over this soon...with the help of no medicine (yay, pregnancy!). This is the first cold I've had since pregnant though which is so different than my last two...I lived with sinus infections.

I've got plantar fasciitis in my left heel. Big girls, unite! It basically feels like I am stepping down onto a knife with each step. I've done some stretching, icing, and used KT tape on it, which actually help for a few days. I think this is just something I've got to deal with until my little bird arrives and I lose some of this weight.

Next step...preparing the nursery!!!

(Psssst...we have a name!!!! If I've seen you in person, I've probably already told you. It's not a secret, even though Christopher wanted it to be. But I haven't figured out if I am going to announce it on here before she comes. Email or call me if you know me IRL, I'd be glad to share. A clever little announcement may come here too...just need to think on that a little bit more.)