Friday, April 29, 2016

Pregnancy Update: Week 34 Recap!

How far along?  35 weeks today, so I’ll do a recap of week 34.

Total weight gain:  33 pounds so far…

Baby’s size/development this week:  OMG, the little internal parasite is 5 ½ pounds!  That is HUGE.

Maternity clothes:  I bought 4 dresses and a tank top off the Buy/Sell/Trade for $10 and 3 large maternity tees for $6.  God, I love the BST.  I’m so happy because everything is super cute, in good condition, and super cheap.  Not to mention, several of the dresses will be GREAT for nursing in the first couple months postpartum so I feel even better about the money spent.

Miss anything?  At this very moment I am sitting at a desk and I miss being able to sit so that the edge of the desk isn’t cutting into my stomach.  I miss being able to move like a normal person.  I’m so over waddling.  I miss my back not hurting.  I miss glasses of wine.  I miss being able easily to run around after my toddler.

Food cravings:  Just give me a nice brownie or piece of cake with lots of ice cream and whipped cream on top and I’ll be fine.  Still trying to eat like a relatively healthy person though.

Anything making you queasy or sick?   I have started to feel slightly queasy lately.

Sleep:   Sleep is awesome.  I slept so great last night and it was truly wonderful.  I just wish I could do more of it.

Best moment of the week:   There were a lot!
  • Everett’s birthday bash was pretty freaking awesome.  Friday was wonderful spending the day with Chad and Everett.  Things have been so busy lately, we REALLY enjoyed a day with no pressure, no stress, no plans, and nothing in particular to do.
  • Saturday was another great day, with family visiting from both in and out of town.  We went to the Conservatory, walked around German Village, and had dinner at Black Creek Bistro.
  • Picking up my new maternity swag was pretty awesome as well, and I shopped for new nursing bras which I DESPERATELY needed (still waiting on those to show up though!)
  • We also got a new stroller which will be able to accommodate Everett and the new little one, which we were super excited about!
  • I also had my 35 week appointment with the midwives, which Chad was supposed to go to, but ended up having to work open to close. L  I was sad about that!  But the appointment was good though – baby’s head is DOWN, so that was a reason to celebrate!  We discussed more of the birth in detail and things started to feel more real, the excitement for the baby’s imminent arrival is starting to ramp up.

Nursery:  Eh.

Weddings rings on or off?   I was really swollen last week and took my ring off.  I feel LOTS better this week and could probably put it back on, but I think I’ll just forgo the stress and forget about it until after I give birth.

Belly Button:  The belly button of steel is in and shall forever remain so.  

Movement?  All the movement!  Elbows and feet and hiccups!  I also sometimes feel the baby is ramming its head into my pubic bone too, which is particularly jolting.

Labor signs?   So yesterday, at 34 weeks 6 days, I felt the first signs pointing to the fact that labor is just around the corner, how far of course nobody yet knows.  I took the day off work because I woke up feeling super tired and lethargic.  Except for after lunch when I dragged myself out for a slow, leisurely two mile walk, I laid around in bed all day.  Around 4:00, I was getting ready to go pick Everett up in the upcoming hour when I started getting some pretty intense Braxton Hicks contractions and my stomach felt super hard.  The baby also did this thing where it lodged its back firmly against the left side of my stomach and seemed to be pushing out HARD.  I couldn’t tell if it was a contraction or just the baby moving and pushing.  Then I started to feel some low abdominal cramping, much akin to a period pain.  I was all alone, about to pick up Everett, and starting to *freak out.*  I was just praying that it was a false alarm, but the last time I went into labor (a month early), I started by feeling super lethargic for a few days, and then when the contractions started, they came on FAST.  And so did the baby, so I was super concerned that if these were indeed the beginnings of labor, that the baby would arrive in just a few hours and I would be screwed.  I started out to go pick up get Everett and figured I would go get him and take things a step at a time.  I tried to get a hold of Chad and couldn’t (he was in a meeting), which made me freak out even more.  So then I contacted my midwife and she told me that it could be preparatory labor, which is very common at this point in a second pregnancy, but to stop drinking pregnancy tea (which I was drinking at that moment) and to lay down for the rest of the evening.  Given my prior pre-term birth, she wanted to keep a closer eye on me, but didn’t feel any urgent action was necessary.  Chad wasn’t supposed to get home until 7:30 or so, but I got a hold of him around 5:30 and he came right home, made dinner, and was on toddler duty for the night while I lay around upstairs watching the Gilmore Girls.  Once Chad got home and nothing seemed to progress, I felt less stressed, at least in an immediate sense, but I still feel on high guard and will probably remain so for the next two weeks.   I’m just praying I make it to 37 weeks.  NO PRETERM BABY!  NO ASSOCIATED POSSIBLE HEALTH CONCERNS! NO HOSPITAL BIRTH! (Especially since I’m all paid up with my midwives!) …After 37 weeks, the rest is just icing, but I REALLY want to make it at least to 38 weeks, so that I can go to my prenatal yoga seminar and labor preparation with Chad and have a few days at home to relax and get my head in the right space before the arrival of our new one, which holy shit, could be arriving anytime from the next few days to the next five weeks.

Weird pregnancy thing of the week:   See above stupid story.

Daddy is feeling:   Super stressed.  Between finals and papers and work being super insane, things have been rough for him lately.  I think we both deserve a break.

Mommy is feeling:   Yesterday when I went on a nice leisurely walk, I could feel myself turning inwards in a more reflective, contemplative, slowed down world sort of way that I experienced after I gave birth the first time.  Work will be wrapping up soon and the immediate matters of my body and family are starting to take precedent both physically and mentally.  I’m really looking forward to this weekend where Chad, Everett, and I get a chance to spend  it just the three of us for one of the last times evarrr before we become a family of four.  Since shit is getting real and I’ve been woken up to how quickly things are progressing, I have really, really been hit with the strong desire to savor the last few days and weeks of our awesome little threesome.

Workouts this week:  I’ve done the 2 mile Walhalla Loop at least 3-4 times in the past week or so, and it’s been good for my body and spirit, but I’m wondering if I should stop the walks until I hit 37 weeks.  Bah.

Books I'm Reading/Media I'm Ingesting:  I’m on my last season of Gilmore Girls.  I have no idea what I’ll do after that!  Actually, I might read another Ina May Gaskin book I picked up on breastfeeding…it might be a good idea to get my head back in the game again after a 6 month hiatus.  I also need to delve back into the book I’ve been reading (First Bite:  How We Learn to Eat) about food and developing healthy eating habits in our children without going insane (not really sure if I believe this is actually possible).


Looking forward to:  
  • The first Clintonville Farmer’s Market of the year!!!
  • A full weekend off with Everett and Chad!!!
  • Preparing and organizing for the birth on Sunday!!!


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