29 Weeks

This week was a pretty good week for me. I have been sleeping MUCH better and even slept through the whole night 2 or 3 times, which hasn't happened in I don't even know how many weeks or months. I think Kylie may have repositioned herself OFF of my bladder because even during the day I'm running to the bathroom a little bit less often, and I can also feel her kicks and movements around the whole top part of my belly and not just the right side. So I'm hoping that she turned the right way and is completely head down now, but sometimes I wonder if she might be laying completely vertical. I guess she still has a few more weeks to roam around in there before I get concerned about her position. Her movements are getting more and more pronounced every day and sometimes it literally feels like she is trying to escape through the side of me belly. It is such a strange feeling!

I am up a total of 17 pounds now, which I think is good with just over 10 weeks to go. BUT, I haven't gained any weight in at least the past two weeks so we will see how the next 2 weeks go until my appointment and if I still don't gain I will check with the doc. Last time I was there I gained a little more than I usually do between appointments, so maybe I'm just evening it out now. I have officially given up on finding any maternity pants that will fit me. With just over 2 months left I'm not willing to go to the high end stores that sell designer maternity jeans and spend over $100 a pair so I'm going to stick with leggings, dresses, and jeans one size up from my regular size and hopefully that will last me throughout the rest of the pregnancy. I'm expecting to gain about 5 more pounds of just baby, and hopefully not much more than that. My lower back is already starting to hurt, and sometimes my hips too. I still get cramps in my calves sometimes, but now I also get them in my feet too. I sometimes feel like I have little feet stuck in my ribs and Braxton Hicks contractions feel much different. Sometimes I can't tell if its really a BH or if its the baby stretching and sticking her butt or back out of my belly making it get hard. I am not able to distinguish any body parts yet, or even feel her if I press down on my belly, but I'm sure that will be coming soon.

I really want to have another ultrasound to just make sure that she is still a girl. I know it sounds silly, but the farther along I get I just wonder sometimes, what would I do if she's a boy! Right now, she's a little girl in my mind, her room is starting to come along, and she has tons of clothes already. There's always that chance that they just missed something in the ultrasound, the babies are so little at that time. Plus it doesn't help that people sometimes ask me if I'm sure its a girl because I'm carrying so low it MUST be a boy! I'm trying to convince Jason to do a 3D ultrasound, because I think it would be fun to see her and take a peek and make sure she is who we think she is! He says its a waste of money, and I have to somewhat agree, but I still want to do it! If not, I know I get one more ultrasound to measure her growth, I think its somewhere around 34 weeks or something.

Speaking of the nursery, I finally bought her bedding. I decided against the lovebird bedding I posted last week only because I could not find it in person ANYWHERE. I was really hesitant about buying something online that I had never even seen before, so I decided to go with this bedding. I got a pretty good deal on it, and I think it looks super cute and is versatile enough to have a lot of good decorating options. Now I need to decide if I'm going to paint or not. I was thinking maybe a really pale green to match? I don't know yet, but its time to start shopping for accessories!



Weekly Update: Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. Her muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and her head is growing bigger to make room for her developing brain. To meet her increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because her bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

28 Weeks

12 weeks to go!!! Kylie is super active lately, kicking and squirming all the time. It seems like she's moving around in there more than she's not and sometimes when she kicks hard it feels like my whole body shakes. I think we are in for one active child. My belly is growing every day and yesterday I looked at myself in the mirror and had to do a double take. My belly looked like it had gotten so much bigger all of a sudden! I am still wearing all of my regular jeans, but I'm afraid that those days are numbered and one day I'm just gonna wake up and literally have nothing to wear. I really need to find somewhere to get maternity pants that run in small sizes before that happens. I had to finally retire the pink and green tank tops I've been wearing in my weekly pictures because they are getting too short to cover the belly!

I had an appointment on Tuesday and all looks well. I got a surprise ultrasound even though I don't think I was really supposed to so I got a very quick peek at our baby and she looks so big already. She also looks somewhat squished in my belly already. She has her head next to my left hip and her body diagonally with her legs at the upper right portion of my belly, which is what I suspected based on her movements. I HOPE this means it will be easier for her to turn completely head down by the time she is getting ready to make her appearance. I asked the doc if she was still a girl, and she said she didn't see anything to make her think otherwise, but the cord was bunched up in between her legs so you really couldn't tell.

I'm starting to work on her nursery and having a hard time deciding on what bedding to choose but right now I'm leaning towards this one. I'm also making a mobile/decoration to hang over her crib which is a lot more time consuming than I thought it would be, but looks cute so far.


Weekly Update: By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

27 Weeks

We made it to the third trimester! I'm finally in the home stretch and couldn't be happier! Only 13 weeks left until we meet our baby girl.

I'm feeling....well....pregnant. I've been really drinking a lot of water since my trip to labor and delivery and feel somewhat better but every day I'm more and more convinced that feeling generally crappy is just part of pregnancy for me. Kylie is sooo active lately and I love feeling her kick and move around in my belly so that is what keeps me positive and knowing I can make it for just three more months (or less) for her.

Weekly Update: This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle.

First Stranger Comment!

After 27 weeks of pregnancy, I think it's finally safe to say I look pregnant! At least safe enough for a stranger to make a comment about it without being afraid of insulting someone who is not actually pregnant. My mom and I were at Char Hut yesterday eating and as I was filling up my drink one of the employees said "So when you laugh now, does your whole belly shake?" I was caught off guard and make him repeat it and then I laughed and was like "Yea, and it can also shake all on its own." He was like, "My sister just had her first baby and I never realized before that when a pregnant woman laughs, her whole belly shakes!" I laughed and thought I was such a cute story and a great first comment from a stranger. Much better than the ones I had been getting from my coworkers, or "When are you due?" or something boring like that. It's about time I have a real baby bump!

Spent my morning in L&D

I woke up this morning with some stomach pains and was feeling a little bit concerned because of the Braxton Hicks I had been having and just felt generally "off." I started thinking back and realized that it had been a while since I had gone #2 but still I wasn't sure if that was causing the stomachache or could possibly be having mild contractions. So, I called the doc and sure enough she recommended that I go to labor and delivery just to get checked out for piece of mind. I arrived about 7am and got all hoooked up to the monitors. Kylie's heartbeat was strong an normal, but the contraction monitor showed "irritability with the uterus." The nurse said there were no real contractions but that something was going on to cause the uterus to be irritated. They thought I might be dehydrated, causing the constipation, and therefore irritating the uterus so I was soon hooked up to an IV and started recieving fluids. They did a urinalysis to rule out bladder infection, and said that looked normal. 1000 ml of fluids were quickly dispensed into my body and I was hooked up to yet another 1000 ml bag! About 10:00 the doctor came by to talk to me and check everything out. By now, the fluids were helping to calm down my uterus and he checked and said my cervix was nice and closed so thankfully I was not having any real contractions. He also claimed I was going to have a speedy labor and said the baby was already really low. I hope his prediction is right! He instructed me to drink A LOT more water and gave me some suggestions to help with the errr...flow of things. And he said if all else fails I have doctors orders to go eat at Taco Bell no earlier than midnight!! He was telling me all these different stories and swears by the Taco Bell trick LOL. I told him it was a contant struggle for me to drink enough water when I am working because I can't just get up and go to the bathroom whenever I need to unless I have someone to relive me and he said that it is only going to get worse as the baby gets bigger and if he has to he will write me a note and put me on "light duty." I am going to have to find out if there is something that they will do for me at work because it is so difficult for me since I am already going to the bathroom about once an hour. I know I need to drink more water and I don't want to go on maternity leave any earlier than I have to so we will see. I'm hoping that this is the only time I will visit L&D before the real thing!

26 Weeks

And it's the year that we are going to meet our baby already. Now that it's January, I feel like we are getting so close to the end already and I have so much left to do. Her nursery is completely empty and I want it to be pretty before she gets here. I need to pick out everything from the stroller to the car seat to monitors and playpens and who knows what else! I need to start doing my research ASAP!

The Braxton Hicks returned last week and I almost thought I would be ringing in the new year in labor and delivery because I was having about 3-4 an hour and that was about as many as I could be having without going to get checked out. I sat down and drank a lot of water and then the frequency was reduced so I figured I just needed to take it easy a little bit.

Otherwise, I'm feeling OK. I wish that I was getting more sleep but what can you do? I hate to admit it, but I'm getting somewhat tired of being pregnant already. I miss my body and being able to eat and drink whatever I want, and sleeping comfortably, and just generally feeling more like myself, but I know all of this will be worth it the moment I lay my eyes on my baby girl.

Weekly Update: The network of nerves in your baby's ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. She may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner's as you chat with each other. She's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of her lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when she's born and takes that first gulp of air. And she's continuing to put on baby fat. She now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches (an English hothouse cucumber) from head to heel.