39 Weeks: Baby Got Tased!

Thirty. Nine. Weeks.

Baby is the size of a: Watermelon. Oh, heaven help me... (This definitely explains why I fall over when putting on my socks!)

  

 

Development(s): Last week I was a fingertip dilated, 60% effaced, and -1 station. This week...no change. Boo. (I know, I know - it doesn't really mean anything. But, still...I was secretly kind of hoping for some progress already.)

 

Other signs of impending labor? Meh...I wish. Baby is cozy and not overly anxious to meet the world at the moment, it seems.

 

Movement: I had a good scare this past week when Sylvia, who normally acts like she's Jackie Chan (she moves all the time), went incognito. I didn't feel her move all night (normally she's going to town whenever I get up to pee) or the next morning. I tried the typical recommendations: drinking a lot of water and lying on my side for an hour, eating something sugary, poking/nudging her (ha, yeah), etc., and was getting increasingly nervous at the complete lack of response. I finally called the OB's office around 1:00, and they told me to come in.

For the first 15 minutes of monitoring, we saw a good heartbeat but nope, no movement. Then the nurse grabbed this little back-massager looking thing and - bzzzzt! - zapped (there is no other word for it) my belly - whoa! Immediate response. Ha. Poor child. She was kicking like an Olympic swimmer after that...and hasn't stopped since, it seems. (She's probably scared she'll get the "baby taser" used on her again.)

Anyway, the doctor said apparently it was just a lazy night/day for her...but, whew. I did tell Alex that now I know what to do if I have another lack-of-movement scare: go straight to Bed, Bath & Beyond and find a back massager!

Weight gain: No gain this week, so still 23 pounds total.

Maternity clothes: Everything I put on makes me feel like:

 

 

Except maybe not quite so happy about it.

 

Sleep: A bit better this past week, actually.

Aversions/Cravings: No.

 

Symptoms: I've reached a point where everything in this category is a complaint: I'm itchy, achy, swelling, cumbersome, tired, sore, and cranky (ask Alex; ha). I didn't realize how overall painful the last days of pregnancy can be.

That said, I'm grateful to be here! And also grateful to realize that I've never had any of these: stretch marks (SO glad to have avoided that one!), peeing my pants (it sounds like this happens to a lot of women? I never experienced it), heartburn/reflux (had a bit one week, but not other than that), and an "outie" belly button.

I miss: Clothing options!

I feel: Impatient. A little nervous. A lot excited. I want to meet this little girl!!

 

Looking forward to: Delivery day...one way or another, it's coming soon. My OB gave me the rundown today on what we'll do if I go past my due date (i.e., induction) - it's crazy to me that we're even talking about this after the long battle to keep this baby inside. So ironic!

Papi moment: Alex is getting major husband points these days for (a) putting up with me and (b) being consistently encouraging/sweet. He actually told me he's going to miss seeing me pregnant because he loves it - thinks it's just beautiful and loves seeing "his babies" together like this. Which is so sweet...and totally not enough to make me want to stay pregnant any longer. Ha.

Anyway...on to either 40 weeks or, hopefully, Sylvia's grand entrance before then!

38 Weeks: Pee Wee, Pinterest & (Not Much) Patience

Restless. That's the word of the week. (Show of hands: how many of you hear "word of the week" and think of Pee Wee Herman's "word of the day"? No kidding, just me? Huh...)

I've turned a corner at 38 weeks and shifted from "Please keep this baby inside one more week!" to "I want this baby out NOW!" That didn't take long, did it? Ha.

Well, she is due in less than two weeks. And I'm uncomfortable and achy and impatient and nesting like nobody's business - washing baby clothes, organizing everything that possibly can be organized, scrubbing floors, packing my hospital bag...and Pinteresting (like that verb?) like a mad woman.

One Pinterest project this week has been nursing tanks/camis. I wanted to buy a couple, but the stinking things are $20 apiece! I figured surely I could find a DIY option. Pinterest failed me not. Tadaaa:

Clearance camis at Target: $4.50 each. Packet of snaps at Michael's: $1.49. Some scissors and a needle and thread: hey, already had those - $0. Saving money AND keeping busy: definitely priceless.

Thank you, Pinterest. I do heart you.

Anyway, at 38 weeks:

Baby is the size of a: Pumpkin. A pumpkin. That's...big.

 

  

Development: I think now's a good time to change this category to "Developments" (as in, labor-related developments). I'm sitting at about a fingertip dilated, 60% effaced, and -1 station. Last week I was 30% effaced and not dilated at all. (So things are moving the right direction, though, really, those numbers mean very little in terms of when labor might start. It could be a while yet or could come on suddenly at any time now.)

 

What else? I'm crampy, and my lower back hurts. And I'm still contracting, of course (I'm a pro at that by now; ha), here and there.

 

But it's all a waiting/watching game, isn't it?

 

Movement: She was squirming around like a fish during my OB appointment yesterday.

Weight gain: Oh. My. Word. I'm almost afraid to type this, but according to the doctor's scales, I gained four pounds this last week! In one stinking week. What the...??? It's not like a lived on pizza - it was just a normal week. Maybe this shouldn't shock me, though; it seems like my pattern has been to go 2-3 weeks with little to no gain and then to have a sudden "growth spurt." Or it could be random fluctuation. I'll be curious to see my numbers next week. But with this four, that makes 23 pounds total so far. Whew! (Waddle, waddle...)

Maternity clothes: Um, yeah. Pretty soon even those aren't going to fit...

 

 

Sleep: I don't want to talk about it. (Sigh...)

Aversions/Cravings: Nah.

 

Symptoms: Itchyitchyitchy stomach and swollen ankles - lovely. Also, she's got her head down in my pelvis and is bumping into all kinds of nerves down there. Feels like lightning bolts...not in a good way.

I miss: My baby. And I haven't even met her yet. Come on, girl!

I feel: Fat. (Well, I do. Ha.)

 

Looking forward to: Meeting this baby!!!