Baby

Throughout this whole process I continually held back in overly celebrating all the small victories - with the words that we'll only really be celebrating once we hold our baby in our arms.  Well, we are celebrating!!  Our baby was born on Sunday January 18, 2015 at 12:37pm and we have held our little one over and over and over again.  And it is absolutely wonderful.

I had planned to write out my whole birth story here, but having a newborn at home is (no surprise) proving to not allow me a SPECK of free time so I will unfortunately not be able to include that in this post.  But perhaps when things slow down (like when our child is in preschool!?) I'll be able to add the details.

Everything is perfect and wonderful and we are all home safe and sound.  The real journey now begins!

I don't really know what will come of this blog.  We do still have frozen embryos that I imagine we'll want to use in the next couple years, so perhaps I'll write more then.  Or even earlier?  But for now I'm pushing the pause button.  There's a baby here and I'm going to hold them in my arms now.  :)

Week 39

Wow - another week and another blog post.  As I write each of these last few week's of posts I wonder to myself if I'll get to write the next week's.  Well I only have 1 week left here so that gets me through 97.5% of the 40 weeks of pregnancy.  Amazing how far I've come!  And all along I was always SURE Baby was going to come early.  I was convinced like around 37-38 weeks.  Yet here I am passing the 39 week mark and head into the LAST WEEK OF PREGNANCY and still no major signs that this baby is going to make an appearance anytime soon!  But we know it's going to happen in the next week since my Dr. said I'll be induced before going over 40 weeks (due to the gestational diabetes - at 40 weeks the placenta will be aged more like 42 weeks).

They're on their way!!!

How far along: 39 weeks, 1 day
What did baby do this week:  Our baby is relaxing, making fists, dancing, rubbing it's head against my bladder, hiccuping and essentially freeloading.  There's no more major development going on.  In fact, the posters I see at Labor & Delivery when I go in for non-stress tests specifically say that babies shouldn't be induced for any non-medical reason until 39 weeks.  That means babies are GOOD TO GO after 39 weeks.  My baby is good to go.  Come ON with ya!!  As I've said the past few weeks - baby's weight and length will really vary by now from person to person.  Likely anywhere from 6.5-9.2 pounds and 19-21 inches from head to heel.  About the size of a small watermelon.  Finally - the watermelon comparison!!  Baby should have almost completely lost the vernix and lanugo that coated their skin.  Baby's digestive system is now capable of digesting liquid foods and they're peeing at regular intervals.  Skin should now be a pinkish color.
Total weight gain:  35 pounds.  I realize this is absolutely average (though the high end of average) but man is it hard to see on the scale!!!
Symptoms:  Carpal tunnel - ugh.  But I've gotten into a pretty decent routine of wearing my wrist braces at night, icing my wrists for 20 minutes at least once a day, not doing too much cooking or work with my hands...and it seems to maybe be helping.  At least I haven't been woken up with serious pain in the past few days.  There was 1 night maybe a week ago that I was up for 1.5 hours dealing with the pain/tingling in my hands.  Swelling in my feet/ankles/calves - nothing new.  Visiting the restroom literally almost every half hour.
Queasy or Sick:  Like other recent weeks - occasional nausea in the morning before I eat.
Sleep: Pretty good for the most part.  Sleeping almost all the time on my right side (left side hurts my jaw).  Sometimes I'll put the (very thin) pillow under my left side and lie on my back - this way my body is tilted a bit to the right so that all the weight of my belly isn't resting directly on my back.  And this is all working for me okay even thought I'm up maybe 2-3 times at night?
Best moment this week:  Overall feeling truly ready.  Baby is giving me so much time - I’m getting everything done, even the small things.  I even had time for a prenatal massage.  Usually when I get massages I go for the no frills and deep tissue kind.  I'm there to get worked on, not listen to zen music and sniff aromatherapy.  So a prenatal massage was a little different than what I'm used to - more Swedish style.  But it was super relaxing and I had requested that this massage therapist do some lymphatic drainage to help with the swelling in my arms and legs.  Lymphatic drainage is essentially very light rubbing from the largest muscle (for example, the thigh) towards the lymph nodes in the groin and armpit; which makes room for moving fluid built up in the smaller muscles (calves/ankles/feet).  So the light rubbing starts with the thigh muscle moving up, then calves moving up and feet/ankles moving up.  It made a lot of sense in theory - but I really didn't notice any difference afterwards.  Dang.
Hardest part of the week: Feeling a little more uncomfortable.  The baby feels even lower this week than in previous weeks (and the little one has been low for a while).  I really can't bend over much at all.  And if I'm sitting - I can't really sit upright; have to lean back.
Looking forward to:  Duh - obviously meeting our baby!!  I'm cautious about *wishing* for my pregnancy to be over just because I'm a little uncomfortable with the carpal tunnel, constipation, inability to bend over, blood sugar testing, etc.  Cuz I mean - how comfortable am I going to be in the next couple months as I heal from either a vaginal or Cesarean delivery?!  I'll tell you what I'm NOT looking forward to though: a change in my hair.  I complained at the beginning of my (and even mid) pregnancy that my hair wasn't all that different and I thought it was supposed to get thick and awesome.  Well I'd say in the last 2 months or maybe even this whole 3rd trimester, my hair has been awesome (for me).  I have almost the worst hair of anyone ever (thin, fine, dry at the ends, oily at the scalp, kinda wavy but not in a pretty way so I have to dry it every day, breaks easily).  But lately it's not oily so I've been washing it every other day (thank gawd cuz my hands go almost 100% numb as I blow-dry it); it's thicker, it sets into nice waves as I sleep so the non-wash days even look good!  It's still dry, but I can deal with that.  I'm DREADING the hair loss that I know is coming and then I'm so scared that my hair will be even worse after pregnancy than it was before!  Eeeks!!

I'll miss you, Hair...

Movement: I thought Baby was supposed to chill out as we got closer to delivery since there is SO LITTLE space in there.  But no.  I'm still feeling a lot of movement - it's definitely sporadic, but there are times I feel like I'm just getting pummeled from the inside out!
Food cravings: I'm still craving breakfast carbs like nothing else.  I mentioned this in Week 35 too but it hasn't gone away.  Forget about alcohol or sushi.  One of my first meals post-delivery will be pancakes, waffles, donuts, French toast, coffee cake, cinnamon rolls, muffins and scones.  Yes all of that at the same sitting.  ;)
Happy or moody:  Not really happy or moody but a word I continue to use: peaceful.  I'm thankful this little baby is not rushing us and I'm able to get so much done and feel prepared.  I really feel for my friends who were totally surprised by their babies arriving at 33, 34, 35 and 36 weeks.  Even my girlfriend whose baby arrived at 38 weeks caught her off-guard.  I think (hope) that I'll be able to handle labor and delivery better just feeling READY.
Labor signs: I guess not.  Definitely having some Braxton Hicks contractions, but nothing painful other than the lightning crotch I've mentioned.  This past week I started to get nervous about my water breaking (even though it's supposed to only be 10% of women) so I started wearing these GIGANTIC pads whenever I'm out in public.  I sit on a beach towel on the couch and in my office chair.  And while our mattress came with a waterproof cover, I also have one of those large rectangular pads (found in the incontinence aisle with the Depends and such) just under my sheet.  So I guess I'm ready for anything!
Belly button in or out:  Still in - don't think it's going to flatten and for sure won't turn into an outie.  But it's super small and I can see the back of it (is that a weird comment?)
Wedding rings on or off:  Wedding and engagement rings are off.  I've taken to wearing a ring I usually wear on the middle finger of my right hand, instead.  It fits even if my hands get a little swollen.  And sadly, my finger is ALMOST big enough to fit Hubby's wedding band!  Wow.
Stretch marks:  Yup - those few I found on the bottom side of my belly.  I can only see them in the mirror and if I lean back a little.  On either side of my belly.  I hope they don't get too bad.

Learnings from the week: I've been told numerous times to watch/read The Happiest Baby on the Block.  Apparently this guy is a "baby whisperer" and has some great techniques for soothing a crying/fussy baby.  We have the DVD and are planning to watch it tonight.  Hopefully we'll learn something before that baby arrives!
Final Thoughts:  I didn't think we were going to actually pack our bags until it was time to go to the hospital, but I started to worry about a situation where I go to my OB appt or a NST and they see something wrong and check me into the hospital right then and there.  Would I be able to direct Hubby to pack what I need?  Would he know WHICH black leggings to grab?  Um, doubtful.  So this past weekend we both packed our bags as best we could.  Fortunately it was easy to pack Baby's bag since none of that stuff will be needed prior to the hospital!  For all the items I couldn't pack (due to my needing them on a daily basis) I have them on a list and will just be sure to grab them when the time comes.  And some things I've packed, but am just wearing them out of the suitcase and then being sure to pack them back in there at the end of the day.  It's working.  We're ready!  :)

Week 38

Well this baby is DEFINITELY going to come within the next 2 weeks.  There will be no going over my due date since Dr said she won’t let me go past 40 weeks - maybe even a little sooner depending on how things progress.  This is primarily due to the gestational diabetes.  The placenta will start to age and not work as well after 40 weeks, so the baby is better outside than inside.  It's also possible we'll see signs of pre-eclampsia over the next couple weeks since I have the predisposition to high blood pressure (plus I've had a lot of additional swelling and am noticing that my BP, which has been very low all pregnancy, is starting to inch up ever so slightly.)  But at this stage of pregnancy - 38 weeks - I seriously feel like a bomb about to go off!  I've read, and my OB also confirmed that those dramatic scenes of a woman's water breaking at home (or at a store, bank, the office, in the car...) that we so often see in movies/TV is actually a very rare occurrence.  Water breaks in the hospital, after active labor has started, 85-90% of the time!  So it's kinda silly of me to feel like a bomb about to go off, but I do anyway.

I keep expecting for labor to start at any moment since my mom had me at 38 weeks (and I was her first).  She also had my sister early at around 37.5 weeks.  But on average, babies come naturally between 39-41 weeks.  My OB showed me a perfect bell curve where the top is directly over 40 weeks and it tapers perfectly on either side (the link I pasted is exactly what her chart looked like, tho I realize this specific one is 10 year old data and specific to Minnesota - but not much changes, you know?)

How far along: 38 weeks, 1 day
What did baby do this week:  Baby isn't doing a whole lot more than gaining weight and chillin' in there.  They are close to birth weight and length which could be (like I said last week) anywhere from 6.5-9 pounds and 19-20 inches head to heel.  This is roughly the size of a small pumpkin or celery bunch.  Their brain will continue to develop - but this happens throughout childhood regardless of whether they're in utero or not.  Baby is very proficient at making a fist and can grasp things very tightly.  Soon it will be our fingers!
Total weight gain: 33.2 pounds (I have to believe a lot of this weight gain in these last couple weeks is water since I've had so much swelling...)
Symptoms: Carpal tunnel - Aaargh!!!  I'm having trouble using my hands for anything.  They get stiff and hurt if I try to grip something, or if I read a book, look at a magazine, look at my phone or iPad (and am bending my wrists/elbows) then my fingers get tingly and numb.  It can be very bothersome at night for sure.  I have definite swelling in my calves, ankles, feet, arms and hands.  This might be the first week I can see it in my ankles/below my calves where I’d never really noticed it before (but it was probably there.)  I still get those shooting pains/pressure somewhere around my cervix.  I don't know if it's related to a contraction, but it stops me in my tracks.  I think most women call this "lightning crotch" and that is a GREAT explanation for it!  I'm honestly not sure if I've been having contractions - it's very hard to know if it's just Baby moving and pressing their body/butt against me, or if it's a contraction and that's why my belly gets firm (just in one spot).  The baby feels very low to me - I have a hard time leaning forward at all.  It’s hard to reach the bottom cabinets in the kitchen, and I seriously hate it when I drop something on the floor.  Even sitting at a dining table and sitting upright or leaning forward to eat my food is quite uncomfortable.  Ideally I’d like to sit on the couch with a tablecloth across my torso and my bowl of food on my belly and bring the spoon to my mouth.  Comfortable, yes.  Classy, absolutely not.  Do I care?  Kinda not really right now.  It’s just a couple more weeks, if that.

Carpal Tunnel I CURSE YOU!!!!

Queasy or Sick: Occasional nauseous feeling before I eat some mornings (maybe 2-3/week).  But it goes away fast and sometimes I can almost just ignore it.
Sleep:  Good nights and bad nights.  And the problems I'm having are because of the carpal tunnel and my jaw (which I mentioned last week).  I'll wake up to pee and can't fall back asleep because of the pain/tingling in my hands, and then throw in there this weird jaw pain that seems to only really bother me at night... *sigh*
Best moment this week:  Running errands: getting the car washed, grocery shopping, going to Starbucks, going to the mall with my mom.  There are a lot of other people out and about (since it was the week between Christmas and New Years) but I’m taking note that it could be the last time I get to do these things with ease.  I also watched a lot of old 80’s movies on Netflix and sat around with my feet up.  It’s been a great first full week of maternity leave!
Hardest part of the week: Seriously it remains the carpal tunnel which just makes doing things so annoying.  I got a new cell phone on Sunday (better camera to take pix of Baby with!) and would have to put it down repeatedly while I was playing with it/setting things like I want - because my hands were falling asleep and getting painful and tingly.
Looking forward to:  I mean obviously - delivery, and meeting our little baby.  But for other reasons too... I’m glad it took about 36-37 weeks for this swelling to really start bothering me (so many women have it much earlier) but I really hate it.  I had a very disappointing experience the other day when I went to put on some boots - my biggest, roomiest boots too.  I don’t wear them very frequently because they look a little “baggy” around the tops of my feet, ankles and calves.  Up until now I’ve been getting away with flip-flops, flats (those half-size-up Cole Haans I bought a month or two ago), slippers and Uggs, but it was raining so I wanted to wear boots.  I put on some thin socks and went to put the boots on - and not only could I barely get my foot into them, I couldn’t get them zipped up past my ankle.  MY ANKLE!!!  ARGH!!!!
Movement:  Yup - feels like Baby is stretching or rolling sometimes.  And it's kind of a trip when I feel movement low (like in my pelvis) and high (like at the top of my belly) at the same time - really gives me an idea of how big this little one is!  Baby was very stubborn at my non-stress test on Tuesday and WOULDN'T WAKE UP for at least 30-40 minutes (it started to get a little worrisome).  Ice water, buzzing and arriving right after my breakfast didn't seem to help for quite a while.  But then finally: movement and a quick pass of the test.  If Baby still hadn't woken up they would have sent me for an ultrasound...
Food cravings:  Actually healthy food sounds good right now I guess cuz of all the new years resolutions and magazine covers with "healthy clean lifestyles" being shoved at all of us.
Happy or moody:  I think I'm starting to get a little discouraged, especially with the carpal tunnel.  It's really becoming debilitating and keeping me from doing things I'd really like to do especially since these are the last days I'll have time to myself.  Thankfully I tend to get things done early and really have when it comes to planning for this baby, so there is nothing too pressing left to accomplish.  But I would love to do some cooking or baking (which I find very relaxing) however, I think it's making things worse in my hands.  I've also noticed my first morning blood pressure starting to creep up the last few days which is also worrying me a tad (tho my numbers still usually look good at the Dr/NSTs - but read on below for today's report).  I'm really getting ready for Baby to make that big appearance!

Labor signs:  Maybe some Braxton-Hicks contractions?  But I'm still not totally sure if that's what I'm feeling...
Belly button in or out:  Yup - still in.  Pretty sure it won't be changing much from where it's at right now.
Wedding rings on or off:  Sadly I had to stop wearing my engagement ring about a week ago.  It was just making me nervous to have it on because there were some evenings it was very hard to get off.  I was wearing my wedding band up until yesterday (I think it's a 1/4 or 1/2 size larger than my engagement ring) but decided that I'm no longer going to wear that anymore either since it was hard to get off last night.  *sigh*
Stretch marks:  Nothing new
Learnings from the week:  As of this morning I am 1cm dilated and 30% effaced.  Baby's head is very low, but it's not clear if they've "dropped" like I keep hearing people talk about.  This basically doesn't tell me a whole lot since I've read that many women can walk around dilated/effaced like this for a month or more.  But my Dr. did say that it is a good place to be if we have to induce in a couple weeks.
Like I mentioned, my BP has been climbing ever so slightly.  Not into a "high" range when I take it at home, but higher than it's been the last 38 weeks.  Today at my OB appt (just before my NST) it was coming in on the high side.  No protein in my urine, but since I was headed over there anyway, my OB decided to have the hospital do a blood draw to run a toxemia panel just to rule out pre-eclampsia.  Better to be safe than sorry.  My BP was much better at the NST and of course, still no protein in my urine.  They did the blood draw but it takes AN HOUR for the results to come back and I couldn't leave until they got the results, told my Dr and then got her blessing for me to leave.  All checked out fine and I was headed home an hour and a half after arriving.  Whew - a long morning at Labor & Delivery!  But I'm thankful for all the checks and feeling comforted that everything is okay.
Final Thoughts: I guess I do still look small in my belly.  This past week, an older woman waiting in line behind me at the store remarked how great I looked and how she “certainly didn’t look like that when” she was pregnant!  She asked me how much longer I had and when I told her about 1-2 weeks I thought her jaw was going to come unhinged.  Then a friend who stopped by remarked that I look about 6 months pregnant to her (granted, she had twins) and the L&D nurse at my NST on Tuesday also remarked that "your baby looks good sized - you're not very big."  But you know what?  Even in pregnancy - if someone wants to tell me I look small - I WILL TAKE IT!  Especially knowing full well that our Baby is a good and healthy size.  I just hope that it means I will get back into shape all that much sooner.

Week 37

Happy 2015!!  And...WE ARE FULL TERM!!!  Now I suppose I should use caution when saying that: "full term" is something of a floating date and also does depend on your specific baby.  Overall, babies born after 37 weeks have shown to do quite well and are not considered premature.  Lungs are usually developed and they have enough fat to keep warm.  An OB would likely not try to stop labor for women who have completed 37 weeks.  So most doctors, books, apps and websites will concur that 37 weeks is considered full term.  But I have been reading that really at the end of the day, the healthiest babies who do the best overall are those born around 39-40 weeks.  And then the number drops again.  Babies don't do quite as well if they arrive after 40 weeks due to an aging placenta.  But 37 weeks is still a huge goal for us.  Our baby is ready for launch!!  (I saw that on a Lilypie ticker and it made me smile).

Ready for launch!!

How far along: 37 weeks, 2 days
What did baby do this week: Baby is the size of a winter melon with a pretty wide range in weight and length: anywhere from 6.5-9 pounds and 19-20 inches head to toe.  As we know, babies greatly vary in size at birth so it's harder and harder to know "roughly" how large Baby is.  But I'm guessing ours is around 7 pounds if not a bit larger (since last Monday was 6lbs 11oz).  Since Baby is full term, everything is now developed.  Lungs and brain and fat stores should all be in great shape.  Really they're just hanging out in there now, feeling comfortable and warm.
Total weight gain: 31.2 pounds - and there we have it: broke through the 30 pound mark.  I'm comforted knowing some of it is the water/swelling I have going on though.
Symptoms:  I've had this weird jaw pain the last few weeks.  I can't bite down too hard on the left side of my mouth or it will hurt.  I don't know if this has to do with the relaxing of everything that happens near the end of pregnancy or what, but I especially notice it at night.  Maybe I irritate it more when I sleep on my left side.  Or perhaps I grind my teeth, which makes it hurt more.  But I'm hoping it will go away after I deliver.  I'm seeing more swelling in my hands and feet and like I've mentioned - the carpal tunnel in my hands is quite annoying.  I definitely feel like I’m slowing down - but at least don’t feel super uncomfortable.  Well, unless I eat too much - then it can be hard to breathe, but if I stick to smaller meals I'm perfectly comfortable in my midsection.  I've had a lot more discharge than usual, the last couple weeks - and I started wearing liners daily maybe a month ago.  *sigh* This is all very normal though.
Queasy or Sick:  Occasionally but it passes quickly - usually I just need to eat something in the morning.
Sleep:  Pretty good early in the week, but my left hand has now been bothering me more and more at night - I think I need to buy a left handed brace too.  Argh!!
Best moment this week:  This week overall has just been nice.  The week between Christmas and New Years is always my favorite week of the year anyway.  I love spending time with family, listening to Christmas music, seeing the Christmas decorations around town and eating all sorts of bad stuff (tho I promise I'm not going crazy and my blood sugar readings are still looking good!)  It's crazy to think how different life is going to be in just a couple weeks here, but I'm enjoying what's going on right now.  And I'm proud to say that I've even been cooking dinners for Hubby - I'm slower, and it's hard to do some things (wash dishes, even chop ingredients) due to the carpal tunnel and my huge belly, but I'm getting some good food on the table.  Go me and my 9 month pregnant self!

Hardest part of the week:  Really no major complaints.
Looking forward to:  Getting a few more things done around here before we meet our Little One.
Movement:  So much - but it's those rolling/shifting movements now.  The jabs are far less frequent.
Food cravings:  I continue to crave chocolate overall which is very odd for me.  I'm one of those rare ladies who does not love chocolate.  I don't dislike it - but I'm not fanatical like so many are.  But I really would love to eat some brownies or a slice of rich chocolate cake right about now.
Happy or moody:  Happy and still so oddly relaxed.
Labor signs: No
Belly button in or out:  Still in.  Quite small, but in.
Wedding rings on or off:  On, but I think I'm about done wearing them - especially my engagement ring.  It gets very tight sometimes and makes me worried that I might not be able to get it off at some point.
Stretch marks:  Those same 2 areas under my belly.  They don't look TOO bad, but I think they may get a little worse before all is said and done.
Learnings from the week: Since I'm at Labor & Delivery twice a week for my non-stress tests, I get a lot of time with the L&D nurses and exposure to that section of the hospital.  It's really great actually!  I've been able to ask so many questions and really feel like I'll be as prepared as possible for the day we arrive to have our baby.  I thought I'd share a few little learnings I've taken away (at least from our hospital) over the past few weeks:  You don’t need clothes for baby other than a going home outfit.  They are swaddled for the most part and the hospital has everything you could need for them (diapers, hats, blankets, etc.)  If you're in a suite where your Hubby/partner can stay with you at night you may want to have them bring additional warm clothing layers.  It seems most new moms run a little warm so they keep the rooms cool.  Please ask your Hubby to not treat the hospital room like a hotel room.  One nurse told me she's shocked at how many husbands sit around the room (or even walk in the hallways!) in their boxers or PJs.  And they'll put their finished hospital food tray outside the door.  There is no room service and the nurses really don't want to see these dudes walking around half naked!

None of this, daddies...at least not at the hospital.

Final Thoughts: Sometime in the last month+ my reading shifted from pregnancy books to newborn care books.  And OMG thank goodness I have because there is SO MUCH MORE TO KNOW about babies than there is to know about pregnancy! (no duh, right?)  My favorite so far is this one (be sure if you are reading this long after I’ve written it - to get the most recent edition.  They update the books frequently - which is also great.)  It’s from the same people as the Baby Bargains book I was pushing so much during my baby gear and registry research.  It’s full of great info and written in a totally fun (not dry) way that makes it very easy to read.  We're also reading this book.  I forget who recommended it to me, but it's a little less fun than the Baby 411 one, however still good info.  The third book I'm trying to rotate into my own personal reading club is this one.  I feel very strongly about wanting to breastfeed so any additional information I can get is good.

Week 36

I'm getting down to the last weeks here and I'm still a little stumped as to whether I'm "big" or not.  When I look in the mirror I feel really big.  Just in the last week or so I feel like my belly, boobs and even face are so much rounder than usual.  And my belly is not always contained by some of the maternity shirts I've been wearing for months now.  But yet people keep commenting that I look “so tiny”.  Even at my NST on Tuesday the L&D nurse said that my belly is really small.  I guess it’s all relative.  I look big to ME, but I think for 36 weeks I’m really not looking too big.  So I suppose this is a good thing?  I loved that whole stage of pregnancy where I looked "cute".  Maybe I still look cute?  :)

"Does this baby make me look fat?"

Oh and MERRY CHRISTMAS to all of you who celebrate!!!

How far along: 36 weeks, 2 days
What did baby do this week:  We had a growth ultrasound on Monday and found out that OUR little one weighs 6lbs 11oz!  OMG that sounds SO LEGIT!!  Baby is in the 69th percentile so they're not even super huge compared to other babies at the same age.  I asked the perinatologist how accurate the weight is and she said it's a bit of +/- but our ultrasound tech is one of their better ones, plus they just got these BRAND NEW machines and we were only the 2nd or 3rd couple of the morning to get their U/S on it!  So she thinks that's pretty accurate to true size.  The average baby is the size of a coconut this week at around 6 pounds and 19 inches long.  If you haven't already - you'd start weekly visits with your doctor this week, but I've been doing them since about 32 weeks since I have complications (she wants to measure my amniotic fluid each week.)  Baby just continues to get bigger.  The brain and lungs continue to develop - but in just a few short days our little one will be considered full term!  What a landmark that will be!
Total weight gain: 29.8 pounds - ACK!!  Almost 30!  This means I'm definitely gonna push through that 30 pound ceiling.  Oh well, at least it's just 2-3 more weeks before it will start coming down.
Symptoms:  Ugh - the carpal tunnel I talked about last week.  It's different in each hand.  Left hand isn't painful, but gets tingly/numb if my hand/arm are bent or raised for too long.  Right hand doesn't get tingly/numb, but will get very painful if I don't sleep with a brace on to straighten my wrist.  Crazy...  Feeling a lot of pressure “down there” especially when I sit on the toilet or squat (to get things out of cabinets, pick things up, etc.)  OB said it's just the weight of the baby + all the fluids.  In another pregnancy blog, I read about someone having “lightning crotch” and I think I know what she’s talking about.  It’s sort of like a sharp feeling (not exactly a pain) that suddenly happens from somewhere in my pelvis and down to my vaginal area.  Not sure what that’s about but it can take my breath away.  A good amount more swelling in my feet and maybe hands.  The swelling in my feet was so bad on Wednesday that I ordered some compression socks that arrived today.  I put them on immediately and they're definitely helping.  Plus, they're cute and warm!  Maybe it's worth mentioning that I'm still dealing with constipation even though I'm taking the Colace twice a day.  Sometimes I go 2-3 days without "going" (not even feeling the need to!)  Argh!
Queasy or Sick:  No - feeling great for the most part!
Sleep:  Actually a lot better than last week, after getting the brace for my right wrist.  My wrist no longer wakes me up at night in pain (from the carpal tunnel) and perhaps it's subconscious, but I sleep deeper too.  I think I was worrying about what position I was sleeping in before I got the brace and my body would wake up to reposition as necessary.
Best moment this week: Finishing work!  The first few days of this week were my last and while I didn’t go into the office and it's been super light due to the holidays, it will be nice to start next week off knowing I no longer have to call into any meetings and can just spend each day relaxing, enjoying those lovely days between Christmas and New Years and prepping to meet my baby!  I ordered my breast pump through insurance this week (must be 30 days or less before due date) and am working on slowly crossing things off my list.  (researching life insurance, installing the carseat and base in each of our cars, bought some nursing bras...)

Hardest part of the week: Dealing with the carpal tunnel in my hands/arms.  It was so bad overnight last week - but like I mentioned, I finally got a wrist brace (for my right hand, which was worse) and it’s definitely better.
Looking forward to: All The Things!  So I used our 1-time-use 15% Amazon discount to order all the rest of the items on our registry that I thought we’d need sooner than later (or items that were especially high priced like our stroller and baby monitor).  It was the largest shopping cart I've ever had (30 items) and the most expensive too (esp with a big convertible stroller + baby monitor on there).  But I'm looking forward to having all these items arrive so that I can sort through them and put them in place.
Movement: Lots.  And Baby (who continues to be in the same position they have been for over a month now: head down, body on the right side of my body, butt just under my right ribs and limbs all over on the left side of my torso) seems to be a little booty dancer: that butt is always pushing up into my ribs!  The movements overall are very different than before though.  I would say it feels more like "waves".  Like I can feel these subtle shifts when the baby is repositioning, but they aren't really jabs - more like a slow deliberate movement.  There is less and less space in there so that all makes sense.
Food cravings: More than anything I'm just really ready to be able to eat whatever I want whenever I want.  This GD diagnosis has really put into perspective what it'd be like to have a health-restrictive diet.  I hope it makes me appreciate my youth and ability to eat most things (when I'm not pregnant) and maybe even be a catalyst to eat HEALTHIER than we already eat!
Happy or moody: Happy and feeling very peaceful.  I know I'm going to be having a baby in just a few weeks or less, but with the warmth of the holidays, feeling pretty prepared, and knowing that Baby would be just fine if they were born now - I really do feel at peace.  It's a great feeling.
Labor signs: No
Belly button in or out: In - I'm really wondering if it's gonna pop or even flatten.  It's getting very small but I'm just not sure it'll stretch out all the way!  I guess maybe my belly *is* small, so said the L&D nurse!
Wedding rings on or off: On but I might need to start keeping it off pretty soon.  I take it off before we go for our evening walks since my hands definitely swell then.
Stretch marks: Nothing new
Learnings from the week: I got my Group B Streptococcus [vaginal] swab done last Friday and I found out the results at my appointment this morning: negative!  All women should be tested for GBS which can be passed from mother to infant during childbirth.  While as many as 30% of women carry the group B strep bacteria without showing any symptoms, GBS can lead to life-threatening infections in newborns.  If someone tests positive, then they'd be given antibiotics during labor.  Something else I learned this week was that my OB won’t let me go past ~39-40 weeks because of the gestational diabetes.  She said that the placenta will start to age and not function as well.  So we’ll see where I’m at in 3 weeks and figure out what the plan is…
Final Thoughts: I've started planning out my hospital bag.  I have a list that I created a few weeks ago and have been adding to/taking from, depending on what I read online and in Mommy forums, etc.  In fact, I think I'd like to actually start PACKING it in the next week here.  Obviously there's only so  much I can pack since I use my toiletries every day and will want/need access to my comfy/loungey maternity clothes.  But even just having a list ready is a great step - in case I go into labor and need to start rushing around packing.

Week 35

As I wrote the title of this blog post (Week 35) I couldn't help but remember my first weekly post: Week 6.  It was really scary to me, to start counting weeks.  At that point in time I was so hopeful to (specifically) get to 35 weeks and yet so worried that I might not.  Writing a pregnancy blog, it turns out, is a little bit of a scary prospect since you are documenting a process which travels along a length of time.  It occurs regularly and there is an end goal.  It's not like a travel blog where someone just sits down and writes about France and Thailand and stuff whenever they feel like it.  There is a build-up to something that is going to happen and OMG if I wasn't SO WORRIED that I might not get there when I first started writing these weekly posts.  But here I am!  At 35 weeks and everything seems to be going so well.  I'm just so thankful...and relieved.  I don't get very many comments on the pregnancy portion of this blog - but I do hope that ladies are still reading AND perhaps, still sending me good vibes.  To all of you who do: thank you so much!  We're almost there and my words I've stated all along this journey: that I've been cautious to celebrate any of the small milestones since we will only truly be done with the journey when we're holding our baby in our arms; this will be happening in just a few weeks!  All I care about at this point is coming home safely with Baby and Hubby and starting our life together as a family of 3.

How far along: 35 weeks, 1 day
What did baby do this week:  Baby is about the size of a honeydew melon at around 5 1/2 pounds give or take and 18-18.5" from head to feet.  Obviously these sizes will vary from baby to baby since we know babies (even those at the same gestational age) are born such different sizes.  And all this variation really starts to come into play in these last weeks.  So the sizes I'm quoting are roughly the averages - your baby could easily be smaller or larger.  Baby will start to gain 1/3-1/2 pound for the remainder of being in utero.  Baby's brain is continuing to mature as are his/her lungs but of course most babies born at this stage fare very well.  Whew!
Total weight gain: 28 pounds - almost 2.5 up from last week!  Eeeks!  But at least we're still under that 30 pound mark.
Symptoms:  The latest annoying symptom is pregnancy-related carpal tunnel.  This is due to swelling in my arms.  There is a "tunnel" on the underside of your wrist, which contains the median nerve, which runs from your forearm to your palm.  This tunnel is already very narrow.  So as/if you have swelling in your wrist, the nerve gets pressed on which can lead to tingling, pain or numbness in the hands which can radiate up the arm.  So it's really a lot of fun, you know?  It was really bothering me on Tuesday even during the day, but prior to that I was only bothered in the mornings after waking up.  Because of the annoyance on Tuesday, I ordered a wrist brace for my right hand that should arrive today.  I was reading that if you can keep your wrist straight while you sleep it will help the pain.
Queasy or Sick: Not really
Sleep: I've been waking up a lot through the night to use the restroom and the carpal tunnel has really been bothering me.  I think I'm even subconsciously concerned about trying to keep my wrist straight while I sleep so I wake up worrying about it and then sometimes wake up because my wrist hurts so badly!  Blagh.  Also - I started sleeping with a very flat/thin (old) pillow; I place the lower half of it between my knees while I'm on my side and the top half under my belly - it's way more comfortable to me than those huge body pillows which just made me hot.  Oh and BTW, I had tried this pillow out months ago, before returning it - and not only did it make me way too hot, but the fabric is nowhere near as nice as sheets fabric so it felt rough on my legs compared to my sheets.  I've heard of ladies sewing some pillow cases together as a cover, but it wasn't working for me anyway so...bye-bye body pillow.
Best moment this week: Not sure if this is a “moment” but my blood sugar numbers have been super low this past week.  I’m feeling great about that - and happy that I never had to go on insulin (well, at least not yet).
Hardest part of the week: I guess since I've talked about it so much: the carpal tunnel.  I hope it goes away SO FAST after delivery!
Looking forward to: This last week of work being over so I can just concentrate on what I need to get done to prep for project Baby Arrival (and Christmas!)  There are still a handful of things I want to finish up - but fortunately nothing too huge.  Mostly I need to wash some items (sheets, blankets, burp cloths, clothing, diaper pad cover, etc.) and pack my hospital bag.  The other things on my To-Do list are more nice-to-haves.  Christmas shopping while pregnant has been a bit of a challenge - I can't carry as much as I usually can and don't move quite as fast either.  But I do so much Christmas shopping on Amazon anyway that it's not a significant problem.

Movement:  YES.
Food cravings: Totally craving breakfast carbs.  I can get away with other carbs and even small servings of dessert/Christmas cookies in the afternoon or evenings (that is when my body, and most peoples' bodies actually, are the least insulin resistant - meaning we use the insulin our bodies produce more effectively to absorb the glucose in our bloodstream).  But in the mornings I can basically have very small amounts of carbs or my blood sugar levels are higher than we'd like to see.  Therefore...I am seriously craving pancakes and waffles, French toast, crepes, coffee cake, Danish pastries, even oatmeal and cold cereal with milk!!!
Happy or moody: Pretty happy.  I LOVE the holidays and LOVE anticipating a cozy winter with my little baby to cuddle.
Labor signs: No
Belly button in or out: In
Wedding rings on or off: On
Stretch marks:  No more than the two I sadly discovered a few weeks ago.
Learnings from the week: We got our carseat a couple weeks ago and were going to put it in.  But then I realized that even if Baby came (2 weeks ago was 33 weeks) they likely would not be coming home from the hospital with us and would need to spend a little bit of time in the NICU.  So I didn't rush to put it in, especially since I didn't want it taking up room in my backseat before it really had to.  So fast-forward to now...I just made an appointment at our local police station for next week to check our install.  By 36 weeks, Baby COULD come home with us, so I wanted the seat installed and checked by then just in case.  I was happy to find that not only will they check the install, they'll DO the install for us if we want and show Hubby and me how to do it too.  We're taking the carseat + base, plus the 2nd base, plus both of our cars and should hopefully have EVERYTHING ready for a tiny little passenger in either car, by this time next week.

Final Thoughts:  Yesterday was my last day in the office.  It was such a weird feeling knowing that I won't be back for 5-6 months.  Of course this is the longest I'll have ever been away from my office before.  Those 3 week long vacations I've done in the past look like nothing compared to maternity leave.  And can I just say (no seriously, I don't know why this matters so much to me - I guess 'cuz I just wanted to look like as stylish a pregnant lady as possible!) that I wore heels to work all the way through my entire pregnancy?!  In fairness it wasn't always pumps; yesterday I had on wedge heels: but my heel was still higher than my toes.  I'm also very proud of the fact that I used the stairs every day to get to my desk on the second floor.  Every day I had my computer bag, water bottle and purse and sometimes a bagged lunch.  I was always SUPER careful to hold onto the railing, but this was an important little milestone for me since I've always climbed those stairs (pre-pregnancy) and it's never been a big deal at all whatsoever.  It got harder in the end, but I still did it yesterday.  :)

Week 34

Things are really starting to move along here...  Next week is my last week in the office and I’ve only been going in twice a week right now anyway.  I've been feeling so many emotions: excitement, nervousness and of course OMG-am-I-gonna-finish-everything?  I feel pretty on top of most things though.  The nursery is basically done (tho, I don't know why that matters since Baby will sleep in our room for a couple months at least.)  I have all the clothes our little one will need in the first few weeks.  We've met pediatricians, my maternity leave is all set up, we have the carseat - just need to install it, and have the Pack 'n Play, Fisher-Price Rock 'n Play sleeper and bassinet from our stroller, as sleeping options around the house.  I have a handful of things I do still need to do: buy diapers and wipes, order my breast pump through insurance (I have to wait until 36 weeks), buy some nursing bras and granny panties and a few other preparations for postpartum and pack my hospital bag!  But for the most part - we are READY!  OMG!

Do we have everything we need?!

How far along: 34 weeks, 2 days
What did baby do this week:  Baby is the size of a large cantaloupe (uhh...you mean at week 24 Baby was the size of a small one and now TEN weeks later is the size of a large one?!) at around 5 pounds give or take and 17.5-18.5" head to feet.  The lanugo (that fine hair which has been all over Baby's body) continues to shed this week and might even be completely gone.  The vernix (waxy, white thick protective layer which has also been all over Baby's body) is starting to disappear, but a little will still be left at birth.  Little One's immune system is no longer relying on the antibodies from the placenta and the placenta will start to age this week, even though it is capable of supporting Baby until birth.  I also read that Baby needs additional calcium around this time and they *will* take it from you and your bones if you're not consuming enough.  So get plenty of dairy, leafy greens and legumes!
Total weight gain: 25.6 pounds
Symptoms:  Is it?... I think...I'm pretty sure - that my sciatica isn't bothering me anymore?  Granted I haven't spent too much time standing (which is what would aggravate it before) but I'm pretty happy to report a HUGE reduction in any pain in my left butt muscle!  Still with the numb-ish heels tho - SO WEIRD.
Queasy or Sick: Not really.
Sleep:  Not bad, but getting up so frequently to pee - ugh!
Best moment/Hardest part of this week:  I can't really think of a best moment or hardest part of my week but there were 2 noteworthy items that came and went.  I had my last Prenatal Yoga class (long story with changing instructors) and my last acupuncture appointment this week.  The yoga has been awesome and I'm so glad I stuck with it through the last 2 trimesters.  I've never developed any back pain and have great balance and a strong core.  As for the acupuncture, I really don't know how or if it's helped - but with insurance covering it through this week I didn't have anything to lose in continuing it.  However, I'm not going to pay $80/visit to continue!

A large one - not a small one, like in week 24...

Looking forward to: A friend's bridal shower this weekend!  This even is the last social event before Baby comes.  At least a big one that's been on my calendar.  I'm sure with Christmas and New Years coming up so soon, other impromptu social callings will arise, but I prefer to see how I'm feeling each weekend and play my plans by ear.  Also, after this weekend I don't think I really want to be too far from home without Hubby.  JUST in case I go into labor or something!
Movement: Bigger movements that seem to move my whole belly.  And it seems: a lot of head-butting my bladder!  Argh!!
Food cravings:  I WANT ALL THE COOKIES!  Christmas cookies all over the place - argh!!
Happy or moody:  Happy.  Feeling good about how prepared we are and good about how far along I am (in case Baby shows up early.)
Labor signs: No
Belly button in or out: In, but getting very small.
Wedding rings on or off: On!
Stretch marks: Those 2 I mentioned last week...waaaaah!
Learnings from the week:  I spent a ton of time last week going through all the clothes I have for the baby.  I inventoried everything that was given to us - and was surprised to find that we were basically not given any 0-3 month size clothing!  So many of my friends are moms, I guess they figured they'd buy clothing for the future knowing that typically a couple gets so much "young" stuff.  Well the thought backfired.  So I went out and bought what I hope is enough 0-3 month clothing to feel like our little one will not be naked all the time once they come home!  And to be safe, I also got 3 newborn size outfits JUST in case they're tiny or come early - so I'm not caught off-guard.  I might return them after our 36 week growth ultrasound if we think Baby is looking to be good sized.
Final Thoughts: We went to a Christmas party at a friend’s place on Saturday and while I was there I realized it was my last social gathering with my main group of friends, before I have the baby!!  The shower tomorrow (that I mentioned above) is really an event I'm going to just for the bride.  I don't really know anyone else going.  But the Christmas party this past weekend was ALL my good friends and it was so weird saying bye at the end of the night - not knowing when I'd see them again!  Maybe at our house when they come visit our baby!!