And Baby Makes Three

39 weeks and all's well

Just over a week until the due date and I'm doing well. I get tired by the end of the day, but that's to be expected. My belly has really blossomed in the last month or so; people have begun to say things like, "When are you due?"

I had an uneventful appointment Wednesday. My blood pressure was 120/70, the baby's heartbeat was in the 130's, and I'd gained another pound since my last appointment. The practice where I receive care doesn't believe in doing internal exams just for the heck of it. The nurse/midwife said that they're not medically necessary, they're uncomfortable, and they're not predictive of anything, meaning that the effacement/dilation of the cervix doesn't really predict when, or how soon, the woman will deliver.

The cradle is assembled, thanks to my father-in-law, and the baby's room is freshly painted -- even the closet -- thanks to my sister-in-law and my husband. We have a great lamp on a bookcase with a CD player on the middle shelf and baby's books on the bottom shelf. I've laundered all of the baby clothes, blankets, etc. and need to finish sorting them out by size. The crib is in the house, but not assembled. We still need a changing table/dresser combo. We have diapers and wipes and all that good stuff.

Baby Showers & Baby Shopping

My sister's and my baby shower was the 3rd of April and we had a great time. My sweet husband came home with a couple more baby items (the travel system & Diaper Champ) on 4/6. On April 10th hubby and I went to Babies-R-Us to finish the rest of our baby shopping. On April 16th my husband's side of the family threw us a surprise shower. On April 22nd friends at one of my husband's jobs threw him a surprise shower.

37 weeks and all's well

A good appt. -- I've gained 4.5 pounds since the last time, which is fine because I hadn't gained for a while; I've gained 22.5 pounds total for the pregnancy. My uterus is measuring at 38 weeks and my blood pressure was good (108/50). The baby's heartbeat was 130-140 bpm and strong. I also got to go see the birthing center and meet the last nurse-midwife in the practice that I hadn't met before. My hematocrit level from the test two weeks ago was 37, so that's great. It was 24.5 before I started taking the iron pills, so I guess they're working!

35 Weeks and All's Well

Had an appointment today. My blood pressure was something like 115/62 (can't remember the exact top number, but it was in the teens) and my weight stayed the same as three weeks ago. I don't think my eating habits have changed any. The midwife said she'd like to see me still gaining weight, so I guess I'll try to add some more calories to what I eat. (First and last time in my life I'll be getting that advice, I'm sure!) Heard my sweet baby's heartbeat and inquired as to his/her position -- he/she is head down with his/her back on the left side of my belly and arms to the right. They did a swab test for Group B Strep -- commonly done at this point in pregnancy -- and had me give another vial of blood so they can check my hematocrit (iron levels) again. Sigh. Three straight appointments where I've had to have blood taken. Hopefully that's the end of that. I asked about traveling ~1 hour from home (which would put us ~1 hour, 40 minutes from the hospital) next week (to finish our baby shopping) and the midwife said as long as I was feeling OK with no signs of possible labor, there shouldn't be any concern. I asked how far past my due date they'd let me go before inducing; the answer -- two weeks past the due date -- which would be the 21st of May. Lordy, lordy. Hope I don't have to wait that long. Next appointment in a couple of weeks.

Breastfeeding Class & Childbirth Class

I see I haven't posted here in almost two weeks. I've had a bad cold which I am still trying to permanently kick to the curb. As my sister said to me in a phone call Sunday, it does seem a bit unfair to have something additional causing you physical discomfort when you are in late pregnancy!

The second glucose test came back at 124, so I definitely don't have gestational diabetes.

The baby has been as active as always, working on his/her Riverdance routines in utero. I sing silly songs to him/her; neither my lyrics nor my melodies will be winning any awards. One goes like this: "I've got a big giant belly with a baby inside, a big giant belly with a baby inside, a big giant belly with a baby inside, and the baby's name is Roo." See what I mean?

Last Thursday evening I attended a breastfeeding class at the hospital. The nurse who taught the class said that at the least she wanted us to take two pieces of information away with us: how to position our baby at the breast, and how to know if the baby is getting enough to eat. We practiced positioning with lifesize baby dolls. There are three main positions: the cradle hold (where the baby's head is cradled in the crook of your arm and its body is parallel and crosswise of your torso), the football hold (where you hold the baby under your arm), and laying down (where you and the baby are facing each other and its body is parallel to and mirroring your body). One main way you know if the baby is getting enough to eat is that he/she will have a certain number of dirty diapers per day -- on the "what goes in must come out" theory.

The childbirth class on Saturday was great. I think both my husband and I were a little concerned that an all day class might get deadly dull, but the birthing center nurses who taught it did a great job. They took turns teaching/introducing the various segments. We watched a couple of short movies, did some group segments, got down on the floor to practice positions for laboring and breathing exercises. There was a break for lunch, during which K. and I went to a local sandwich shop for yummy sandwiches. I feel more knowledgeable about what the entire experience will be like and what it will be like at the specific place where we will be delivering (as some hospitals/birthing centers have different protocols/procedures, etc.).

32 Weeks and All's Well

Had an appointment this morning. My blood pressure was good -- 120/70 -- and I'd actually lost 1.5 pounds between the last appointment and this one. The nurse/midwife said she would have been concerned except that I told her about having that stomach bug a couple of weeks ago. The baby's heart rate is 140 beats per minute, strong and steady; my uterus is measuring exactly where it should be. I had the one hour glucose test again and am hoping, of course, that the level is normal this time. I ate a couple of eggs for breakfast because there are hardly any carbohydrates in them.

This is a sketch of what a baby in utero would look like at eight months. See where the little butt and the little feet are located? When I'm semi-reclined on pillows reading in bed at night, the top of my belly is often lopsided, as if he/she has nestled his/her little bottom up there on one side or the other. Or maybe it's a foot. Either way, it's kinda funny.

Pregnancy Brain Stories

Have had two "pregnancy brain" moments in two days -- a bit worrisome. Sunday I was grocery shopping and lost my cart. I'd parked it when I realized I had to go back for frozen broccoli and then couldn't find it again. Finally did, but felt like such a dummy. Thought I was going to have to call my husband (waiting out in the car) on his cell phone and ask him to come in and help me find it.

Then yesterday I was driving home from work and followed a sander/plow for a while, then finally passed it. Once I got around the vehicle I thought my headlights weren't working. By holding the steering column gizmo toward me, I got the brights to stay on. I figured it was some weird electrical malfunction. When I got to a well-lit gas station, I pulled in to check things out. The car was fine -- when I'd turned my lights on back in the parking lot at work, I'd only put on my fog lights. Duh! And it wasn't quite dark yet when I was leaving, which is why I hadn't realized it sooner. Man.

31 weeks and all's well

This has been a good week. The baby's been active. I've been a little tired, but managed to go to the gym Monday & Thursday, and plan to go tomorrow morning, too. I'm still walking 30 minutes total (5 minutes warmup at 2.5 mph, 20 minutes at 3.0 mph, 5 minutes cooldown at 2.5 mph) most times; I've decreased my top speed because it was bothering my back and hips to walk at 3.3 mph. I'm sure there are people who are more active than I have been and power to them. This is what I'm capable of sustaining on a regular basis. I began taking my iron supplements and decided to take them every other day for the first week to ease into it. The gift I ordered for my sister's baby shower gift arrived the other day. It's been so fun to be pregnant at the same time as her (she is ~12 weeks behind me). We can kvetch about various things, knowing that the other totally understands!

30 weeks along and trying not to be a big whiner

Last weekend I caught a stomach bug which caused my body to violently expel the toxins from it, in a couple of not very fun ways. I felt like roadkill and stayed home from work on Monday. Yesterday I did something to set off my back again and also had gastrointestinal discomfort at the same time, so I wasn't initially sure if it was the same thing as two weeks ago. I had gone up to the gym to walk on the treadmill, but was unable to do so. Thankfully my Mom was there; she came home with me and kept me company until just before my husband was expected home. I spent most of the night trying to sleep on the couch because I couldn't get sufficiently comfortable in bed.

As the title of this post says, I'm trying not to be a whiner. I figure every day that I can get dressed, drive to work, perform my job, and drive home again without a lot of discomfort is a good day. I'm ten weeks from my due date. . . maybe I should make a countdown chart to check off each night. :-)

I figure there's no reason not to report on the less fun aspects of this journey; I might as well be balanced about what I'm writing. But I'm posting at least as much for myself as for whomever may be visiting from the 'net. If I never have another child, I want to remember what this was like. If I am contemplating doing it again, I want to remember the bad with the good!

Lab Results from Yesterday

I just had a call about my lab results. My glucose was within a normal range (132), but they like to retest for anyone whose level is between 130-140. The nurse thought that my breakfast (one slice of peanut butter toast) might have affected the results. Next time I'm just going to have eggs, darn it all!

I asked the nurse whether there was anything I could do -- dietary or otherwise -- to minimize my chances of gestational diabetes. She suggested just "watching your carbohydrates," eating smaller meals, smaller portion sizes of high carb foods.

My hematocrit level was 34.3, which is low, so they recommend I take an iron supplement for the rest of the pregnancy and try to eat more iron-rich foods. Unfortunately, this supplement can cause problems with constipation, so she recommended either taking a stool softener or just increasing my fluid and fiber intake.