31 - 34 weeks

Bedrest, bedrest, and more bedrest...


How far along: 31 weeks (Dec. 15th), 32 weeks (Dec. 22nd), 33 weeks (Dec. 29th), 34 weeks (Jan. 5th)

Baby size: According to various baby websites, he is around 5 pounds now, and could be 18-20 inches long. According to my midwives, baby is almost 7 pounds already (at 34.5 weeks), which is another indicator that my due date is off! They all think I'm closer to 36-37 weeks, but we're still being careful just in case.

Total weight gain/loss: +20lbs

Sleep: Getting more difficult... this kid is getting too big! I often find myself wide awake for a couple hours between 2am and 5am. Maybe my body is getting ready for a newborn? Haha.

Movement: It's slowed down a bit now that he's so big, but he still moves a lot. It's fun to guess which body parts ares sticking out of my belly... elbow, knee, foot, hand...

Food cravings/aversions: Anything chocolate. We've been watching "Cake Boss" on Netflix recently and it's almost too much for me... everything they make looks SO GOOD and I just want it NOW. Haha. My cravings have been pretty unhealthy recently... burgers & fries, pizza, soft baked pretzels... so I haven't really given into them much. I'm still eating lots of fruit... can't get enough of it. Oh! And banana pudding. I found an amazing recipe on Pinterest for it, and I've had Thomas make it twice already :)

Pregnancy symptoms: Lots of contractions still. And general crampiness and achiness. My back and hips are sore from being stuck lying down all the time. I'm seeing a chiropractor once a week which helps... she is also getting my body ready for delivery by properly aligning my hips and pelvis so that baby has lots of space to get through.

What I miss: Being able to get up and move around freely. Cooking, using my sewing machine, even just picking up around the house!

What I'm looking forward to: Not being on bedrest :) Hopefully only a week or so left. I've been on bedrest for over a month now and I'm very ready to be done.

Milestones: At 34 weeks, if I go into labor they won't stop it. I'm actually 35 weeks tomorrow. We're hoping to make it to 36 or 37 weeks though. It looks like baby boy will be here sooner rather than later with all the contractions I am having. I've been into the birth center twice this week for the midwives to check on me because of all the contractions and basically we're just trying to make it 36 weeks for lung maturity, because my body keeps trying to go into labor. I have to drink lots of water, and take lots of warm baths to get the contractions to slow down, and stay lying down completely horizontally so that the baby isn't pushing down.

Best moment of this week month: Hmmm... well it's just been nice in general to have Thomas around more during his month off from grad school. He also got two long weekends off work for Christmas and New Years. I'm not looking forward to him starting classes again next week :(

Pregnancy moments with the hubby: We've had a couple of nights where we thought we might have to go to the hospital again, but fortunately it hasn't happened yet. But we did pack our hospital bags... and when I say "we" I mean Thomas was frantically running around trying to gather the stuff from the list I made him while I laid on the couch trying to get the contractions to slow down. It was pretty comical :) But at least we're now prepared for when we actually do need to go in... Thomas knows where to find everything now. If we make it to 36 weeks, we can deliver at the birth center... but if baby decides to come before then we have to go to the hospital.

Also, it looks like we will be moving THIS weekend instead of on the 28th... which is good because Thomas won't have started his next graduate school semester yet, AND we have a bigger chance of getting moved before the baby gets here! I LOVE our new apartment and can't wait to be settled in it.

ultrasound & more bedrest

We went for an ultrasound yesterday just to check on everything. The baby looks great... he was super cute, waving his hands around and opening and closing his mouth until he found his thumb and started sucking on it :) His heart rate was fine, and he has been as active as ever.

Unfortunately, the ultrasound showed that my cervix (the thing that keeps the baby inside, basically) was too short compared to what it's supposed to be - it's 19mm and it's supposed to be closer to 30mm. This means that the contractions I've been having have shortened it, and caused me to dilate 1/2cm and efface 50%. Because of all that I have to definitely stay on strict bedrest to prevent any more shortening/dilating/effacing. I'll find out what the next step of the pregnancy is going to look like at my appointment on the 22nd.

So bedrest is kind of a bummer, but I'll do anything for baby boy... and I'm finding things to keep me busy!

30 weeks, and bedrest {sigh}

Well we had a little hiccup yesterday... I was out shopping and started having contractions. Try as we might, they would not go away so at 10:00pm my midwife sent us to Baylor hospital to be monitored. They ended up giving me a shot of Terbutaline to slow the contractions, and we got to come home at 6:00am this morning. Poor Thomas has an engineering grad class exam tonight (he's actually taking it as I write) and didn't have much time to prepare... not to mention the fact that we were awake basically all night with contractions and nurses and doctors in and out of the room.
We had a follow-up appointment at the Birth Center today and they put me on strict bedrest because I'm still having contractions (although not as bad as last night) and I'm 1/2 cm dilated and 50% effaced already, which they are not happy about at 30 weeks. The baby is fine, which we are so thankful for, his heart rate is strong and he's very active. But we don't want him to make his debut just yet! I'm hoping we make it to at least 37 weeks, which is considered "full term".
The plan for now is bedrest until my next appointment on the 22nd of December when they'll re-evaluate. I'm hoping the contractions stop and they'll allow me to move around a little more before then, because right now all I'm allowed to do is get up to go to the bathroom, and take a very short shower once a day!


How far along: 30 weeks (Dec. 8th)

Baby size: 3 pounds, and about 17 inches long... one of my pregnancy websites say he's about the size of a head of cabbage? Haha.

Total weight gain/loss: +15 lbs

Sleep: Not so great anymore... can't get comfortable. I guess I'll have to get used to the lying-down position, though!

Movement: All the time.

Food cravings/aversions: Soups have been my best friend this week... they are so nice in the cold weather, and especially since Thomas and I seem to have come down with some minor sniffly cold-ness.

Pregnancy symptoms: Lots of contractions, unfortunately! And general crampiness and achiness.

What I miss: Not being on bedrest :) It's only been a day and already I hardly know what to do with myself. I can now see the dust on every surface in the house and I'm itching to get up and dust everything! Haha.

What I'm looking forward to: Having Thomas home for the weekend to hang out with! And also, we're both looking forward to him being done with his classes for the semester. He has two more exams next Tuesday and Wednesday and then he's done!

Milestones: Three-fourths of the way through pregnancy! 30 weeks down, [hopefully] around 10 more to go!

Best moment of this week: Ironically, it was really cool to be able to constantly hear the baby's heartbeat while I was hooked up to the monitors at the hospital! Very reassuring.

Pregnancy moments with the hubby: He has just been wonderful since all this started yesterday. He's taken good care of me. The contractions last night were often very painful and he helped me relax through them. He scolds me if I'm not lying down flat enough :) And he brings me everything I need.

26 - 29 weeks

I'm behind, as usual.


How far along: 26 weeks (Nov. 10th), 27 weeks (Nov. 17th), 28 weeks (Nov. 24th), 29 weeks (Dec. 1st)

Baby size: Currently a butternut squash :) He's about 3 pounds, and up to 17 inches long from head to foot.

Total weight gain/loss: +15 lbs at 29 weeks (sigh)

Sleep: Not so great anymore... can't get comfortable.

Movement: All the time.

Food cravings/aversions: I'm still really liking spicy stuff... Thai food especially at the moment... I make this Thai red curry veggie/noodle soup, and it's been on the menu pretty much every week. We also like to go to (or get take-out from) Royal Thai, our favorite restaurant. Anything chocolate is really good... Twix bars, Starbucks hot chocolate, chocolate gelato & frozen yogurt, chocolate gummy bears (yes, really)... and the list goes on. And lots & lots of fresh fruit... can't get enough of it... I went through an entire 5-pound bag of Cuties (tangerines) in about 3 days. Haha.

Pregnancy symptoms: Bruised ribs! This little boy can really kick. Recently he's been lodging himself up in my ribs whenever I'm lying down. Sometimes I have to get up and walk around for him to move down a bit so I can breathe. Do I really have 10 more weeks of this? Yikes! At my 29-week appointment, I was measuring ahead again - at 33-34 weeks. At this point no one can give me a reason as to why except that some people just measure differently... like my uterus is positioned differently so it measures further "ahead" (higher up on my torso) or something. My glucose screening was fine, so I don't have gestational diabetes, which is good. Apparently if you have gestational diabetes, the baby tends to be bigger. In all of our ultrasounds the baby has been pretty normal-sized... they just moved my due date up 5 days. So I guess I'm just weird and measure ahead :)

What I miss: Being able to move around freely. It gets a little harder with a basketball in your abdomen.

What I'm looking forward to: More of all the Christmas-y stuff :) We've already put up our tree and I've been making presents. I love it! Also, I'm REALLY looking forward to moving to a bigger apartment in early January. I can't get this apartment clean & tidy enough because there's just too much stuff to fit!

Milestones: We are in the third trimester (starting week 28)!

Best moment of this week month: The long weekend that Thomas got off for Thanksgiving! It was so nice to have a break with him.

Pregnancy moments with the hubby: We like to "play" with baby boy... we'll give my belly little pokes and watch him wriggle and kick back. Thomas also likes to talk to him through my belly... baby boy likes the vibrations of his voice and usually calms right down if he's been wriggling (or kicking me in the ribs).
The past couple of weeks at our birthing class we've done "labor practice"... the instructor rings a little bell when the "contraction" starts and again when it ends. During the "contraction" we have to practice different laboring positions... like rocking on a birth ball, or kneeling and leaning on a ball/chair... and the labor coach (ie. Thomas) has to do massage or counter-pressure on my back etc. It's all really good practice, and I'm sure we'll be grateful for it when the real contractions start and we know what to do to manage the pain... but it's pretty comical at the time. Especially when, as usual, all the other couples are taking it very seriously and the women actually look like they're in pain... and Thomas and I are trying not to laugh at them. This past week we practiced positions for pushing the baby out... and that was just plain funny.

The ever-growing baby bump.

I haven't been very good at taking bump pictures. So far I have one at 12.5 weeks, one at 15 weeks, one at 16 weeks, one at 22.5 weeks, and one at 27 weeks! I'll add them to this post and update it whenever I take a new one.

12.5 weeks

15 weeks. I'm not seeing a huge difference yet...

16 weeks... holy moly, where did that bump come from?!

22.5 weeks!

 27 weeks! Baby (and bump) had a major growth spurt.

25 weeks, and a new due date

Because I was consistently measuring a few weeks ahead, my midwife sent me for an ultrasound to check if my due date was wrong. My due date used to be Feb. 21st, and it has been changed to Feb. 16th... so only 5 days earlier. Apparently I have a "generous amount" of amniotic fluid, and that is causing me to measure ahead.
So... I thought I was 25 weeks today, but it turns out I was actually 25 weeks last Thursday, and I will be 26 weeks in a couple days.


How far along: 25 weeks (Nov. 3rd)

Baby size: A rutabaga! (At our ultrasound yesterday, they said he weighed just over 2 pounds!)

Total weight gain/loss: +9 lbs

Sleep: Generally pretty good.

Movement: Sometimes his kicks jolt my whole torso!

Food cravings/aversions: Fresh fruit cravings this week! Grapes, strawberries, oranges...

Pregnancy symptoms: I'll probably laugh at myself later in pregnancy for saying this now... but I'm starting to feel uncomfortable, and somewhat like a beached whale! It takes me a few extra seconds to get up from a sitting or lying position, and it's getting harder to bend down to floor level to pick things up.

What I miss: Champagne! We had our birthday date this past weekend, and our waiter brought Thomas a glass of champagne... and some sparkling grape juice for me... haha :)

What I'm looking forward to: The holiday season! I get so excited for everything about Christmas... the traditions, bundling up for colder weather, Christmas music, the general festiveness and good cheer :)

Milestones: 25 weeks down, 15 to go! Time is just flying by. Baby's hair is apparently starting to develop its color this week :)

Best moment of this week: Having another ultrasound and getting to see our adorable baby boy (who is definitely still a boy, haha)! Also, our various birthday celebrations :)

Pregnancy moments with the hubby: We went back this past Saturday for our second birthing class. It was better than the first one, the teacher gave us some useful information that I didn't already know and helped us start thinking about birth plans etc. We also did some mental relaxation techniques for labor... this is the funny part :) The teacher had all of the pregnant women fill out a little worksheet of where you would go in your mind in order to relax. It was fill-in-the-blank, and you had to fill in things like what you could see, what you could feel, what you could hear etc. I said I would go to the beach... be able to feel the sand, hear the waves etc. Then the preggos had to lie on the floor while the husbands read the description quietly to us to help us relax. So Thomas started reading my fill-in-the-blank description of what I would focus on to relax and I could already hear the laughter in his voice, which of course was making me want to laugh too. He came to one fill-in-the-blank spot where I had to write what I could see in the distance. I had written "fluffy clouds"... big mistake. I knew it was coming and started giggling... and when Thomas tried to read it we both started snorting with laughter. Everyone else in the room was taking things seriously, of course, and being very meditative as the husbands lovingly and gently whispered into their wives' ears... which just made me and Thomas want to laugh even more.


At least our birthing class gives us comic relief... maybe that will help during labor. Haha.

baby stuff is overwhelming

So, I need advice.

1. Carseats... What infant carseat should we get? Or do we even need an infant one? Could we skip right to one of those convertible ones? It's probably convenient to carry baby in & out of the car in an infant one, right?
At first I was leaning towards the Britax Chaperone for an infant carseat, but then we bought our stroller and it doesn't work with Britax carseats. So now I'm thinking the Chicco Keyfit 30, because it has the next best safety ratings. But there are lots of other options too... I just don't knowwwww....

2. Baby carriers... I plan on "wearing" Baby Congdon around a lot. I've heard the Moby Wrap is good for when he's little, but it kind of intimidates me with it's miles of fabric. Is there a better one? Also, I really like the Ergobaby carrier, maybe for when he gets a bit older, and it's something Thomas could use to carry him too. Good choice?

3. Bottles/pacifiers... I plan on breastfeeding, but it's always good to have a few bottles around for other people to be able to feed baby pumped milk. Which ones are best for breastfed babies? Same thing with pacifiers...

4. Breast pump... I was thinking about just getting a manual one because it's not like I'll be working away from home. Are electric ones really necessary? Which brands are best?

5. Bouncy seats... necessary? What kinds/brands should I look for?

6. Swaddle wraps/ sleep sacks... What kinds should I look for?

7. What things have been invaluable to you? What am I missing? What do babies need?!

8. We'll be living in a fairly small apartment, so space-saving ideas would be very helpful too :)

Help me, please! :)