36w Appt

Yes, we are in weekly appointments now. This shiz is getting real, fast!

I had my 36w appointment today. I am happy to report that I am only up 1 pound from my last appointment and being that Thanksgiving was during that 10 days in between, I am pretty darn proud of that! That brings me to a total weight gain of 32 pounds.

My GBS swab from last week was negative, meaning I won't need to worry about having IV antibiotics during labor, which is nice.

Belly is measuring at 39 weeks, BP was down to normal at 112/60, baby is still head down and her heartrate is at 140.

I had another internal check and have progressed slightly from last week. The only thing is, baby is still at -3 station, meaning she is extremely high up. I am planning to sit/bounce on my exercise ball quite a bit over the next couple of weeks to encourage her to come down on her own.

I did have a lot of questions for the doctor this appointment.
- I asked about the protocol if my water breaks.  I would really like to labor a little while at home and shower etc before going in, she said I should call immediately, but that I would likely have the ability to stay home a little while before coming in.
- I also asked about the epidural and whether or not I would be allowed to move around after getting it. She said no. I guess this means that I really should labor a good while before having it placed, so I have the ability move about.
- C-sections: How long can I labor before they would push me for a C? She said it depends. If I stall for more than 4 hours and they do not see any progress, they would likely move for a C. Also, obviously if baby is in distress and they need to get her out. Also, I asked if my hands/arms would be strapped down. She said no.
- I asked about immediate skin-to-skin. She said as long as baby is crying/healthy they will give her to me immediately.
- Also we discussed post-baby birth control. I let her know that I did not want to go back on BCP, and know that with breastfeeding it will limit my options greatly. I told her that since it took us such a long while to get pregnant, and we aren't opposed to another pregnancy we would likely just see what happens. She agreed, thankfully.

Overall, a great appointment. Everything looks perfect, baby girl is healthy and I am getting ready for D-day.

35 Weeks + Growth Scan

On Friday, Mr.A and I went to the OB for my 35w appointment and growth ultrasound. We had not seen baby girl since 28 weeks, so I was excited to be able to see her again.

Goodness how things have changed!

Earlier in the pregnancy, they could just put the wand on my belly and *BAM* there was an entire baby. Now, she is so big, and so crammed that the tech really had to move the wand around to determine which parts were which. She was very fast with her measurements of the head, femur, belly circumference, and fluid levels. So fast in fact, we really didn't get to see much of anything at all and didn't get any pictures.

Baby is measuring around 6.5 pounds (estimated, so give or take a pound), is head down, fluids look good and she is still ninja kicking away.

We then met with the OB that I love to review everything and have my first internal check. She was happy with baby's measurements, and is measuring around 2 weeks ahead which matches my belly measurements.

Then Dr.C did my first internal exam. Before she did, she warned me and said, "Try to relax, it isn't going to be pleasant. It may feel like I am trying to pull your tonsils out." She wasn't kidding. That was not fun at all!

Before telling me anything about my dilation or effacement, she said, "You need to make sure baby's car seat is in the car and your and her hospital bags are packed and ready for D-day".

Cue momentary freakout! It was almost as though she were insinuating that baby was coming very VERY soon.

As it turns out, my internal exam showed that my body is preparing for the "big show". She said that my progress is good and she wouldn't be surprised if baby were here a bit ahead of schedule in 2-3 weeks.

Holy moly, it is really happening. We are going to have a baby!

The Nursery is FINISHED!

Today, I am 35 weeks along meaning we only have 35 days to go until our estimated due date.

Thankfully, we've been blessed with the most wonderful family and friends who have been so incredibly generous and we now have everything we could possibly need.

As I posted a while back, I made the crib skirt, covered a small pillow and reupholstered my Grandmother's glider. Mr.A worked very hard painting the nursery (against his will of course!) a couple of months ago. I am so happy he took the time to do it early, since it took a while to get the fumey smell to dissipate.

Though it was slightly boy-ish, we re-used Mr.A's childhood furniture in the nursery. The only minor change I made to his desk and dresser was spray painting the dingy brass handles a deep chocolate brown. We were incredibly thankful that everything is so solid that it could withstand years of abuse and still look perfect.

The only furniture we were left to purchase was the crib and mattress. My mother-in-law surprised us and purchased the crib, mattress and bedding accessories. She came to visit and helped us put everything together as well as putting up the wall decal we ordered to complete our owl theme.
Without further ado, baby girl's nursery:

34 week update

I had my 34 week appointment last week. Unfortunately my BP is creeping up and although it isn’t textbook high, it is high for me. Generally I am in the 100/60 range, and am sitting in the 110/80s right now. Again, nothing to be alarmed about, but they do want to make sure it doesn’t go too much higher.

I am officially up 30 pounds which is hard to grasp. The doctors are happy with that since I was small to begin with, but want me to gain no more than a pound a week from here on out. I will admit my sweet tooth has gotten the better of me throughout my entire pregnancy and I really need to watch that in the coming weeks.

My fundal height (aka belly measurement) was measuring at 36-37 weeks last week. Since I have been consistently 2-3 weeks ahead, they want me to come in for a growth u/s this coming Friday. Mr.A was around 6lbs and I was around 7 when we were born, so I am hoping that maybe I just have a lot of fluid in there and my baby girl isn’t going to be a 10+ pounder. That is a little scary to think about.

Otherwise baby is happy and healthy, ninja kicking away. She is still sitting very high up, though I feel as though she has shifted enough to give me a little relief from the pain in my upper abdomen.

Sleep is becoming harder and harder for both me and Mr.A. I apparently snore like a banshee these days and he is too nice to wake me. I am also getting up to use the restroom 3-5 times per night and always have a difficult time falling back asleep. I am considering banishing myself to the guest room in the coming weeks so that at least one of us is getting a full night’s sleep, but I haven’t pulled the trigger yet.