32 Weeks

I feel like I’m in the home stretch, but with 8 weeks left there still seems to be so much to do! We finished painting the nursery and have put up the chair rail. I’ve picked out the curtain rods and put up the curtains, labeled the closet organizers, and started washing the loads of baby clothes and blankets. Is this really happening? We are almost there!

The furniture we ordered gets picked up on Saturday. I’m excited to see the room finished, and can’t wait to post some pictures. I can feel myself start to slow down, and the pain in my lower legs, thighs, abdomen, and back are getting pretty bad, especially before bed, in the middle of the night, and in the morning. Sometimes I have to think for a minute on if I can actually get out of bed, or if I should just not even try to get up.

With the 4th of July holiday around the corner, I will have an extra day to relax and spend time with friends (which I am very much looking forward to). The weather hasn’t been too hot, which has been a blessing, but I know there are plenty of hot days coming up.

I’m definitely getting comments as I am out and about in public, so I’m trying to manage that attention well. Mostly, it’s just people asking when I’m due, or what I’m having. The worst is when people ask Ian or I what we are naming the child, and we say we have a name but are not telling anyone, they seem to be offended, or think we are odd for not sharing the name with them since we won’t see them again. So, now we just tell strangers that we haven’t fully decided yet. I guess that is a lie, but it’s only so they don’t get upset!

Weeks: 32 weeks
Weight Gain: 19 lbs (do you think I can stay under 30 for this pregnancy?)
Belly: 39 inches as of a couple days ago. Definitely been a growth spurt over the past few weeks.
Sleep: Sleep has been alright with only 1 bathroom break required in the middle of the night (around 4am), but I still wake up a couple of other times to turn over, or flex out some pain in my legs.
Food Cravings: Vegetables, and Dairy products
Food Aversions: tomatoes
Movement: It seems like all of the time now! I felt baby girl stretch for the first time about a week and a half ago. I felt her jab both ends of my stomach, it was crazy. And, yesterday I actually saw her foot poke through the side of my stomach. I lightly grabbed at it with my fingers, and she pulled it away, and kicked it back. It seems so surreal!
Symptoms: Back pain, leg pain, exhaustion. Hard to get up once I’ve sat down on the floor. Pretty much just physical symptoms like that. Not headaches, or nausea, etc.
Belly Button in or out: still in, I can see the inside of my belly button, but it hasn’t popped out. I don’t think it will.
What I miss: Coffee! Especially when the exhaustion hits.
Best moment this week: Seeing the painted nursery with curtains, and feeling my baby’s foot for the first time. (although kind of odd and creepy).
Weekly Wisdom: If people offer to help, definitely take them up on their offer. My mom visited this week, and she asked if there was anything she could do, and I told her that I was having trouble getting the bathroom and shower clean, and told her I really wanted to get it super clean, and do a whole scrub down. Then, while I was at work she cleaned my bathroom AND my kitchen. It was such a great help, now I just need to keep it clean until the baby comes!
What I’m looking forward to: Picking up our furniture on Saturday and getting it situated in the room.

30 Weeks

Man, 30 weeks. I feel like this is a milestone week. I'm now down to a countdown that involves a single digit weeks!! I'm at the stage now where I'm nervous about going into labor, and the actual birth. I heard that at about 37-39 weeks you are over it, and just want your baby out! So, hopefully I'm not as nervous then.

Funny story I forgot to mention last week. I was in a Christmas store, you know the stores that sell all Christmas ornaments and decorations. Well, I walked in, and turned to Ian and said "you know, this Christmas is going to be so different, yet so amazing.... we're going to have a baby girl!" and then the tears came. I just started crying in the middle of the Christmas store! How embarrassing!! These hormones are starting to get to me, seriously.

Also this week, Ian has decided that baby girl needed to start listening to some classical music. So, he downloaded a mix, and has me play it on the ipod to my stomach each day. It's funny though because she will be hyper and moving around, and I'll put the music on and she will stop. It may just be a coincidence, but I like to think that the music soothes her to sleep, and that I can use this method once she's here. (I know what all you current mothers are thinking....yeah right!!!) Oh well, I can only hope right?

Weeks: 30 weeks
Weight Gain: 16 lbs (I think I'm a little under, but I've seriously noticed a huge pick up in the amount of food I'm eating, I'm sure I'll be gaining a few pounds this week for sure!)
Belly: 37.5 inches
Sleep: Better! I stopped using the body pillow. I think I was in pain because I was latched onto the body pillow, and I didn't move all night.
Food Cravings: Watermelon!
Food Aversions: Lettuce, tomato based things (Gives me bad heart burn!)
Best Movement: I actually felt her stretch this week for the first time. It was crazy! I felt a jab on each side of my stomach. That was definitely a first!
Symptoms: Back to being exhausted. Similar to the end of the 1st trimester beginning of the 2nd. I also get bored easily when I'm just sitting, and for some reason when I get bored I get sad/depressed. Darn Hormones! I've learned to focus my attention to online baby articles, and of course, online shopping/browsing.
Belly Button: Still in! I don't think it's going to pop (thank goodness). I love my belly button in!
What I miss: being able to turn over without having the brace myself, and being able to get up off the couch without being somewhat out of breath.
Best moment this week: Moving the office furniture out of the soon to be nursery, and putting the blue painters tape up!
What I’m looking forward to: seeing the painted nursery, and painting baby girls letters to put up on her wall. (still not saying what the name is yet!)

Here are some pictures of the nursery project. It should be completed by the first week of July!

BEFORE (WHEN IT WAS THE OFFICE)


BROWN PAINT


PINK AND BROWN, AND PREPARING THE CHAIR RAIL FOR PAINTING (IT WILL SEPARATE THE PINK AND BROWN)

29 Weeks

I've survived another week!
This was our first full week back after vacation. It was hard getting back into the swing of things, but we managed.
Highlights of the week include painting our guest bathroom. (Ian picked another amazing color), and getting ready to move the office furniture out of the soon to be nursery. We have picked out our nursery colors, it will be brown and pink, and Ian will be putting in some chair rail, to make the room look more formal. (I'm still trying to convince him to put in a baby chandelier for our little princess, but he thinks that's a little over the top.)

Some lowlights of the week include sleep. Man, have I had issues getting a full night sleep. One night last week I woke up at 3am, stayed awake for a bit playing on my iphone, then went downstairs and proceeded to clean the living room and kitchen. Exhausted the next day, I attempted to have a better sleep that night, and woke up in the morning to a terrible leg cramp/charlie horse, and screamed my head off. Luckily Ian was quick to react, and got me some water, a banana, and massaged my leg. What a good husband!

The picture I have this week is one Ian took of me in Canada at Niagara on the Lake.



Weeks: 29 weeks
Weight Gain: 15 lbs (how I lost 2 pounds...I have no clue! Does this mean I can eat whatever I want this week?)
Belly: 37 inches
Sleep: Horrible
Food Cravings: Fruit, Fruit and more Fruit. Strawberry's and Mango's especially!
Food Aversions: Salad, still
Movement: Like crazy! It's like a little dance party in there.
Symptoms: muscle cramps, exhaustion, a couple headaches here and there, and general largeness to where I have to work at getting out of bed.
Belly Button: It hasn't popped, but i can see it flattening out. I still don't think it will pop!
What I miss: Wine, especially after seeing so many wineries in Canada!
Best moment this week: Picking out paint with Ian for the nursery.
What I’m looking forward to: Getting our furniture in, the Governer School Picnic this weekend, and going to a Squirrels game next week with the VSCPA!

28 weeks

28 weeks down, 12 to go! This pregnancy has FLOWN by. It's been a while since I've posted an update. Ian and I have been busy squeezing in some vacations especially since my doctor doesn't really want me to fly after 32 weeks. Ian and I spent a week at the beach in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Also, we just returned from a 4 day babymoon to Niagara Falls, Canada. Vacation was great, but we are back to reality, and this baby will be in in a few months! It's time to crack down and get the office turned into the nursery by painting the room, and scheduling our furniture pick up!

My pregnancy has been pretty easy thus far. I've been walking a lot this month (since we've been on vacation) and after a mile or so, I can feel baby girl weighing down onto my pelvis. It's pretty uncomfortable, and I have to take A LOT of breaks, but Ian has been patient.

So I made a last minute purchase the other week. We bought a back up stroller. Our main stroller (a Baby Jogger City Select) we received as a gift from my parents. I LOVE the city select stroller, and it will be useful whenever we have baby #2, since it can turn into a dual stroller.




Our backup stroller is a Quinny Bee. Aparently it's a "push-chair" and not a stroller. I think it's wonderful. :) It will pretty much live at Ian's mothers house so she can use it when the baby is over there. We'll also take this one on vacation with us. (If we ever get to go on a vacation again!)




Weeks: 28 weeks
Weight Gain: 17 lbs (agh!)
Belly: 37 inches (I think...)
Sleep: Found my best sleep position, finally! However, it takes a while to fall asleep because baby girl likes to move a lot in the evening, and starts back up around 5:30. Is this foreshadowing for the future?
Food Cravings: Fruit, Nutella, and PB&J sandwhiches
Food Aversions: Salad
Movement: Whenever I'm still or lying down, baby girl likes to have a dance party. When I'm walking or moving around, the motion must put her to sleep, because she's pretty still!
Symptoms: muscle cramps in my legs in the middle of the night. Apparently this is common in pregnancy. 3 weeks ago I woke up at 6am with the WORST charlie horse ever. I screamed out in pain, and poor Ian lept out of bed, massaged my leg for like 30 minutes, crammed a banana into my mouth, and put a bag of frozen potatoes on my calf. What a good husband. :)
Belly Button: still in, but barely. Is it going to pop?!? I hope not...but it's starting to hurt a little.
What I miss: espresso, sushi, and wine!
Best moment this week: Our babymoon in Niagara Falls was definitely the highlight.
Weekly Wisdom: Take time before your baby comes to really spend time with your significant other. Things will change in a few months, but I'll know we'll be 100% prepared.
What I’m looking forward to: Picking out paint and painting the nursery!! (will be happening in the next 2 weeks!)