40 Weeks

Well, I've made it all the way to 40 weeks and I haven't questioned for a second that she's not in there. She is constantly moving around, so either she's simply just having a blast in there or she's ready to come out. I'm hoping she's packing up her things and heading out soon! And by packing up her things I mean having one last snack, and let's face it; it shall be a really good snack providing my cravings :). I haven't gained any weight since last week, surprisingly, and everything was checked out to be normal/unchanged at my last appt. She still thinks I'm dialated at the same 1 cm since she couldn't feel past the head (or something like that), and yes it freaks me out that she felt the baby's head with her hand.

OH, and our doc is out of town until Sunday, which is obviously frustrating. We met the "back-up" doctor at our last appt, and I'm a little uneasy about it. Not that I don't trust her, but I don't like the idea of some random person taking over like that. Adam said the look on my face gave it all away when she introduced herself. Oops. She said not to worry since she's done hundreds of deliveries. I know I'll be fine. And not to worry, Adam didn't pull a Knocked Up and threaten our doc, "you're dead, you're Tupac", but that scene from Knocked Up did pop up in both our heads.

I've been getting asked a lot how much time I get for maternity leave, if it's paid, etc. I'm anticipating taking 11 weeks off (if I do not have any complications, c-section, etc.) and it's entirely paid; the first half I'm using maternity leave, vacation, and sick leave and the second half is paid by short-term disability. I'm allowed up to 12 weeks off, so if at week 11 I decide I want one more week I will stay. I have a feeling I might want to. Every little part of taking some sort of leave is different, so it makes it confusing. I had to request for 6 weeks "unpaid leave" but it's really not unpaid because of the disability benefit, and figuring out the disability benefit was just another confusing part. Finally, after the help of HR explaining it to me, I have it all figured out. Now if I end up having a complicated birth/c-section I will get an extra couple weeks. It would be nice, but not worth it. All I'm hoping for is a safe delivery and healthy baby.

Baby Size: Estimated at about 7 1/2 pounds and 20 inches long.

Sleep: I'm still sleeping fine, besides waking up about 3 times in the night to pee.

Cravings: Sweets (specifically chocolate), chips & dip, actually almost anything that's not a prepackaged/frozen meal, in which case those gross me out entirely. I've been craving Japanese salads with Ginger dressing, but eating Japanese food is an expensive craving to fulfill. Adam picked some up the other night and it was pricey, especially for take-out.

Movement: Like I said, LOTS. Adam and I are so entertained watching and feeling my stomach at night, I'll even press back on her feet as a little hello. Last night she was having a grand old time kicking my bladder, and for the first time I actually couldn't fall asleep because of it.

Symptoms: Just feeling heavier pelvic pressure, sometimes when I go to the bathroom I get scared that she's gonna just plop out into the toilet because she feels so low (tmi?). Also, Adam says I officially have the pregnant waddle.

Labor Signs: Still none. The consensus seems to be that I'm actually just lucky.


*Crossing fingers that this is the last pregnancy blog post.*

Leave a Comment | LABELS: 40 weeks, 9 months pregnant, pregnancy, pregnant

39 Weeks

Due date is one week away! I think I've been nesting the past week; been cleaning daily. I'm starting to get anxious about labor & delivery in different ways than I thought. I don't want to have to be induced, it doesn't feel right. I told my doc if I'm not progressing right away I still don't want pitocin or anything thrown at me, but she just reassured me pitocin is no big deal, grrrr. It's frustrating when doctors don't honor our wishes. It's my body, dammit.

Doc Appt: Once again, not much new. Gained a couple pounds since last week, but I'm not surprised; my appetite has gotten pretty hefty. I have great BP (120/80) and am now measuring at 35 weeks, which is smaller than last week, but she said it's because I'm dropping even more. Also, my Group B Strep test results came back negative, so that's good.

Baby size: A little over 7 pounds and about 20 inches long, the size of a mini watermelon. Okay I'm ready for her to come out, that's big enough to me!

Movement: Still happening. More rolling around than kicking.

Maternity Clothes: Everyday I have a battle with myself over whether I will be wearing sweatpants to work. Obviously I never do, it's always the same ol' leggings with a maternity top/dress. But today I wore yoga pants and my Nike 6's since it's Friday and I was lazy :)

Cravings: Sweets. And I could live off of just those. I have literally been baking weekly. Also just got a package from mom and dad for Valentine's day and have eaten half the candy from it already.

Symptoms: Besides the fact that I almost throw a tantrum every time I get all refluxy and bubbly, just heavy pressure that sometimes makes even walking hard. Also, I'm still frequently moody. I'm not afraid to speak my mind to someone who doesn't put their cart away in the grocery store parking lot. I feel like I should wear a warning label or t-shirt that both tells people to watch out and apologizes in advance, but I think those kind of go without saying once people see my belly.

Still no contractions. No BH. Nothing.

Childcare: We settled that my sister will be nannying when I first go back to work after maternity leave, yay!

39 Week Belly:

1 comment LABELS: 39 weeks, 9 months pregnant, belly pic, pregnancy, pregnancy blog

38 Weeks

I have made it this far without any random people touching my belly! I've heard it happens to everyone so I feel like I dodged a bullet here.

At my last appt. on Wednesday my doc said baby is still head down, so she will probably be that way until the end of the pregnancy. I haven't gained any weight since my last appt. and belly is still measuring at about 36 weeks. So, basically, nothing new since last week. It's all just a waiting game now. Tick tock tick tock.

Things are getting wrapped up at work for maternity leave. I've delegated my responsibilities to other people, left thorough documentation of my work processes, and trained in all the parties involved in taking it on :). I am approved to take 12 weeks off, so I will be returning to work around the second week of May.

Baby size: 6.8 pounds and over 19 1/2 inches long

Cravings: Sweets of all kinds. I baked some Valentine's cookies with Reese's hearts and they are definitely hitting the spot.

Movement: Constant. Moving even more these last few weeks than she ever has. I was told that the movement is supposed to slow down and be less noticeable because there isn't as much room in there, but not for me. I am so entertained and I love her already.

Symptoms: Still some acid reflux, lame. Tired; I take naps almost daily, completely against my will. I hate naps.

Sleep: Meh, not as good as before. I wake up a couple times throughout the night feeling hot or just generally uncomfortable.

Labor signs: Besides the fact that she's dropped, still absolutely none. My doc said I'm lucky but I feel like my body needs to give itself a head start at least.

38 Week Belly:

2 comments LABELS: 38 weeks, 9 months pregnant, belly pic, pregnancy, pregnancy blog, pregnant

37 Weeks

My doc said 36 weeks was full term but I've also heard 37 weeks was considered full term. Either way I am full term :).

At my last doc appt. I was 36.5 weeks and she checked to see how far I was coming along. My tummy measured at 36 weeks and I was 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced. She said that was good! That doesn't exactly mean I'm going to go into labor tomorrow or anything, in fact, I could be stuck at where I am for 3 more weeks. She also said the baby was still head down and really low down so she actually has starting dropping like I thought. That will explain the constant pressure on my bladder. I just think it's odd that I haven't started feeling any BH contractions. Doc said I could've had them and just not noticed.

Baby size: 6 1/3 pounds and 19 inches

Cravings: Apples and sweets. I made a valentine's cake with chocolate frosting that is sooo yummy. I've probably eaten 3/4 of it myself, oops.

Symptoms: Since the baby is dropping, there's lots of kicking on my bladder, which means even more trips to the bathroom. I still don't have the pregnant waddle, though. I've been told I don't walk like I'm pregnant at all.

Sleep: Still good, but Adam sometimes has trouble sleeping because I apparently move a lot.

Highlight of the week: Getting my mani pedi

37 week belly:

Leave a Comment | LABELS: 37 weeks pregnant, 9 months pregnant, belly pic, pregnancy, pregnancy blog, pregnant