37 weeks

How far along: 37 weeks as of 8/9/13 - officially considered full term, meaning baby is safe to come at any time now.

Total weight gain: 24 pounds, hopefully not much more!

Best moment this week: Reaching 37 weeks feels like a huge milestone. Knowing all of the major organs are mature enough to function outside the womb is a great feeling. To make this day even better, we woke up to learn that my sister-in-law had a healthy baby boy this morning! She was three weeks ahead of us and it was so fun going through the pregnancy together. Now she had her baby which means we are next!

Looking forward to: Our 38 week appointment on Thursday to check position of baby and make a decision on delivery method.

Anything else: I have slowly come to terms with the fact that we will likely have a c-section in as soon as two weeks. I've been reading and learning as much as possible about breech births and cesareans both of which have been about all I can think about lately. I'm trying to wrap up lots of loose ends at work, but each day it gets more and more difficult to focus and be at work. I now understand why woman stop working a few weeks before their due date. There is just too much on your mind, little details to take care of at home before baby, not to mention the growing belly and increased discomfort and difficulty sleeping at night. I still have two to three weeks of work left, just taking it one day at a time!

I have a feeling these last two to three weeks are going to fly by and I'm trying to soak in every last minute of this pregnancy and each movement in my belly, as well as allow myself a few extra minutes of sleep while I still can.      

Baby Young is BREECH

We confirmed our suspicions that baby is still in the heads up position at our 36 week doctor appointment. Can't say I was surprised, but definitely a bit disappointed. After all the anticipation and reading about a natural delivery, hearing the doc utter the words "scheduled c-section" was a hard pill to swallow. And even more mind blowing was that if we do schedule a c-section, it will take place around 39 weeks. I told my doctor that wouldn't work for me since I am planning on working until I'm 40 weeks pregnant....not to mention 39 weeks is a mere three weeks away. I had fully convinced myself this baby was going to come first week in September which gave us about five more weeks to mentally and physically prepare. But three? Oh my goodness, that is so soon!

We have some options to try and get the baby to flip. There is a manual procedure called version where a doctor pushes on your abdomen and tries to manually flip the baby, but there are risks involved that could lead to an emergency c-section. After doing some research we have decided not to try this procedure.

Another option that is far less intrusive and encourages baby to flip in a much more natural way, is to practice a few yoga type poses we read about on the internet. Basically, we have two weeks. If baby is still in breech position at 38 weeks we will have no choice but to schedule a c-section for the last week in August. Until then, you will find me doing hand stands in a pool, crawling around on my hands and knees, or lying on an inverted ironing board with a bag of frozen vegetables on the top of my belly hoping for the best.

 

 

At the end of the day, all that matters is that we deliver a healthy baby. If it's a c-section, then so be it. I know that the moment we meet our baby, our lives will be forever changed and the manner in which he/she came into this world will suddenly seem so insignificant compared to the new little bundle we hold in our arms.

  

35 weeks

How far along: 35 weeks as of 7/26/13 = 35 days left until due date.

How are you feeling: Feeling pretty large lately, not too sure how much bigger this belly can get. Baby must have dropped slightly or something because all of a sudden I can eat again and don't feel quite so full or out of breath.

Emotions: Definitely feeling very hormonal lately, like I'm going to cry over the smallest thing at any given moment. Also been feeling a bit anxious in the last few days, ready to meet our little one. And at the same time, complete anxiety about the pregnancy being over and baby being here! Poor Luke! :-)

Miss anything: Running! I never thought I would miss running so much, but I've really started looking forward to and thinking about my first run and race after baby.

Best moment this week: My mom hosted a beautiful baby shower at her house and the guests all decorated onesies for Baby Young to wear. Had a blast at the shower and even more fun washing and folding all the decorated onesies. I can't wait to see our babe wear them!

Looking forward to: We have our 36 week appointment this week and will find out if baby is head down - fingers crossed! Not convinced this kiddo has flipped yet, but hoping for the best.

Gender prediction: Most people are guessing BOY! I'm honestly not sure one way or another. However, I will be more surprised if we have a boy than if we have a girl.

Names: Ha! You really think I would tell you the names we are thinking? Sorry, top secret! We have a list and have narrowed down our favorites. I will say that we are more solid on a boy name than a girl name at this point, so if we do have a girl, there is a good chance she won't have a name for a little while.

Anything else: I've been putting off a few things until August, and here we are, just a few days away from August already! Time to start filling out my maternity leave paperwork for work and the state, visit the police station to make sure the car seat is installed correctly, and pack the hospital bag. Whoa. My heart literally starting pounding as I typed that out. Car seat and hospital bag make this whole thing seem so close and real.

Our summer plans are winding down. No trips planned for August. Let the nesting begin!

Belly Progression 14 - 33

 

It's been fun watching this belly grow and change over the past 7 1/2 months. Quick look from 14 weeks to 33 weeks.

 

Maternity Pictures

My brother came home for a quick visit over the 4th of July weekend and was kind enough to take some maternity pictures of us while he was home. He took our engagement photos (here and here) and it means so much to us that he was able to document this next journey as well. He has a great eye and somehow makes both of us feel totally comfortable in front of the camera. I can't believe how good they came out considering we had spent the entire day in 100+ heat swimming in the dirty delta water! Thanks, Jimmy, for taking these pictures. Here are a few of our favorites.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

33 weeks

How far along - 33 weeks as of 7/12/13

Total weight gain - 20 pounds

How are you feeling - Full and out of breath! I feel like I'm going to burst if I eat more than a few bites of anything, there is just no space for food in there with baby!

Movement - Oh yes! It is such a trip to watch my belly literally move like an ocean wave as the baby moves.

Best moment this week - Hearing the heartbeat at our 33 week appointment and having dr. tell us baby is continuing to grow right on track with that August 30 due date.

Looking forward to - My last 5 day work week is next week. We are down to 7 weeks left of work and 7 weeks before baby's due date. Any guesses on which will come first - scheduled last day of work or baby? Let's hope it's my last scheduled day of work! My money is on this baby arriving first week of September, but we shall see.

Anything else - After next week, work tapers down to 4 day weeks, with my last two weeks being 3 day weeks. I'm down to three dr. appointments (36, 38, 40 weeks), we have a newborn care class and then a late pregnancy class including a hospital tour and THAT'S IT! We were just given our hospital paperwork to fill out and submit as well as our birthing plan paperwork which is blowing my mind right now that we are so close to having this baby and becoming parents.

I'm starting to feel pretty uncomfortable and definitely getting to the point where I'm ready to get this baby out. But until then, I'm just trying to enjoy these last few weeks of peace and quiet and take in every moment of our life as two, before we become a family of three.

   

30 weeks

 

How far along: 30 weeks

 

How are you feeling: Wake up feeling great, hit a wall around 2:30-3:00 and all I want to do is take a nap. Get a second wind in the evenings and can't fall asleep until after 11:00.

 

Sleep: Sleeping pretty soundly. Consistently waking up about twice a night to use the bathroom. Hips starting to ache a bit from only sleeping on my sides, but using a pillow under my knee seems to help.

 

Belly button: Officially an outie as of a few days ago! You can see it if you look close in this week's picture.

 

Movement: Counting kicks every day. Some days I notice more movement than others, but I always look forward to laying down at night and focusing all my attention to the babe. I've also been setting my alarm for a few minutes early so that I can lay in bed and see if baby is moving. Luke likes to give the baby raspberries by blowing on my stomach. So far it seems to get this kiddo moving - it's pretty funny!

 

Food cravings: Fruit and spinach this week. And ice cream, can't seem to stop eating ice cream! Oh and hot dogs! I've really been missing hot dogs, and then a friend told me about nitrate free hot dogs from Trader Joe's. Seriously, amazing.

 

Looking forward to: Our 32 week ultrasound is 1 1/2 weeks away and I can't wait! I am so curious about how the baby is situated in there and how big he or she is measuring.

 

Anything else: Nursery is really coming together. I had my final talk with my boss about maternity leave so that is all set. I have a few appointments set up to check out home daycares. July is a busy month filled with baby classes. We have three baby showers in the next 4 weeks. It feels like we are in the home stretch! And with each passing day, we get more and more excited to meet our little one!