36 weeks

How your baby's growing: Your baby is still putting on the pounds — about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds and is a little less than 19 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the creamy substance that covered and protected her skin during its submersion in amniotic fluid. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, which will stay in her bowels until birth. This blackish mixture, called meconium, will become her first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Babies between 37 and 42 weeks are considered full-term; a baby born before 37 weeks is pre-term and after 42 is post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position by now, which is optimal for a smooth delivery, but if she isn't in the next week, your provider may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying he'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position manually, by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.

How your life's changing: While your baby continues to grow and crowd
your internal organs, you may find that you're not as hungry as you were a few weeks ago. Smaller, more frequent meals are often easier to handle at this point. On the other hand, you may have less heartburn and have an easier time breathing when your baby starts to drop down lower in your pelvis. This dropping — called lightening or engagement — is more likely to happen before labor if this is your first baby. When it does, though, you may feel increased pressure in your lower abdomen, making walking increasingly uncomfortable. Some women say it feels as though they're carrying a bowling ball between their legs, or as if the baby is going to fall out. (Don't worry, she won't!)

You might also notice that your Braxton Hicks contractions are a little more frequent now. Be sure to review with your practitioner exactly when and where to call her when you think your labor has started. As a general rule, you should call when you start having regular contractions coming every five minutes for about an hour. Of course, you'll want to call right away if you're not yet 37 weeks and have signs of preterm labor. You should also call without delay if your water breaks (or if you even think you're leaking amniotic fluid), if you notice a decrease in your baby's activity, or if you have any vaginal bleeding, fever, severe headaches, abdominal pain, or changes in your vision.

Even if you're enjoying an uncomplicated pregnancy, it's best to avoid flying during your final month, when you're more likely to go into labor. In fact, many airlines won't let women on board who are due to deliver within seven or sometimes 30 days of the flight.

oh goodness...

Alright...I had a doctors appointment today and finally got the results back from my ultrasound! She is a big baby!! She is in the 98th percentile, so my doctor said he's guessing at delivery she'll be anywhere from 9-11 lbs! Today I measured at 39 weeks, so we'll see what happens. He said that if I were to go into labor anytime from now on that everything would be fine and they wouldn't try to stop it. My mom and Mike are in Mexico and Matt leaves next monday for California...all of them getting back on July 2nd so hopefully she's happy where she's at until at least the 3rd.

35 weeks

Your Baby
She's nearly there! Most 35-week babies weigh 5 pounds or more and rarely experience major complications if born before they officially come to term. You may feel a tingling or numbness in your pelvic region as the extra weight presses on your nerves, as well as increased movement in your upper rib cage where her feet have come to rest in preparation for the head-down journey into the world. Three to four percent of full-term babies never adopt this position, but remain breech (with their heads facing up). If your baby is part of this stubborn minority, you may be at greater risk for a cesarean section. To prevent this, your caregiver may attempt to turn her from the outside using a process called "external version." She'll also do a sonogram to determine the baby's exact position before deciding whether to attempt a vaginal birth.

I still haven't heard anything about my ultrasound. I had to go back this friday and do it again because they erased the results before it was read. I ended up spending a few hours in the hospital that night as well. I hadn't really felt good all day and my lower back was hurting and I felt really crampy. Throughout the day the cramps got a little more painful and were coming and going. So to the birth center I went and sure enough, I was having contractions! First they were 12 minutes apart, then 6 minutes, then 4...all the while the woman in the room next to me was screaming like she was being murdered!! It was not a pleasant sound! I told my mom we could just go...that girl was freaking me out! The nurse was watching the screen as I was having what I considered to be a painful contraction and she says "can you feel that?" "that's a small one". Dear Lord!! That was a small one!! I must be a huge wimp, cause on my pain scale that was like a 6 or 7!!! Anyway, after a few hours the contractions just kind of stopped...they said I was probably dehydrated and I needed to drink more water and get more rest. They also did a test on me that can predict if you're going to go into labor in the next 1-2 weeks and it came back negative...so hopefully I have at least 2 weeks left and everyone will be back from their vacations.

nothing to report

I still havent heard anything from the doctor. I actually called today...yes I was one of "those" people. They said it might take another day or two.

I truely have the most amazing friends and family.
My sister in law Angela asked me earlier this week if I would be able to watch Addy this past Saturday because she had to work, and my brother was coming home from Florida. I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to spend time with Addy so I said yes.
Late morning, my friend Adele calls and asks what I'm up to...I tell her I'm watching Addison and she asks if her and Christy can bring lunch and come hang out. They come over and visit for a few hours...she's asking me where Angela was and what Joel was up to...and we make plans for Adele to come to my house after I'm done for me to cut her hair. When they leave Adele says to call her as soon as I'm leaving and she will meet me at home. During all this time I'm trying to get a hold of Liz because we were supposed to go to a movie that night and she's not answering and I've talked to Joel a few times who seems to be taking FOREVER to get home from the airport!!
Joel finally gets home and I visit with him a little bit when Angela calls...she says she didn't get a break at work so she was going to get some lunch and then she'd be home. Joel calls her back and says he's going to meet her at Red Robin. I head home. I call Adele to let her know. Then my mom calls to find out when I'm coming home...I tell her I'm on my way. I walk in the door and all the baby shower presents that were taking up the living room were gone!! My mom says "I put some stuff away...come look." My bedroom door opens and there is Angela and Liz and Adele and my grandparents!!! The totally re-did my room to accomadate the baby furniture. They put the crib together, my grandpa made me a new bed, they decorated...it was the most amazing feeling...it is so beautiful!!
They had been planning this for weeks...it's funny because when I look back now I can remember things that might have made me question, but they were good! I even drove by all of their cars parked at the Christian School on my way home! This was my sister in laws idea and I can't thank her enough for loving and caring about me and my baby to want to do something that like that for us. The room is now ready for her and it's such a huge weight off of my shoulders. I feel prepared now so whenever she decides to make an appearance I'm ready!

34 weeks

How your baby's growing: Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is probably almost 18 inches long from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet. Her central nervous system is still maturing, but her lungs are well developed now. That's great news in case she decides to come early. If you've been nervous about going into preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that 99 percent of babies this age can survive outside the womb — and most have no major long-term problems related to prematurity.

You may be feeling a little fatigued lately, and that's perfectly understandable. Let yourself slow down and save some energy for labor day. If you have to spend a lot of time on your feet, try wearing a maternity belt that supports your abdomen and helps redistribute some of the weight. And if you've been sitting or lying down for a long time, don't jump up too quickly. Blood can pool in your feet and legs, which may cause a temporary (but rapid) drop in your blood pressure and make you feel dizzy when you get up.

ultrasound update

Ok, so I had an ultrasound today...the technician can't give too much information because the radiologist has to read it, but from what we could see her head is really low and the tech said that she was "very generous" in size! Oh man! We got a couple of good pictures that I will try to get on here soon, and we got to see her yawn! It was so cute!

Hopefully I will know more on monday!

update

So I had a doctor appointment yesterday, just a regular 2 week visit. When he was measuring my belly he measured me at 37 1/2 weeks!! When I should be 33 1/2 weeks...when we listened to the heart beat, he found it below my belly button which made him wonder if her head was already engaged! So I'm having an ultrasound on friday to find out if
A) I'm further along then they thought I was...or
B) She is one big baby!!
Matt was an 11+lb baby so my doctor said taking that into concideration the chances of her being big are very high...but we're going to check just to be sure! I will let you know on friday and hopefully I'll have a new picture to post!

33 weeks

Your Baby: Starting at about week 26, your baby has slept and awoken at regular intervals. She closes her eyes when she sleeps, and she'll even dream during the last month before birth. No one knows what babies dream about in the womb, but they show reactions ranging from frowns and smiles to crying and kicking. Asleep or awake, you may feel the kicks in a new place around now--in your rib cage, just below your breasts--as she moves into the head-down position where she'll probably stay until birth.

Your Body: Speaking of sleep, rest may be elusive by this point. Insomnia is common during the last trimester, and what sleep you do get will be interrupted by frequent trips to the bathroom. Heartburn, reflux (which feels like your food is coming up again), lower back pain, and swollen feet are among the commonest complaints. Many women find that it helps to eat small, frequent meals instead of large ones; use extra pillows to support belly and back; and sleep alone if your partner's tossing and turning (or snoring) wakes you up just as you're drifting off.

At my last appointment 2 weeks ago I was measuring a week and a half ahead of schedule so I'm anxious to see where I'm at this week. I've got another baby shower tomorrow with my family and family friends which I'm looking forward to. Starting to get a little restless and bored being home, but oh well...it's for the best.