Week 38 Update

First, from babycenter.com

Your baby has really plumped up. She weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)

I'm getting so anxious, only 2 more weeks (three at the most)! I am really hoping baby will make a early appearance this week though, I could really use my belly back.

My last appointment was on Friday and everything went well. I am 1 cm dilated so YAY for progress! For those of you guessing on the baby poll on Facebook here a a few other notes. My last belly size was 40 cm and the baby's heartbeat last time was 134 (but I have seen it as high as 160). Baby has dropped but I'm still carrying kinda high (just like my profile picture).

One note that I would like prayer about is that my doctor said I should be willing to consider a c-section due to the baby's size. She is slightly concerned that because it does seem to be a bigger baby, I may not be able to have a natural birth; which is what I really want. My prayer is that the doctors will be patient and let me decide whether I can handle his/her size on my own. My goal in this delivery is to have an all natural birth, as in, no pain medication. I have faith that God can get me through any amount of pain. But I have heard and read that some doctors will push to give medications and other interventions. So prayer that God give the doctors and nurses patience would be awesome, and thank you to everyone who has been  praying for me these past months, it has helped me through a lot.

Thank you to everyone who reads and comments on my blog. It is so helpful and encouraging to see all the love flood in. I hope my next post will be that baby is here, but if not, I'll try to post on Thursday after my appointment, and/or next Monday for the weekly update. Thanks for reading and God Bless you all!

Week 37 Update

Sorry about not getting last weeks update up, I was going to wait til Thursday after my doctor appointment and then I just got distracted. Anyway, here is the week 37 update from babycenter.com

Your baby is now considered "full term," even though your due date is three weeks away. If you go into labor now, his lungs will likely be mature enough to fully adjust to life outside the womb. (Some babies need a bit more time, though. So if you're planning to have a repeat c-section, for example, your practitioner will schedule it for no earlier than 39 weeks unless there's a medical reason to intervene earlier.)

Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

My doctor appointment went very well this past Thursday, we also had an ultrasound done to check the fluid levels (my doctor was just curious). So for starters, my fluid levels are fine and the baby is nice and big. As a matter of fact, the doctor estimated that the baby is about 6 lb 14 oz! And I still have possibly 3-4 weeks to go! And our baby has hair already, SQUEE! Heartbeat during the ultrasound was nice and strong at 163. For those of you who are mothers already and are curious, I am not dilated yet.

This is just a profile picture, I know it's not very detailed, but this is the best we could do. 

I am getting to the point that I will be very happy when my belly is gone and baby is in my arms. So if baby decides to come a week early or so, I will not complain in the least. 

I have been reading in my devotional to always remember that God is in control, which is hard for me sometimes cause I like to think that I should be the one who is in control. I just have to remember that God will get me through this, whether He follows "my plan" or not is to be determined. 

I am still working my job at Culver's, and I plan to continue until I can't anymore. I'm taking lots of sit-down breaks, but it's working out pretty good. 

Well I think that is about it for this week. Hopefully another post (on time) next week. :) Thanks for reading and God Bless!!

Week 35 Update

From babycenter.com

Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

Ha! "baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now" that's funny! Our silly baby still love to do crazy stunts when I'm trying to sleep at night. Well the last doctor appointment went very well. She said I feel like I'm all baby and not much fluid so we scheduled an ultrasound for next week to see how big baby is. Nothing to worry about, just a checkup. 

In other awesome news, my two best friends threw me a awesome baby shower this past weekend. So many friends, family and gifts! Alex and I are truly blessed. I hope to get some pictures up soon, but I have to wait for my BFFs to get me the pictures. It was so fun to play the diaper game, and the guests decorated onesies, and we just had so much fun and good food it was awesome! 

I think that is it for now actually, I'm going to bed early this evening. Thanks for reading and God Bless!

Week 34 Update

From babycenter.com
Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

Only about 6 weeks to go! And now (according to babycenter.com, although I still want to hear the OK from my doctor) I could have the baby any time and we would both be OK. I would still like to make it to 38 weeks though, so hold on for a little while longer little one!

Now is the time I'm supposed to be preparing a hospital bag, so I should really get on that. I've seen lots of lists of what to bring on the internet, but if you have had a baby recently and have any suggestions, please leave a comment here or on my FB and let me know. Alex and I started the childbirth classes, but haven't quite finished them yet, so that will be a goal this week as well. My last baby goal for the week is to, at the very least, make a grocery list of things I need to make some crock-pot freezer meals for after baby comes. I'd love to get the food all prepped and frozen before the end of the week, but getting a grocery list together is the minimum I will achieve this week. (Someone poke me on Wednesday or Thursday to make sure I'm doing it)

Alex and I got to tour the birthing center this past week. It was awesome! We are going to be going to the Maple Grove hospital and for those that don't know, it's very new. So almost everything is current and the latest stuff. Every room has a shower and whirlpool bath, a TV and most rooms have a nice outdoor view. The mommy monitors are portable so assuming the labor is going well, I will be able to walk around while laboring, which is something I'm very happy about. The after delivery rooms are just as nice and they also have a little section of the hospital that is basically a spa for mom! I will give that a try :). The nursery is beautiful and they also told us about their security systems which sound extremely reliable and up to date. I'm also happy to say that they have a cafe inside the hospital so friends and family don't have to leave to get something to eat.

Sorry, I kind of went on a little happy spree all about the hospital and I stopped talking about me and baby. I'm just really excited! I have another appointment this week so if there is any news, I'll make another post on Wednesday.

I think that is it for today. Thanks for reading and God Bless!

P.S. Happy Anniversary to my BFF and her husband!