On to week 35... wow!!!

34 Weeks complete... I can't believe how fast they keep going by. I heard that towards the end time seems to slow down- I'm still waiting for that to happen!
Baby B. is growing pretty quickly... 32 weeks vs. 34 weeks: definitely sticking out some more!

How far along? 34 Weeks, may start counting down the days next week...
Total weight gain/loss: I'm guessing about 25, will find out officially Thurs. morning.
Sleep: Going okay, I'm not gonna complain after hearing stories from other pregnant girls...
Best moment this week: We finally started thinking and talking about names, and are working on a list, so maybe our baby will have a name before leaving the hospital :) Also, it was nice to hear the Mr. Beaver thought our breastfeeding class was worth going to and that he learned a lot- I definitely got a lot out of it too!
Movement: Still strong! I am really worried the baby is sideways though... I get bulges the size of a tennis ball and a softball sticking out of opposite sides at the same time. I'm thinking one is the head and one is the bum...
Food cravings: nothing out of the ordinary with my eating habits from pre-pregnancy
Gender: Back to not having a clue or any intuitive feelings at all!
Labor signs: Hopefully will keep away for at least four more weeks (when I will be considered full-term!)
Belly Button in or out? Blah- don't even want to think about it. I'm considering asking our photographer to photoshop and make it a little (or a lot) smaller when we get our maternity pics done!
What I miss: Not much! I was a little jealous of Mr. Beaver's frosty beer last night, but it wasn't bad.
What I am looking forward to: Maternity pics next week! I have no idea what I will wear though...
Weekly wisdom: craigslist, while addicting, can have some awesome deals! I found a great amateur photographer for our maternity pics that is affordable enough that we decided to have them done, which I am really happy about now. We also found a safety gate for the top of our stairs for an awesome price, and an extra pack-and-play for downstairs and eventually outside for about 75% less than the store cost!
Milestones: I am past 34 weeks now, meaning if I go into labor they will do nothing to stop it!! Not that I want to go early, but after a friend due two weeks before me had her baby this week, I realize anything can happen! (Congrats again H3B!!)

We haven't made much progress on the nursery which is why I haven't posted any pics, but I did start working on the mobile... here it is so far:

wow...33 weeks!!

And I think I've popped again :)

Friday night (one day shy of 33 weeks) compared to 8 weeks prior in same sweater:


I can't believe how much my belly sticks out in this picture!!! Luckily (for my self-image) I'm still at the point where people tell me I look cute/great/etc. and not getting the, "wow you look like you're ready to pop!", "Are you sure there's only one in there?", "Oh my gosh- you're HUGE!" etc. comments that I hear other pregnant gals vent about. I do think I'm close, though... a direct quote from my mom's e-mail reply to this picture- "OMG...... your poor little belly looks like it's sticking so far out that it hurts! Wow..... " I think if it had come from anyone other than my mom it might have bothered me a little bit! I can't even imagine how much bigger I am going to get in the next 7 or so weeks, though. I am sure the unpleasant comments will come... or maybe I'll get lucky and my belly will stay how it is and somehow make other room for the growing baby :)

Speaking of the baby...
Baby's now the size of a honeydew!
Things are heating up inside as well: Baby may grow up to a full inch this week alone, and his brain is developing like crazy. Pretty soon, he'll be able to coordinate breathing with sucking and swallowing. Also, his bones are hardening, and he's started to keep his eyes open when he's awake.

Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through your (extremely) stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs… time to start practicing your lullabies! Growth (at least inside your womb) is starting to slow, and you may notice baby descend into your pelvis at the end of this month.

How far along? 33 Weeks, less than 50 days to go!
Total weight gain/loss: At the last appointment, 23 lbs... probably 24 now.
Sleep: Surprisingly decent the past couple of days, but it is increasingly difficult to get comfortable. I am sleeping with a big, long, curvy pregnancy pillow, as well as THREE regular pillows at this point. It takes a while to adjust them all when I go to bed, and it is almost as much work each time I have to switch sides (which happens several times when my shoulder/hip/ear/etc. gets sore) or when I have to get up to pee.
Best moment this week: Even though I don't like the idea of getting older, we had a pretty great time celebrating my birthday Friday :)
Movement: Seems to be settling down a little bit the past couple of days- and I'm feeling it more inside and low lately instead of outside and on the sides. It's still pretty constant though, just not as noticeable if I'm not paying attention.
Food cravings: still nothing! Some days I don't even have much of an appetite. I'd say if I ever crave anything, it's just liquid- I still get pretty thirsty all of a sudden.
Gender: Back to not having a clue or any intuitive feelings at all!
Labor signs: Hopefully will keep away for at least four more weeks (when I will be considered full-term!)
Belly Button in or out? Blah- don't even want to think about it. I'm considering asking our photographer to photoshop and make it a little (or a lot) smaller when we get our maternity pics done!
What I miss: It was a little sad going to the local ski lift today and not being able to participate, especially because they had an awesome looking tubing trail set up. And when we got there we realized that lift tickets are free for the whole month! And all I could do was hang out at the bottom and watch Mr. Beaver and play with Lili (yes, I brought our dog to the ski park... I get too bored being alone haha...)
What I am looking forward to: I am calling a photographer I found to schedule our maternity photo session for when I am 35 weeks! Also, we start Lamaze classes this week, and have our breastfeeding class.
Weekly wisdom: When someone is obviously chasing you down because he notices you are pregnant, don't worry about being rude and pretending not to notice him. I tried to be polite when the grocery store employee left the line of carts he was pushing to come and talk to me... it turned into an awkward and slightly scary situation. Luckily I avoided the belly rubbing that I could see was coming and escaped with a congratulatory hand shake thanks to my use of full grocery bags as a shield. Still not a comfortable situation at 10 pm in a dark parking lot alone, 7 1/2 months pregnant!
Milestones: turning another year older, and I am less than a week away from the point where my doctors will do nothing to stop labor if it starts naturally, not that I want that to happen any time soon!

Doctor update, belly video

Today was my 33 week appointment, and everything looks and sounds good! Baby's heart rate was 146, and measurements were a couple of centimeters bigger like they should be. I think that the baby grew a lot since last week, because for a few days he or she was sleepy (seemed to move less), I have been very sleepy, and I gained a whopping 4 lbs!!

I've been trying to get some video of the baby moving, but every time I try it's like he can tell and stops. Today I happened to have my camera right next to me, and was able to capture a little bit. I got a good minute of movement before it settles down. Of course as soon as I stopped recording it started up again, oh well!
I don't know how to edit video or anything, so ignore the random commercial sounds in the background!

Getting close!!

For some reason, 32 weeks feels really, really far along in this pregnancy!!
I'm definitely starting to feel more pregnant... I've been lucky enough to avoid most of the uncomfortable pregnancy symptoms over the past seven months, but now I'm feeling to extra weight in my back a little, by the evening I'm noticing a little swelling in my hands, my breathing is a little difficult especially if I bend over, and there is A LOT more pressure on my bladder all of a sudden! I've also been a lot more tired lately... not to mention losing motivation from work and spending too much time reading books about newborns and childbirth! I'm hoping that the weather and being snowed in for a week was partially to blame, and once I'm back to my normal life it will get better... but knowing I'm less than two months from my due date, and constantly feeling our baby wiggling around definitely makes it all okay!

Anyway, this weeks report:
How far along? 32 Weeks, that's 80% complete!
Total weight gain/loss: Was up 19 lbs at my appointment, am sure I am to 20 now.
Maternity clothes? Yup, although my pre-preg "fat jeans" in the pic above.
Best moment this week: putting together our baby swing- I LOVE IT! It is sooo cute!!! (and of the 33rd week- celebrating our last child-free valentine's day together!)
Movement: a little less than normal, I think baby might be going through a growth spurt. But still plenty of movement to keep me from getting worried!
Gender: Team green! I told Mr. Beaver that earlier this week for some reason I had a feeling our baby was a boy, and he said he kinda felt that way too! But I also had a dream about the baby as a girl, so who knows...
Labor signs: no thank you!
Belly Button in or out? It is disturbingly out.
What I miss: warm weather, especially since it is STILL snowing!! And now pregnancy related- having no problem putting on socks and shoes (actually pants too...)
Weekly wisdom: double knotting shoes makes taking them off even more uncomfortable and difficult :(
Milestones: I *think* I have an idea of what we are planning to do for nursery decor! exciting!!

Happy Superbowl!

Congrats Saints! And go Tony H.- way to represent PCHS! :)

this week's belly pic:

Baby is growing!!!

Baby's now the size of a squash!
Baby's going through major brain and nerve development these days. His irises now react to light, and all five senses are in working order. (He won't pick up anything from his nose until after birth, though -- smell is transferred through air, not amniotic fluid.)

How far along? 31 Weeks! I can't believe that number is so high already...
Total weight gain/loss: Was up 19 lbs at my appointment, am sure I am to 20 now.
Maternity clothes? Yup!
Best moment this week: getting all the tape off the walls and moving the furniture back in the nursery!
Movement: still tons! the baby seems to be very strong! I think he or she is sideways, so it's quite interesting to see my stomach bulging out on both sides at the same time... I wish I could figure out what parts of baby's body we are seeing!
Gender: Team green! Still no feelings toward either gender.
Labor signs: no thank you!
Belly Button in or out? It is disturbingly out.
What I miss: still warm weather, especially after all of the snow this weekend!!!!!
Weekly wisdom: Don't try to hide belly movement in public with your arms... it actually draws attention to it and then people will stare at your stomach until they see movement themselves, which can be quite uncomfortable...
Milestones: I think that we have everything "big" that we need for baby's arrival!! Besides one bookshelf from Ikea that we will get soon, we've got the nursery crib and dresser, crib mattress and changing pad, the glider and ottoman, the pack-n-play with bassinet, swing, bouncy chair, video monitor, car seat/travel system... I'm sure I'm missing something... I know there are still plenty of little things we need, but I feel very comfortable that we have almost everything we need now! Very exciting.

Appointment update!

We had our 31 week appointment early this morning, and all is well with baby and me! My bump is measuring small still, but within the normal range. I got a little more info- they do the measurement in centimeters, and the measurement should match your week. I measured at 28 centimeters, and am 30 weeks, 4 days. They say that they consider the normal/healthy range to be 2 cm from your weeks, so if they go with me being 30 weeks then 28 cm is in that range :)
The baby's heart rate was a very healthy 140, so seems to have leveled out. They were happy with my total weight gain, 19 lbs, so I am happy with that too. Things feel a little tighter all over, but I do think the majority of the gain has been in my belly, so I am happy with that!
We got a website and log-in info for an online labor and delivery class, so I'm anxious to do that before my next appointment so I can bring questions. No more progress has been made on the nursery, but hopefully we'll get more done this week and I'll feel like there is something worth posting pictures of!