6 lb 13 oz

Estimated weight of our baby!
That puts him or her in the 32nd percentile, which is fine with me! As far as I know everything looked good. It wasn't as fun as I expected- the baby is so big we really could only see parts of parts the whole time- not like other ultrasounds where we could see the entire head, or a profile, etc. We did get to see the heart beating, lungs practicing breathing, the little skinny legs, and the mouth- with a big yawn while we were watching :)

Oh yeah...

I guess I forgot to post that I successfully proposed my dissertation yesterday :)
It is a HUGE relief to have it done!!! There is still a lot of work to do- like running all of the studies I proposed- but at least the work has been approved, so they have to give me my degree if I do everything I said I will do ;)
It is the first time in 4 years that I have felt pretty confident that I will indeed graduate! I have always hoped I would, obviously, but really didn't feel sure that I would stick it out until now. I know it's going to be a lot more complicated and difficult once the baby is here, but luckily the studies are all designed and ready to go, so that part is taken care of, and then all I've really got left is the data work (which is a part I actually enjoy) and the writing- which can all be done at home and is very flexible schedule-wise. Data collection will be tricky, but I've got some funding to hire someone to help, and my mom is planning to be here as much as I need her to. The plan is for her to watch the baby while I collect data, but to be on-site so that I can nurse and see the baby as often as I need to! I've been thinking more and more about spreading the work out over the next year instead of summer/fall semester, but I think I will play it by ear for now.

Get to see the baby earlier than expected...

but only on an ultrasound :)
I did have an exam today and had no labor-progress besides a softened cervix, so I'm still guessing I've got a couple of weeks to go! My measurements were back on the small side, though, so the doctor wants me to do a growth ultrasound just to be safe. She said they don't worry unless the baby is below the 10th percentile in size, and I'm not worried at all about that. My mom measured small with all four of us and we all came out healthy, small but not too small.
Other than that- a pretty uneventful appointment! I was happy it didn't take as long to be seen as it has in recent weeks, and they finally seemed to have my chart updated and correct :)

38 Weeks!

How big is baby, man-version: (because it's about cars and reminds me of Mr. Beaver, although I don't think he'd be very excited about an electric motor in a real car. Remote control cars, on the other hand, are apparently fun to tinker with their electric motors)

Pregnancy Week 37 to the big day:
Your baby is the size of the electric motor
in the $110,000 2008 Tesla which can
go from 0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds. Sweet.

How far along? 38 weeks... 14 days until my due date!!
Total weight gain/loss: Seems to have leveled out, I'm thinking 25-27 total?
Sleep: Bad lately but only because I've got a cold and can't breath through my nose :(
Best moment this week: Getting a working stove/oven! Time to bake :)
Movement: Still a lot, but not as big and noticeable now that baby is running out of room.
Food cravings: nothing out of the ordinary with my eating habits from pre-pregnancy
Gender: will find out very soon!
Labor signs: none yet...hopefully will stay away at least until Monday, noon!
Belly Button in or out? very out. eww.
What I miss: being able to easily get up from sitting... it seems like getting off the couch/out of bed/out of a car takes so long now!
What I am looking forward to: proposing my dissertation MONDAY so that I can feel ready for the baby to come :)
Weekly wisdom: Hmm.. I guess enjoy the last days of pregnancy instead of sitting around waiting for the baby to come? People keep making comments about how I must be so ready to be done with pregnancy... umm not really, I think I could easily do another month or two at least, and I think I'm really going to miss feeling the baby move and watching from the outside, not to mention always knowing the baby is safe and with me and still being able to do stuff. It's hard to explain, but I know I will miss being pregnant.
Milestones: I think we are ready for the baby to come home! I'm still doing last minute things, but I don't think there is anything important still to be done.

Your Baby: Month 9

At week 37, your pregnancy is considered full term, meaning baby is likely to thrive after birth. Baby spends these last weeks in preparation for the outside world… meaning careful refinement of the blink, suck, inhale and exhale. Meconium, which you’ll probably find in the first diaper, is accumulating in the intestines. If (okay, as) you worry about giving birth, consider what it’s like for the little one. During the journey out of your womb, baby will produce more stress hormones than any other time in life.

How far along? 37 weeks... that's only 21 days to go! (actually posting this late- 19 days to go!)
Total weight gain/loss: Hmm not sure... between 25-28 lbs...I've been hungry
Sleep: I have some nights where I wake up and can't get back to sleep, but mostly sleep is okay still.
Best moment this week: Finishing hanging the pictures/mobile/decal in the nursery... it feels so much more done now!
Movement: Still a lot, but not as big and noticeable now that baby is running out of room.
Food cravings: nothing out of the ordinary with my eating habits from pre-pregnancy
Gender: will find out very soon!
Labor signs: none yet...hopefully will stay away for at least a week!
Belly Button in or out? very out. eww.
What I miss: Still wearing cute clothes...
What I am looking forward to: proposing my dissertation so that I can feel ready for the baby to come :)
Weekly wisdom: Get the carseat inspected! Our class covered car seat safety for a loooong time, and Mr. Beaver was sure that he knew how to do it correctly. It was correct, but not nearly tight enough. I am so relieved we had it re-installed... I guess the 40 hours of training they go through really does make a difference :)
Milestones: I'm full term!

I think our baby is going to be very well behaved :)

I've been crazy busy getting stuff around the house done and preparing for my public dissertation proposal next Monday (which I just scheduled a few days ago... talk about time pressure!). This morning has flown by while I try to get stuff done, but in the back of the mind I keep worrying about not noticing baby moving at all today. When the baby doesn't seem to move, I'm supposed to drink a cup of juice and lay on my side for an hour and make sure I feel at least 10 kicks. Losing an hour of work time today would not be a good thing!! But I was worried about the baby. I figured I'd try something else first, so I lifted my shirt and asked our baby to move so I could keep working and stop worrying. Within a couple of minutes I felt (and saw) more than 10 good movements! I didn't even have to lay down- I remained sitting with my computer on my lap and all. I guess baby was just trying to help me get work done and avoid being distracted this morning :) I thought this was so cool I had to take a couple of minutes to post! Now I've got to get back to work... I'm planning to upload the belly pic from this weekend tonight... can't believe I'm full term already!!!!!

Doctor appointment update

I didn't post about last week's doctor appointment because it was a little disappointing... unfortunately this week was not much better. I'm starting to get a little concerned!

I am hoping to avoid any interventions and pain medications for my delivery. I am realistic- I read about my options so that if I change my mind when the time comes I know what is available, the risks and procedures, etc. I also know about all of the interventions, when they are necessary, alternatives, risks and procedures, etc. I will not be disappointed with myself if I end up deciding to get an epidural, or will not be devastated if I need a c-section for the baby's or my own safety. That said, if everything is going well with my labor and delivery and there are no issues, I do not want unnecessary doses of pitocin to speed things up, I would like to be free to move around during labor and not be attached to monitors, I'm fine with an IV port being set up in case it is needed, but I'd like to hydrate by drinking fluids, you get the idea. My doctors either don't see a reason to avoid unnecessary medical procedures, or don't expect my labor to go without complications. Last week and this week the two different doctors both told me that my requests are not in line with their standard procedures, and that they don't do things that way. I have not been in the mood to argue my position, so I just let it go for the time being... but I am really hoping I get the one doctor I've seen so far who actually encouraged me to attempt the birth plan I have in mind!! It's a 1/6 chance of getting him I guess, and a 1/3 chance of getting one of the two doctors who rolled their eyes at my questions about doing things my way (I haven't seen the other 3 of the 6 doctors so I'm not sure where they stand).

I know a lot of people (especially those who don't research things as much as I do) would think I am crazy to act like I can read and decide what is best for my baby's birth over what a doctor says, but I am starting to realize that doctors really do think most about what is best for THEM and not Me. What concerns me more, though, is that lately I don't feel like my doctors really even think about me as a unique patient... I think they just think that every patient is the same, and they will treat every one the same and all will get pitocin and epidurals and pitocin again after the delivery, the whole time while on IV fluids and constant monitoring while being confined to the hospital bed, and then their job will be done. They don't care about my wishes to do things as naturally as possible, or my own satisfaction with my birth experience. All they care about is that I and the baby are healthy- which is good, but I think they should also care about me being comfortable and happy with the birth experience. It's not like I'm just saying I want things this way because they sound good- I've done a ton of research, we're taking all of the classes, and I've really thought a lot about why I want things to go the way I do. Maybe I would still value the doctors' opinions over what I have learned if I trusted them more- but today I went in and the doctor did not even know how far along I was. She didn't know my due date. My chart was not correct. My test results from last week had still not been printed and put in my chart. And she would not have even realized any of this if I had not brought up that things she was saying were incorrect for how pregnant I was, and that I should have gotten my test results. The week before, the doctor asked me how big my first baby was at birth (this is my first baby). Its like they don't even bother looking at my chart... why would I trust them to decide what is best for me when they don't have a clue about my pregnancy!

Anyway- I just needed to vent. I am annoyed at how I've been treated at my doctor's lately, but I am not worried about how my labor and delivery will go. I know what I want, and I will probably have to speak up for myself to get it, but I am happy to be well informed so that no matter what happens I will know that I am choosing what is best for my baby and myself. I just hope that the doctor-situation ends up being less frustrating than I am now expecting!!

OMG- 36 weeks!!!

I can't believe I am going to be full term next Saturday!!!!!

How far along? 90% done!!!! 36 weeks, 1 day today :)
Total weight gain/loss: 24 lbs at my last appointment, in the morning...so probably 25
Sleep: Not able to sleep longer than about 5 hours at night, but doing okay.
Best moment this week: The whole weekend was full of "best moments" with visits from two of my best friends and my mom :)
Movement: Still a lot, but not as big and noticeable now that baby is running out of room.
Food cravings: nothing out of the ordinary with my eating habits from pre-pregnancy
Gender: I seriously go back and forth every day... no idea! Everyone else seems to think boy :)
Labor signs: Hopefully will keep away for at least a week (when I will be considered full-term!) I do think I've had a few braxton hicks contractions- not labor, but I think this is my body practicing for the real thing!
Belly Button in or out? very out. eww.
What I miss: Still wearing cute clothes...
What I am looking forward to: Having everything done and ready for the baby... we are actually getting pretty close!!
Weekly wisdom: Moms are awesome at getting everything on your to-do list done- and I think they don't mind spending hours and hours cleaning because it's something they can do to help with your pregnancy :) At least that is how my mom has been the past few days!
Milestones: We have decided on the placement of furniture in the nursery!! Also all of the bedding, clothes, etc. have been washed!

It's been a long, fun weekend but now I'm too tired to write about it. Here's a picture of what my friends and I did for part of it though: (onesie decorating!)

some pictures!

We had our maternity pictures taken. I think I look kinda tired, my hair was messy, and I wish I would've shopped for something exciting to wear. That said, I'm glad we got them and that I have some well taken pictures of such a special and exciting time!! There are some cute ones of Mr. Beaver and I that I will chose between to hang in the baby's nursery, and I think I may do a belly picture too if it goes. I don't have those pictures yet, but the photographer did post some of her own favorites on her blog. Here they are!
http://cannonshotsphotography.blogspot.com/

Yesterday = 35/35!!

35/35 is kind of a milestone on the pregnancy message boards... I don't think it means too much in terms of baby's development, but it does sound pretty exciting to have 35 weeks DONE and only 35 days to go!! That's just about a month left! In 3 days, March 10, it will be exactly a month shy of my due date!!
We had our maternity pictures done yesterday, but I won't have those for a little while so just a regular belly pic today:

How far along? 35 Weeks, that is 7/8 of the way done!
Total weight gain/loss: About 25 lbs
Sleep: So/so... I've been more tired recently but I am able to get enough sleep with naps.
Best moment this week: Mr. Beaver seemed to get really into our lamaze exercises at this week's class and it made me very happy :)
Movement: Lots! and now that the doctor told me I'm feeling the baby's bum and feet pushing away from each other, I'm expecting this kid to have really long legs! I'm thankful that, for now, baby Beaver seems to be sparing me the bladder punches and rib kicks I hear complaints about.
Food cravings: nothing out of the ordinary with my eating habits from pre-pregnancy
Gender: I seriously go back and forth every day... no idea!
Labor signs: Hopefully will keep away for at least three more weeks (when I will be considered full-term!) I do think I've had a few braxton hicks contractions- not labor, but I think this is my body practicing for the real thing!
Belly Button in or out? eww. I'm really hoping it doesn't look too gross in my maternity pictures, and that my big naval-piercing scar isn't too noticeable...
What I miss: Wearing cute clothes... it was impossible to find something I was happy with to wear for the maternity pictures. I guess if I hadn't waited until the hour before leaving to pick out my wardrobe I could've gone shopping... oh well!
What I am looking forward to: Company visiting! My mom will be here Wed. to Mon. and a couple girlfriends are coming Fri. to Sun. Yay! Will definitely be a fun weekend, and a fun last girls get together before the baby comes... although it's not really the same when you can't drink :)
Weekly wisdom: Ask for the coupon books at Babies-r-us... they don't always have them at the register, but when they do they tend to forget to give them to you without asking!
Milestones: Getting this far in my pregnancy!! Working on what we will actually be doing during labor (lamaze/bradley techniques). It makes it seem so much closer and so real!

35 Week appointment

Just a quick update!
My appointment today was great. I love being the first or last one of the day, because the whole thing takes 15 minutes from when I walk in the office until I leave!

Everything seems to be fine for now :) I actually was the same weight as two weeks ago, but I think that may have been influenced by the time of the appointment- the last one was at 7pm after a whole day of eating and drinking, and today's was 8am by which point I only had time for a fruit smoothie and slice of toast with peanut butter... I was just happy not to see another big 4+lbs jump. Blood pressure was normal, the gum drop's heart rate was a healthy 152, and I'm still not swelling at all which I guess is a good sign!

Two especially positive updates- the baby is definitely growing: I measured 3 cm growth in 2 weeks time! Now I'm hardly measuring small at all. The doctor said that it was great growth from the last appointment :) Also, I have been worried that baby Beaver is sideways because of the bulges I feel on opposite sides of my abdomen. Apparently I am feeling a butt on one side like I thought, but the other side isn't a head, it's feet! The doctor said it feels like he or she is head down, which is very very good news!! I love how the doctors make me feel so good about my pregnancy, like everything is going so well because of my actions, like I can control it :)

In other updates, we have now finished our breastfeeding class, our infant safety and cpr class, and two of five lamaze/childbirth classes. So far I think they have all been worthwhile, and have helped me feel more and more confident. Besides the lamaze classes I am reading a book on the Bradley method, and they are actually very similar so far. Traditional lamaze teaches ways of distracting yourself from pain, while our instructor seems to include distraction as a method of controlling pain, but also emphasizes relaxation as a way of controlling and dealing with pain. From what I've read so far, this is what I've interpreted to be the method used in the Bradley techniques (I'm only about halfway through the book though). Learning about these methods, as well as Mr. Beaver's continuing confidence and assurance that I am awesome at dealing with pain and will be completely fine, have definitely kept my confidence high and my fears low... for now at least :)

Still to come in the next few weeks: baby care class, hospital tour, and maternity pictures!! Also I am now to the point of weekly doctor appointments... time is flying by!!