34 Weeks

The baby drop and rapid growth are becoming noticeable to more than just me. The Husband looked at me a couple of days ago and said "Wow, you got bigger...since yesterday!" He predicts Chloe will come at the end of August instead of waiting until September. I usually wouldn't think twice about his predictions, but so far he's proven to know my body better than me. I don't think she's going to wait around either, but I'm hoping to at least make it to 37 weeks or whatever is her equivalent (since doctors really don't know when all this started) just so everything is where it's supposed to be and hopefully functioning properly. I'm already not looking forward to the hospital bill and would like it to be as small as possible, lol.

She's still moving like a little madwoman...I'm happy to know she's there, but *phew*. Sometimes it is fun to play with her while she's in there and imagine what she'll be like when she's out. I'm always wondering what her personality will be like and if she'll take after one of us more than the other. This whole "building a person" thing is really interesting (now that I'm not completely terrified by the idea). There is a bit of breathing that may it hard to distinguish, but here's a little video of Miss Kicks A Lot in action:

This week for Chloe:

• She's up to 5 pounds and 20 inches long (yikes, she really is about ready to be a baby and not a fetus!)
• The white stuff protecting her skin from wrinkling up in the amniotic fluid (vernix) is getting thicker
• Her fingernails are reaching her fingertips (I feel like the friend in Juno when she asked about a baby's ability to claw things on the way out...)
• Her central nervous system is maturing as well as her lungs
• She could be born now and generally be okay in the long run (eep!)

So I posted this dropping (which is actually called lightening) was getting more obvious, well the picture above was this morning. I don't know if the picture below (from this evening) really captures the difference, but there is one...

33 Weeks

This past week was marked with much more pain than last week, unfortunately. We moved into a bigger apartment though, so now we can start preparing for Chloe's arrival! We were supposed to be all packed up so we could just move on Monday, but our air conditioner was out Saturday and I couldn't really do anything...then I was tired Sunday. We ended up getting everything moved though, despite the fact that at some point my right leg decided not to work anymore. I shouldn't have been doing what I did anyway though...and ended up with just about every part of my body in pain by Wednesday evening. With no hot water to shower with, ugh.

I suppose Chloe is running out of room now because she's moving a lot slower lately. She's still moving just as much, but the moves are more deliberate and look/feel like she's stretching instead of boxing. My tummy is also getting lower and lower and I can feel her moving around lower and lower in my pelvis. I'd heard a nurse tell another pregnant lady at the OB's office that her baby needed to drop soon but I didn't imagine it was literally like this...I really don't see her waiting around until her due date if she's already dropping, but we'll see what happens. The doctors are all everything looks normal so it's all good, lol. I'm pretty sure everything I'm going through is completely normal, but you know, it's not normal to ME. I'm also waking up with sausages for hands and feet, which may be from moving this week. I hope we plan next bab(ies)y better than this so I wont be all in the third trimester during the dern summer.

This week for Chloe:

• She's over 4 pounds and should have passed the 17 inch mark (I know, last week said up tp 19 inches...these things are exact you know)
• Her skeleton is hardening but the skull bones aren't fused so she can conehead it out of me in the next few weeks and so her brain can expand later
• She can supposedly tell the difference in day and night now that she's bigger and there's less stuff between her and the outside...if she's truly my baby that wont mean anything though (#vampire)
• Her immune system is kicking in and should be able to protect her from mild infections. Let's hope hers is better than mine too (well, in my defense, I think stress killed mine for a loooong time)

I wonder if I am going to be put on bed rest with the aches and pains I've been having, but my body is still showing that I'm completely normal (good blood pressure, no sharp pains around Chloe, etc...). *sigh* I just  need to learn how to sit the hell down.

8 MONTHS ^_^, or, 32 weeks

So, I THOUGHT I knew what round ligament pain felt like before...I was wrong. Well, I wont say totally wrong, because it may have been a part of some of the pain I felt before...but I know now that the groin pain I've been having is definitely round ligament pain. OUCH. It feels like my entire bikini area is trying to break at times because of the pains going up and down the bikini line. Carrying a baby is serious, serious business...

The Husband and I went to an OB tour and a breastfeeding class this week. Let me warn you now, you will witness some unattractive boobs in a breastfeeding class. These are instructional video boobs, not porn video boobs. While some of them weren't bad at all, once you see a woman hooked up to a double breast pump, you just don't look at her chest quite the same. Besides that (and a rude awakening to the world of what a dirty diaper looks like), it was a pretty good experience...I learned a lot and now I'm not afraid of the concept. Basically, I watch way too much 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom and NONE of them breastfeed and claim its too hard or it hurts too much. I do have a fabulous friend who breastfeeds though, and she's already been giving me advice. So after the class, I know that I CAN do it, WITHOUT PAIN, and I will be saving a TON. Now, if I can stick to that and cloth diapering we'll be good.

Like really, there's no more room for skin...

This week for Chloe:

• 3.75 pounds and up to 19 inches long head to toe. Sheesh.
• She practicing all of her "on the outside" movements (kicking, sucking her thumb, swallowing, breathing, etc...)
• Her digestive system is all ready to go
• She is supposed to be sleeping more like a baby and resting up for the big day. Could have fooled me, lol
• She has fingernails, toenails, and hair

Getting bigger and the nasty Atlanta heat has been making me more and more tired as the days wear on. Resting is becoming problematic as well. I can't lounge on the couch for too long without Chloe deciding its time for her to move around nonstop. I can sleep just fine, and maybe I could rest in the room with my body pillow, but then I'd be asleep all the dern time.I dunno if she's getting tired of her current living conditions or if this is just normal, but I'm hoping she's waits in there at least until after the National Poetry Slam in 3 weeks.

Moving on Monday (finally!) ^_^.

31 Weeks

Doctor's appointment was this week. They officially let me know that my Glucose Test was normal and I figured out what to do about a pediatrician (besides find one now-ish) and insurance for Chloe. We have to start going for check-ups every 2 weeks for a while now. I also figured out how much insurance for her (and The Husband) would cost. Those numbers didn't really make me all that happy, but that's life. The Husband did get a couple of better employment leads this week though, so that's awesome. I'm working out some kind of plan to save money so that it wont be too much of a burden for me to not be working while on maternity leave.

This week has brought BACK PAIN. I think it's mostly because I was moving around and lifting things I really shouldn't way too much this week, but I'm still learning how to sit the hell down and chill out. The Husband got to be in awe this week though...he's been getting to feel a lot of the "hey, I'm a baby now" movements I talked about in the last post. They freak him out. It's cute. I like that every new thing for him makes him even more full of love for Chloe...since he can't directly experience her like I do its fun to watch his experience of her. All those new movements may make it hard for me to sleep soon...sitting is becoming less appealing as sometimes she just moves around almost the ENTIRE time. I can still sleep at the moment, but I feel her. GROIN PAIN is also a reality. That is a pain that is just NOT fun, but gives me excuses to stretch it out with lunges up and down the hallway.

I dunno how much bigger I can get...

This week for Chloe:

• 3+ pounds and 18 inches of baby is inside of me. I find this weird at times, and wonder how people actually walk by the end with all that extra weight in the front
• Her brain is processing information, tracking light, and perceiving signals from all of her senses, which explains the defined "baby movements"
• She can turn her head from side to side
• Fat is making her little limbs and body plump up

I feel like I may seem a bit complain-y about being pregnant. In a way I am, but it's because everything about it at any given moment is so completely different from anything I've ever gone through. I'm the type of person who can deal with change, but I need a little bit of time for it to settle in and I don't get that while pregnant. That and they fact that my brain likes to out-think itself and make me second guess my abilities and all kinds of other screwy things doesn't help the situation. Teenager do this every single day somewhere in the world and I'm grown and married...and freaking the hell out. Mom used to tell me that being pregnant was the most happy she'd been in life...and I'm definitely not unhappy, but I'm still dealing with a lot and I feel kind of blind in my situation. No amount of research can replace having mom here to help me. This has been more like the weirdest I've ever felt in life. There are so many good emotions involved that I don't always know what to do with them either (I usually repress emotions). They do help me let unnecessary crap go and not let a lot of things bother me too much, which is awesome.

Hmm...it's probably about time to let people know I'm ready to be showered with baby gifts. Well, officially ready after we move. *tips queen crown, nods and relaxes*

30 Weeks

It feels a bit strange to be nearing the end of the pregnancy journey...only 10 weeks to go, and in a few weeks she could really come whenever. I suppose she could do that now, but she needs to stay in there a bit longer. I see pics of other pregnant ladies that are supposedly at 30 weeks and some of them HAVE to be lying. I guess some people are bigger anyway, or they have much bigger babies or maybe some of these pics are people carrying twins, but some of them are ridiculously large.

Chloe has learned some new games, like "Hey Ma, Look Where I Can Lodge My Foot Now!" Has anyone ever told you a feeling was uncomfortable, and then when you felt it you wanted to slap them because you felt like you were lied to, but in the end, that really was the best way to describe the feeling? Yeah, having a growing baby's foot lodged in your rib is like THAT. It's uncomfortable, but you'll feel like I lied to you if you ever feel it for yourself. At least, knock on wood, she hasn't started kicking my ribs really hard yet. It's weird, but I feel like she's moving more like a baby now. Technically she's still a fetus and hasn't reached baby status...but I can tell that she's getting there (besides the fact that she's getting bigger and bigger). Her movements are less sporadic and punchy now; more controlled little flutters and pushes and leans. Which may just be because she's running out of room, but I like most of the little games we play with each other.

This week for Chloe:

• She's over 3 pounds and will gain about half a pound a week for the next 7 weeks (sheesh); not much change in height
• Her brain is getting all wrinkly and powerful, meaning she'll  be able to regulate her body temperature and lose the "baby chicken hair"
• Her bone marrow has taken over production of red blood cells...another big step in her being able to survive on the outside
• Her eyesight is further developing to the whopping 20/400 it will be when she's born

I'm still sleeping good, which is awesome. I can see where it may get troublesome soon though. I'm really happy that I haven't had any strange cravings (yet). Maybe I wasn't getting enough dairy or citrus before because those are the two things I ever really just have to have. And tacos, lol.