39 weeks- Yes I am still pregnant...

How far along? 39 weeks and 6 days..1 day away from my due date.

Baby's Development:  Sophia is just fattening up at this point.

Maternity clothes?  Still just maxi dresses...anything new I have gotten recently has been non-maternity and just cut so that the waist is above my belly...that way I can wear it now and postpartum as well.

Weight Gain? Still at 17 lbs over pre-preg. weight...no gain here.

Am I Showing? For sure!

Sleep?  Sleep still sucks..nothing new! 

Exciting Moment? I got another amazing foot massage with my Mom this weekend, so that was soo nice.  Finishing the nursery is awesome, too.  

Gender:   Girl!

Stretch marks? Still none…

What do I miss? Sleep and being comfortable!

How have I been feeling?  Anxious and impatient! I am ready for people to stop asking me if baby is here yet and how I am feeling.  No..she's obviously not here yet. We are not going to have her in secret and not tell anyone about it. I must have gotten like 10 text messages today asking me if she was here.  I know everyone is excited and anxious...so are we, except times a million!  And I'm 10 months pregnant..how do you think I feel??

Movement: Her graceful dance moves have turned into karate chops.  It's super weird when she punches straight down...that a sensation I was not prepared for!

Food cravings:  I could eat fruit for every meal...and ice, always ice.

Food aversions: None

Labor signs: Some stronger contractions and cramps, but still nothing painful or close enough together for me to start timing.  I am definitely able to feel the beginning and end of them, though.

I think I have tried every old wives tale I can think of to induce labor, and yet...here I am.  Clearly this child is testing my patience already! Let's see..I ate eggplant parm (twice), I walked (a lot), I have bounced on a birthing ball, eaten both spicy foods and pineapple, I have been drinking Red Raspberry Leaf tea nightly for about a month now and taking about 1000 mg of Primrose oil a day ( I recently upped it to 2000 mg).  When they say baby won't come until baby is ready...they mean it! haha 

I am trying to be patient (I am the most impatient person ever!) and I am trying to enjoy these last few days as much as possible.  Sometimes it's difficult to see that there IS a light at the end of the tunnel, and I won't be pregnant forever.  I know that every pregnant woman feels like this towards the end and every day just makes the waiting worse and worse.  Matt and I have gone on a couple of date nights recently and it's been nice to hang out just us two before we turn into a family of three.

Rings on or off? Still on, but they are getting tight.

Happy or Moody most of the time:  Impatient, Anxious, and happy

Looking forward to:  I have another appointment on Wednesday if she doesn't come by then.  I am going to try not to induce until 42 weeks if everything still goes well, but I will have them do another membrane sweep.  However, I am most looking forward to meeting Miss Sophia Caroline..whenever she decides to grace us with her presence!

Sweet Sophia's nursery reveal!

 I wanted to give y'all a look into Sophia's nursery that we have been working hard to finish! I had a running list of things for Matt to finish before Sophia got here and he worked every day off he had to finish it all! 

We are working with a smaller space because we wanted to keep our guest room for...well, guests! I love it all though and I love the way it all has come together! 

 When we though Sophia was a boy, we were planning to do navy and gray in the room, so when we found out she was actually a SHE, we added some pink accents.  

Matt has been very nice about letting me do whatever crazy ideas I saw on Pinterest.  His biggest thing was that he wanted darker furniture.  I am very much a white furniture person, but we compromised and I got the good parking spot in the drive way. :)

 Without further ado...here is her nursery!

 

Right above the light switch in the door way

Looking to the left from the door way

Changing table and lounging/nursing area.  The pink baskets have all the burp clothes/nursing supplies.

Behind her crib is a basket of toys, but it's kinda hiding in this picture.

Crib/reading area

Matt's bookshelf he's had for forever

Sweet wreath from our first baby shower on her closet door and her birdcage hair bow holder

Right side of her closet.  Matt and his dad worked SO hard to put in the closet organization stuff and they did an AMAZING job!

 

 

 

Left side of closet

 And there you have it! Now we are just missing a sweet little squishy baby! We're ready for you Sophia!

38 weeks!

How far along? 38 weeks and 6 days! 8 days to go…we’re in the single digits!!

Baby's Development:  Sophia is still just fattening up at this point.  At my last visit, the midwife said she estimates that she will be in the 6lb range at birth and would be surprised if she is over 7 lbs.  That was from her feeling around on my belly, so we will see when she comes!

Maternity clothes?  Rotating my collection of maxi dresses..

Weight Gain? Still at 17 lbs over pre-preg. weight.

Am I Showing? For sure!

Sleep?  Last night I woke up about once an hour to use the restroom, turn over, or take heartburn meds. This is pretty standard, so it’s no fun!

Exciting Moment? My prenatal massage felt amazing this weekend! I had her do some reflexology on my foot to see if we could get things moving along, but nothing has happened yet!

I also has my work shower this week! It was so sweet of everyone to put it together and we got the pack and play we registered for! WOOHOO!

Gender:   Girl!

Stretch marks? Still none…

What do I miss? Sleep and being comfortable!

How have I been feeling?  Week 38 was a doozy for me.  As soon as I turned over weeks, I could tell a difference in my body.  I have been feeling tons more pressure in my lower abdomen and my lower back kills me.  Today I have been having a ton of pressure and menstrual like cramps along with some strong Braxton Hicks contractions.  Although my goal is to avoid an induction, I can totally see how/why people get induced at this point! You are just so uncomfortable and the waiting totally messes with your head.  It’s crazy that it could literally be at ANY moment that things start to happen and I feel like I am in this weird limbo phase.  You are so ready for things to start happening!

My appetite has been completely off, too.  For the past couple of days, I have felt really nauseous and nothing really sounds appetizing to me.  I even had to pull over on the interstate on my way to work last week so that I wouldn’t get sick all over myself!

The swelling has gotten a little worse for me too, especially in my ankles/feet.  Drinking water and keeping them elevated doesn’t do much for me, so I am just not paying attention to it since it won’t be like this for too much longer.

Movement: She is still moving, but I can tell things are getting squished in there for her! 

Food cravings:  None

Food aversions: None

Labor signs: Cramping/pressure/smaller contractions and Braxton hicks.

Rings on or off? Still on, but they are getting tight.

Happy or Moody most of the time:  Happy and excited!

Looking forward to:  My next dr’s appointment this Wednesday.  The midwife mentioned she will be wanting to check me for progression, so that will be my first.  I also plan on having her do a membrane sweep to see if that does anything.

Full term- 37 weeks!

How far along? We are full term! 37 weeks and 6 days..15 days to go!

Baby's Development:  Baby is about 19 inches long (about as long as swiss chard) and weighs about 6.5 lbs…she is gaining about half an ounce per day (on average). Baby girl is gaining weight and practice breathing (which I am feeling a lot of lately!) and getting ready for her big arrival!

Maternity clothes?  Still living in dresses at work and when I go out of the house and Matt’s shirts around the house..

Weight Gain? About 16-17 lbs above pre-preg. weight

Am I Showing? Oh yes! We’re growing by the minute!

Sleep?  Sucks! Still waking up at random times during the night wide awake.  I wake up to roll over, to tell Matt to stop snoring, to use the restroom, and because heartburn wakes me up..no fun!

Exciting Moment? We’re almost finished with the nursery! A few last minute items I ordered came in this week and Matt just has to hang up some shelves on the wall and then we should be all set!

Gender:   Girl!

Stretch marks? Still none..crossing my fingers!

What do I miss? I miss not having heartburn and I miss my regular clothes! I’m excited to get to wear some of them again..it’s gonna be like  whole new closet for me!

How have I been feeling?  Still not too bad considering I’m due in 2 weeks…I know it could be a lot worse! I’m pretty uncomfortable at the end of the work days from sitting all day, no matter how many times I try to get up and walk.  I got myself an ab ball to bounce/sit on at home, so hopefully that will help some.

I can tell my patience is also wearing thinner and thinner by the day.  Not really with people I know, but more with strangers and acquaintances.  People are funny when you’re pregnant.  No, I don’t want you to touch my belly. No, I don’t want to hear your labor story that happened 16 years ago.  No, I don’t want you to ask me how I’m feeling or how much longer I have.  I know people are excited, but if I haven’t heard from you in the past 9 months, I don’t want to hear from you now!  I sound like a real peach right now, don’t I? ;) Of course, I’m sure I did the same things before I got pregnant and realized how annoying it all was! haha

Movement:  yep…still moving around like crazy.  Still feeling a lot more movement really low.  When I’m sitting, I have to sit reclined because I feel like I am crushing her if I am straight now! That’s probably why my tailbone hurts so much at the end of the day. I am also feeling a lot more practice breathing.

Food cravings:  None really..

Food aversions: Nothing really..

Labor signs: Had some more Braxton Hicks and regular contractions on Friday and Saturday.  I think I overdid it on Saturday because my the end of the day, I wasn’t feeling very well.  I know I have dropped at this point, but it was a lot less noticeable that I thought it would be.  I thought it would make a huge difference in my heartburn and feeling out of breath, but it didn’t really.  I started leaking some colostrum (tmi, I know…but I want to be able to use this to look back on) this week, which made me a little more excited than it prolly should have.  Being able to breastfeed is one of my worries and it was reassuring to know things are somewhat on track in that department.

Rings on or off? Still on

Happy or Moody most of the time:  Happy! Excited! Anxious! Nervous! Worried! Scared! Lol…a whole lot of emotions!

Looking forward to:  My prenatal massage  this weekend! My parents got me a gift certificate for Christmas and I am surprised I have held out this long on using it, but I knew I would appreciate it now  when I am so uncomfortable. I am really excited about relaxing for an hour! Matt and I are also going to Scalini’s this weekend so I can get some of their famous Eggplant parm..maybe that will help move things along a little! J

36 Weeks...9 Months!

Woah big belly!

How far along? 36 weeks and 6 days..22 days to go!

Baby's Development:  We are about 6 lbs and 20 inches long..about the size of a crenshaw melon.  All of Sophia’s bones (including skull) are still pretty soft at this point to make delivery a little easier on me. Most of her systems are fully with the exception of a few, like her digestion system which will develop sometime after birth.

Maternity clothes?  Actually right now, I’m mostly in regular clothes because I’m just wearing dresses..I can’t wait to be back in all normal clothes!

Weight Gain? 15 lbs over pre-preg. weight.

Am I Showing? For sure

Sleep?  I’ve been sleeping with a body pillow recently and it’s really the only way I can get any sleep.  Even though Matt hates it cause it takes up so much room, without it my hips kill me.  I got a Snoogle at the very beginning of my pregnancy, but I have used it a handful of times and I hate it! I think I am the only pregnant lady on the face of the Earth that doesn’t sing that pillow’s praises!

Exciting Moment? Our first weekly appointment was this week.  I had to do the fun (not!) Strep B test and my results came back negative for that.  Woohoo!  The Dr I met with said he doesn’t normally do internal checks for progression because he said that since you could be walking around 3 cms dilated for week with no signs of labor or you could be 1 cm at your appointment and go into labor that night, the checks don’t matter much.  He left it up to me and said if I wanted it done, he would, but I was totally ok with skipping this one as I’ve heard they aren’t very comfortable!  We’ll see if the Dr. I am seeing this Wednesday does it or not.

This weekend we knocked out a lot of last minute baby prep.  We put together our swing, installed the car seat bases, washed a ton of baby clothes, packed Sophia’s bag and started packing mine, and I grabbed a few things we still needed off our registry from Babies R Us…mostly breast feeding things. The nursery is about 95% done..there are a few things that Matt still needs to hang on the wall and we have to get some curtains up.  Hopefully we should have all that done within the next week!

Gender:   Girl!

Stretch marks? Still none..

What do I miss? Being able to sleep on my stomach/back, not waddling

How have I been feeling?  Still pretty good considering that I am 9 months pregnant..it could be a lot worse!  This week, I have started to feel a lot more cramps and pressure down low and I have started to feel a lot more movement from Sophia real low, too.  I don’t think that she has “dropped” yet, but I can definitely feel her lower than I am used to.  In the past couple of days, I have also start to have this intense sharp pain in my lower abdomen, too.  My whole stomach will be tight and I will get a twinge that lasts a couple of seconds or so.  It helps when I’m walking if I hold the underside of my belly…takes some of the pressure off.  Dr. Google says that it’s baby hitting a nerve, so I am not too worried, but it’s definitely wince-worthy sometimes!

Movement:  I felt a legit leg/arm this week..craziest thing ever!  I have also been able to feel her “practice breathing” a lot more recently when her back is right up to my belly…it is the sweetest thing!

Food cravings:  Still loving my Zaxby’s/Sonic ice!

Food aversions: Nothing really..

Labor signs: Cramps, lower abdomen pressure, some Braxton Hicks, too.

Rings on or off? Still on and kinda loose.

Happy or Moody most of the time:  Happy!

Looking forward to:  Our appointment this week and getting closer and closer to meeting our little one!

35 weeks!

How far along? 35 weeks and 6 days..29 days to go!

Baby's Development:  Sophia is about 20 inches and 5.5 lbs…the size of a honeydew melon! This is about as long as she is going to get and will only grow weight wise.  She is still accumulating fat and her skin is getting less wrinkly.

Maternity clothes?  Loving this weather so that I can live in dresses and sandals! Along with pants, I am also striking on flats and boots because they are way too constricting and uncomfortable!



Just for comparison's sake...



Weight Gain? 15 lbs over pre-preg. weight.

Am I Showing? Yes…you know you are 9 months pregnant when you walk into a store and the sales associate just looks at your belly and says “WOOOW!” haha

Sleep?  My internal alarm clock has been waking me up at like 3:30 am every night for the past couple of nights and I am wide awake.  I typically can’t fall back asleep until 4:30 or 4:45, which has been making it very difficult to wake up at 5:45 when my alarm goes off!

Exciting Moment? Easter was last weekend and we had fun celebrating with everyone.  We have hosted it at our house the past two years, but this year we met all met up at a restaurant in Atlanta, which was great! Less preparation/clean up involved! And I realized that the next time we will ALL be together will probably be when Sophia gets here!

My appointment last week went great as well.  As of last Wednesday, she is still heads down, which I am very happy about!

Gender:   Girl!

Stretch marks? Still none…I’m hoping I can hold out these last 4 weeks and after birth and be ok.

What do I miss? Sleeping comfortably!

How have I been feeling?  Depends on the day, but pretty good for the most part.  We were out and about a lot this weekend and even though by the end of the say my back and feet were killing me, it was nice to get up and move around.  I think part of the reason I am so uncomfortable during the day at work is because I have to sit all day.  I make it a point to walk around during my lunch, even if it’s just meandering around Target or TJMaxx, but most days my ribs/butt/back are killing me by the time I get home. 

I have also had a few random dizzy spells.  It usually starts off with me feeling like I can’t breathe (probably cause she is still so high up) and doesn’t go away unless I sit and rest for about 10 mins. I asked the midwife about it and she chalked it up to another random pregnancy symptom, but nothing to worry about.

Movement:  She is still moving like crazy.  The other day she flipped around to where her feet were on my left side instead of my right.  She’s only done that one or two other times and it made me nervous thinking that would flip into the breech position.  I think she is still head down, though and her feet are back on my right side.  We will see at my appointment tomorrow.

Food cravings:  Monday through Friday I basically eat the same thing every day until lunch.  I make my smoothie with berries, spinach, greek yogurt, amazing greens, agave, and chia seeds.  When I get to work I eat my berry mix and popcorn as a snack when I get hungry. Lunch and dinner are a little less structured though.

Food aversions: Nothing really..

Labor signs: I’ve been having some more Braxton hicks and random twinges, cramps and pulls in my lower abdomen.  Nothing crazy, but I can definitely tell that everything is stretching and getting ready for D-Day!

Rings on or off? Still on

Happy or Moody most of the time:  Happy!

Looking forward to:  Dr’s appointment tomorrow.  This will start my weekly appointments where they begin with the internal checks. Not that I am super excited about that, but it will be nice to see if there is any progress (which I’m pretty sure there isn’t!)