36 Weeks

About a month to go and I can't even believe it. I had my doctor's appointment on Tuesday and everything is great. Baby is head down, which is so good to hear and my cervix is starting to soften. Baby is still really active, she even kicked Dr. Murphy while he was measuring my belly. He said her heartbeat is really strong and fast because she is so active.

My belly continues to grow and it is rather hard most of the time. I find that when I have been sitting for a while when I get up I walk kind of funny for a few steps until my belly stretches out. I have moments of uncomfortable these days either from eating too much and feeling too full, which happens quickly since my stomach doesn't have much room anymore, or my round ligament pain, or from just not being able to get comfortable if I'm sitting or laying. Pete and I were worried that I would have a lot of back pain because of my scholiosis, but I have been pretty lucky on that one. I only get back pain every once in a while, at least at this point. Overall, my baby girl has been really good to me, and I hope that continues through labor and delivery, and of course, beyond.

I went to Babies R Us yesterday and picked up a couple sleep sacks for her. Everyone says those are so great for babies during the winter months and I don't have very many. They were having a 50% off Carter's sleepwear sale, so I got a great deal. Unfortunately they don't have very many so I was limited.

Recently I decided I should attempt to put the carseat in my car now so I can make sure it is ready to go should we need it early. I decided to put it in the center, but I have a feeling I am going to want to have it on the side, cause it is kind of a pain to climb in and pull the seat up and out when it is empty, so I can only imagine when there is a baby in it. We will see I suppose. Everything fits; the front seats can't go back all the way, but there is still a decent amount of room. Eventually we will be getting me a new car anyway, but mine will work great for now.

35 Weeks

35 weeks along now and I can't believe how close it is getting. I'm starting to feel somewhat uncomfortable more often these days, especially if I get that awful ligament pain that lasts forever. But overall I'm still doing quite well. Pete and I went to our friends Ugly Christmas Sweater Party over the weekend, which was such a good time, as always. Baby got a lot of love from everyone.

My sweater was perfect because baby made the tree look somewhat three dimensional. I swear I can actually watch my belly getting bigger now. Just when you think it can't possibly get any larger you wake up, and it has.

She has been a little easier on my ribs these days, which is so nice, and she gets the hiccups all the time, which is so cute. I wish I knew how she was situated inside there so I knew what it was that was moving around. I think my doctor said at my last visit that she was head down, but I don't know if that means she will stay that way or if she is still moving all over.

My friend, Stacy took some pictures of my belly up in Santa Barbara over the weekend in the gorgeous weather we were having. I think she got some really cute ones so I will be posting those up as soon as they are ready. I can't wait! Thanks so so much Stacy!

33 Weeks

I hit 33 weeks, and according to the books, the baby is close to 17 inches long and almost 4 pounds now. So within the next seven weeks she will grow a few more inches and almost double in weight. Supposedly she is going to move less and less because she is running out of room, but I haven't noticed that yet. I feel like she is moving more, maybe it is because I notice her up under my ribs now. I have to tell you I would be okay with less moving if it meant that she would leave my rib cage alone. That is the most uncomfortable thing.

I had a prenatal massage on Monday, thanks to Shawnee, Nikki, Judy and Stan, and it was awesome. So relaxing, and I feel like since you have to lay on your side you get a bonus back rub because she rubbed my back when I was lying on both sides. The lady was quite informative and thorough. She seemed to know a lot about prenatal massages and what not to do. Wish I could have one of those every week!

Everything else seems to be going well. I am eating just fine now, probably too fine, with all the yummy pumpkin pie, chocolate, and holiday yumminess. My only issue now, besides the rib kicking, is that this weather is so freaking dry and so I keep getting nose bleeds. My doctor says that they are quite common for pregnant women, so that is a relief, but my nose is so dry that it burns sometimes. I need to get a humidifier, but the last one I had would soak the windows and sheets by the morning. I don't need all that, so I have no idea what to get.

32 Weeks

I had my doctors appointment and everything looks and sounds perfect! That is always good news. I love to hear that little heartbeat. She is getting the hiccups all the time now, mostly in the middle of the night. Doctor says that is a good thing. It is pretty cute, which is weird cause my hiccups annoy the crap out of me. Belly is, of course, getting bigger and bigger. I am trying to be diligent and lube it up with my belly potion at least once a day now. I know it probably won't prevent stretch marks, but it makes my skin feel better.

She is a little stinker these days because she likes to get up under my ribs on my right side. It is a very strange feeling and one that I am not all that happy about. It is like a tickle (the annoying kind) and a jab at the same time, and it isn't always instant, sometimes she just chills there for a while. I try to push her down, but it doesn't always work. I've noticed that overall she seems to prefer my right side, which makes for it getting sore a lot. Doctor says that is common because she is pushing on my floating ribs. Not so pleasant. I'm constantly stretching my torso to the left to take the pressure off. I'm sure it is only going to get worse as she gets bigger.

The nursery is coming together a little more all the time. Once I get some more done on the walls I will post some pictures. I've been doing the laundry for everything baby lately, which is the only kind of laundry I enjoy at this point. I am sure once she is born that feeling will fade fast. I got the stroller and the carseat out and washed the covers for them so they are all ready to go. In the process Jack found yet another spot to occupy.

Pete will take him on walks through the house when he gets in there. I don't think he likes that part too much, though. He is more about lying in the stationary areas of the house, but it is quite funny to watch. I think he much prefers using one of my body pillows instead. It looks way more comfortable to me anyway.

26 Weeks

26 weeks along now, and this is the week I have to go in for my glucose tolerance test. Not looking forward to drinking a giant glass of nasty sugar water that has been described as drinking flat orange soda. Mmmm...so excited. The northern gang left on Monday and baby has been so crazy active ever since. My stomach looks like something out of a science fiction movie. It is so cool to watch. Of course she would start with the crazy movement after the company leaves. At least I will be up there for a visit in a week, so hopefully she will keep it up.

Now that all of our visitors have come and gone, Pete and I can really start on putting the nursery together. I am so excited. Nikki's mom got us a magic spinning lantern with little teddy bears on it, which will be so cute in the nursery.

First project is going to be to put together the crib. Right now it is sitting in a giant box in the garage, so that should be a fun project. I can't wait until it is finished.

25 Weeks

Last week I hit 25 weeks, which now puts me into my sixth month. That is so crazy. I'm a little late on getting my post up because I had four of my favorite people from up north visiting last week. Both Nikki and Shawnee got a little baby kick on their hands, which is always exciting. She always seems to stop kicking as soon as someone puts their hand on my belly. She is a little punk that way, just like her daddy. My belly continues to grow, and according to the books my uterus is the size of a soccer ball, which seems about right.

I had my first real experience with acid reflux the other night. Man is that unbelievably more painful than I ever would have expected. It woke me up in the middle of the night and after realizing I wasn't having a heart attack, a panic attack, or some life threatening issue, I figured it out that it must be acid reflux. So I propped myself up a bit and eventually it faded away. I couldn't believe that some stomach acid in your esophagus could feel like that. It is like your chest is going to implode. Glad it was pretty short lived though. Hopefully that won't be a regular occurrence during the last four months.

24 Weeks

I am 24 weeks along this week and I definitely feel like my belly is very much pregnant now. It is quite round and hard as a rock most of the time. Baby is still moving and kicking a lot. I think she likes to mess with her Daddy because every time she is kicking and he puts his hand on my belly she will stop. I tell him that it she is probably just so comforted by his touch that she calms down when he is close.

So I have found that watching food commercials is dangerous for a pregnant woman now that I have my appetite back. I was sitting there watching tv and a commerical came on for Pillsbury advertising not only their delicious Grand's biscuits, but also there yummy, gooey cinnamon rolls. It was like torture!!! I find myself easily swayed by what they are advertising, well, unless it is a commercial for something like that nasty double chicken breast with bacon and cheese thing they have at KFC. Are you kidding me? That thing looks so disgusting; I don't even want to imagine how gross it is when you order it, considering things look their best in advertisements.

To all my favorite people up north, I have booked a ticket to come home for a week in October!!! I will be there from Wednesday the 20th through the following Wednesday. There will definitely be some good times to be had, so try to keep that weekend open! =)

22 Weeks

I hit 22 weeks this week and I am starting to love my big ol' round belly. It is still small enough to be cute and big enough to look pregnant. Baby is moving around a lot, as usual, and her movements seem to feel stronger and stronger; I'm guessing because she is slowly running out of space to kick and punch in.

My nausea has gotten so much better over the last couple weeks. I still have some nights where I just don't have much appetite, and I definitely still get those "vurps" as they are called. I do hate those, cause if you aren't careful it could turn into something a lot worse. I'm just happy that a lot more food is sounding good to me. My favorite these days is a grilled cheese with some sort of soup to dip it in. Yum. Now I'm hungry! I hope Pete hurries home with dinner from Panera!

So Cute!!!

I went to the Camarillo outlets yesterday and found just about the cutest outfit ever! She is going to be so adorable in this. I got it in the 6 - 12 month size so hopefully it will fit her in the summer. I just love it.

She is still moving and kicking up a storm, which is so cool. I have graduated away from my apricot craving and am now onto Orville Redenbacher Natural Simply Salt popcorn. I get the low fat one cause it is less salty than the others. It is so good. I killed an entire bag in one sitting yesterday. Is that bad? I wish popcorn was considered more nutritious, but there is, like, 8 grams of protein in the bag, so that is at least something. I do still enjoy a good dried apricot now and again, but I would pass that up for a bowl of popcorn in a second!

20 Weeks! Half Way There!!!

I can't believe I'm already half way there! Baby must have had a growth spurt this week! My belly is definitely bigger and I can feel her moving all the time! It is so cool. It is cute when I watch tv at night with Pete he will sit there with his hand on my belly and if she isn't moving he will shake my stomach, or poke it or cup his hands and talk to her to try and get her to move. Doesn't always work though, probably because she is stubborn like her mom and dad, but it is too cute watching him try.

I have started on the whole registering process too, which can be overwhelming. Which bottles to get, which breast pump is best, what kind of swing will work, does she really need all this stuff... It is all so difficult. And the worst part is I find that I am liking the "boy" type stuff way better. This could be because pink is the color of a medicine you take when you are vomiting, thus, it isn't so much my favorite and everything girl is saturated in pink. Lavender is pretty too, you know!!!! Everyone says that we will have so much fun because there is so much more cute stuff for girls. I beg to differ. Have you seen the adorable boys outfits out there. They are unbelievably cute. Don't get me wrong, there is a lot of cute girl stuff, but it all has to be so freakin' pink! It is killing me!!!

She is Kicking!!!

Over the past few weeks I have felt these movements in my belly, but I have never been sure if they were from the baby, or if it was just gas. It kind of feels like little bubbles popping every now and again. Well today I was lying on the couch watching some Friends with Pete and those bubbles seemed really intense. So much so that I saw my stomach moving. I grabbed Pete's hand and we sat there for a minute and we both felt her!!!! It was so amazing. I can't believe that at only 19 weeks pregnant, not only did I feel her, but she kicked so hard that Pete could feel her too!!! I do believe we have a little Mia Hamm on our hands!

It is the craziest feeling when it finally happens. I am just so glad that Pete was there to feel it the very first time! I thought it would be weeks after I felt it that he would be able to. It is just yet another moment that makes this miracle feel more like a reality. She is an active little one too. I am coming to the conclusion that pretty soon I am going to hit a point where sleep will become a dream for me. I am going to miss it, but I am going to enjoy everything else so much more!!!! It is so cool to just sit there and watch my stomach moving. It is like a little jumping bean is in there and every once in a while you can see it!!!