Due Date 2014!

37 Weeks, "Early Term!" April 3-9
I had my 37-week appointment on Friday, which showed I had made no special progress in my "going into labor early" pipe dream. Then Saturday, I went on a hospital tour, even though I know the hospital pretty well at this point, the maternity wing is new and some things have changed in the last few years.

Kevin and James built the double-stroller, and Kevin cleaned and installed the baby's car seat next to James's car seat, so now we have no back seating for adults. He also wrote, Things My Wife Complains About #28: Pillows.

The weather finally got spring-like!

37 weeks +1 day, and 20 days to go!

Baby progress: Three years ago, when I reached 37 weeks with James, babies were considered "full term" at that point. But now, the science has changed a bit, and they call 37 weeks "early term" (as opposed to "early term" before 37 weeks). The baby won't be considered "full term" until 39 weeks because the baby's brain and lungs are still maturing.

The baby is supposed to be size of a Winter Melon or Swiss Chard (no idea what those are) and weigh about 6 1/3 pounds, but she's really probably over 8 pounds. She's practicing some skills: inhaling, exhaling, sucking, gripping and blinking.
 
Symptoms: Terrible acid reflux so I can only sleep with my head propped on 3 pillows and a lot of back support (like on the couch). My left knee hurts. Some contractions.
Cravings: Beef, fiber, strawberries, chocolate
Anti-cravings: 2% milk is like water, anything even a little spicy
My Weight Gain: 28 pounds, 4 pounds less than last time
Things I Miss: Walking comfortably, sitting comfortably, sleeping, clothing fitting me, alcohol, you name it
Compare to 37 weeks with James, haha, we were so clueless and wrong about everything.

38 Weeks, April 10-16

I had my 38-week appointment on Friday, but I didn't learn much other than I showed no signed of progressing. So we scheduled a sonogram for 39-weeks to see how big our baby girl has gotten.

38 weeks + 2 days

James birthday playdate. The weather over the weekend was nice, but then it got cruddy again. Ash visits.

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a pumpkin. Let's stop lying, she's probably like 8.5 pounds now. She has a firm grasp, and her organs have matured.

Symptoms: Floating spots, head aches, stuffy nose, contractions- some Braxon Hicks, some more like the real ones, random temperature changes, dramatic mood swings. I've been sleeping better because I'm exhausted all the time.

Cravings: Chocolate, water, vitamin C in any form.

Anti-cravings: Food sucks

My Weight Gain: 28-29 pounds (we had to get a new scale so my weight gain isn't very precise now- comparing it to my doctor's scale is still a little confusing), 5 pounds less than last time

Things I Miss: Not being pregnant.

Compare to 38 weeks with James

39 Weeks, "Full Term!" April 17-23

Thursday with James Finally started maternity leave. I had one blissful day before my contractions started. James's real birthday and Easter is Sunday, so I thought we'd open some presents today

Friday, April 18

This is not a normal belly shape, correct?

Baby progress: She's a watermelon, and she's still gaining weight!

Symptoms: CONTRACTIONS. OW. Headaches, dramatic mood swings, random temperature changes,

Cravings: Water, everything.

Anti-cravings: Coffee.

My Weight Gain: 28-29 pounds

Things I Miss: 

Compare to 39 weeks with James

I had my repeat c-section scheduled for the due date, April 24th. Our specific plans for baby were and remain a little hazy. We had a sonogram scheduled for Monday, April 21 that would tell us how big the baby is and give us a better sense of the likelihood of a VBAC working. But we weren't actually holding our breath for a VBAC. We figured if we got to the 24th, she was almost certainly going to be over 8.5 pounds which would make me a good c-section candidate.

I had some contractions on Thursday, April 17th as I was wrapping up my work. I thought the stress of working might be causing them, and they did suddenly stop when I wrapped things up. I had almost none on the 18th. Luckily I ran around getting stuff ready on the 18th. Also I took a whole bunch of photos.

Early in the morning on Saturday the 19th, stuff started getting kind of real. The contractions were 10 minutes apart all morning, but I didn't feel like it was a particularly big deal since they were mild and so far apart.  But by evening they were getting a little closer and a little stronger, and I told my mom she was on stand by....

TO BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT POST!

Spoiler alert: Suffice to say, today is the due date and Miranda is already here at home!

Compare to due date with James.

9 Months Pregnant 2014

33 Weeks, March 6-12
I finally finished the nursery, and took some pictures for the blog. Though honestly, since it's so far in advance of the baby it's kind of messy already and will need straightening up before the baby comes. I celebrated my birthday over two days with Kevin, James, and Grandma Kathy: enjoying dinner, a flamenco show, lunch, a visit to The Met museum, and ice cream cake.

Clous at The Met, I'm 33 weeks

Sadly, James caught a nasty little head cold on Tuesday, and then Kevin caught it from him. I managed to avoid it so far.

Baby progress: Baby Girl is supposed to be the size of a durian (??) or a pineapple, but she's probably more like a 36-week baby as a winter melon or Swiss chard (whatever that is). She sleeps with her eyes open?
Symptoms: TMI
Cravings: Thai tea, citrus fruit
My Weight Gain: 25.5, but I'm .5 heavier than I was with James
Compare to 33 weeks with James

34 Weeks, March 13-19
We celebrated St. Patrick's Day with Cory and Robin. Kevin had his Spring Beak this week so we went for a quick babymoon in Atlantic City!

St. Patrick's Day!

Baby progress: Baby Girl is supposed to be the size of a butternut squash or a cantaloupe, but she's probably more like a 37-week baby as a honey dew or romaine lettuce. These vegetables are really weird right? And they don't necessarily get bigger each week either.... She's listening to us talk and sing.
Symptoms: Started the week with trouble sleeping and throwing up at night! Awesome. By then end of the week I needed a ton of sleep.
Cravings: Mango!
My Weight Gain: 27 pounds, 1 pound lighter than last time
Compare to 34 weeks with James

Clous swimming at Atlantic City (my boys are so cute!)

35 Weeks, March 20-26
To close out Kevin's Spring Break, Brady visited. The boys went out, and when they were home we all watched the NCAA tournament. On Sunday, Lukas and Sarah over for kvetching (I am the reigning champion) and basketball. The weather was a little nicer so I started walking for exercise, but then the weather got cold again. I took a video of the baby going crazy inside my belly. Wednesday I had my 36-week appointment a day early and everything was good, but that night James got sick with the norovirus.

Baby progress: Baby dropped. Or drops. Sometimes it feels like she dropped, and other times not so much.  Baby is supposed be about the size of a honeydew melon or a coconut; about 5 1/4 pounds. But we know she's way bigger-- getting close to 8 pounds probably. She doesn't have much room to maneuver now that she's probably over 18 inches long. Her kidneys are fully developed, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete — she'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight. Her hearing is fully developed.

Symptoms: So sleepy! Bloody nose. Everything is itchy. Sitting and lying down are uncomfortable.
Cravings: Mango juice! Mandarins! Peaches. Citrus. Citrus. Citrus.
My Weight Gain: 29 pounds, 1 pound lighter than last time (maybe walking will help?)
Compare to 35 weeks with James

9 Months!, March 27- April 2
James and I got hit with the Norovirus hard. Dehydration gave me contractions and they got up to 4 minutes apart before an IV at the hospital stopped them. Luckily, Sarah and Lukas babysat James for us while I recovered. Thanks to my little emergency, I decided it was time to pack my hospital bag!

My "9-month photo" 

Baby progress: Baby keeps playing the up-down game where sometimes it feels like she's dropped and other times not so much. The baby is supposed to be about about the size of a head of romaine lettuce or a honeydew. She's supposed to be about 6 pounds and gaining an ounce day. But she's not. She's probably more like 8 pounds already. Wish I knew for sure!

She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Most of her systems are in working order at 36 weeks.

Symptoms: Terrible acid reflux so I can only sleep with my head propped on 3 pillows and a lot of back support (like on the couch).
Cravings: Mango juice, raisins
Anti-cravings: Bananas cause instant acid reflux and hurt, ice cream makes me kind of ill, no more coffee
My Weight Gain: 28.5 pounds, 2.5 pounds less than last time
Things I Miss: Walking comfortably, sitting comfortably, sleeping, clothing fitting me, coffee, alcohol, you name it
Compare to 36 weeks with James

Today, at 37 weeks +1 day, and 20 days to go!

Belly Dance 2014

I took a similar video when I was pregnant with James, but Baby Girl is way more visible.


March 25, 2014, 35 weeks + 6 days

• Belly Dance with James in 2011

8 Months Pregnant 2014

29 Weeks, February 6-12
We visited Regan and Chris and James had a fun playdate with their girls Morgan and Payton.

Reading to Payton

Baby progress:  First hiccups I could feel (2/11)! Baby is about the size of a butternut squash (or acorn squash?) and maybe 2.5 pounds. Her muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and her head is getting bigger for her growing brain – which is busy developing billions of neurons. Every day, about 200 milligrams of calcium is deposited in your baby's skeleton, which is now hardening. There's lots of rapid growth now!

Symptoms: Still throwing up once a week (when I overdo it with sugar), acid reflux, stuffy nose, trouble walking without pain- uh-oh. Evening grumpiness- big time!
Cravings: Burgers, bananas
Anti-cravings: none
My Weight Gain: 20 pounds, but still 1 pounds heavier than last time. Getting closer though!
Thing I Miss: Not worrying about the acid content of foods
Compare to week 29 with James

30 Weeks, February 13-19
Kevin and James enjoyed a snow day at home. We celebrated our last Valentines Day as a family of 3.5, and had our 30-week sonogram the same day. We celebrated Kevin's 34th birthday with Lukas and Sarah.

She looks like James.

Baby progress: Baby girl is supposed to be the size of a cabbage and weigh almost 3 pounds, but our sonogram revealed she's actually about 4.5 pounds. That's more the size of babies that are 33 weeks along, so she's really more like a pineapple. They didn't estimate her length, but we're not really worried about it. She'll probably be taller than me, because it would be hard not to be.

The sonogram technician said that she was already head down and was unlikely to turn around now, but I can feel her kicking and somersaulting all the time. She particularly responds to James crying or screaming.

The sono-tech also said the baby has some hair already, but given what a baldy James was, I am not holding my breath. I have a ton of hats all ready for her, and I'm probably going to get some decorative headbands soon too.

Symptoms: Absent-mindedness and clumsiness, stuffy/bloody nose, some seriously painful baby kicks, grumpiness. No throwing up this week! I think I learned to stop eating sugar when it starts disagreeing with me.
Cravings: Greek coconut yogurt, fish, LAVENDER- seriously.
Anti-cravings: Indian food. No thank you.
My Weight Gain: 21.5 pounds, just half a pound heavier than last time! (though last time I had gained 27-30 pounds already, but I started heavier this time)
Thing I Miss: breathing, going for walks out in the sun
Compare to week 30 with James

31 Weeks, February 20-26
Christina and I took the train to DC to enjoy Girls' Weekend with Laurie, Megan, Janice, and Ash.

Girls Weekend

Baby progress:  This week, baby girl is supposed to be about the size of a coconut or pineapple, about 3 1/3 pounds, but really now we know she's probably more of a cantaloupe, and about  4 3/4 pounds. She should now have toenails, fingernails, and some hair.

Symptoms: My left knee hurts (this happened last time too), stuffy nose, acid reflux at night (though mercifully not much during the day)
Cravings: Peanut butter, bananas, smoothies (mostly fruit, yogurt, bananas), chicken, lettuce (what, why?)
Anti-cravings: Beef
My Weight Gain: 21.5 pounds, 1.5 pounds less than I weighed last time!
Thing I Miss: Breathing
Compare to week 31 with James

8 Months!, February 27-March 5
Kevin and I finally decided on a baby name- it's mostly Kevin's choice of name (still a secret though). My mom came to visit and I showed her the nursery, and she helped me pick Itty Bitty's coming home outfit. Kevin and I went out for date night in Flushing, Queens.

8 months + 4 days

Baby Progress:  I had my 32-week doctor's appointment 3/3. It was pretty uneventful but at least they can see that she's still upside down. I guess that would be good if I had any faith that she was going to come on her own before passing the 8.5 lbs VBAC cut-off. They didn't try to figure out her weight.

She's supposed to be about the size of a large jicama and about 3 3/4 pounds, but since she was about 3 weeks ahead in weight last time, she's probably more of a honeydew melon right now, and certainly over 5 pounds by now. She'll probably gain about half a pound a week now. She's on track to be newborn-James-size at over 9 pounds. So she now has a deadline. If she's 9 pounds by the day before, she's coming out on her due date, April 24.

She "sleeps in" frequently, and stays up late dancing. She hiccups frequently. I am SO! excited!. to meet her!

Symptoms: Headaches, bloody nose, threw up again (after date night-yay), I am SUCH A GRUMP anytime I'm thirsty or tired, acid reflux but only at night, absent-minded, clumsy, cried one day because I was so tired.

Generally, this pregnancy has been much harder on both me and Kevin. The third trimester has been especially hard for me, I think because this time I'm older plus I have to take care of  James while I work from home. It's harder for Kevin because he's been getting up with James for 6-7 days a week, and generally picking up a lot of slack while grow a person.

Cravings: CHOCOLATE!!, grape juice, salt, one day I craved lettuce, vanilla a little, yogurt.
Anti-cravings: 
My Weight Gain: 23.5, still half a pound less than last time, but I'm starting to lose ground here. Possibly I haven't been drinking enough water?
Thing I Miss: Having physical and mental energy. I have none.
Compare to week 32 with James

Bonus belly shots:

Kevin calls this pose "Fashion preggo!"

James tickling my belly post bath (anything to avoid bedtime)

Carrying both my babies

And as of yesterday, I have exactly 7 weeks to go! Baby has a weight-deadline on April 24, 2014 at 9:30 a.m.!

7 Months Pregnant 2014

25 Weeks, January 9-15
I was supposed to have a doctor's appointment at the beginning of 24 weeks, but because of Snow Storm Hercules, we had to reschedule for this week. I met a new doctor in the practice and he surprised me with an unscheduled sonogram. I think I scared Kevin that something might be wrong when I called him into see her. She was hiding her face under her little fists, but the sonogram could focus past her arms so we could see her face anyway.  As the doctor pointed out, being able to see the entirety of her big eyeballs makes her sort of look like the Terminator right now. Kevin called her "cute." It must be love! She looked leggy to me, but all signs still say she is currently normal size, and the official file in my doctor's office still says my due date is April 24! So that's good.

25 Weeks on Thursday- I'm huge already!

Baby progress:  
Baby's now the size of an cauliflower or rutabaga. Head to heel, she now measures about 13 1/2 inches., and she's about a pound and a half. She's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair. Her sense of equilibrium is also kicking in, and baby's learning to distinguish right side up from upside down.

Symptoms: Stuffy and runny nose, everything smells bad, trouble breathing, bad acid reflux. Also, I threw up (the nefarious cupcake) and I thought it was random, but since then I've been throwing up about once a week
Cravings: Chocolate, sugar, fish, beef, cupcakes
Anti-cravings: Cupcakes
My Weight Gain: 17 pounds, but still 3 pounds heavier than last time
Thing I Miss: Not worrying about the acid content of foods
Compare to week 25 with James

26 Weeks, January 16-22
Baby progress:  Itty Bitty is still size of a cauliflower or a head of lettuce.She now weighs about 1 2/3 pounds and measures 14 inches from head to heel.

She is soaking up antibodies, getting her immune system ready for life outside the womb. Her eyes are forming. The network of nerves in her ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. She's inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of her lungs. These breathing movements are also good practice for when she's born and takes that first gulp of air. And she's continuing to put on baby fat.

Symptoms: Lots of trouble breathing, bad acid reflux, everything smells bad, stuffy and runny nose. Threw up again. This time I was eating a frozen fruit bar.
Cravings: Oatmeal, raisins, grapes, granola in various forms
Anti-cravings: Anything that looks even a tiny bit old totally grosses me out. Super sweet things (even though I want them) make me feel a bit sick
My Weight Gain: 19 pounds, 4 pounds heavier than last time
Thing I Miss: Sleeping!, breathing
Compare to week 26 with James


27 Weeks, January 23-29
Neutral Milk Hotel was baby's first concert this week, and she kicked through all the music- to the beat! Kevin and I signed our wills on Monday, so now we can rest easy that our kids will be taken care of even if something happens to us. I also finally told my boss I'm pregnant at the end of the week. I work remotely so it's easier to hide the belly than if I had an office job.

 

A bit over 27 weeks, rocking my swing coat (thanks, Ash's mom)

Baby progress:  Itty Bitty is the still size of a cauliflower or rutabaga. She weighs almost 2 pounds and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended.

Her lungs are developing, which combined with the opening of previously plugged nostrils means she's now able to practice inhaling and exhaling. Every "breath" is filled with amniotic fluid. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, her brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were born now.

Symptoms: Lots of trouble breathing, bad acid reflux, stuffy nose. I threw up after eating just a small amount of canned peaches after lunch. The I had to get up at night to throw up the ice cream I had after dinner. I see a pattern developing. I worry that this does not bode well for my glucose test at the end of the week.
Cravings: Protein: Hamburgers, BEEF, peanut butter, beans, seafood, fruit, peaches
Anti-cravings: peaches, veggies with a bitter taste
My Weight Gain: 19 pounds, 3 pounds heavier than last time.
Thing I Miss: Living Tums-free, eating sweets without puking, warm weather walks, hugging normally, jumping up from a sitting position without sucking wind
Compare to week 27 with James


7 Months!, 28 Weeks, January 30-February 5
Third Trimester! Final stretch!  I did my lucose test on Friday and it came back normal. But then I got a call a few days later that my iron was low so I was a little anemic and my vitamin D was low again. That explains my beef and hamburger cravings the last few weeks! So I'm tired from low iron, but I've also been working a lot this week- so I'm really really tired. And since James gave up naps in January, that means I had to give up naps in Jauary. Well, with another baby on the way, my napping days were numbered anyway.

 

28 Weeks

 
Baby progress:  Itty Bitty is now the size of an eggplant! She weighs 2 1/4 pounds and measures almost 15 inches from the top of her head to her heels.

Her lungs are mature enough that, if she were born right now, she has a great chance of being okay. Her skin is still pretty wrinkly (one byproduct of living in amniotic fluid) but will smooth as fat continues to deposit. She can open and close her eyes, which now has lashes.

Symptoms: Throwing up after eating sweet things, acid reflux, trouble breathing, trouble sleeping
Cravings: COCONUT, chocolate, Fruit loops?, Coca-Cola but I haven't indulged the last two.
Anti-cravings: Tatsoi is the grossest vegetable ever. I also don't like fennel.
My Weight Gain: 19.5, only 1.5 pounds heavier than last time- the closest I've been yet to my weight during James's pregnancy!
Thing I Miss: Being able to roll over. Not being constantly tired.
Compare to week 28 with James

Is it just me or does this snowman look a little pregnant?

I'm 29 weeks now. I'm looking forward to seeing Itty Bitty in a full sonogram next Friday!

6 Months Pregnant 2014

21 Weeks, December 12-18
Kevin wrapped up the fall semester this week and we started on a long break together. Nana visited and babysat for us when we went out to celebrate Sarah and Lukas's joint birthday, and James W visited us for a week. Poor James had to go back to the dentist.

We had a lot of fun celebrating Christmastime at home with James.  I had many cravings.

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a banana or carrot. Baby's digestive system is starting to work.
She kicks when James cries or when I sing lullabies to him.
Symptoms: Acid reflux!!! Baby kicks feel like ELECTROCUTION.
Cravings: Apple cinnamon cheerios, milk, rice pudding, mint, cinnamon, (ice cream, cookies). Apples, mango juice, strawberry everything. At one point, almost all I ate for 24-hours was apple cinnamon cheerios.
Anti-cravings: Coffee (I want it but it burns me with evil acid reflux)
My Weight Gain: 11 (last time 13-16?)
Compare to week 21 with James or maybe with week 22?

22 Weeks, December 19-25
Andrew came here for a brief visit before we all drove to the Cape together. We celebrated Christmas Eve and Christmas Kevin's family.

Baby progress: The baby is the size of a papaya. (Yum.) She's supposed to be settling into sleep cycles, and I can kind of tell. She usually kicks around at night when I'm sitting on the couch with Kevin, and when I go to sleep. In the morning she doesn't "wake up" until 8:30 am, usually after I've been up for a while.
Symptoms: ACID REFLUX. Made it tough to sleep some nights.
Cravings: Christmas goodies, chocolate, chai tea, everything.
Anti-cravings: Not really.
My Weight Gain: 13 (last time up 16-18, but don't forget I started heavier this time)
Compare to week 22 with James

The 3.5 Clous at the Cape on Christmas.

23 Weeks, December 26- January 1
We were still on the Cape at the beginning of this week relaxing with family. Casey and Jaime came up to visit and have drinks with us. We had a good drive back home, and we celebrated New Years Day with Lukas and Sarah.

Baby progress: The baby is the size of a mango or papaya. Her face is fully formed. She's getting used to a lot of the sounds she hears coming from outside the womb.
Symptoms: ACID REFLUX
Cravings: Nuts
Anti-cravings: None.
My Weight Gain: 15 pounds, but still 3 pounds heavier than last time
Compare to week 23 with James-- Holy cow, I looked much smaller last time. Uh-oh.

 

Jaime visiting- I'm 23 weeks pregnant

Six Months!, 24 Weeks, January 2-8
Nana came over to exchange presents for  "Little Christmas" before we took the tree down. Kevin started the winter semester on the coldest day of our lives.

Lots of cute presents!

Baby progress:  Baby is the size of an ear of corn. She's gaining weight, and her lungs are developing. Her brain is growing quickly now. She kicks when James, Kevin, or I sing, and sometimes when we listen to music.
Symptoms: Acid reflux but it's not as bad. I'm starting to have trouble sleeping already. I was hoping that would wait for the third trimester.
Cravings: Fruits of all kinds, Mango juice, pineapples, mandarins and other citrus fruits that give me acid reflux and BURN. Chocolate and chocolate ice cream which do not give acid reflux and seem to dampen it.
Anti-cravings: None? Everything sounds pretty delicious.
My Weight Gain: 16 pounds, but still 3 pounds heavier than last time
Compare to week 24 with James

Thing I Miss: This is the first week I miss anything which is lucky. To this point I haven't really missed alcohol. This week I thought several glasses of red wine would be sublime. I miss lying on my belly-- particularly while working at home-- to give my back a break. I miss not having to suspiciously weigh the likelihood that otherwise benevolent foods will burn like tequila shots. That's how I ate pieces of pineapple this week, like one evil tequila shot after another. But these are small sacrifices.

Today, I'm 25 weeks, and I'm just 15 weeks (or less) from meeting my daughter!

5 Months Pregnant 2013

17 Weeks, November 14-20
We went to Queens on Saturday but otherwise took it easy this week.

Baby progress: Baby is the size of an onion. She has been kicking a lot! I even felt her from the outside once, so I think Kevin should be able to feel her soon.
Symptoms: Acid reflux, tired (still- although not as much), stuffy and runny nose.
Cravings: Fish! Juice.
Anti-cravings: Anything spicy
My Weight Gain: 7 pounds (Last time 9 pounds)
Compare to week 17 with James

leaves

18 Weeks, November 21-27
This week we flew to Florida to celebrate Andrew's 30th birthday in Key West! Unfortunately, Kevin had so much fun that he brought a hardcore cold home with him.

At the end of the week, Kevin felt the baby kick for the first time!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of sweet potato or bell pepper.
Symptoms: Headaches. Stuffy and runny nose. I have lots of tissues with me. Luckily James loves running them to the trash for me. (Hey, I'm not sick! Just pregnant.) Some early nesting. And when I go back from Key West- oh boy, I felt AWFUL. Such painful acid reflux, and so early still!
Cravings: Fruit juice
Anti-cravings: None

My Weight Gain: 9 pounds, Oh no. I'm almost on the same schedule as last time! I even started getting more exercise again lately. Sigh. (Last time 10 pounds)
Compare to week 18 with James

 

Key West, Nov. 23, 18 weeks

 

19 Weeks, November 28- December 4 
Thanksgiving! We got a tree this week and started decorating! James and I caught Kevin's cold. Boo. Like pregnancy symptoms weren't bad enough without a cold on top.

Baby progress: Baby is the size of mango! She has a vernix caseosa on her skin to protect it. She kicks a lot. Every morning she's kicking by 8:30 a.m. and seems to move around in response to James screaming or to me singing to James.
Symptoms: The acid reflux feels like knives in my throat. Sometimes I wake up choking from it. Bad headaches. Hip pain, and trouble standing up sometimes because of it. Super stuffy nose. I feel awful this week.

Cravings: Lime juice

Anti-cravings: Wheat bread- GROSS

My Weight Gain: 10 pounds (Last time 12.5 pounds)
Compare to week 19 with James

Thanksgiving

Five Months!, 20 Weeks, December 5-11

Baby progress: We had our 20-week hospital sonogram where they check everything about the baby in detail, and the technician and the doctor said everything looked great. She was 14 ounces which is normal size for 20-weeks, but they said that my file said that at my 12-week sonogram appointment at my doctors office they had moved my due date up a week (to 4/17), so really I was 21 weeks already. I protested this because I don't want my baby to come out early if I have to get a c-section again, but so far, I've been ignored.

This is usually the appointment where you can see if the baby is a boy or a girl but I already knew this time from genetic testing. Nonetheless we confirmed visually: the baby is still a girl.

Also, the sonogram technician said that my placenta is in the back this time which means there is less padding between me and the baby. She has direct access to kick my internal organs. She said that this likely explains why I could feel the baby before 12 weeks, and why her kicks and movements feel so much more intense than they did with James. So maybe she's not fated to be a professional soccer player like I thought. Or maybe she is.

Otherwise, the baby is about the size of a banana. She has working taste buds now, so hopefully she enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner, and isn't suffering too much from my new experimentation in the kitchen.

We also went to Ben's 1st birthday party this week, and had a fun visit from Casey.

Symptoms: Painful hips, trouble sleeping already-- I took out the "Things I miss" category for this pregnancy because it seemed a bit negative, and I really haven't missed anything so far (not even alcohol!) but this week I started to miss being able to lie on my stomach. It's okay not being able to do it for a few weeks, but not being able to do it for so long makes me want to.
Cravings: Rice pudding, strawberry ice cream, cinnamon, saffron, soy milk, cranberry juice, citrus fruits.... poor Kevin.
Anti-cravings: Spicy food. A lot of packaged foods gross me out too.

My Weight Gain: 9.5-10.5 pounds (Last time 12 pounds)
Compare to week 20 with James

 

Belly at 20 weeks (or maybe 21 weeks)

Today I'm 21 weeks! Or possibly 22 weeks, depending on whom you ask. Due date?: April 17-24.

4 Months Pregnant 2013

13 Weeks, October 17-23
We went public with the baby news this week! A wee tiny bit early but after all the tests the baby has already had, and some light kicks I've been feeling, I just couldn't wait to reveal! Kevin and I are so excited about the baby, it was really hard to keep the baby a secret at all. This weekend we went to the farm with Rachel and Christina's families. We also told our immediate family the baby's gender. James turned 2 and a half, and we took him to the dentist to get his baby teeth cavities drilled.

 

The farm with friends

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a peach. She has vocal cords and fingerprints. Her body is starting to catch up with her head,which makes up just a third of her body size now. She has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries! Future grandbabies?
Symptoms: Sleepiness, acid reflux, mild nausea, sore boobs, bad skin
Cravings: Orange juice, Skittles, vitamin C generally, fish, cereal especially Wheaties
Anti-cravings: None really, but I still get really full really fast
My Weight Gain: 1.5 pound (Last time 5 pounds)
Compare to week 13 with James

14 Weeks, October 24-30
Second trimester! I finally started wearing maternity clothing part-time. I was already wearing the shirts a little, and I busted out the pants this week.

We visited with Jaime, Janice, and Darren in Arlington, Virginia, and we all took James out in his Halloween costume. We also celebrated Brian's 30th birthday!

The Red Sox won the World Series for the second time since Kevin and I have been together! Kevin drove up to Boston to watch the final game in the bar that lets you look right down to the field at Fenway. To paraphrase Kevin with a lot of license, "Someday my unborn second child will ask what I remember about her pregnancy and I will say, 'The Red Sox won the World Series!'"

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a lemon. She can now squint, frown, grimace, and possibly suck her thumb! Her kidneys are producing urine, which she releases into the amniotic fluid around her Her body's growing faster than her head. My baby's liver starts making bile this week and her spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells.
Symptoms: Faintness, dizziness, sleepiness, acid reflux, mild nausea, sore boobs
Cravings: FIBER (Mini-wheats cereal, veggie burgers, veggies, fruit, cardboard boxes look alluring), ketchup, soy products, sugar candy (not chocolate so much as Skittles)
Anti-cravings: None really
My Weight Gain: 3 pounds (Last time 6 pounds)
Compare to week 14 with James

Celebrating Halloween early with Fudgie, Darren, Janice, and Jaime

15 Weeks, October 31-November 6
Halloween! James went trick or treating for the first time! Next year he'll be going with his little sister (in the stroller). We announced to everyone that we were having a girl!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of an apple or navel orange. She's moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, so her lungs can begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms. Her eyelids are still fused shut, but she can sense light.
Symptoms: Sleepiness, acid reflux, sore belly, stuffy nose at bed time
Cravings: Fish, fruit, sugar candy (not chocolate so much as Skittles), Grapefruit juice
Anti-cravings: None really
My Weight Gain: 4.5 pounds (Last time 7 pounds)
Compare to week 15 with James

16 Weeks!

James is starting to figure out what's up.

FOUR MONTHS!, 16 Weeks, November 7-13
I had my 16-week check up at the beginning of this week. I really look forward to my appointments so that I can have reassurance that Itty Bitty is doing well. The doctor spent a little while search my belly for the baby's heartbeat because she was on the move, and I might have started freaking out except that I was pretty sure I'd just felt her kick while I was sitting in the waiting room. It's like she wanted to give me a heads up that she'd be running from the doctor.

Ash visited for the weekend, and Christina and Sarah came over Saturday night for some girl time.

I finally started getting my energy back! I had been expecting the exhaustion would life like a curtain exactly at 14 weeks like it did with James, so it was a bit of a surprise to have it linger and extra week an half. But then suddenly one morning- gone!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of an avocado. She's starting to be able to hear so maybe she heard James say, "Hi baby!" to her the other day. She's also growing taste buds, so pretty soon she'll be tasting my food.

Baby Girl kicked me really hard on Tuesday. I don't remember James kicks biting quite like that! Even later in his pregnancy! Maybe she found a sensitive spot.

Symptoms: Light-headed!, exhaustion lifted magically, carpal tunnel hand- OW!, acid reflux, sore belly, stuffy nose at bed time
Cravings: Grapefruit juice, mandarins, cream cheese, strawberry jam, fish, seltzer water (but I haven't been drinking the latter because it gives me too much acid reflux)
Anti-cravings: Wheat bread that I have eaten for years is suddenly gross cardboard.
My Weight Gain: 5-6 pounds (Last time 8 pounds)
Compare to week 16 with James

I'm 17 weeks today! April is getting closer!

3 Months Pregnant 2013

9 Weeks, September 19-25
The doctor called to tell me my Vitamin D is low which is strange considering I go outside most days for a walk. So now I'm taking a supplement for that. At least they're little and not huge like the prenatal vitamin horse pills I take.

We told our moms this week! Yes, it's early but after our first sonogram we were feeling pretty good and thought we could share the news with just our moms since we didn't want them to guess before we told them. We told them it wasn't public yet. Well, they both immediately got on the phone and told basically everyone they've ever met. I seriously got emails from Kevin's 3rd cousins congratulating me.

Our moms are happy because they're getting another grandbaby!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a grape/olive! Baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form -- as do tiny teeth. The embryonic tail is completely gone.
Symptoms: mild nausea, cramping, sore boobs, hair loss, sleepiness, bad skin
Cravings: SALAD (had it at 9:30 AM one morning), FISH, nuts, American cheese
Anti-cravings: None really
My Weight Gain: 1 pound (Last time 2 pounds)
Compare to week 9 with James

9-week belly picture

James and Grandma reading "I'm a Big Brother"

10 Weeks, September 26- October 2
Cathy visited on Saturday, and on Sunday people came over for football and food. We took James's to his first dentist appointment. Sarah and I went to Fall for Dance. My nausea got much worse, then it lifted at the end of the week.

Baby progress: Size of a kumquat/prune, vital organs are in place and starting to work, nails and peach fuzz hair are starting to grow. Baby's head is bulging from his or her developing brain.
Symptoms: Intense awful nausea, vomiting, sore boobs, hair loss, sleepiness, bad skin, acid reflux already
Cravings: Cheeseburger even though it makes me ill
Anti-cravings: coffee, and pasta is kind of gross
My Weight Gain: 1.5 (last time 3 pounds)
Compare to week 10 with James

11 Weeks, October 3-9
My nausea came back. I learned the hard way that I should not eat Indian food while pregnant, even if it's only the first trimester- I felt ill for hours afterwards. Mom had her surgery and it went well! We had some extra genetic testing this week since I'll be 35 when the baby is born, but it's fancy new testing that's non-invasive... and tells you the baby's gender early!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a fig/lime
Symptoms: SO SLEEPY, sore boobs, hungry but also full after a few bites, hair loss, bad skin, acid reflux
Cravings: Very cold milk, vanilla, dark chocolate
Anti-cravings: Greasy things, spicy things.
My Weight Gain: 1.5 (last time 3-4 pounds)
Compare to week 11 with James

THREE MONTHS!, 12 Weeks, October 10-16
I was looking forward to my sonogram on Friday- it's always a thrill to see the baby moving around. I think I've been feeling movement and maybe some kicks already, and I asked the sonogram technician if that was actually possible. She said that it might be because it's my second pregnancy and I know exactly what it feels like.

Then we found out the baby's gender on Monday from our genetic testing last week!! (We didn't find out with James until 20 weeks!) Stay tuned for an announcement on that!

Baby progress: Baby is the size of a lime/prune but really we're a week ahead size-wise, so the baby is bigger. Baby is developing reflexes, and baby's nerve cells are also developing.
Symptoms: Hungry, sleepy
Cravings: Cereal, Swedish fish
Anti-cravings: I think I want coffee and then I don't finish it...
My Weight Gain:  1.5 (last time 4 pounds)
Compare to week 12 with James

12-weeks and showing already, 10/11/13

Off to the Hospital 2011!

So, despite our many predictions, I never went into labor before the scheduled c-section, which was three days after my due date. Given the baby's size, that he never dropped (probably because he's jammed in my hip), and that I never showed any signs of labor happening ever, it wasn't a good idea to wait. It looks like I'd probably have an emergency c-section even if I went into labor, and it's more dangerous to have a c-section while contracting or after pushing. The c-section was coincidentally scheduled during Kevin's Spring Break from teaching so he would be able to go with me and stay at the hospital for the full recovery period without taking any time off (something that's near-impossible for a professor). Wednesday was the big day!

40 Weeks + 3 Days

This is us right before we went to the hospital. This is the sort of thing you can do when you're not actually in labor. I also took a shower and applied make-up. This is a definite plus in the c-section column. On the down-side I am hungry and even thirstier in this picture because I couldn't eat or drink after 11 p.m. on Tuesday.

Our c-section appointment was 12:00 p.m. but we had to be at the hospital for prep by 10 a.m. so we left with enough time to drive, possibly get stuck in traffic, and park at the hospital's always very full lot.

The hospital claimed to have free internet (I would have been willing to pay) and I figured that I might be able to post this sometime during the day since it was just one photo, and because I know a family friend Katie C. had blogged a lot from the hospital during labor, I figured I wasn't being crazy.  But the internet promise was a lie, there was no free internet or even expensive internet, there was just a wireless name that would reject me when I clicked on it. As you can guess, I found this very disappointing!

Kevin and I in prep

Anyway, this is Kevin and me in the prep room. It turned out I was already having contractions every five minutes. I couldn't feel the contractions so they weren't the right kind, but my body was definitely getting ready to eject the baby anyway. Or rather to fail at ejecting the baby, hence the c-section. (Interesting note: my paternal grandmother who is also 5 feet tall had an emergency c-section for her 10-pound baby in the 1950s.)

39 Weeks, April 10-16, 2011

Milestones: I've made it through 40 weeks of "official" pregnancy. Unofficially, the way doctors count is fictional so I've probably actually pregnant for 38 weeks, give or take a week. And I've known I was pregnant for 36 weeks. I finally feel like it's REALLY time for the baby to arrive. Besides the nesting I did last week, I've reached a desperate point where I've organized the tupperware drawer, backed up my digital files, dusted the plants, thrown out every expired item in the apartment, washed walls, and categorized our take out menus with colored tabs by ethnicity. Seriously.

39 Weeks + 4 Days

Weekly Wisdom: No pregnancy pillow will save you. Your best bet is to have an assortment of different size and shape pillows and try a different combination every week or even every day.
What I miss the most: Even though I gave up on sleeping on the couch after about one week, relaxing in bed is an oxymoron.  And because I need pillows all around me, it still feels like Kevin is sleeping in a seperate bed. Even if I can't sleep once the baby comes, at least I'll be able to lie down comfortably.
Craving: WATERMELON, peaches, grapes, juices, wet fruit basically, and water
Anti-craving: Coffee
Symptoms: I am a moody arthritic obese person.
Baby-size: 9 pounds 12 ounces, give or take a pound. He's like a prize-winning pumpkin.
Weight: The good news is 10 pounds of it is just pure baby. Wait, is that the good news?

So we had a sonogram at the hospital on Thursday, followed by our last doctor's appointment. We left the apartment at 1:15, waited almost 2 hours for the sonogram, and were a bit late for our regular doctor.  We didn't make it home until well after 5.  Really frustrating. Especially when you're so freaking pregnant.  The sonogram gave us an estimate of the baby's weight (9 lbs 12 oz) , checked his heartbeat (130), and that he was practicing breathing. He's also long. I was sitting on the table, so the sonogram technician actually asked if we're tall. No one has ever asked me if I'm tall. The doctor who came in after refused to vote on the c-section or no c-section debate. She seemed to be slightly leaning to no-c-section, but then she called my regular doctor while we were on the way there to personally tell her our baby is huge.

When we got to our regular appointment, Dr. C who had told us just. last. week. to cancel our c-section, came in with eyes as big as saucers, and said, "so you have a big baby!" and proceeded to encourage us to get the c-section. So if the baby doesn't come on his own by Wednesday, we're going to have a c-section. If he comes before then, we might still need a c-section because he might not be able to drop on account of his hugeness.

Finally we had a non-stress test which revealed that the baby is pleased as punch in there, and that I'm having a lot of contractions I didn't know about. If you don't know about them, they don't really count though.  I only actually feel like 1 or 2 a day. But Kevin and I went for a walk after the doctor appointments and he generously captured on film one that I did feel.

Kevin captured my "Braxton Hicks face"

Thanks, honey!

Brady, Briggs, Cory and Robin came by to visit us today which is very brave considering I might pop at any moment. I did have to excuse myself for a 20-minute nap at one point, but I guess that's better than having to excuse myself to go have a baby. Well, better for the guests. Maybe not better for the hosts.

Tomorrow I am 40 weeks which is sort of like 10 months pregnant!

38 Weeks and Nesting! April 3-9, 2011

Milestones: Nesting! I think. Maybe it's too premeditated to be nesting, but on the other hand all my premeditation about cleaning and organizing before didn't lead me to actually get off the couch and do it. This week I have completely reorganized and cleaned the bedroom and closet, the living room and closet, the bathroom and closet, put the finishing touches on the nursery with Kevin's help (see below), guestroom and closet, finally shelved all my dad's books, and reorganized the closet we use as a pantry. Yes, we have a lot of closets! Lucky us, but bad for fighting hoarding urges. Kevin also moved my office things into his office, and I set up stuff neatly, but I wouldn't say I've actually organized that stuff or have any interest in doing so. The last frontier is the kitchen. Most of the cabinet space is too high for me, so figuring out a place for the new baby stuff like bottles is challenging. Okay, I know, fascinating stuff.

Weekly Wisdom: I realized I am thoroughly not afraid of change. I might be freaked out by the idea of giving birth (what sane person wouldn't be?) but I am not afraid of actually taking care of the baby, or how my life will change or any of that. I try to imagine being afraid of that, and come up kind of blank. The only thing I can think of that would be worrisome is when the baby gets sick.
What I miss the most: Not feeling like I'm an arthritic 100-year-old fat person.
Craving: Tons of water, yogurt, seafood, Thai curries
Anti-craving: Burgers, no thank you.
Symptoms: Pain everywhere, especially my hands. Difficulty standing. Random Braxton Hicks contractions that bear no relationship to each other. A tightness here, a shooting pain there. The only thing the pains have in common is that I'm sure they're not the real deal.
Baby-size: Small elephant.
Weight: I look like I am carrying imaginary triplets, and weigh the same.

Akua visited me at home on Wednesday, which was lovely since I'm not mobile for very long distances. We got to chat for a long time and binge on organic lollipops together. What could be better?

On Thursday, Kevin's friend Trey came in from out of town, but he didn't have a lot of time so Kevin met him for breakfast in Manhattan. I was sad to miss him, but my aforementioned lack of mobility kept me at home. It was a good opportunity for them to compare expectant-father notes, though.

On Friday, Dr. C told me I hadn't progressed at all and tried to encourage me to have the baby sans c-section. For a person who never had any intention of writing out a birth plan, I officially have birth plan whiplash. In fact, for about five minutes during my appointment, the doctor thought the baby had turned himself breech again because she couldn't find his heartbet where it should be, but high up on my right side. A move to the sonogram room revealed that baby is not breach; he is HUGE and curled all around my belly.

And today, Jon came by to watch some Red Sox with us. That didn't really work out so well for the Red Sox.  Oh well, at least the baby is starting to learn the comforting sounds of the game in the background.

This is what my belly looks like most of the time:

Outside view


Sonogram of inside

Compare to:

See how oddly shaped my belly is?

Tomorrow I am 39 weeks! The official due date is April 17th. We have a 39-week doctor's appointment on Thursday, April 14th ... will we make it? It's starting to look like we will...

Full Term 2011!

37 Weeks, March 27-April 2, 2011

Milestones: At 37 weeks, the baby is considered full term!  No preemies here. We finished the nursery except for wall art, I put away all the washed baby clothing, and I packed the hospital bags.  Yes, plural, because on our hospital tour they told us to leave the going home clothes in the car until the last day so baby has his own little duffel suitcase for his outfit and blankets. Kevin got the car seat inspected at the maximum security Bronx station. Seriously, it had a locked gate around the facility. And right now I'm cursing the car seat straps and instruction manual as I try to figure out how to adjust it for a small teddy bear or large teddy bear playing the role of the baby.  (Don't listen in the womb, baby!) I feel like we're ready for the baby in the most superficial sense.  I'm hoping that Week 38 is all about getting REALLY ready in terms of full apartment spring cleaning and mental preparation.

37 weeks+ 4 days

We had a doctor's appointment on Thursday and the doctor seemed like she no longer thought a c-section was the way to go and suggested canceling our appointment. Here's the issue. We go to an ob/gyn practice with four doctors.  Dr. N is off lecturing somewhere and for all I know doesn't actually exist. Dr. K is an equally senior doctor with a wacky sense of humor to say the least.  He was the first doctor we saw but we've only had about three appointments with him.  Then there's Dr. C who we've had most our appointments with, and and Dr. A who we saw only last week.

So back when the baby was breach, Dr. C said to schedule a c-section. We ignored her because I was confident the baby would turn around.  Then the baby stopped being breach and Dr. K said to schedule a c-section anyway because the baby was so big. So we did. Thursday when we saw Dr. C she was wondering why we hadn't canceled the c-section appointment now that the baby was no longer breech.  She seemed enthusiastic about delivering babies as big as 12 pounds, whereas, the older Dr. K seemed decidedly unenthusiastic about delivering babies that reach 10 pounds.

Weekly Wisdom: After the doctor's appointment on Thursday, Kevin took me to get  prenatal massage. (Have I mentioned before that he is the best husband ever?) I have never had a massage before in my life (despite some gift certificates that sadly went to waste) so I don't have a point of comparison, but totally worth it. If you're pregnant, and you can at all swing it, get one.

At this point I am so heavy that I'm not sure the physical benefits lasted for very long, but two things about it were amazing. One, for the hour that I was being massaged I had a break from some of the physical discomfort of pregnancy that's been going on for at least 17 weeks. The whole massage is done on your side (I imagined a big hole for my belly so I could have my back up but it was not so) and they have the most amazing pregnancy pillow set up ever with soft L-shaped pillow on top and a super firm high square pillow for my top leg. If you haven't been pregnant then you probably can't even begin to relate to why this is awesome. Secondly, it was mood-enhancing. Afterward, I felt like I had taken happy drugs to counteract the pregnancy blues and "grumpies." Kevin benefited in intangible ways and tangible ways such as getting the remote for the rest of the evening without comment or complaint.

What I miss the most: My ankles. Some days I have some, some days, I don't.
Craving: Strawberry juice, strawberry sorbet, cherry and strawberry yogurt, burgers, (hotdogs), peanut butter and strawberry jam, tuna fish, cheese, tomatoes, and orange juice, acid-reflux be damned.
Anti-craving: None at all.

Symptoms: I am a water balloon. My little water ballon fingers ache from the swelling. I sometimes sleep on our bedroom couch now because it provides back support while I sleep and it has made my sleep so much better. When I do, Kevin says he feels like we're at camp.

Baby has his own inertia or lack thereof. This means that when I try to roll from one side to another it is a multi-step process. Say I am on my right side, I first roll on to my back and sit up a little, while I try not yell from the pressure on my lower back. My belly slowly follows. Then I roll onto my left. Finally the belly goes left. I don't even want to get into how many steps getting up involves.

Baby-size: Fat baby size.
Weight gain: Dinosaur.

Tomorrow I am 38 weeks! We are down to the final countdown! The official due date is April 17th. We have a 38-week doctor's appointment on Friday, and a 39-week appointment the following Thursday but we don't have confidence that we're going to make it to that last appointment. Kevin and I are guessing April 9th now. Let's see if we're right.

9 Months Pregnant 2011!

36 Weeks, March 20-26, 2011

9 Months + 3 Days Belly Shot!

Milestones: This was a very exciting week! Kevin finished building the nursery furniture including the crib so I've been putting away the washed baby clothing and trying to set up the nursery to look how I would like it to look. Getting the nursery ready reminds me again how lucky I am to have the people in my life that I do. Almost every single item we needed was provided at the baby shower. I'm lucky to have so many kind and generous people in my life. Kevin and I just bought a few odds and ends that weren't on our registry. After a week, I'm still not done, but I promise at least a progress photo next week.

Kevin building the baby's crib on Sunday

We had possibly our last sonogram on Wednesday, and though the baby was covering his face again, we learned that he has A LOT of hair, and is weighing in at about 7 pounds and 13 ounces! "You're basically carrying around a full-term baby and you can never put him down." - Sonogram Technician. He's putting on more than an ounce a day, and still working on lung development, which seems to involve a lot of hiccuping.

From now on, we go to the doctor every week so they can check to see if labor is imminent. In that spirit, I'm going to try to post promptly and frequently so that if I suddenly have to go to the hospital there won't be anything left unblogged.

The baby's weight estimate made me think of the Baby Bets we placed in October. The program relies on some tricky formulas where you get or lose points for every ounce away from the baby's weight you are and every HOUR away from the baby's arrival. So you don't have to have the right gender or weight to win necessarily. But if it were more like college basketball, there would be 11 of you who would have busted your brackets already with a girl under 8 pounds. I think at this point, Jon is the front-runner, but it really depends on when the baby decides to show up.

Weekly Wisdom: I have been skipping this category until now, but I finally had a little piece of insight. Baby socks are the cutest thing ever. Unbearably cute. They are also some kind of matching game torture device, especially the completely white ones which still manage to be subtly different from each other. And because they are so small they have the ability to simply disappear into the time-space continuum. My evidence is that we threw 13 pairs in the laundry and got out 10 pairs and 3 socks without a match.

What I miss the most: Sleeping even somewhat normally or comfortably. HOT DOGS, and I don't even want to talk about how sad that is.
Craving: Strawberry juice, strawberry sorbet, cherry and strawberry yogurt, burgers, (hotdogs), peanut butter and strawberry jam
Anti-craving: None.
Symptoms: Most days I wake up at 5 or 6 am and can't go back to sleep for 2 or 3 hours, and then it's back to bed time. I'm sleepy all the time but sleep is the enemy. Also swelled hands and knuckles and back pain.

Oh and here's a fun demonstration of what a total joke pregnancy is. This is me reaching as far over the kitchen sink as I can. Granted if I were taller, or stood on a stepping stool I might be able to reach by getting my belly over the sink, but still, this is absurd.

And here's a fun baby trick. He likes to sit in the middle or on the left side of my body exclusively. And since he's so big, I can watch him do it.

This is so. Alien.

Baby-size: A crenshaw melon.Whatever, he's newborn size now, okay?
Weight gain: I haven't gained weight in 3 weeks so I will now admit to being at 38 pounds, but I am really not talking about it anymore.

As far as New York, generally, the weather still hasn't settled down here. Last week it warmed up, but this week was cold again. Not only did it snow and hail on Wednesday, but it actually thunder-hailed on Wednesday night!

All right, we're off to our hospital tour now. How exciting is that!

34 Weeks, March 6-12, 2011

Milestones: If the baby were born now, he shouldn't have any serious health consequences (especially since he's weighing big). I had my first Braxton Hicks contractions this week. For those of you who don't know, these are contractions that you get when you are not in labor. There are a lot of ways to distinguish them from real contractions, so I'm not worried. I had one and then a couple days later I had a second one. I looked them up online and they were described as "hugs" and I asked my friend Rachel and she said "a tightening." Of course, I experienced them like the WORST flu stomach cramp you have ever had, lasting for 40 seconds. I am so glad that I decided on an epidural (if I don't end up having a c-section anyway). Too bad they don't have a home kit because I would definitely stick that big needle in myself on the way to the hospital.

We had our 34-week sonogram this week. I was more excited about another sonogram on Thursday than I was about my birthday on Wednesday. Fun thing I learned at the sonogram: the baby is no longer breach! He is head down but hasn't dropped yet. Sonogram technician says he really shouldn't flip anymore. Famous last words.

Also, the baby is 6 pounds and 10 ounces, give or take. Based on that and other measurements, the baby is measuring over two weeks ahead of schedule. My adjusted due date (which no one told me about, but I saw on the sonogram screen) is April 1, instead of April 17. Let's see if it has any bearing on reality. My mom wants it to be April 14, her anniversary with my dad, but she's actually predicting April 18, the full moon. My guess would be April 3-12 somewhere. We also scheduled a c-section on April 20 if the baby hasn't come on his own by then because he would probably be 10-12 pounds by then, so there's officially a deadline now.

Another fun sonogram tidbit I learned was that the baby's femur is measuring long. I'm excited that he has a hope of being taller than I am. Sadly, the baby was covering his face during the sonogram, so we didn't get any good pictures this time.

What I miss the most: Sleeping through the night and sleeping without waking up in pain.
Craving: Plain flavors of ice cream. Stuff in it is kind of annoying. And this is not a craving, but we got our girl scout cookies this week! Samoa and the thin mint ones. The peanut butter ones would have been good too; alas, we didn't get those. Tums for acid reflux.
Anti-craving: WATER (gives me acid reflux).
Symptoms: Very bad sleeping, very bad acid reflux, my ankles are swelling up, and it's hard to fight back when drinking water hurts. Itchiness all over (possibly hormonal, but especially itchiness on my belly.
Baby-size: Cantaloupe
Weight gain: Over 35, so I don't want to reveal anymore. Who decided this was a good question anyway?


Roger and Lina came over for dinner on Saturday night, even though Roger was a little afraid that I had posted moodiness as a big symptom last week. I was fine, though. Eating at restaurants is getting harder and harder because the belly keeps me far from the table and leaning forward is uncomfortable, but somehow I never notice when I'm eating sushi. I forgot to get a picture of them visiting, but we had a nice time, and after dinner Lina and I had TV night while Roger and Kevin went to some tournament games in Madison Square Garden.

So because I have no other pictures from this week and because my birthday/34 week + 3 days picture really freaked people out with my hugeness, I am posting another one from the same day with the dress moved so you can see the belly shape. It doesn't look any smaller, but it gives you a different perspective on how big I am.

My birthday, 34 weeks + 3 days

Things My Wife Complains About #18: Dropping Things

The first trimester was exciting, the second trimester was mostly pleasant, and the third trimester is scary and uncomfortable. A major problem is that my wife always drops things (she's less coordinated now) and has no way of picking them up (she is the shape of a cartoon snake in the middle of digesting a small mammal). Rather than do something helpful like pick things up for her, I instead started an "Oh No Diary," named for the sound she makes every time something relatively minor goes wrong (spoken like Minnie Mouse finding out Donald Duck is coming over for dinner and, despite her repeated requests, duckin' it). Here are a few diary entries, starting with the drops:

Dropped tissue beneath couch

Dropped photograph on floor

Broke nail

Moved pillow

Found clothes on top of dry cleaning bag

Got butter on toaster

Then to chronicle this special time in our lives, I started augmenting the "Oh No Diary" with choice third trimester quotes, such as the following:

"Skittles.com sucks."

"Can you get a napkin fast before the syrup goes down my shirt!"

"WHY DID YOU TAKE THE REMOTE CONTROL FROM ME?"

Note: The answer to the former was "no" and the latter "because you asked me to change the channel."

Possible Solutions!

1) Never get more than six inches off the ground, so as to keep everything within reach

2) Live in an MC Escher print where gravity will eventually send whatever you dropped back down to you

3) Deliver baby (hard)

34 Weeks + 3 Days