Week 33: Getting Into Position

This week has been much smoother than last, thankfully. I was worried I was going to have a solid eight weeks of getting more and more uncomfortable by the day.

We had our 32 week appointment this week and an ultrasound to check out the baby's position.

Baby stats: We had the ultrasound first and it was a crazy to see how big he is! You could only see so much of him at once on the screen. As of our appointment he was in the correct position for delivery--head down and facing towards my back. Before we get too excited about this, I am at the higher end of the normal range for amniotic fluid, which means he can still move around pretty easily. We didn't do any measurements of the baby, but didn't get any comments about him being too big or small. His heartbeat was 154 I believe, which was difficult to get since he kept moving. The only unfortunate part was that due to him being in the correct position, we couldn't get a picture of his face at all, so we didn't really get any good pictures during the ultrasound.

My stats: I forgot to record my weight last time, but I know I was up 5 pounds in the last month, so I think that means like 2 pounds of weight these last two weeks, which I was excited about! Especially considering the baby gains about a half pound a week right now. My blood pressure was good and no other issues. My fundus (uterus) was at the high end of the range, most likely due to the high fluid levels. Nothing to be concerned about.

Baby movement: Definitely a lot of movement! I still haven't really needed to do any kick counts. He doesn't wake me up at night, that is definitely my bladder or needing to roll over, but he does move a little bit when I do get up. He tends to move his feet and hands at the same time, so the top of my belly and bladder get attention or beaten up at the same.

Freya loving!

Symptoms: A lot of Braxton Hicks, though not enough to worry about (that is if I have four or more in an hour and they start to feel stronger and more regular) since they are very irregular. Most of the time they hardly bother me, but I tend to get them when I am moving a lot and trying to bend over. The whole bending and getting up thing is definitely getting more difficult each week. Along the same lines, my hips/lower back tend to need a couple steps to get used to walking/waddling after I get up. I haven't had any swelling at all and my shoes have not had any issues fitting. Many people are still totally surprised I wear heels during the day.

Belly: This week, today specifically, I feel like I have gotten especially giant (see the pics of me in the pink shirt and black skirt). I did get stretch marks on the bottom side of my belly this week :/ I am really upset, but judging by how big I seem compared to others I can't really be too surprised. I just hope I don't end up with too many more, but there are still 7 weeks...

On to other things from this week:

We got our maternity photos taken this weekend and I cannot wait to see them! We got to see a couple during our session and they looked fantastic. I wore my teal maxi dress from Italy for most of the pictures and it was perfect. It was a little chilly since it was 8:30 am, but the little bit of breeze worked to our advantage most of the time. We brought the captains wheel we will be putting up in the nursery to use as a prop and I think we got some really cute photos using it. Our photographer was great and we bonded right away since she is 11 weeks pregnant with her first. Can't wait to get our proofs and show them off!

New dress from Sunday

Dylan did an amazing job making progress on the nursery this weekend too. He has all of the painting done and my mom will touch up the lines next weekend for us. (I totally would except I really am not supposed to do that whole ladder thing...)

I was able to attend one of my friend's baby showers this weekend. It was a great shower with good treats and desserts and a lot of people in attendance to celebrate. It was so much fun to shop for little girl things too :) Her shower made me so excited for my showers in a week and a half and two and a half weeks! My one in Nebraska will probably be as big as hers and I feel like I will have so much stuff to bring and ship back! She really didn't get anything big at the shower and she had a ton of gifts. I am so excited!

Generally I feel like 7 weeks is still a long time to go, but I also am so aware of how quickly it will go. Since my big date in my head is the weekend of May 5, a month before our due date, I really feel like I have a lot to do in the next two and a half weeks. Hopefully the nursery will be pretty much done this weekend and then I am gone the next weekend in Nebraska. I plan to have the hospital bag ready starting May 5th. Then most of May is just getting through as much spring cleaning as possible!

Super Giant Tuesday

We are both starting to get really, really excited! We are still trying to take advantage of our last baby-free weeks, but mostly just getting ready for the little man to arrive and fill our lives with a whole lot of love and excitement!