35 Weeks

Sunday, February 10, 2013

How far along? 35 weeks, which the Bump has so kindly informed me is better known as the 35/35 – 35 weeks pregnant and 35 days (!!!!!) till my due date.  Holy.  Crap.

 Due Date: March 17^th

Total weight gain: Up about half a pound this week for a total of 28.8 pounds.  More normal but definitely approaching that 30 pound mark.  Ugh…

Maternity clothes? Yes.  And even a few of those are not working anymore.  Tops getting a little short. Belly panel getting a little tight.  I’m just really hoping to ride this out without buying any more clothes.  I’d rather spend the money afterward on baby clothes.  Plus, I’ve just realized that I’ll probably have to spend even more money on nursing tops and pants that fit for me.  So if you see me wearing the same four outfits for the next 5-7 weeks, you’ll know why…

Stretch marks? Maybe, maybe not.  I’m gonna go with probably, but it is hard to get a good visual of my own stomach and sides right now…

Sleep: Fantastic this week.  I even slept straight through the night once without a bathroom break.  Of course, I paid for it when I did wake up with a very full bladder… But I must have really needed that sleep.  It was a beast of a week.

Best moment this week: Another snow day on Friday!  Hello unexpected long weekend.  Again, I’m telling you, this three-day weekend thing is the key to my feeling human and like I can juggle all the balls in the air and maybe, just maybe feel ready for Lucky to come.

Miss Anything? Being able to help shovel snow.  It drove me nuts waiting all day Friday for Alex to get home. I actually like to shovel snow.  And I felt like I couldn’t go anywhere all day because I didn’t want to risk getting stuck at the end of the driveway.  But I was good.

What’s Baby Like? Baby is the size of a coconut, which quite frankly doesn’t seem all that big in comparison with some other weeks.  But maybe I’ve never seen a full size coconut.  Apparently my uterus has grown to 1,000 times its normal size.  Baby is about as long as he/she will get at between 17.2 and 18.7 inches.  He/she weighs between 4.2 and 5.8 pounds and will put on a pound or more of baby fat before birth.  Lucky’s hearing is now fully developed and will respond best to high-pitched noises. 

Movement: Pretty active this week with the nudging, pushing, and shoving.  Also, based on the position of Baby at my last appointment, Lucky is a fan of the fist pump, and will sometimes party Jersey shore style for 20 minutes at a time.  Alex can feel those the best.  And we can both feel when Lucky’s little butt?  legs? knees?  push really hard against my uterus.  Sometimes Alex can see the movement from across the room now.

Food cravings: Cereal is still sounding like my best option.  I limit myself to breakfast or an afternoon snack though.  And only caved and had cereal for dinner once.  I’m also either constantly hungry or will go eight hours without eating because nothing sounds good or everything sounds like too much work to chew and swallow.  It’s not a good combination. Thank goodness for green smoothies, so I know that Lucky is getting some good nutrients even if Mommy is being a picky pain in the butt.

Anything making you queasy or sick: No.  I just sometimes can’t muster up the energy to actually eat.

Gender: Still a surprise.  I’ve been investigating old wives’ takes hardcore and the latest sign is that Lucky definitely prefers the right side of my belly (I am very lopsided and have been since this bump started growing), which means we’re having a boy.  (To be honest though, we seem split pretty 50/50 on these things… like most people I am sure.)

Labor Signs: Nothing new.  Not a single Braxton-Hicks.  Nothing.  Good.  Stay put Baby.  As tired as I am of this whole weight gain thing, I am not ready… 

Symptoms: This is starting to feel like a laundry list of complaints, so I’d like to begin by saying that I am still incredibly lucky, and I think this has been one of the easiest pregnancies in the history of pregnancies.  Still, I don’t think anyone escapes symptom free.  On that note, lately I’ve been experiencing: an occasionally numb/tingly feeling in a tiny oval area at the top of my uterus (this one is probably the most irritating), slightly swollen ankles and fingers when I get hot, mild foot and calf cramps, slightly restless legs, slightly higher body temperature (sometimes, not constantly), and stiff back / tired legs at the end of the day. 

Belly Button in or out? Still in but there’s a tiny little lip at the top like it’s trying to poke out.  We shall see…  It feels ‘about to pop’ like it’s felt for the last 10 weeks or so with no significant change…

Wedding rings on or off? On during the day.  Off when I think I might get overheated and swell: at night and when working out.  I did have one moment waiting in line at Best Buy on Saturday when they felt tight, and my fingers felt extra swollen. I got the rings off and moved them to my pinky.  As soon as we went outside (coatless because I was HOT), things went back to normal, and I wore them for the rest of the day without a problem.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy for the most part with some moody moments.    

Looking forward to: Admitting this is definitely going to get me the ‘Mother of the Year’ award, but as I was grocery shopping with Alex yesterday, and he was buying himself some beer (jerk), and I was getting carded for the purchase (ha!), and it occurred to me that this summer, I’ll be able to enjoy a Lienenkugel or two.  Light.  Tunnel.