37 weeks, 1 day - Doctors, doctors, doctors

Meeting another new doctor today.  Dr. Williams.  Based on everyone I've met so far, I feel good about it.  I'm done with the long drive to work and am just hanging out, working from home until baby comes!  Hooray!  So exciting!  Nana picked up a bunch of newborn clothes for us at a consignment shop so we have something to bring baby home from the hospital in.  That's a relief.  Things are coming right along!

In other news, my feet and ankles have been swelling which is annoying but not entirely unexpected.  I don't remember this happening with Henry, but then again, I had a broken foot with Henry at this point and was in a boot, so I have no idea what else was really going on.  Aside from that, I'm having lots of Tony Braxtons and am super tired but feeling pretty well otherwise.  Below is a pic that shows approximately what baby looks like in mommy's tummy these days.  Pretty crazy, right?

37 weeks, 0 days - Work "Sprinkle!"

What a lovely surprise from my very lovely coworkers.  Total surprise.  The dear, sweet folks I work with got me a big cake for everyone and a little GF cake for me and gave me a really nice gift card for our new baby.  Totally surprised me.  My helper, Eileen, had asked me if I'd have lunch with her today, you know, since it's my last day on site, so that's what I thought we were doing.  As it turned out, everyone was there.  The client, the sub contractor, the Analytics team I used to manage, our partner and executives... it was so lovely.  Not a lot of pomp and circumstance but it was just so very nice and sweet.  Plus, Tricia, my client business owner, gave me a couple of books for new baby.  So sweet and thoughtful.  I am constantly amazed by how kind and caring the folks we work with are.  I guess it's the difference between working with the federal government and working with a public school system.  These folks really do seem to care about one another.  And it's nice that I get to be a part of that.  Lots of people asked me very kind, thoughtful questions and it was just so very very nice.  And the gift card was just the perfect little "sprinkle" of gifts.  I'm so very touched.

Also, everyone who guessed, guessed girl.  Interesting.  Looking more and more like my "boy" gut feeling is in the minority.  Very interesting, indeed.

I was thinking, on my way in today, that if I was Allie, I'd be having my baby very shortly.  I don't remember if she was induced the day she turned 37 weeks or if it was  a few days later, but I do know that she had Lex when she was 37 weeks.  So that's pretty crazy.  We're past the premie phase so if we had the baby as of today, I don't think he/she would be considered a premie.  I believe that babies born at 37 or 38 weeks are "early term" but still considered pretty well baked!  Crazy!  Not that I think we'll have baby any time soon, but it really could be any time now!  I put the car seat in the car over the weekend and told Henry that's where his baby will go.  He kept saying "bay-bee, bay-bee" over and over, so I went in and got his baby doll to strap in.  He was happy about that.  Then, he didn't want to leave the baby in the car, so he carried it through the stores we visited.  It was very cute.  I think he'll be a good big brother.  I've asked him a number of times if he wants a baby and he always says yes.  So, game on, baby!

36 weeks, 2 days - Yet another doctor's appointment

Saw the doc yesterday.  All was GREAT.  I saw a different doctor this time and she was so relaxed about everything that it made me feel absolutely wonderful.  She measured my belly and came up with 36 cm (which is where it's supposed to be).  I told her that's the first time I'd heard that.  She smiled and said the measurement is so subjective that it doesn't really mean much.  That made me feel pretty great.  And it jibes well with what the ultrasound was showing.  She was just very non-reactionary and really calm about everything.  Much more like my doctors in Arlington.  She basically said, everything is fine and let's not worry about it until there's something to worry about.  As opposed to "well, this could go wrong or this could be a problem so let's make sure it isn't."  And I mean, that's great too but I'd prefer not to know about it, I think.  I just liked this doctor so much.  El Gammal.  Kind of sounds like Gargamel.  Loved her.  So.  Of the four docs I've seen in this practice, I was ambivalent about one, like one quite a bit, and absolutely loved two.  Those are some pretty good odds.  I see a different one next week and the last one the week after.  I hope it remains so!

Anyway, heart rate was strong and in the 130s.  Mama gained some weight so I'm now at the same weight I was when Henry was born.  Eek!  That likely means that the next time I step on a scale, I'll be in uncharted territory.  Seeing numbers I've never seen before.  That's a little scary.  I know how quickly it comes down when you have a baby but it's still a little scary since I know I started out weighing less this time than I did with Henry.

Oh also, kind of exciting, I've had a handful of people guess that this baby is a girl.  I've been so confident for such a long time that it's a boy that I kind of forgot that we don't actually know.  So that's been kind of fun, you know, to be reminded.  :)

Oh, and finally, I was talking to my mom the other day about the girl names we'd picked out.  We have five or six and probably won't decide unless we have a girl and then, after spending some time with her.  But our two front runners are Genevieve Kathleen and Mabel Ann.  My mom didn't react much when I told her so I asked if she'd heard, you know, since Ann is her middle name and that baby would kind of be named after her.  She said that she'd heard but she didn't know the appropriate way to react so she just didn't.  Then she told me she'd also noticed the Kathleen (Stevie's middle name) and I told her that we came up with that because Stevie pointed out that our Genevieve nickname (Evie) would sure sound an awful lot like Stevie.  I hadn't realized it when I picked Eve as the nickname but I liked it very much and figured, well, if we're going to name her after Stevie, we might as well go whole hog.  So that's how we ended up with Genevieve Kathleen.  My mom LOVED it.  She got to laughing really hard because she thought it was awfully hilarious that our child, Genevieve, would be named after my sister, Stephanie.  Ha!

35 weeks, 5 days - Hospital tour

We went on a tour of the labor and delivery area of the hospital we'd like to deliver in yesterday. I say, "we'd like to deliver in" because it's an hour away if there's no traffic and... well... that's kind of far.  I have no idea if we'll make it there or not.  It's possible that we'll end up at Piedmont in Newnan -- which is about 15 minutes away -- just depending on how quickly things seem to progress.  Anyway, we took the tour yesterday and I was feeling a little weird about doing it.  Just kind of stupid like I should know this stuff already.  I mean, obviously, I hadn't given birth there before so I shouldn't feel stupid about it, but I did.  But I'm so glad we went.  It was great.  It was easy and clear and really eased my anxiety about getting there and what to do once I got there.  Really glad I went.  The postpartum rooms aren't as nice as the ones in Arlington, but they're fine and the L&D rooms look really nice.  The hospital actually has this special private area where you can get these fancy suites and a personal chef while you recover.  Matt, of course, wants to do that but after I whacked him over the head a few times and explained how it really wasn't worth $700 EXTRA a night, he relented.

I also met a woman who looked to be about the exact same size as me.  She's also 35 weeks and when I exclaimed about how small she is, she said the same about me.  We then had a conversation about the weird things people say to us and how nice it is to see someone else the same size so we don't feel like complete freaks of nature.  She said she thought it was because she's tall.  I told her I've speculated the same thing.  I forgot to mention that the doctor recently complemented me on my abs.  That might have made her feel good, too.  Anyway, between seeing someone else who looked pretty small and having the doctor be so awesome and supportive on Friday, I'm feeling really good about things these days.  I'd just been feeling so blue and terrible, like I'd been doing something wrong even though I knew I hadn't.  It's hard to listen to people tell you over and over that you're not doing this or that right or you should be doing this or that without starting to doubt yourself, regardless of how sure you are in the beginning.

In other news, Amy's niece, Caden, had her baby yesterday.  That's another one off the list.  I think now Derek and I are in a race to the finish line.  His wife is due on 9/13 and then I think that's it as far as the babies I know personally.  What a crazy number of babies there are/were this summer!!

35 weeks, 2 days - Dr. Appointment and Ultrasound! Surprise!

I had a doctor's appointment this morning at 10 am and, unfortunately, I did not have someone to watch Henry.  Daddy was here, but he got home very late last night.  I think he got to bed around 2:30 and then had to work this afternoon at 1 so he needed to sleep and wasn't able to watch Henry.  Normally, I'd ask Grandma to watch him but I usually keep him home with me on Fridays and, just yesterday, she was telling me about all the things she had planned for today and the things she wanted to get done so I didn't feel like I could call her.  So I just decided to take him with me.  No big deal, right?  I mean, these appointments usually last literally five minutes so all should be good.  Except, surprise!  Today's was not a five minute appointment.  D'oh!

I saw a different doctor today -- Dr. Kleiss.  Loved her.  Actually loved her maybe better than Dr. Lawson.  Whom I like very much but I really liked Dr. Kleiss.  I just felt... connected with her.  Anyway, she was fabulous but surprise!  We did the group B test today.  That is a pelvic swab for anyone who doesn't know.  Lovely.  I mean, not a big deal to have my 2 year old there when I'm naked from the waist down but it's just one more layer of complexity that I did not need when I had Henry with me.  Then, of course, he freaked out when the doctor came in.  She was awesome about it and let me have him up on the table with me while she did the swab and measured my belly/listened to the heartbeat... which I just realized right now I forgot to ask about.  D'oh!  Anyway, I'm still measuring small -- no surprise there -- but I also didn't gain any weight since my last appointment so she decided to send me to ultrasound to make sure the fluid levels were still ok.  Ugh.  Usually I'm so thrilled about ultrasounds but after the melt down that Henry had during the doctor's appointment, I was not looking forward to the ultrasound.

Blah blah blah long story short, he was great in the ultrasound and all is well.  Baby is still measuring small but is growing so they're not worried.  My fluids are fine and all is well.  The tech had a tough time getting the head measurement because baby is sitting so low in my pubic bone... which explains those pains I've been getting.  She told me she couldn't say whether or not baby had dropped (since she's not a doctor) but that she thought baby was sitting much lower than she usually sees them.  I thought only first babies dropped before labor began but who knows?

Anyway, we didn't go back and see the doctor after the ultrasound because all was fine.  Dr. Kleiss did tell me that I have really strong abs and that may be why I"m measuring so small, though (because my abs are keeping my belly taut and from pooching out).  That was really really nice of her to say.  I told her so and then she said that she could feel them and showed me where she was feeling and... I don't know.  It was just a really nice thing to say and made me feel so good.  I feel like I've gotten so much news about what I'm doing wrong or things to worry about with this pregnancy and I've been feeling like I'm the worst pregnant person ever that hearing that just made me feel so happy.  And like I'd done something right.  I mostly hear how much faster you show with your second and subsequent pregnancies because your muscles are all stretched out from the first so, again, hearing that made me feel like I toned up properly and got my body back to being ready for a baby and... I don't know.  It just made me feel good.  All in all, a good doctor's appointment.

35 weeks, 1 day - Showing and dropping

I guess I'm showing a lot more lately.  I had many people at work talk to me about the second coming of Baby PR this week.  And I even had two strangers congratulate me.  Big deal!  I don't think I was wearing anything that was more belly accentuating than normal so I guess this babe has finally decided to appear to the public.  So that's kind of nice.  I remember when people first started saying things to me with Henry that I was so excited to look pregnant and not just fat.  So good for that.  :)

I'm also wondering what it feels like when a baby "drops."  I don't think Henry ever did. Well, I mean obviously he did but I don't think it was before labor started.  So I don't know what it feels like.  I've been wondering for a bit if this babe has possibly dropped because I've been getting these weird pains in my groin and pubic bone.  Two nights ago, it was absolute agony.  Didn't feel anything at all like labor, more like baby was scraping me on the inside.  So I don't know if he/she had his/her little hands up and pushing on things he/she wasn't supposed to or what but it KILLED.  And also, I frequently get these sharp, shooting pains in my groin area.  I remember those from Henry, though.  I think the doctor told me that baby's head was pressing against a nerve or something before.  It's very odd and doesn't last more than a few seconds but sometimes it's so painful that I'm afraid I'm going to fall down.  So I got to wondering, does that mean the baby has dropped?  Why haven't I been experiencing this throughout the entire pregnancy?  I'm quite thankful that I haven't been but I wonder what's different now.  I'm sure baby is bigger now so maybe that's it?  I do not know.  But I don't like it.

Finally, I've been having much more intense, frequent Tony Braxtons lately.  Dr. Lawson said to call if I ever have more than six in an hour and I haven't, though yesterday I had four.  That was a little alarming.  They weren't regular or consistent or anything.  I had one then another 20 minutes later than another 5 minutes later than another 18 minutes later then another 12 minutes or something.  So it's not like I was mistaking them for labor.  But it was surprising and conventional wisdom tells us to drink lots of water, take a walk, or change positions when you get them.  But I seem to get them when I get up out of a chair or lie down or am doing something that makes me tired.  They still don't hurt or anything but they are quite noticeable these days.  Almost as if I'm due to have a baby in the next 3-7 weeks.  Madness, utter and complete madness.

34 weeks, 0 days - Well hello belly! Belly pic

Well hello there, belly!  Nice of you to join us!

I believe that, with this photo, my belly is officially larger than it ever was with Henry.  I'm still a few pounds lighter than I was when I delivered him but I started out about 10lbs less than I did with Henry so that's no surprise.  Plus, I've still got 6 weeks to go so there's a real good chance we're going to surpass the highest scale numbers this lady has ever seen.  I didn't take any pics with Henry between 30 and 36 weeks so there's no good comparison to show and I don't want to spoil the surprise by pulling the 36 week pic too soon so you'll have to live another two weeks without a compare shot.

Baby is still moving and grooving and still hanging out obstinately in my rib.  Grandma picked up a new monitor for us over the weekend so we can check that item off our list.  So that's one of about 10k things that needed to be done.  Hooray for us!  Ha!

Oh, in other fun news, according to baby center, "...babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies."  So that's pretty exciting.  Even if baby was born today, chances are he/she would be fine!  But do go ahead and keep cooking in there for awhile, Baby.  Mommy's not quite ready for you just yet.

Henry started back to school today.  I'm very interested to hear he did with the potty today.  We forgot to have him go after he got up this morning so he went to school without going at all.  But it turned out ok.  He held it and went as soon as they got into the classroom and daddy got him on the potty.  

33 weeks, 5 days - Seriously. Get out of my ribs.

I'm not kidding, Baby.  Get.  Out.  Of.  My.  Ribs.  I don't know what it is with these babes, but it's the exact same spot that Henry used to get stuck in.  I don't know if it's a foot or a knee or what but it's high up on the right hand side of my rib cage and it's so uncomfortable I can't stop poking and trying to readjust Baby so that he/she GETS OUT.  I've got to be bruised.  Silly little thing.

In other news, we're almost 34 weeks.  So crazy.  Just over 6 weeks until our due date.  Can you believe it?  6 weeks still sounds so far away but when you say that it's next month, it just sounds mad.  Simply cannot believe it.  Still no real problems to speak of.  We went down to Callaway Gardens this weekend with Grandma & Grandpa and the Terlizzis and on the way there, I was thinking of Allie and the troubles she'd had by this point.  Baby Lex came on 1/7 and the last time we saw her before she delivered was on Christmas eve.  So about two weeks before Lex came.  She was induced at 37 weeks.  So the last time I saw her before she delivered him, she was about a week and a half past where we are now.  And the poor thing was sooooo uncomfortable at that point.  She'd been in and out of the hospital with different cramps/contractions and kidney stones and she had undiagnosed pre-eclampsia so she was absolutely crazy swollen.  Every time I get to feeling sorry for myself about being so tired, I think of what she went through and feel so fortunate that I haven't had to deal with anything like that.  Both she and Amy said they had crazy heart burn toward the end of theirs, also.  Another thing I haven't had to deal with.  So, Baby, in the scheme of things, I guess you sticking in my ribs isn't really so bad.

It is getting uncomfortable to sit slouched over now, though.  I'm more comfortable either leaned way back or sitting up perfectly straight. I'm assuming it's because I'm crushing my lungs against my uterus when I slouch.  I don't remember that with Henry at all but I've also gained several more pounds already than I gained with him.  So maybe that has something to do with it, too.

Speaking of Henry, I'm very excited to see how he does with new baby.  He seems to love babies.  Every time he sees a little person his size or smaller, he points it out and says "bay-bee, bay-bee!"  And he's very interested in them.  Yesterday at the beach, he wanted to make sure we were all quiet because he saw a little baby sleeping.  Sweet little thing.  Montessori starts again this week on Wednesday and he's mostly potty trained.  We didn't have any accidents at the beach yesterday (that we know of) and he went pee-pee in the potty three different times while we were there.  I'm hoping that carries over to school.  We'll see.  He put his potty in his bed with him the other night. That was a little distressing for mommy.  I don't know if he's overheard me saying that he's not potty trained over night yet or what, but he was carrying his little Elmo potty around with him at bedtime and wanted it in his room with him during story time.  I didn't see an issue with it, so I let him put it where he wanted it.  Which turned out to be on the ottoman.  Fine.  Whatever.  Who cares?  We sterilize it after every time he goes so it's not really as gross as it could be.  So we read our story and put him to bed and he went to sleep right away, perfectly quietly.  Or so I thought.  I checked on him maybe an hour after I put him down (we still have a video monitor in his room) and saw an object in his bed that I did not recognize.  At least not at first.  After some staring, I came to realize that it was none other than his Elmo potty.  He must have quietly gotten out of bed, picked up the potty, put it up in his bed, climbed back in, and then moved it to where he wanted it.  All perfectly silently because I didn't hear it on the monitor.  Hahaha, crazy boy.  We did sneak in and remove it from his bed, but not without spending several long moments laughing and pondering what it was that he was thinking when he did it.  Silly, silly boy.  :)

Ok, back on topic.  Still feeling fine.  Still tired, but surprisingly less so.  I've read that many women get a burst of energy before they go into labor but I don't think it's generally 6 weeks before so I'm not sure what that's about.  Not complaining, though.  It feels so much better not to want to cry at any given moment because I'm so very tired.  Lots of Tony Braxtons.  Never more than maybe 3 in an hour but surprisingly, I get them when I change positions (from sitting to standing, rolling from one side to another, getting up off the floor) whereas they frequently say the way to stop them is to change positions.  Weird.  Anyway, Dr. said to call if I ever have more than 6 in an hour but I haven't gotten even close to that, so no worries.  And they don't hurt.  Sometimes they're uncomfortable but mostly, they're just noticeable.  And surprising.  I still can't believe how frequently I have them.  Can't believe baby will be here in just a handful of weeks!