39.5 Weeks

Today is Tuesday; I'm due Friday.  I think everyone is ready for this kid to come.  I had a check up yesterday and the doc checked me - 1cm and 50% effaced.  I was surprised in the sense that I have so many contractions, so much low back pressure and pains to not be far along at all.  But honestly, not that surprised.  I'm just not one to go early (or at all).  I had the doctor strip my membranes and she wants to check the baby's size at my ultrasound on Thursday.  He hasn't been measured at all since the perinatologist since this late in pregnancy ultrasound size estimates need to be at least four weeks apart to be somewhat accurate.  NSTs and fluid have been great.  If baby is growing decently, we will just keep waiting and I'll check back with my doctor on Monday.

My belly measured 37-38cm yesterday, I'm up 31 lbs, and BP was about 100/70.   

 

39 weeks with Gabrielle (left) and baby boy (right).  Seems about the same??  I am going to laugh so hard if after all these tests he comes out over 7lbs :)

 

Sister and brother!  Gabs loves to pull up my shirt to "see" brother.  She loves to [try] and do this in public too.  Haha. 

Where I feel I spend the majority of my life these days.  Good thing baby boy always does so well on his tests :)

Baby's profile at 38 weeks

Gabrielle's 3 Year Pictures

I took Gabrielle out last night to get some [almost] three year old pictures before I pop. It was about 75 degrees out and she picked out a new dress for her pictures. Purple and a tutu....just about perfect. And she even wore a headband that my mom got her. She hasn't worn headbands since she was about six months old so it was pretty cute I thought. And no, it's not any easier taking pictures of your own child. Haha. But this is what we got in the 20 minutes we were out :)

Eyes - 3 years

So Gabrielle went in for her eye check-up last week and it went really well.  A year made quite a difference in how they were able to test her eyes.  They started by having her look into this machine that estimates her deficit (I think).  They tried having her verbalize what these strange black and white pictures were, which didn't go the best.  Then they had her hold a card with all the pictures on it and point to the picture that she saw far away.  That went much better and she did great.  They did that covering one of her eyes and they also did it with difference lenses held up to her eyes.  They had her put her face/chin up to the big contraption to look at her eyes (I feel very dumb that I have no idea what this stuff is called).  The doctor was very happy with all that Gabs could tell them and was happy with what the test revealed so she didn't even need to dilate her eyes.  She said Gabs eyes may have improved a little bit from last year but was happy to just keep her in her current glasses.  With the stabilization/progress she saw she said it could even be a possibility that Gabrielle may not need glasses by the time she is 12 or it may just be a minor prescription.  No matter what though, her eyes look healthy and with her glasses her vision is perfect.  She doesn't need a check-up for a whole year when she turns four......so baby brother will be in for his check before Gabrielle goes back.  Crazy!

Almost 3

Gabs seems to be overly emotional lately in every emotion.  She has gotten louder, rougher, and more physical lately when she's happy (kicking legs, screaming, jumping on me, throwing things at me.....all in a "happy/excited" sense but still rough).  She's been waking up crying a few mornings for no reason that we know of.  And if she lays her eyes on Nick first in the morning she loses it and asks if I'm going to work today between sobs.  She's been testing limits by yelling "no!" or demanding something be done right now and or certain way.  Has been developing a case of the "I wants".  She can't see a commercial or anything in a store without saying "I want.." or "I could have this for my birthday".   

I know all of this is normal, but she has such a well-behaved two year old year starting some of this stuff has been pretty obnoxious for us :p  And I know it's a combination of still adjusting to big girl life with preschool and dance class by herself and I'm sure some baby anxiety too (though I have no idea what she really thinks/understands about that).  She always says she has a baby in her tummy too.....lately it's been two girls, actually - Kiki and Marina.  Imagine that. 

She has a lot of good days too, but just unpredictable.  Preschool is still going well.  She knows her teachers name now and talks about her at home (Ms. Amy) and talks about her little friends too.  Tucker (which she always clarifies "is a boy"), Faith, Haven, Sage, and Braya who is her "favorite friend".  So cute!  She also learns lots of songs at school which she loves to sing at home.  It's funny hearing her break out into some song I don't even know that she learned at preschool.  I think preschool really is benefiting her.  She seems more confident and outgoing.....both of which I was hoping she would get from school.

She's also learned first position ("pizza feet") and passe ("flamingo") at dance class.  She is thriving in her activities and it is great! 


"When I get bigger I can drive....and you can sit in the back.  And I can wear your swimsuits."

"After Grandma Jojo's kitties die, her can get puppies!"

Says to me "Mommy pigs are big like you."  Completely innocent but pretty funny.

We were looking at swans on the lake and I asked her "Gabs what birds are those?"
G "Flamingos"
Me "No they're not flamingos, look they're white."
G "Buoys?"

"Daddy you're my prince!"

She said to Papa Ron very enthusiastically about a month after being potty trained "Papa Ron, I used wear diapers long long time before!"

"We should buy Daddy Prince Eric.  He like that!  He be so happy!!"

"When I get bigger I can go to work and bring a baby to Stacey's house.  And when I get bigger I can eat mint too."

Putting her dance outfit on herself.........

Practicing with baby's swing.

 

 

So I found Gabs feeding the dog Rice Crispies cereal the other night.....and I took a picture and walked away.  Great mom.  A couple of minutes later I hear Nick find her and scold her for first taking food without asking and for feeding it to the dog.  He asked me "did you tell her she could do that?" and I said "no....but I just saw her doing it, laughed, and took a picture of her...."

Nick got bad cop on that one....

1st position!

 

Passe!

 

And we made it to the pumpkin patch again this year.  Gabrielle loved it!  We didn't have a ton of time there, but she enjoyed the tractor ride, pumpkin patch, and of course cider and donuts.  It didn't hurt that the Jewell family (Kaylyn) came too. 

Look at those cheese grins I get when I ask for a picture......

 

Loving the tractor ride.  She kept yelling "go faster tractor!!!"

Gabs picked out her pumpkin.  It can't even stand up by itself, but it has "polka dots" on it and I guess that's all that matters.

 

37.5 Weeks - Full Term!

NSTs and ultrasound looked great last week.  Fluid measured about 17 and they want above 8, so not much to worry about there.  Today the belly measured 35cm, BP was back down to 90/70, and I'm up 29lbs.  I only gained a pound in the last two weeks instead of five....much better.  I had to sit an extra 20 minutes for my NST today because I'm having regular contractions and baby was super sleepy.  They gave me some juice and he went nuts so they sent me home after 20 minutes of that.  My doctor said she would check my progress at 39 weeks, and if baby is still looking good on all of his tests we could talk about not inducing quite yet if I didn't want to.  It's a possibility at least. 

 

36.5 Weeks

Only a few days until I am full term with this baby boy!  All I can say is the last month of pregnancy isn't fun.  I'm starting to feel really tired again and have lots of aches, pains, and BH contractions.  He seems to be really active so that is good.  The specialist told me to be diligent about doing kick counts and luckily its always pretty easy. 

I had my first non-stress test today....kind of relaxing!  I get to lay in a recliner uninterrupted for at least 20 minutes listening to little boy's heartbeat.  He did great today on his test.  I had one really big contraction and he did great.  Moving and shaking the whole time with heart rate in the 150s.  I will go to the doctor on Mondays and Thursday until I deliver - Mondays I have a NST and an appointment and Thursdays I have a NST and a fluid ultrasound.  My doc said I would deliver sometime during my 39th week unless baby boy showed signs of stress before then. 

How far along?: 36 weeks 4 days
Total weight gain: 28 lbs.  Yikes!  5 lbs in two weeks??  Hopefully baby boy is accounting for at least some of that.  BP was up to 128/78 today too though....so fluid.....definitely all fluid ;)
How big is baby?: He weighed in at 5lbs at my ultrasound last week....so I'm guessing between 5 and 5.5 lbs.  Belly measured 34-35 centimeters today.
Maternity clothes?: Yes....and those are even starting to get uncomfortable.
Stretch marks?: Nope
Sleep?:  I'm getting pretty tired all the time, but still have insomnia sometimes in the middle of the night.
Best moment this week?:  Well, last week - having our perinatoloist appointment go as well as possible.  And my PUPPP rash is getting significantly better......strange.
Movement?: Still lots of movement.  That's good because the doc said if we don't get 10 kicks in 2 hrs max to go straight to the hospital :/
Food cravings?: Oh I don't know.  Lots of meat still does not sound appealing at all.
Labor signs?: Seems like lots of BH and some pain.
Belly button in or out?: Half and half
What I miss: Not feeling large and tired
What I'm looking forward to: Meeting this baby!

He looks "good enough" :)

So we had our appointment with the perinatologist and things look good over all.  His heart looks perfectly healthy which is great.  He is "at the early stages of growth restriction" per the doc.  He was an extremely light hearted doctor and sounded very promising.  Baby's growth stayed pretty consistent from the last ultrasound two weeks ago.  His weight is in the 11th percentile, head is average/bigger, and arm and femur quite small (like the 3rd percentile) though the doctor did not seem concerned at all.  He said that is what baby should be doing if there is some growth restriction, which there is.  He weighed in at 5lbs today. 

The belly/head ratio was at the very top end of normal, as was the umbilical cord flow. 

Baby is head down, his butt is under my left rib, and his feet are under my right just how Gabs was. 

From the way he sounded, I'm pretty sure they will definitely not let me go past my due date at all.  Still sounding like an induction at some point, it's just figuring out when.  I'm going back to my regular OB and I'll be having weekly non-stress tests and fluid ultrasounds to check up on the little one.  I go back to my OB for a check up on Monday, so we'll see what she says.  Over all, very good day.

35.5 Weeks - Perinatologist

We finally have our perinatologist appointment this afternoon, two weeks after our initial growth ultrasound which showed there may be some issues.  I have an "extensive ultrasound" today with the specialist to look at everything - growth, placenta, cord flow, and heart.  The tech and radiologist couldn't tell if baby's heart walls looked thickened on my growth ultrasound, so we need to look at that again too.  I really have no idea what it means for him if they are "thickened" but we will find out many answers today. 

It's been kind of a roller coaster to prepare for this.  We don't know if we are going to a have a baby today or a baby in a month; a healthy baby or a not so healthy baby.  We will get a much better idea today. 

What we do know if that sister and brother already love each other because look at the presents they picked out :)  I [sorta] let Gabi pick out a little blue bear for brother and I brother got her a princess Ariel doll.  I figure doing a little gift exchange when she comes to meet baby might help? 

Here's baby boy at 35.5 weeks.  And I'm excited you can't see my PUPPP rash hardly at all in the picture

And some very happy news today - we bought a new car!  Nick was pretty insistent that we get a bigger car before the baby comes so we rushed out Thursday evening and looked at/test drove the only car we were really considering.  Nick worked out the details the next day and we should be picking up this beauty after the doctor today!