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Thursday, February 28, 2013

Size-wise

Yesterday was the 36 week ultrasound for a size check. It went well. Zachariah was able to come along to see his little brother. He loved it. He was amazed at hearing the heartbeat (and seeing it too), watching him breathe, but most of all he liked seeing the little ones squirmy hands and little feet. It was fun to share the wonder with him.

The ultrasound went well. The baby is doing great. All his parts check out. We even did a confirmation that it's a boy. It is...we saw those parts. (Makes me feel better about those clothes that I already washed. LOL) He is head down, which is great. I already knew he was. I can feel his head low in the past week or so. And I get very uncomfortable pressure and sometimes slight pain when he's really down there. (Something that I didn't experience before.)

His head measured him at about 6 lbs 12 oz. He's going to be a good-sized baby. This we had expected. But his femur length measured him a bit smaller. I forget exactly, but it was around 6 lbs 6 oz there. Pretty average for 36 weeks. It looks like he may just have a larger head. Zachariah did too, but I didn't have any problems delivery him.

I asked the doctor what she thought about the size and everything. (Before the appointment I was worried they'd try to rush me into delivering early due to size.) She said she's not concerned. She's guessing he'll be able 8-9 lbs by my due date. There is no rush or worry about his size, but she wouldn't want me to go more than a week overdue.

I was so relieved to hear that. I didn't even make it to my due date last time. I had an induction at 39 weeks due mostly to size. So I was a little excited to hear that (assuming everything is still great), I could actually go a little over.

The doctor explained that most times second babies are a little easier to push out and their heads don't get as squished on the way out. She said this will most likely not be the case for me. Since his head looks a little big, he'll probably need more time pushing to get everything out. This is not a concern, but just something that is likely to happen. No big deal to me.

I had an internal exam too. There is no dilation yet, but she says I'm thinning. With all of the pressure I've been feeling, I would not have been surprised to be dilated. Sounds like it may not take long though. And she could feel the baby's head. He really is down low. This didn't surprise me either, because I feel him down there. When he's wiggly, it can get really uncomfortable.

And the best news is I have permission to go into labor at any time now. I am on the high side for fluid (not too much though), so if my water breaks it will be a lot. But if my water breaks or I have regular contractions, I can just go with it. And I can get checked at the office or chose to go straight to the hospital. She said walking a lot or anything else I want to do to get labor going is fine at any time.

While I'm not ready quite yet to have this little guy (ask me again in a week or two), it was surprising and reassuring to hear this. I feel good knowing I'm in the safety zone and ready for delivery. Things are moving in the right direction. I'm hoping with the baby's position and pressure I've been feeling, I'll have a smoother delivery. I really just want to go into labor on my own without any other "help". I know he'll come in his time, and I can't wait to meet him.

It's amazing how much calmer and prepared I feel after this last appointment. It was good to hear that things are going so great. My goal is to keep that up and deliver a very healthy baby boy in the next few weeks.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Quick Update

Tomorrow I have my 36 week appointment. I'm not quite 36 weeks yet, but I will be on Thursday. The plan is to have an ultrasound done to peek at the baby and get an idea of his size.

From the beginning my doctors were worried about my having another big baby. I'm not that worried about his size, because I didn't have any problems delivering a big baby before. But maybe this will ease their minds. I'll be interested in hearing what they say about his size, one way or the other.

According to babycenter.com a baby at this gestational age will weigh just under 6 lbs. I'm guess he's at least 6 lbs or more by now. I don't feel as big as I did last time. I'm probably about the same, so it's hard to tell.

I do know this little guy has been hanging out low. He pushes down on my pelvis often now. Or I feel a lot of pressure down there when I stand up at times. That's a little uncomfortable. I don't remember that from last time. I'm hoping it means we'll have this one a little earlier, but on his schedule. It's not that I'm ready to have a baby this early. It's more that I don't want to get to so close to the end that I have to deal with induction or other such things because he's getting too big.

So, what do you think? Am I going to hear this is another big baby? I'll let you know what I hear.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Cute Baby Things I Made

I do have several more things crossed off my list now. I didn't anticipate getting these done this early. I already had everything I needed to make things, and I had to get the sewing machine out last Saturday for something anyway. I figured I may as well make use of it.

I have completely worn myself out working on all of this. But it has been so much fun to sew some cute items I needed for the baby. At this point I have finished 3 receiving blankets, a car seat cover, and 6 burp cloths. The only thing left is a couple of nursing cover ups. I have made these before, so it won't be too difficult. However, I need to take a break to get other things done first.

Tomorrow my mom comes to help paint Zachariah's new room. He's chosen the color "brick red". I'm not a fan of red, so I really hesitate. The color isn't too bad, though, and it will be in his room not mine. Once we get the painting done, we can start moving his things into the room. That will be a BIG step. That means soon we'll be able to get all of the baby's things set up in his room. About 5 more weeks until his arrival!!

I won't make you wait any longer. Here are pictures of my craftiness:



Car seat cover

Front view with cute, little polka dots

Peek-a-boo! Owls on the inside. Love!

Owls with polka dots
Fleece receiving blankets

Cute pirates

Soft, fuzzy, light, big & two-sided

Outer space


Burp rags! This is my favorite material- robot cotton with matching robot parts flannel on back


Monday, February 11, 2013

Getting There

*Oops, I didn't hit publish on this post last week.*


I really should go back to that post from a while ago and check out my to-do list. I know that some things have been crossed off, but I also know there are many things yet to be done. And if I look at it too long, I know I'll get discouraged. And I'll probably add to it. So, I won't bother.

Let's just say that things are getting done. I've had a few days of extra energy and motivation when I've been able to tackle some of the big things. Most days I don't have energy at all. It stinks, but I know that's just how it goes when you are 8 1/2 months pregnant. Some days I still can't believe it. A quick look down brings me back to reality, though.

So, even though the big project (the great room switch) could have been done months ago, it's not yet. My original goal was to have everything moved by Christmas. Ha! We're already past Valentine's Day and approaching Zachariah's birthday now.

But...the good news is we might have Zachariah in his new room by next weekend. I have most of the old office (his new room) cleared out. I have thrown away a lot of things, donated a lot of things, and have a lot of things in boxes that need to be sold. The big bookcase is now in our room. The cabinet is mostly cleaned out. Most of what is left in the room is baby stuff that will go to Zachariah's current room.

My mom is coming to help me paint next week. We'll paint Zachariah's new room and start moving stuff in as it dries. I'm hoping Matt & I can get the rest moved and have him settled by next weekend. Then we can start setting up baby stuff. The baby's room needs painted too, but I'm less concerned about that at this point. If we have time and it happens, great. If not, no biggie for now. I have the pack & play in our room already for when the baby arrives. He'll sleep in the bassinet insert in that for a while anyway.

Other than feeling the time crunch and wanting to get everything done, I'm doing well. The pregnancy is progressing nicely. I have been seeing the OB every two weeks for a while now. They are simple and quick appointments. We will have an ultrasound done in 2 weeks. This is mostly to check for size (they think I'll have another big baby). And then I'll be seeing the Dr. every week. We'll start discussing birth plans and all that fun stuff. It's coming so soon!