Bumpdate: 39 weeks

How far along: 39 weeks. For real, I am shocked (and so is my doctor) that I am this pregnant. Uncharted territory for sure!

Total Weight Gain: I forgot to weigh myself, but I’m going to say around 38-40. It feels like 80 though.

Size of Baby: pumpkin – sounds about right

Maternity Clothes?: Yeahhhh….ummm…even those don’t fit me. Yoga pants and giant DairyVille t-shirts for the win! Oddly enough though, my GTA fleece still zips – and it’s a size small. Weird.

Sleep: Not the greatest (thank you, heartburn), but it could be worse. I’m not complaining.

Food Cravings: Cookies, candy, hot chocolate. Craziest sweet tooth ever!

Food Aversions: Real, actual meals don’t sound very good to me at all. Probably because I can’t fit much in my stomach at this point.

Gender: Girl

Symptoms: Heartburn, ligament pains, pelvic pressure.  But no signs of labor yet.

Milestones: How about just being this pregnant?!

Movement: Movement has definitely slowed, and yesterday I didn’t feel her for a very long time. My doctor told me if I don’t feel her for several hours to lay on my side and count kicks – I should feel 5 per hour. I did that yesterday and felt 5 within about 20 minutes and then consistently for the rest of the day. That was a relief.

Best moment this week: Date night with my husband (we went to see Office Christmas Party instead of going to my work party), another movie the next day with my friend, Michelle (It’s a Wonderful Life), and taking the boys to the Festival of Trains.

Looking forward to: OB appt on Wednesday. My doctor said if I want to, I can schedule an induction at that point if I haven’t gone into labor yet. I have a really hard time thinking about that because I know it can be a much longer process than if I go into labor naturally. But we’re considering scheduling it for her due date if we get to that point.

Extra Notes: The way I’m feeling changes from day to day. Some days I feel pretty comfortable and other days I am in so much pain (pelvic and ligament) that I just want to have this baby NOW. And the heartburn is KILLER! I’m still trying to soak it all in, as this is most likely my last pregnancy (we’re not planning on having anymore, but I know how “plans” work out sometimes, ha ha). But I am ready to meet our girl and get to snuggling.

Bumpdate: 38 weeks

How far along: 38 weeks

This picture is from this weekend, but I didn't feel like taking another picture today. Two days' difference...I can't have changed that much. 

Total Weight Gain: 37-ish lbs

Size of Baby: winter melon…sounds about right

Maternity Clothes?: Yeah…those don’t really fit anymore. My uniform pants are ok, but nothing else. Yoga pants and my two biggest t-shirts are my best friends these days.

Sleep: It’s been hit or miss. Some nights I sleep really well, and other nights I just can’t get comfortable.

Food Cravings: Just snacks, especially sweet ones.

Food Aversions: Actual meals. Yesterday, I ate yogurt for lunch.

Gender: Girl

Symptoms: Heartburn is insane. Lots of ligaments pulling and stretching. And pretty much my entire body just hurts.

Milestones: Baby girl is pretty much fully matured and ready for life outside the womb. According to one of the doctors at my OB's office, there is no reason a baby needs to stay in after this point. 

Movement: Movement has been less lately. Every time I start to feel anxious that I haven’t felt her in a while, she gives me a little jab to let me know she’s ok.

Best moment this week: Sunday nap! Hollaaaa!

Looking forward to: Having this baby. Hopefully sooner than later.

Extra Notes: Part of me feels like this baby could come anytime, and part of me feels like she’s going to make me wait until my due date or later. I am ready to meet her, and my body is ready to not be pregnant anymore. I feel silly saying that because I know I’m only 38 weeks, and some people have to go 42 weeks, but my body feels stretched to its limit. Everything hurts all day long. My doctor is on call today, so I’m really hoping it happens today. I don’t know the on-call schedule the rest of the week, but I’ve never had my own doctor deliver my babies. Hopefully it works out to have her this time. 

Bumpdate: 37 weeks

How far along: 37 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 35 lbs

Size of Baby: romaine lettuce (18-20”)

Maternity Clothes?: Yes, and I’m on the verge of wearing Dave’s shirts for lounging at home…they’re like dresses on me though.

Sleep: It’s been rough the last week. Having a hard time getting and staying comfortable. And heartburn all night long.

Food Cravings: cereal, cookies

Food Aversions: Nothing really…just still hate cooking.

Gender: Girl

Symptoms: Insane heartburn, lots of pelvic/bladder pressure. I’m not one to complain about pregnancy, but the last week has been super uncomfortable…I’ve never felt like this before in my other pregnancies. But regardless of how unfun it has been lately, I still feel incredibly thankful to experience it. And I know I will miss it when it’s over.

Milestones: FULL TERM!

Movement: Lots of movement. Mostly her butt and feet pushing up toward my sternum.

Best moment this week: Visiting Santa and setting up the tree with the boys. I love this time of year.

Looking forward to: I always look forward to my OB appointments – next one is Friday (they’re weekly now). Also, all the Christmas parties/events/activities coming up, even though we’re not really sure if we’ll make it to any/all of them.

Extra Notes: At my OB appointment last Friday, they did the group B strep test…oh the joys. My doctor also checked my dilation (also a fun experience…not). She was surprised at how low our baby girl is. Said she’s WAY down, I’m dilated to 1, and my cervix is soft and definitely getting ready. Wee 3 could be here any day, or she may take a few more weeks. There’s no knowing for sure, so we just wait and see. My doctor doesn’t seem to think it’ll be too much longer though; she predicts around 38 weeks like Alden was.

Bumpdate: 36 weeks

How far along: 36 weeks

(no picture yet this week because I feel like death)

Total Weight Gain: 33 lbs

Size of Baby: papaya

Maternity Clothes?: Yes, but even many of those are a bit constricting these days.

Sleep: The last few days have been rough. I have a hard time getting comfortable, and now have a horrendous cold which makes it worse. Actually, I’m sitting here at 3am writing this because I’ve been up for two hours and can’t get back to sleep. Nasal congestion, coughing, and general discomfort…no fun.

Food Cravings: cereal and anything easy to make

Food Aversions: real food…ha ha

Gender: girl

Symptoms: Lots of round ligament pains, and I think I was having Braxton Hicks contractions last week. Pelvic pain/pressure. But the heartburn seems to have calmed down a bit.

Milestones: Liver and kidneys are in working order, and Wee 3 should be able to breathe on her own if she were born right now. This is according to The Bump; I sort of feel like she could already because Leland had no trouble with that at 34 weeks.

Movement: Lots and lots. She still loves to stretch a ton, which is a cool feeling, but sometimes depending on my position, it can be a tad uncomfortable.

Best moment this week: Having five days off with my babies. I sure love that uninterrupted time with them. It’s the best!

Looking forward to: OB appt this Friday, and meeting our sweet girl. Could be any day now, or it could be weeks. I love surprises, but all the unknowns here make me so anxious (in a good way).

Extra Notes: I’m finding myself extra irritable lately. I’m pretty sure this is fairly normal – with lack of sleep and hormones raging – but it’s not really fun to live it. I am short-tempered with loved ones, and even shorter-tempered with those I don’t love so much. I’ve never been a good “faker” when it comes to my attitude or response to others; I can’t hide my emotions and even when I try not to say anything, my face usually says exactly what I’m thinking. So, for those who have had to deal with my unpleasantness, I apologize. Although I’m not gonna lie, some people deserve it (and then some).

Bumpdate: 35 weeks

How far along: 35 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 32 lbs

Size of Baby: pineapple

Maternity Clothes?: Yes, but even some of those tops are a bit too short. At home, I pretty much wear my big DairyVille shirts all the time.

Sleep: It’s been pretty good, but just like usual, never feels like enough.

Food Cravings: Cereal, and not the healthy kinds.

Food Aversions: Just about everything gives me heartburn these days, so nothing sounds good except cereal.

Gender: little lady

Symptoms: heartburn, some pelvic pressure/pain

Milestones: 35/35 - 35 weeks down, 35 days to go!

Movement: Lots and lots. She loves to stretch and push her bottom up and her arms out so I’m stretched in all directions at the same time. It’s kind of funny and my belly looks majorly deformed when she does this.

Best moment this week: A nice, relaxing Sunday at home. Even if it did start out with a sick kiddo, it was nice to chill at home and snuggle on the couch together.

Looking forward to: OB appointment on Wednesday, which is also the first day of Thanksgiving break. It’s gonna be a great day!

Extra Notes: Dave and I still have not decided on a name. We have one front-runner, but we’re not ready to officially decided until we’ve talked about pretty much every name on the planet.

I had my maternity prepared stay appointment at the hospital, so we’re all pre-registered. At that appointment, I mentioned that I would like to have an echocardiogram (ultrasound of the baby’s heart) done while we’re there. The nurse said (as I assumed) that it would be up to our pediatrician, but considering our ultrasounds and the fact that we’ll already be at the hospital (where the echo would be done), she didn’t think it would be a problem. I plan to call our ped this week and see what they say.

Car seats are all installed in their new spots, we have all the necessities (diapers, clothes, sheets, nursing supplies, etc), so I think we’re officially ready for our Little Miss to arrive. Except that I still need nursing bras, but I’m afraid to buy those now and then have them not fit when the time comes.

Bumpdate: 34 weeks

How far along: 34 weeks

Total Weight Gain: Probably just over 30 lbs.

Size of Baby: Butternut squash

Maternity Clothes?: Yep, and even some of those are a tad small (my shirts seem short)

Sleep: I’m tired ALL.THE.TIME, but I’m sleeping well.

Food Cravings: Candy and cookies. Wee 3 has her mama’s sweet tooth.

Food Aversions: Everything, because I hate cooking!

Gender: Girl!

Symptoms: Major heartburn!

Milestones: Officially past when I went into labor with Leland.

Movement: Constant. J

Best moment this week: Visiting with Jon, Danielle, and the girls.

Looking forward to: Thanksgiving break. In Leland’s words, “I’m ready for some stay-home days.”

Extra Notes: I think it’s mostly the busyness of life catching up to me, but my body was just about ready to wave the white flag today. Everything hurts and I’m exhausted. But I know that with some good rest tonight, I’ll feel better tomorrow. 

Bumpdate: 33 weeks

How far along: 33 weeks

 

Total Weight Gain: 30 lbs

Size of Baby: length of celery (17”)

Maternity Clothes?: Yep. No going back now!

Sleep: It’s been really good as long as my kids don’t wake me up in the middle of the night. But I’m super tired and usually go to bed pretty early these days.

Food Cravings: hot chocolate

Food Aversions: Still hate cooking

Gender: Wee 3 is a little lady

Symptoms: Heartburn, only at night though, thankfully. Lots of round ligament pains, and general discomfort that comes late in pregnancy (though I didn’t really have that with the boys).

Movement: All the time. It’s my very favorite.

Best moment this week: Washing all of her clothes and starting to put things in her room.

Looking forward to: Next week being over so I can breathe a little after a very busy few weeks/month.

Extra Notes: I cannot get or stay comfortable. Like, ever! Sitting on the couch, lying in bed, even driving. My legs want to move, but the rest of me wants to rest. It’s making me crazy! I’ve switched sitting positions about 47 times while writing this and eventually moved from the couch to the floor (where I’m still having a hard time getting comfortable).

Bumpdate: 32 weeks

How far along: 32 weeks

Total Weight Gain: 30 lbs

Size of Baby: Squash

Maternity Clothes?: Yep. I pretty much just want to wear yoga pants all the time though.

Sleep: I’m sleeping well, but still super tired most of the time. I think that’s just the norm at this point though. I seem to have decent energy during the day, but once I get home, I am spent.

Food Cravings: Halloween candy. :/

Food Aversions: Only if I have to cook. I am just too tired to cook.

Gender: Little lady

Symptoms: Heartburn and general soreness. I’m definitely noticing that it’s getting harder to get up from a sitting-on-the-floor position when I’m teaching.

Milestones: Eight months!

Movement: It’s pretty much constant, and I love it!

Best moment this week: Halloween…I’m such a holiday junkie.

Looking forward to: OB appt this Friday

Extra Notes: The un-fun part of pregnancy is beginning to set in. No, I don’t mean feeling uncomfortable. I mean the reality of our budget is hitting us hard. Our insurance is different than it was when we had the boys – everything was completely covered (Leland was in the NICU for a week and I never saw a bill), but now it won’t be. Plus I won’t be getting paid much while I’m off, and then we’ll have two in daycare when I go back. So, basically, finances will be tight until next September when my pay starts over with the new school year. It’s a bit stressful to think about, but I know we’ll be fine. That's what savings is for, I suppose - to save when you don't need it, so you can use it when you do need it. It’s all worth it.