It's been almost a month since I gave a proper update on how things are progressing with Baby Mo, and it's been hard for me to feel inspired in blogging lately. I think I may have hit my first "blogger's block". On Friday I sat down to write, and after I read it I had a honest moment of "oh my gosh, that is SO depressing! Do I really want to put that on the Internet?" I decided not to. But the long and the short of it is that pregnancy is HARD. Comparing yourself and measuring yourself against others is HARD. Feeling stuck and uninspired is HARD. I'm trying to remind myself that I'm doing my own thing, and my own thing is fun/great/perfect. I'm trusting that the passing of time will make things more clear.
So anyway, instead of writing about all of these feelings I'm going to write about the baby, because it's easier. I am 34 weeks along, which means that there are only six weeks until my due date! How is that possible?! Since my last update I've had 2 doctors appointments. The first was an ultrasound appointment. My doctor wanted to check the size of the baby. He was being really shy with his hands rubbing his eyes, but we got great news! At that point he was almost 17 inches and weighed over 4 pounds. A good size, but not so big that they needed to change my due date. Thank goodness! She showed me the sweet little hair on top of his head, and snapped a few photos of his abnormally long feet. I had to laugh, 6 and a half centimeters! Those are going to be some big baby feet. No wonder some of these kicks have been so startling! They also measured the health of the placenta and how much oxygen he was receiving. We are both healthy and I am so grateful for that.
Warning: Possible TMI in this paragraph.
On Thursday I started feeling really icky. The baby's movements had slowed down a lot and there weren't very many strong kicks and punches. I know he's getting crammed in there so I tried not to worry. But after lunch I started feeling feverish and had sudden extreme pain in my back and abdomen. I was lightheaded and feeling very off. I could tell that I wasn't going into labor because the pain was constant and didn't come in waves like a contraction. But nevertheless I decided to go to the doctor just in case. I was able to drive myself to the clinic but was in a lot of pain. Luckily they were able to get me into see a midwife right away and I didn't have to wait in the lobby. I was put on the non stress test for 20 minutes. The NST is just a simple Doppler that monitors the baby's heart rate continuously. He showed a good amount of oxygen and a steady heart rate even though I hadn't been feeling strong kicks. It was a huge relief. They also did standard check-ups and a cervical check so ensure I wasn't in early labor. Another huge relief, no labor for this girl. It turns out that my urinalysis came back that I had a UTI. Super bummer, but it explains my fever and back pain. They put me on antibiotics that I need up keep up for 7 days. Luckily I caught the infection, my midwife said that if I hadn't come in the UTI could've caused pre-term labor!
The baby list is slowly but surely coming along. The nursery is almost completely finished and we've checked a lot off of our big baby list.
I've been reading a lot! I finished reading Happiest Baby on the Block, which I really enjoyed. You can understand the basic principles fairly easily, but I enjoyed going more in depth on the techniques he suggests. I'm also about halfway through Natural Hospital Birth, at the recommendation of my childbirth educator. Love this one so far. It has practical advice for advocating for yourself during labor in a hospital setting and teaches techniques for avoiding unnecessary intervention. Isaiah is reading The Birth Partner. He just started but it seems like he really likes the information.
I'm through 4 of the 6 classes in our natural childbirth education series. I've said it before, but this has been the most useful thing I've done for myself during pregnancy. The instructor is so knowledgeable, down to earth, and the small conversational style class really jives with me. I'm thinking I'll post a re-cap of the most beneficial things I've learned, but if you're in the Traverse City area I definitely encourage you to take Jonelle's class!
The nursery is really coming along, it's practically done! We got the rocker and ottoman shipped last week and Isaiah surprised me and had it all set up when I got home. It's perfect! The changing table has a pad, the diaper genie is in place, the car seat is installed, the co-sleeper attached. I still need to hang some artwork and decorate the shelves but it's very close to being done.
I also figured out what I'll be wearing during labor (this in white) and ordered my robe! I have my diaper bag too, which I'm obviously very excited to pack. :) I'm looking forward to our next appointments and classes. The last 6 weeks will be jam packed with preparations. Tonight I have pre-natal yoga, childbirth education class Tuesday, Wednesday we have a routine check-up, Saturday is our day long Childbirth Education class at the hospital. At 36 weeks we have our hospital tour and another appointment, and from there we'll have weekly checkups and a breastfeeding education class in May! Pretty crazy but I like being busy while I'm waiting.
Things to do:
Safety: Check smoke alarms & install CO2 monitor, replace fire extinguisher & plug outlets, etc.
Hem drapes
Wash clothes & sheets
Order diapers & wipes
Pack hospital bag
Pick up supplies for postpartum care
Clean out the car & install baby mirror, shade & car kit
Fill out Munson's "5 Wishes" Form
Test the car seat in the middle seat
Interview daycare options
Put together newborn first aid kit
Create "he's here" template e-mail with contacts
Write the birth plan copy to give to hospital staff
Organize post-partum meal plan
Learn infant CPR
Choose a "going home" outfit for baby
Pick up un-purchased registry items
Okay, longest baby post ever! But it's helpful for me to write it all out. I'm still hoping to get everything ready by 36 weeks, which gives me two weeks to knock out that list. We can do it!
