38 Weeks

How far along: 38 weeks. Can you believe it?  I've never been this pregnant before!  Cooper was born at 38 weeks to the day. 

 Total weight gain: 16.5 lbs.  I have been eating like a horse the past few days.  I think Cate is trying to be a chunky one.  :)

Baby is the size of:  The Pink Giraffe.  Tanner hunted for quite a while for the perfect gift for Cate.  He decided on this sweet giraffe.  She is soft and snuggly. She will probably show up in many pictures of Cate over the next year since I'm planning to use it as a comparison to show how much she's growing.  She still doesn't have a name, but I'm sure we'll come up with something.

Maternity clothes? Yes, but I still wear a lot of non-maternity stuff too.  God bless the maxi skirt!

Stretch marks? Nope.

Sleep: If I don't have to pee 78 times, and IF I don't wake up starving in the middle of the night, and IF the dog and the cat aren't being annoying, then I still sleep great.  The odds of all three of those things happening in the same night are slim.

Symptoms: I stopped the meds for contractions last week.  I'm actually having FEWER contractions now!  What?!?!?  Someone finally decided to get comfortable in there - ornery little twit!  If I make it through the end of this week, I may do a lot of walking this weekend to see if we can't get things moving.  

My feet have swelling to pretty epic proportions.  This is the hottest week we've had all summer, hence Coop's swim trunks.  In case you were wondering, being pregnant in 100 degree weather can be a little uncomfortable.  I try to limit my sodium intake and drink lots of water, but I don't know how much it helps.  The other night I really wanted some chips and guacamole.  My mom (she's such a bad influence) told me, "Your feet are going to be swollen anyway.  Just eat it."  Well....after a little resistance, I gave in.  And the guac was delicious!

Movement? I really don't remember Cooper being as active toward the end as Cate is.  She still finds waves to make these big dramatic movements, way more than just little kicks and punches.  It is sometimes a little painful (you know, when it feels my skin is going to pop open where he foot is), but it is fun to watch.  At one point this week, I was talking to a nurse in the hall at work.  Her eyes got big as she watched a big hump rise up on my belly.  She just laughed when I told it was a foot.  If what she does "on the inside" is any indication of how active she's going to be, I think we may be in for it!

Food cravings? See chips and guac above.  I've also been eating lots of yogurt parfaits with greek yogurt, blueberries, strawberries and granola.  Yum!

Miss anything? Swimming - Cooper (the litte fish) has been swimming a lot this week.  It feels so good to float in the water.  It's the only time I don't feel like I'm dragging around cannon balls instead of feet.  But since they told me at the doctor's office that I'm 4 cm dilated, 75% effaced and at -1 station, my water could break anytime.  The thought of my water breaking in the pool, and the potential germs Cate and I would then be exposed, is not appealing.  I'll stick to floating in the tub (which my lovely mom cleaned with lots of bleach) for now.  

36 weeks

How far along? 36 weeks

Total weight gain: up at least 13.5 lbs.  My OB's schedule was completed booked this week so no check up. I didn't see the nutritionist at work this week either. I see the nutritionist on Monday, OB on Tuesday and dentist on Thursday. Not that they take a weight at the dentist's office. Just saying its going to be a hectic week. 

Baby is the size of:  Burton Dog.  Burton will always hold a special place in my heart. After Cooper was born, I was left with an empty belly, empty arms and an anxious heart. Tanner's mom went to the hospital gift shop and bought Burton. She said it was for Coop and I'm sure in heart it was. But in some of the dark hours over the next week, I needed something to physically hold onto. Burton served as a place holder during the times when I couldn't hold my baby in my arms. I didn't nurse him or diaper him or anything nutso. :)  I just needed something to occupy my empty arms. My MIL will probably never realize the impact her gift had during that time. But I will never forget. 

Maternity clothes? Yup.
Stretch marks? Nope.

Sleep: Varies from one night to the next. The only consistent thing is getting up to pee. Still sleeping better than I will with a newborn. ;)

Symptoms: Still taking the meds to stop contractions. The medicine definitely helps, but there was an evening last week when they were intense and consistent enough that I started timing them. They came every 3-4 minutes and lasted for about 45 seconds each time. This lasted for about an hour until I was able to drink enough water and find a comfortable position.  Thankfully that night didn't repeat itself.

Movement? She had moved into an odd position today and I was very uncomfortable. My whole body hurt and it felt like she had dropped. She didn't stay there long, but I thought for a while that today might be the day. 

Food cravings? I would love to just eat fruit all day, everyday. This would also mean between the juice in the fruit and the water I'm chugging all day I might as well live in the bathroom.

Miss anything? I'm already starting to miss being pregnant. I know that sounds crazy, but between work craziness and all the drama with this pregnancy, I haven't taken much time enjoy this time with Cate. I remember with Cooper, I was pretty territorial during my pregnancy. I knew that would be the only time it was basically just the two of us. Maybe I'm just better at sharing this time around. It is pretty fantastic when Cooper gets to feel her moves.  He knows that her foot has been hanging out on my right side. A few days ago, I went in to wake him up in the morning. He gave me a big hug and kiss. He then leaned down and kissed my right side. I said, "Are you giving Baby Cate kisses?" He said, "No! I'm kissing her foot!"  It was super sweet! I love those little moments with him.

34 Weeks

How far along?  34 weeks

Total weight gain: up 13.5 lb.  The PA at my doctor's office seemed impressed that I hadn't gained any weight considering the massive nature of my ankles.  Or I should I say cankles...

Baby is the size of:  Cordy, the corduroy crocodile - this was a gift for Coop from our dear friends Colt and Sarah. Colt was the best man at Tanner's wedding.  Once he met Sarah, she might as well have been part of "the gang" forever.  We don't see them as often as we would like, but we always pick up right where we left off.  We got to have lunch with them while they were in town this past weekend.  Love those crazy kids!

Maternity clothes? Most definitely. I am still wearing quite a bit of non-maternity stuff too just because I refuse to go buy more maternity clothes at this point.  My scrubs had their last hoorah this week.  I might still be able to wear the pants, but the top is annoyingly clingy.   

Stretch marks?  No new ones.  But the varicose veins are coming on with a vengeance.  I'm already wondering if I could convince my insurance company to pay to have them lasered.  Probably not...

Sleep:  I've slept a little better this last couple of weeks.  Even though I've been drinking a lot more water to try to combat the swelling, the nocturnal enuresis has subsided a bit. Try to soak up these last few precious nights of relatively uninterrupted slumber. But I'm also looking forward to those solitary moments with my girl.  Yes, I'm one of those freaks who missed my kid once he slept through the night.  It took him a full year to do it for crying out loud!  After that, I missed that time with him.  He was a busy toddler and didn't have time to snuggle during waking hours.  Sometimes when I wake up in the night and can't sleep, I'm tempted to crawl into his bed to snuggle.  He's still a very squirmy sleeper so this is really only a good idea in theory. :)

Symptoms: The swelling in my feet and hands has hit a new level.  By the end of most days, my feet are swollen to point that you can tell exactly which pair of shoes I wore to work long after I've taken them off. My hands aren't noticeably swollen until I try to take off my rings.  I haven't had to employee any hand soap to get them off yet.  But I have also stopped wearing them if my hands feel at all puffy in the morning.      

Movement: My little gymnast is still flipping and kicking.  She still likes to stretch out from the lower left to the upper right of the bump.  Depending on how much room she thinks she needs, this can be uncomfortable to downright painful.  But sure is fun to watch her bounce around in there! 

Food Cravings:  At one point this week I had a pretty random, very intense craving for raspberry tea.  Thank you God for Snapple K-cups which we just happened to have in raspberry iced tea. 

Miss anything? This pregnancy has been so different from my first.  With Cooper, I felt like I was the most beautiful woman in the world while I was pregnant.  I felt like I truly had that pregnancy glow.  This time around, with all of the drama (early contractions, low lying placenta, more contractions, crazy busy at work, blah, blah, blah) I've felt more like an incubator than a glowing Greek fertility goddess.  I've still very much enjoyed being pregnant, but this time around has been much more uncomfortable and challenging.  So I guess I miss the glow...

I have started going in for weekly checkups.  They did my strep B screen and a cervical check.  Turns out I'm already dilated to 2 cm.  At this shocking piece of news I laughed hysterically since that seems to be response to all pregnancy related medical information this time around.  She said Baby was at +2 station but when I laugh she moves to +1.  Still pretty high, but a little scary that all it takes is good joke for her to move down that much.  So I'm now taking the medication to stop contractions 4 times a day.  We are hoping to get a few more weeks in the incubator before she makes her debut.  

Since I've already been at a two longer than I ever was with Cooper, it seems pretty likely this labor experience will be very different from my last.  I am toying with the idea of attempting an unmedicated delivery, or at least foregoing the epidural.  I hated how I felt like a lump on a log for quite a bit of labor with Coop.  I want to be a more active participant in the experience this time around.  I also don't want to be stuck in a bed for hours after Cate is born because my legs still feel like tree trunks.  I'm planning to discuss pain management options with my doctor this week.  I'm also planning to labor at home substantially longer than I did last time.  Best laid plans...