Maternity Mon-Tuesday- 34w

How Far Along: 34 weeks!!

How big is baby?: 18 inches and about 5 pounds!

Weight Gain: Up 3 pounds putting the total at 21. BLAH.

Appointment News: Another PITA (pain in the @$$) appt today. Ugh. My doctor is back from Alaska so that's good but I'm seriously irritated. I got there at 2:30, got called back for my BPP at 2:50ish- it took 10 minutes. I went back to the waiting room from 3-3:40. FINALLY got called back for the NST (which went well this week- doc said "yeah! I like this baby!" when he looked at the tracing) at 3:40. By 4:00 I was done with that and done talking to the doctor. They still hadn't taken my BP/weight yet because I was in an "extra" room without a machine. A HALF HOUR LATER they came in to get me for those two things. UGH. So annoying. Anyways, everything is looking great. Baby scored a 10/10 on the BPP/NST this week *yahoo* and my BP is holding steady in the 130's/80's. All around good news.

Maternity Clothes: Exclusively

Sleep: Getting up 2-3 times per night to pee. Does that mean baby has dropped?

Best Moment This Week: Our first baby shower was Saturday and it was AMAZING. We got LOTS of goodies for Baby C and it was wonderful to see family and friends! My mom did an awesome job with the planning and my BFF did an awesome job "running the show"- games and such. I will post pics... eventually. I'm lazy.

Movement: Yep, plenty of it. Today during the NST he was a moving machine. I wished I could've reached my phone to video my stomach. It was very alien-ish.

Gender: Boy!!

Labor Signs: Just the normal Braxton Hicks. Nothing else- which is good! About 5 more weeks!

Belly Button in or out: In and not going anywhere

What I miss: sleep

What I'm Looking Forward to: Our 2nd (and last) baby shower is this Saturday in PA with Dan's side! Whoohoo!! Also, my sister in in labor... like right now. She's 5cm dilated so I'm waiting anxiously to hear the baby news and see pics of Ms. Eva!

Weekly Wisdom: When your gums are more senstive during pregnancy anyways, it's probably not a good idea to make a dental appt. checkup. My whole mouth hurts... 9 hours later. :(

Milestones: No big milestones as of late. I guess the next "official" one is full term at 37 weeks.

What baby is up to and how you're feeling:
Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which she'll need to regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.


How your life's changing:
By this week, fatigue has probably set in again, though maybe not with the same coma-like intensity of your first trimester. Your tiredness is perfectly understandable, given the physical strain you're under and the restless nights of frequent pee breaks and tossing and turning, while trying to get comfortable. Now's the time to slow down and save up your energy for labor day (and beyond).

Most of the time, your cardiovascular and nervous systems are able to adjust to the many changes taking place in your body, but occasionally they can't, and it can make your head spin. Dizziness or lightheadedness can be caused by a variety of things, such as standing up too fast, lying flat on your back, low blood sugar, anemia, and overheating.

The bump: