Week 33 03/20/06
This week, baby shack weighs a little over 4 pounds and is
approximately
17.2 inches long. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and
her
bones are hardening. Her skull, however, will stay soft until after
birth, to make it easier to squeeze through the birth canal. I may
*seem* to be waddling a bit now, as she fills out even more of my
belly,
but really, I don't think I'm waddling yet. baby shack's adrenal
glands
have grown and are producing hormones that stimulate me to lactate.
What? For real? Weird!
The next weeks will probably bring stronger and more frequent
Braxton-Hicks contractions. These are absolutely normal but can be
somewhat uncomfortable at times. My body is literally practicing for
labor, and they give me a little taste of what it will be like. I
haven't had a whole lot of them, just a few...they feel weird. I still
have a belly button...barely!
Since more than half of all babies come early, ours could come at any
time now! And let me tell you, THAT IS *FREAKY!*
We have 48 days until Monday, May 08, 2006.
Monday, March 20, 2006
3/15/2006 Welcome to the 8th Month!
It's getting awfully snug in there!
Take a look at a diagram of how big she is:
http://www.babycenter.com/general/fetaldevelopment/pregnancy/3283.html
*How our baby's growing:* By now, baby shack probably weighs almost 4 pounds and is almost 17 inches long, taking up a lot of space in my uterus. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next seven weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb.She has tiny toenails now, and her fingernails have grown in, too. Some babies have a head of hair already; others have only peach fuzz. We'll find out soon enough if she's bald or not. Just like a newborn, miss baby shack sleeps a lot of the time. She even experiences rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the period of sleep when we dream!
*How our life's changing:* My goal is to gain no more than 1 pound a week now & half of that should go to the baby. My blood volume (the plasma plus red blood cells) is now about 40 to 50 percent greater than before I became pregnant to accommodate the needs of me and our baby. (This extra amount also helps make up for any blood I'll lose when giving birth.) With my uterus pushing up near my diaphragm and adding pressure on my abdomen, I am dealing with heartburn more often and feeling a little short of breath. Derek's not enjoying the multiple times I wake up at night and loudly roll over to the other side. Then I get frustrated because I moved & I then have to go to the bathroom! Getting back into bed is no fun for him either. I try to get situated and reach for the covers, grunting while I do it. I can't help it, the grunting helps me reach what I need to!
As baby shack grows, the increasing concentration of weight in my growing belly causes a change in my posture and a shift in my center of gravity. Plus, my abdominal muscles are stretching, hormones are making my ligaments more lax, and my growing uterus may even press on some nerves. All of this can contribute to the low back pain I've been feeling. So far it's minor.
I'm still finding so much humor in this crazy, weird, big state! I think that makes it a little easier for Derek. It certainly does for me. It's really a hoot for me even though trying to pick something up off the floor is getting near impossible. My Doctor says everything looks great still. My blood pressure is perfect and baby shack's heartbeat is strong. Because of the location of the heartbeat he believes she's already situated with her head down. Of course, she could easily move any time.
This is day number 226 and I'm 32 weeks pregnant! We have 54 days or 8 weeks left til our due date, and are 80.0% of the way there. Thursday night we're taking a class that's suppose to teach us how to bathe, swaddle, and generally care for miss little shacklett. Every day we revel in the idea that soon someone else will be a part of our home. And even though we've never met her, we'll love her like we can't imagine.
It's getting awfully snug in there!
Take a look at a diagram of how big she is:
http://www.babycenter.com/general/fetaldevelopment/pregnancy/3283.html
*How our baby's growing:* By now, baby shack probably weighs almost 4 pounds and is almost 17 inches long, taking up a lot of space in my uterus. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next seven weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb.She has tiny toenails now, and her fingernails have grown in, too. Some babies have a head of hair already; others have only peach fuzz. We'll find out soon enough if she's bald or not. Just like a newborn, miss baby shack sleeps a lot of the time. She even experiences rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the period of sleep when we dream!
*How our life's changing:* My goal is to gain no more than 1 pound a week now & half of that should go to the baby. My blood volume (the plasma plus red blood cells) is now about 40 to 50 percent greater than before I became pregnant to accommodate the needs of me and our baby. (This extra amount also helps make up for any blood I'll lose when giving birth.) With my uterus pushing up near my diaphragm and adding pressure on my abdomen, I am dealing with heartburn more often and feeling a little short of breath
As baby shack grows, the increasing concentration of weight in my growing belly causes a change in my posture and a shift in my center of gravity. Plus, my abdominal muscles are stretching, hormones are making my ligaments more lax, and my growing uterus may even press on some nerves. All of this can contribute to the low back pain
I'm still finding so much humor in this crazy, weird, big state! I think that makes it a little easier for Derek. It certainly does for me. It's really a hoot for me even though trying to pick something up off the floor is getting near impossible. My Doctor says everything looks great still. My blood pressure is perfect and baby shack's heartbeat is strong. Because of the location of the heartbeat he believes she's already situated with her head down. Of course, she could easily move any time.
This is day number 226 and I'm 32 weeks pregnant! We have 54 days or 8 weeks left til our due date, and are 80.0% of the way there. Thursday night we're taking a class that's suppose to teach us how to bathe, swaddle, and generally care for miss little shacklett. Every day we revel in the idea that soon someone else will be a part of our home. And even though we've never met her, we'll love her like we can't imagine.
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