Week 29

About Baby: At 29 weeks, our little girl is starting to bulk up which means she is getting more crowded in there. We will know her measurements and weight on Monday so I will do a follow up post after that appointment. In the next 11 weeks, she will more than double her current weight which is probably close to 3 pounds right now.

How am I feeling? Pretty good. After running errands for a few hours I feel exhausted, but I know that is normal. I also seem to have very little patience for crowded stores. Sleep is still the challenge, although it is nice to be able to sleep in as I can make up for the constant up and down at night. I scheduled a prenatal massage for Sunday and hope that will help with my hip pain.

Movement: I feel my little girl several times throughout the day and it is usually pretty easy to get in 10 kicks/movements within an hour for my kick count. Today I have been on my feet running errands and have not really relaxed which makes it harder to feel her. When I go to watch TV, she is sure to start in. I love feeling her move!

Updates: We had our first non stress test today. They hooked me up to a monitor that tracked her heartbeat. I was able to sit for 10 minutes watching the heartbeat go up and down between 139 and 165 which is normal and what they were wanting. And I got to hear it the entire time. What a sweet sound! We have our next growth scan (ultrasound) on Monday so we are looking forward to seeing our sweet girl again.

Food: I love the holidays because I have been able to eat both our family recipe stroganoff and turkey with the trimmings without heartburn! Still eating lots of apples. I can't seem to get enough of them. Even though I have been eating a lot, I seem to have actually lost weight over the last couple of days. This is normal based on what I read. I am around 10 pounds total gained so far and doctor is very happy with that.

Prepping for Baby: Little Alexandra got all kinds of goodies for Christmas. She is going to be so well dressed! The first baby shower is coming up very soon on January 6th. Then by mid January we should have the nursery set up (at least the crib and changing table). Right now everything is stored in bins and bags in the bedroom that will be her nursery.

Here is our bump photo for today. I had to use my tripod and for some reason the camera had a really hard time focusing. At least this one photo came out nice!

A Merry Christmas

She is not even here yet and already Alexandra is getting spoiled by her two grandmothers! She got several cute outfits (including a little dress and pajamas), a stuffed bear, stuffed bunny, blanket, a few books and even an ornament for the tree with her name on it. Here are a few pictures from Christmas!

We had an OB appointment on Christmas Eve and all is well. Her heart beat measured between 151-156. It is now time to go to every other week appointments so our next appointment is on January 7th. We have an ultrasound on New Year's Eve so that is our next thing to look forward to.

Week 28

Third trimester is officially here! Hard to believe that we are under three months to go! I am once again posting a few hours early since tomorrow is the official day I turn 28 weeks!

About Baby: We had an ultrasound on Wednesday. Our little girl was measuring ahead at 29 weeks 1 day. I was technically 27 weeks 5 days at the time. Her heart rate was 143 bpm and she weighed approximately 2 pounds 5 ounces. She had her legs up by her head so maybe she is going to be a gymnast some day! Almost everything is now developed and she is just putting on weight and adding brain cells to make her smarter. She would have a better than 90% chance of survival if born now (which she is NOT allowed to do)! Here is her picture from Wednesday!

How am I feeling? Pretty good. I am sleeping better. I bought some new braces for my wrists and that seems to be helping with the numbness. The hormones are definitely making me more emotional too!

Movement: Dave finally got to see and feel her kicks. On Sunday night we were watching TV and she was kicking like crazy. We sat and watched as my tummy moved several times. It was pretty funny to see. I love the fact that I feel her many times per day. It is very comforting.

Updates:  I also forgot to mention last week that I am slightly anemic so have to take extra iron. I have an OB appointment on Monday, which marks the start of my every other week appointments. I scheduled the hospital tour for Dave and me, as well as child birth classes. We are going to be extremely busy in February! We also have booked a photo shoot with a friend of ours to take some maternity photos at 32 weeks.

Food: I discovered the secret to warding off heartburn (at least for now)....Mylanta and hot water. Dave made his yummy chili this week and I knew it would bother me so I tried what my OB had suggested - and it worked! I feel hungry more often. I just ate dinner and am still hungry - time to go get some more apples!

Prepping for Baby: Little Alexandra is going to be a well dressed collegiate baby. She has onesies from University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University and Cal Berkeley! So she is ready to represent my school, Dave's school and her Grandma Janet's school! I have been told that there will be presents under the tree for our little girl this Christmas. Her grandmothers are already spoiling her!

Fun Story: I unveiled her name this week to my students, but I did so as the very last question in a practice quiz for their final exam. I have yet to see my 2nd period (due to finals schedule) who were the ones most inquisitive as to what her name would be. It will be interesting to see them Friday and whether or not they say anything.

I have multiple photos to share this week!

 The cute puppy dog is the first present that I bought for Alexandra. It has a rattle in its tail!

I found this cute bear ornament with her first initial on it so will be adding that to our tree!

 Just a fun photo of me in front of our dog/cat themed tree (mostly dog)!

Week 27

This is the last week of 2nd trimester and time seems to be flying by at this point. With so much to think about and do, I wonder how I will get it all done!

About Baby: This week, our little girl continues to practice breathing in amniotic fluid and she has signs of brain activity! She weighs over 2 pounds and measures between 13.6 and 14.8 inches long. She can now open and close her eyelids which had previously been fused. And she can move her head from side to side as neck muscles become more flexible.

How am I feeling? Pretty good. I have slept better this week although there is still a lot of tossing and turning at night. I find I am more emotional. The last two times we have watched Undercover Boss, I have teared up when the boss revealed who they are and started giving away cash to people.

Movement: There are some days where she is more active than others, but I guess that is normal. I started doing kick counts this week even though I don't have to do it until 28 weeks. I found an app for my phone that makes it really easy. The other night when Dave and I were watching The Voice on TV, it felt like she was dancing! She must have liked the music. We will definitely have to start playing different types of music to see what she seems to like best. I think my little girl has the hiccups, which is apparently very common in developing babies as they learn how to breathe. It felt like a rhythmic pulsing and after reading a few websites, I think it was hiccups. A new sensation - how amazing!

Updates: I failed my one hour glucose test on Monday. Apparently this happens to about 20-25% of women. But the good news is that 66% of women who fail the one hour pass the three hour so I am cautiously holding out hope. My number for the one hour was in normal range for the one hour part of the three hour test. And I spoke with some other women who scored higher on their one hour than I did and passed the three hour. I can't get in to take the three hour test until after Christmas since I do not want to take a day off work. I am going to walk a lot between now and then and try to watch the sugars, except for a few Christmas treats.

Last Sunday I tripped and fell. Other than a little soreness and bruised ego, baby and I are fine. I saw my OB on Tuesday and little girl was playing hide and seek with the doppler, but she had a nice strong heartbeat. Because of the fall, I get an extra sneak peak at her next week with an ultrasound on Wednesday morning. I am now at the point where I will be seeing the OB every other week until about 36 weeks when I go to weekly appointments.

Food: Nothing different in this area. Still limited on what I can eat due to heartburn.

Prepping for Baby: I have not had time to do much for baby this week, but we have a name for her. After much discussion, consideration and input from friends, family and students, this little girl will be called.......Alexandra Suzanne! Dave and I both love the name Alexandra and there are so many different alternatives for nicknames including Ali, Alex and Lexi. Her middle name is Suzanne based on family tradition. Going back to my great, great grandmother Eliza, the first born daughter has gotten the name of the mother as their middle name. I am excited to carry on the tradition. We decided on Suzanne instead of Susan as we felt it flowed better, but still honored the family tradition.

Funny Story: Pregnancy brain has set in. The other night, I put my phone away in the carrier where the keys are kept and my keys in my purse before I realized what I had done.

Here is a bump photo I took this morning. It is pretty good considering how hard it is to take a decent mirror photo!

Week 26

About Baby: She weighs about 2 pounds now and is about 14 inches long. Her eyes will begin to open this coming week and she even has tiny eyelashes! She is practicing breathing using amniotic fluid so that she will be able to take that first big gulp of air in about 14 weeks.

How am I feeling? During the day I feel great. However, I am having trouble sleeping due to pain and numbness. If I sleep on my left side (which is recommended), I wake up with terrible hip pain and have to walk around to get it to stop. If I switch to my right (which was my more comfortable side before pregnancy), then I wake up with pain in my arm and my hand completely numb. Oh the joys of pregnancy!

Movement: I have definitely been feeling more regular movement throughout the entire day. Before it was only at night or a few isolated kicks. Now I notice her more. Of course because I said that she is super quiet today. Her favorite time seems to be evening, so perhaps she will be a night owl like mommy rather than an early riser like daddy! One can only hope!

Updates: I have my glucose test on Monday where I get to drink a really sugary drink, then wait an hour for blood to be drawn. I am hoping that I pass this one hour test and do not have to do the three hour test!

Food: I notice that I am hungrier this week, but still can only eat the same limited food items. I am very thankful for chocolate milk as it quells some hunger pains and helps with heartburn. The other day I made some snickerdoodle cookies and had to sample one. That was a big mistake as it gave me the worst heartburn imaginable. I wonder if it was the cinnamon?

Prepping for Baby: There is so much to do! In two weeks I will be on break and hope to check some things off my list like interviewing pediatricians and scheduling some classes. We have not acquired anything new this week.

Funny Story: My students are asking daily what her name is and since we have not chosen one yet, my 2nd period decided to help. The problem is that the names they came up with were just not acceptable. Here are some of their suggestions: Davina (to name her after Dave), DaSusan (a combo of Dave and Susan), Bretina (suggested by a student named Bret), and several others too awful to mention. Many of the boys in my class try to come up with female versions of their own names.

Here is our weekly photo taken by the lily ponds at the Huntington Library:

Almost Double Digits

Today I have 100 days to go, assuming little Lucky arrives on her estimated due date. That means that today is the last day of triple digits and I move on to doubles! It is hard to believe that I started with over 250 days to go and it sure does not feel like I have been pregnant for over 150 days, but I have.

We are almost to 3rd trimester and it is just a little over three months until she will be in my arms. There is so much to think about: classes at the hospital, talking with day care providers and interviewing pediatricians. I hope that I can check most of this off my list during my two week break.

Sleep is getting to be more of a challenge. The last few nights I have woken up with either pain in my left leg/hip or a completely numb right hand due to pain in my right shoulder. That means I am waking constantly to switch sides. I am seriously in need of a prenatal massage and plan to schedule one for my vacation time as well.

Yesterday was a great day for movement. I felt her consistently throughout the day and that was nice since I had barely felt her the few days prior. Fortunately, her kicks and pokes are gentle and she does not appear to be the ninja baby that many of my fellow March mommies are saying they have.