39w3d

I have been SO lazy about updating my blog. If anyone cares, I'm sorry :P We are just trucking along. I have had maybe 3 contractions over the past week lol. I was closed, my cervix was hard to reach, and I was "just beginning to thin" at my appt last Friday despite all of the EPO I have been consuming since 36w.

Keith is home so we're just [not so] patiently waiting for Jill's arrival over the next few weeks. He's on leave and I am absolutely loving it! I've been missing him like crazy and it's awesome to have him home all day with me. We have been walking as much as possible and have plans to continue to get out and walk as much as we can until baby Jill decides she's ready to come.

I have another appt Friday and we will do the first NST. My doctor uses my LMP so they consider me 40w tomorrow so I think I will have several appts next week including a biophysical ultrasound. From what I understand, they will be doing a semi-in-depth u/s to check out position, fluid, practice breathing, the placenta, cord, etc and they score her out of 8 (8 being the best) to make sure she's okay and safe on the inside. Obviously, if anything looked to be going south then we'd discuss induction, but hopefully she's happy and healthy and comes on her own. I'm not wanting to induce at all. I just anticipate it being harder and longer labor.

I'm kind of calm about labor and delivery. I've been pretty scared for the past few weeks/months and now I'm just kind of ready (at least as ready as I can be). I don't think there's anything else I can do to prepare mentally bc I've never been through it before. I've kind of given up mental control I guess lol.

I am beyond excited about moving soon! We have started looking at some places online and I'm so ready to get out of this sea of red in this apartment lol! We bought a new couch yesterday and I can't wait for it to be delivered tomorrow! I have been pinteresting some different ideas for decor for our living room. I hope it all turns out!

How far along? 39w3d
Total weight gain/loss? I'm too lazy to go look. I think I'm in the upper 140s or 150ish
Stretch marks? Covered in them :P
Sleep? I don't have bad insomnia right now, but I still have super broken sleep bc my hips and crotch hurt and I pee a million times. I will take whatever I can get lol
Best moment last week? Keith is home!!!
Movement? Still have my little alien in there moving up a storm
Food cravings? My cravings have pretty much stopped the past few weeks
Belly button in/out? I doubt it'll pop. It is pretty much flat and I doubt it'll change much in the next few days/weeks
Braxton Hicks/contractions? I've had a few BHs/contractions, but nothing consistent
What I miss: Having my body to myself
What I am looking forward to: Meeting my sweet girl!
Milestones: my last milestone is her birth.. That is crazy!

38w4d

39w1d

 

37w1d

I am writing this post from my phone, so I will have to add the fruit and probably fix formatting a bit another day.

Baby Jill is now considered full term. Basically, from what I understand, that means her organs should be able to fully function on the outside without any medical help. Obviously all babies don't come out completely healthy and perfect so I am assuming that a majority of babies are good to go at 37w with no NICU time. This is a huge relief to me bc I'd be a wreck if I had Jill now bc Keith is gone and I wouldn't know what to do if he was gone and Jillian had to be in the NICU. Keep baking baby girl! You aren't welcome in the real world for a few more weeks!!

I can finally say that Keith is gone. It was really tough saying goodbye this time. He got to come home from work before they left for a few hours so we went out and got lunch and did a couple errands and I was completely fine. I thought he'd leave and I might even get away without crying. Then, he got in the shower right before I had to take him to base and it hit me. I couldn't stop bawling. Telling myself that it was only a few weeks wasn't helping. All I could picture was me giving birth to Jill and him missing out on the end of my pregnancy and the magic of meeting her at the same time as me. On the way to base, he kept rubbing my belly and talking to Jill trying to get her to move for him. It was breaking my heart imagining that this could have been the last time he'd get to do that. I cried a lot on that car ride and on the way home by myself and on and off the rest of the night.

Waking up the next day was much much easier! I should have known that the first night would have been the hardest. I am doing much better now that it has been a few days. It isn't like I haven't done this many times before. I sleep alone a few nights a week when he works long duty shifts anyways. This is totally doable. My main thing now is just boredom. I am alone with the dog 24/7. So far, I have used the time alone to be very productive. I have been slacking on cleaning lately bc I knew I'd be bored when Keith left. The length of my "done" list is insane. I think a part of me is nesting bc I have been cleaning things I hadn't really thought of cleaning before (like scrubbing the wall behind the trash can or the legs of the table and the chairs). So far, I have scrubbed the microwave, the kitchen cabinets, the kitchen floor, the outside of the fridge (I did the inside not long ago), the entryway floors, the downstairs and upstairs bathrooms (including behind the toilets), I dusted the heaters (we have base board heaters), scrubbed the bathroom floors, cleaned our tv stand in our room, wiped down the base of the bed, took apart and cleaned the vacuum, cleaned out the laundry room completely (we always seem to have stray crap in there), put away probably 5 loads of laundry, and I am still not done! My to-do list is awfully short now though lol. I plan on picking up the random things around the house, vacuuming really well (like using the hose to clean under the heaters and in corners I don't usually get when just doing basic vacuuming) and then I will room by room shampoo the carpets. The carpets will probably take me a while to do since I'm sure it'll be taxing on my body to push around our huge carpet cleaner. I also think I will clear off the kitchen counters and clean out all of the nooks and crannies and I will wash a few of Jills bottles once I figure out where I can store them (we have the worlds smallest kitchen with no cabinet space at all.. We still have a decent amount of our dishes packed away).

So, that whole long post about moving to NY and strollers and shit was all a waste. True to Navy/military fashion, plans were changed again. Actually, Keith gave me the news only a few hours after I posted earlier this week.. Tonight, Keith told me in an email that we have actual orders (which is like the final word on something and means it is official and not just talk) to report to Charleston, SC in early June. Hopefully, that means we will be moving in early May. You are supposed to get 30 days of leave when you transfer, but who knows. I try not to count on too much until it happens lol. I guess I will be keeping that huge jogging stroller and getting Jillian a bathing suit! I wish I knew what size to expect her to be bc I saw the cutest bathing suits at the mall the other day!

So moving down South and moving a little less than 2 months later than I expected has me super excited! Hopefully we will have a good routine with Jill down feeding-wise by the time we have to make the 15hr drive with her (I am sure it'll be much longer). I am hoping that gives me plenty of time to build up a decent stash of breast milk to make traveling a bit easier. It should also give us time to take leave and go to IL so Keith's family can meet the baby.

Well, not much else is going on and it is getting pretty late so I need to try to sleep. I plan on writing my shower thank you notes finally tomorrow (I had been really slow at getting the list of gifts from my friend and I have been hoarding tasks to make the weeks when Keith is gone go by faster)


How far along? 37w1d
Total weight gain/loss? I weighed 146.5 this morning. I'm guessing that could be from all of the exercise I got in NYC?
Stretch marks? The itchiness under my bump is officially stretch marks. Thankfully, they aren't purple, but there are 4 or 5 of them
Sleep? I am still miserable. I am trying to sleep in on purpose to get as much sleep as possible before a baby prevents me from ever sleeping in again
Best moment last week? I found out I'm GBS negative! (Lol last week was clearly not terribly great)
Movement? She hasn't moved a whole bunch today and yesterday, but I have also been moving around a bunch so I might just not be noticing it. It isn't so little that I'm concerned or anything though
Food cravings? My cravings have pretty much stopped the past few days/week
Belly button in/out? The top third or half of my belly button is usually out, but if she changes positions then it pops back in.
Braxton Hicks/contractions? Nothing that I've recognized
What I miss: The bump not making things like washing dishes or getting laundry out of the washer super awkward
What I am looking forward to: Keith coming home and getting this human out (in that order)!
Milestones: my last milestone is her birth.. That is crazy!

 

36w3d

I officially suck. I think this is the longest I've gone all pregnancy without updating. OOPS! I seriously haven't had anything to really update so I just let it slide by.

I feel bad sometimes when all I have to do is gripe and complain here lol. So here is my paragraph of bitching. Feel free to skip it. Let's face it.. 3rd tri sucks. I no longer feel like I have this cute little bump bc I'm freaking huge. I can't sit still for long bc I get insanely uncomfortable and have to keep switching positions. I can't sleep very long through the night. Jillian is currently beating the shit out of my ribs (okay, usually her movements are all cute because I can see and feel her little tush or feet and make me smile so I will take the few beatings I get every once in a while). I have KILLER crotch pain at this point. I can't do a lot of things (like roll over in bed) without grunting or crying out (for some reason this makes it easier.. maybe I will be a screamer in labor lol). Oh and a new thing that started yesterday.. my lower belly itches like mad! I think (but I can't get a good look) that I am developing stretch marks down there. It feels like it, but I can't see very well (even in a mirror bc it is the underside of my belly and I can't pull it up anymore).

So this past weekend, Keith and I took a babymoon/Valentine's Day trip to NYC. Yes, we have lived here an entire year and have not once gone to NYC together lol. Actually we haven't gone anywhere but Providence together even though we're pretty close to Boston too. It was pretty difficult and I found myself tired and out of breath quite a bit, but he was really patient with me and my breaks to sit down or get a drink. It was seriously the best weekend. We mainly just walked around and explored. We went to the huge Apple store on 5th Ave and FAO Schwarz and walked a lot around Time Square. We went to a Ninja-themed restaurant and saw Spiderman on Broadway. Our hotel was literally right outside of Grand Central which made things SO much easier for me bc we took a lot of subway rides instead of walking when we went from place to place (although we walked ALL day in Time Square which was rough). Our hotel was really nice and we just had loads of alone time. Seriously, my favorite parts were just laying in our hotel bed with Keith rubbing my belly and talking about our future. Annnnd now I'm getting all teared up.. I'll take this opportunity to blame it on the 3rd tri hormones lol.. yeah..

I don't feel like uploading all the pics we took. But here is a pic of me and The Biebs at the wax museum (we laughed and had SO much fun there!)

So, we still don't have written orders to our next location, but we have tentative word of mouth ones which makes me feel a lot a lot better. I was relatively bummed to find out that we are NOT moving to South Carolina anymore. We are going to upstate New York.. we know we have to report there around the 2nd or 3rd week of May, which means we will likely be moving about a month prior if Keith gets to take his 30 days of transfer leave. Once we get the orders and separation date on paper, we can start scheduling our move. While I am not thrilled about the Northern climate, I am trying to get stoked on the move. I am also bummed we won't be moving closer to family like we thought, but we won't be leaving all of our friends that live here in CT almost completely (because 3-4 hours back to Groton is WAY better than the 15 hours from SC to Groton to see friends). We will also be a few hours closer to Chicago. Everyone says how great/gorgeous it is up in Saratoga Springs (our new destination) so I'm hoping we enjoy it. Now, I'm thinking of selling my jogging stroller and getting a new and smaller one since we won't be taking trips on the beach like we thought before lol. I didn't buy myself anything nice with our re-enlistment, so I'm thinking of asking Keith for a nice stroller soon.

We also know exactly when Keith will be home for his paternity leave. Jill can still come at any time from now on, but it is nice to know at least one side of the equation. It is always weird/difficult to talk about huge things in my life that are also related to underway schedules lol. I obviously cannot give out dates for security reasons, but it is difficult to talk in broad terms all of the time when I know exactly what time periods it is going to affect me. I guess we will just say that we are cutting it close and I'm a little bummed that he will be missing the end of this pregnancy (especially when things are getting difficult for me to do on my own). At least this time I will be able to email him a bit. Last time he left it was unexpected and I had no way of communicating with him. Not an ideal situation for a first time mom in her 3rd tri that can't travel the 11 hours back home to be somewhere more familiar and to be around family!

Alright, no more updates on baby gear or diapers for a while bc I have told myself that I am DONE! Of course, I will still buy her little things here and there (like headbands), but I am officially done buying almost everything. My crafts will start back up when Keith leaves (I'm trying to save them to keep me busy while he's gone) and I know the first thing I'm going to attempt are wetbags for my diaper bag. They are one of the very few things that I must have before Jill gets here and I decided to try and make my own. If they don't turn out, then I will have to buy a few :P

Here are some shower pics:

Crammy got me this awesome book! Porn for new moms!

So there is a little story behind this tuxedo onesie for Jill. Keith and his best man bought Tuxedo tshirts to wear under their tuxes for our wedding. I just realized when trying to find a pic that we don't have a good pic of them wearing them at my wedding where you can tell how goofy they are lol so I will post the one from our wedding and then one from a friend's wedding where they were both groomsmen :P

Our wedding in Dec '11

Friends' wedding in June '12

How far along? 36w3d!
Total weight gain/loss? I had a big weight gain the past few weeks.. 148 (started 140 and was 120 at my lowest this pregnancy)
Stretch marks? I already talked about the few I think I'm getting under my bump
Sleep? I am still miserable. I am trying to sleep in on purpose to get as much sleep as possible before a baby prevents me from ever sleeping in again
Best moment last week? NYC!
Movement? Lots of movement and belly jumping. She's getting big so I see and feel outside movement with almost every movement (including her hiccups which make my whole belly jump)
Food cravings? Honestly nothing in particular lately. Maybe soft-baked cookies
Belly button in/out? The top third or half of my belly button is usually out, but if she changes positions then it pops back in.
Braxton Hicks/contractions? Nothing that I've recognized
What I miss: Sleeping 8-10 hours in a row
What I am looking forward to: Full term!
Milestones: Full term on Saturday! I can't believe how close it is to meeting her! It doesn't seem real.

35w0d

36w0d

34w0d

Wowsa. 6 weeks to go.. that doesn't seem right lol. That's not long at all! Mentally, I've been telling myself 2 more weeks than the ticker because I am already starting to get burnt out with the lack of sleep and the being uncomfortable 24/7.

This will be a quick post because I am incredibly tired after a sleepless night and a long (but fun!) day! I will have to do a long shower post another day (plus, I need to find the cord for the camera to get my shower pics anyways). The bottom line is that I had so much fun and I'm so incredibly thankful for a wonderful day and all of the love and support for me and baby Jillian. We're a lucky bunch!

Above is a pic of some of the spoils. I didn't bring in the diaper cake, humidifier, or high chair from the car bc it took quite a few trips to bring all this in (Keith is at work) and I'm exhausted! Jillian will never be naked.. I am pretty sure I will be bathing her in clothes and changing her outfits like 10x a day so she can wear everything she has lol! Thankfully, I don't need to bring a single thing back! I got more pacifiers than she'll probably need, but I think I will keep them all just in case (really, I only got 8 but they're all the same kind). I already went ahead and ordered stuff from Amazon that I didn't get so I could take advantage of the Amazon Mom 20% off event. I'll talk about my spoils and order in the shower post though.

Remember this list of "must-haves" and "really wants" (here's the update..)
Bottles
Diaper rash cream
Socks
Baby wash
Snappis
Pack n Play sheets (we would need this more towards the time when we move)
At least 1 more pail liner
Wet bag for diaper bag (x2)
Breast pump replacement parts
Breast milk storage bags
Nipple Cream
Nursing tanks and/or bras (I plan to get the bras after my milk comes in)
Pacifiers
Wrap/carrier and/or the infant insert for the Ergo
First aid kit and baby grooming kit
Humidifier
Baby monitor (probably not necessary right away and we might wait until we move to get this depending on when we move/how old Jill is/if we're ready to let her sleep away from us at night)

Yeah.. that just happened. I only need the small wet bags and baby grooming shiz.

How far along? 34w0d!
Total weight gain/loss? 140-142ish so up 20-22lb
Stretch marks? Nothing I've noticed since last week
Sleep? I have had a horrible time trying to sleep for the past few nights. I am miserable!
Best moment last week? Well, today.. the baby shower!
Movement? She has been slowing down this week. I'm assuming she's running out of room bc I don't feel hard kicks as much. More like what I assume is her adjusting and getting comfortable in there
Food cravings? Wings or chocolate milk
Belly button in/out? Nothing has changed. IDK if it will pop at this point
Braxton Hicks/contractions? Nothing that I've recognized
What I miss: Sleeping 8-10 hours in a row
What I am looking forward to: Full term!
Milestones: Next up is 35 weeks with 35 days to go!!

33w0d

That ticker over there (you can't see my side bar on mobile)--> says 49 days..
Commence freak out!

(Go ahead and skip the next few paragraphs bc this is going to get ramble-y and whiny) Let me clue you in on something that has been weighing heavily on my mind: We have heard nothing definite on whether Keith will be home or out to sea in March. I cannot discuss specifics of his boat schedule which makes it difficult to describe how stressed I am, but as of now, if he isn't able to fly home while the boat is in port a bit before Jill's due date (and I mean it is cutting it close), then he will be gone and unable to come home when Jill is born for at least weeks. Honestly, even if they do tell him he can come, if Jill doesn't wait until right around her due date to come, he will surely miss the birth. I am hoping that, if I go into labor a little early while they are still in port, he will be able to catch a flight almost immediately and catch the tail end of labor and her birth. If he goes out to sea after (on the longer trip I am referencing), Optimus and I are high-tailing it back to VA bc I am beyond scared to give birth alone up here with no family. I have two close girlfriends that I'd feel comfortable calling to take me to L&D and stay with me, and one is moving in a few weeks.. I know it isn't wise to worry about something that is completely out of my control and may end up all working out just perfectly with Keith being here, but that is not the kind of person I am lol. I worry and I expect the worst. In my mind, being prepared for the worst case scenario is better than expecting everything to fall into place and then your little fantasy world gets rocked. Unfortunately (at least in this scenario), Keith is the opposite of me. Usually it is fine because we balance each other, but, right now, his lack of concern and "everything will work out great" attitude is making me stress more. When I finally get to see him again, I plan on having a nice long chat about what he needs to do to get answers ASAP so I can be more prepared on what to expect or what plans I need to get in place if it doesn't look likely that he will be home.

Issue number 2: We are SUPPOSED to be leaving for shore duty in late March or April, but we have no official papers giving us any kind of dates. It is seriously a 1-2 month gap of when we could potentially be moving. This normally wouldn't worry me, because that is plenty far for us to prepare, but I will have a newborn come March and I would LIKE to have some idea of when we need to be in the new place even if it is tentative or down to a couple week period. I seriously need some help unclenching here lol.

I LOVE our life that the military has provided us. I love the idea of getting to experience new places and how close it makes our little family since we have to rely on each other when moving to a new and unfamiliar place. I know to expect things to be up in the air a lot with this life. I also know that it was our decision to get pregnant even though I knew he'd be out to sea around this time and that we were due to move around April-May of this year. I don't want to come across as ungrateful or bratty at all. I have put myself in this situation (and trust me, Jillian is MORE than worth the worry and stress), but, nonetheless, I AM stressed out about it and I do worry. I know once we move and I'm cuddling my little girl in our new town in our new house that I will wonder why I was so damned stressed over everything, but getting to that point is proving to be difficult for the planner in me.

(Okay, back to our regular broadcast) A huge wave of relief has come over me since I got Jill's nursery temporarily set up in our rental here in CT. I need some small things still, but I feel overall pretty damned prepared for her arrival in a physical way. I have a really short list of things that I consider must-haves that I will need before or shortly after she arrives:
Bottles
Diaper rash cream
Socks
Baby wash
Snappis
Pack n Play sheets (we would need this more towards the time when we move)
At least 1 more pail liner
Wet bag for diaper bag (x2)
Breast pump replacement parts
Breast milk storage bags
Nipple Cream
Nursing tanks and/or bras (I plan to get the bras after my milk comes in)
Pacifiers
Wrap/carrier and/or the infant insert for the Ergo
First aid kit and baby grooming kit
Humidifier
Baby monitor (probably not necessary right away and we might wait until we move to get this depending on when we move/how old Jill is/if we're ready to let her sleep away from us at night)

I feel great that the items on my list are small. The baby monitor and humidifier are the most expensive items (well, other than the nursing tanks and bras) and I still have my shower next weekend.

S/o of my shower.. OMG I am so freaking excited for it! I honestly think it's going to be perfect. Just a small party with good friends and I'm expecting great food (my hostess is a great cook and party planner!)! My boubeads necklace came in the mail the other day.. holy shit Chancie and her sister have such an eye for this stuff!

I will obviously be posting pictures of it with my shower dress next weekend! I have already seen a preview of a pacifier clip I am ordering for Jillibean and I am in love already! If it is anything like the necklace, I know I will love it even more in person! I plan on getting a few more necklaces too for Jill to play with and chew while I'm wearing her in my ergo or boba/moby wrap (I WANT the boba, but I have a moby on my BRU registry since they don't carry the boba) and nursing her. I have heard that babies get distracted when nursing sometimes and having the nursing necklace is perfect for keeping their attention to your breast area. I obviously haven't tested this, but even if I do have a baby with an awful attention span, I will look mega cute :P I was seriously sad bc I didn't think I'd be able to wear jewelry without it being tugged and chewed on when holding a baby that wants to grab everything in sight and now I can and I won't have to worry about her hurting herself or my gold jewelry! Okay.. I'm done. I OBVIOUSLY think Chancie and her sister are the most brilliant people ever lol.

Well, Optimus and I are headed upstairs to cuddle in Jillian's new recliner while reading! I love that chair so much already!

How far along? 33w0d!
Total weight gain/loss? 137.6lb a few minutes ago on my home scale. Pre-pregnancy weight -140. Lowest weight this pregnancy -120
Stretch marks? I have a new HUGE (like 3in at least) sideways one that is perpendicular to my butt crack lol. I am still surprised that I haven't got any on my stomach or through my tattoos yet
Sleep? I am hating my new sleeping habits right now.. Without fail, I am awake around 2-4am and cannot usually get back to sleep until 8am or so. If I don't nap during the day (which is preferable since it's nice to accomplish things like cleaning and sewing during daylight so I'm not being noisy when my neighbors are sleeping), then I am lucky to make it to 10 before passing out. Usually, I pass out around 6pm and sleep 3-4 hours. I seriously feel like a baby with these short spurts of sleep. I know people would likely tell me to "get used to it bc you'll be sleep deprived with a newborn," but, the point is, I KNOW that and I'd like to enjoy getting a full night's sleep while I still can.. Oh well
Best moment last week? For sure seeing the nursery come together! I LOVE seeing my vision come together
Movement? She's been a maniac this past week. It is incredibly cool bc now I can usually feel around my stomach and feel a protruding butt or knee or elbow (or something!) and if I poke it, she usually squirms. I wonder if it is because she is bigger now or because she is not transverse. I think she's either head down or kind of diagonal with her head near my hip and feet near my opposite ribs
Food cravings? I've been wanting (and consuming many) wings lately (still the same :P)
Belly button in/out? The top maybe 1/4 of it is out, the rest is just getting flatter, but is still in (so same)
Braxton Hicks/contractions? Nothing that I've recognized
What I miss: Sleeping 8-10 hours in a row
What I am looking forward to: my baby shower!!!
Milestones: Next up is 35 weeks with 35 days to go!!

Yesterday at 32w6d

I will admit that I have not seen/eaten quite a few of the fruits/veggies on these things.. but I honestly have no freaking clue what this one even is.. a "durian"???????

EDIT:

32w0d

We ordered Jill's dresser and crib this week! I also ordered fabric to make Jill's sheets. I ordered custom ones on Etsy and got screwed over. Thankfully, Paypal got my money back in a little over two weeks!

The crib is set to deliver next week, but I set up Jill's dresser all by myself tonight (it's Saturday morning at like 4am..). I have a blister on my hand from the screwdriver, but I got it done! I'm pretty damn proud of myself too! I've already got it stocked lol. Top drawer has all newborn diapers and some pockets. Middle drawer has the rest of her OS diapers and prefolds. Bottom drawer has all of her pants, plain white onesies, kimono-style shirts, diaper covers (ones that go under dresses- not CD covers), swaddlemes, and, when she gets some, I will likely put socks in there because there's still plenty of room. The cabinet part has her cloth wipes, inserts, burp clothes, blankets, bibs, sheets, mattress pads, etc.

The pink basket won't stay there. I just wanted something there lol. IDK what will live on that part. Probably a small basket that matches the laundry hamper with stuff like coconut oil and CD safe diaper rash creams or those kinds of things

Top drawer

Middle drawer

I have decided to make Jill two nice fitted sheets and two nice changing pad covers out of these fabrics:

Top two will be sheets and the bottom two will be changing pad covers

Last thing bc I really need to attempt to sleep some, I crocheted two headbands last night! They turned out really cute!

I need to run to Jo-ann's and pick up pearls to glue to the centers of these hearts

How far along? 32w0d!
Total weight gain/loss? 139.6 at my last appt, but 136 today. I think the doctor's office likes to make me out to be bigger :P
Stretch marks? No change this week
Sleep? Sleep comes at random times. IDK if it is nesting or all of the anxiety I have about my due date coming so soon on top of a move that I have no idea when will take place, but my mind runs a lot and makes it hard to fall asleep
Best moment last week? Finally ordering the fabric and furniture (other than the rocker) for Jill's nursery
Movement? Same activity level as usual, but I no longer think she's transverse bc I don't feel movement on the sides as much as in the middle now.
Food cravings? I've been wanting (and consuming many) wings lately
Belly button in/out? The top maybe 1/4 of it is out, the rest is just getting flatter, but is still in (so same)
Braxton Hicks/contractions? Nothing since last week
What I miss: Not feeling like I've been hit by a truck after doing a mild amount of physical work (like putting together a dresser..)
What I am looking forward to: my baby shower!!!
Milestones: Next up is 35 weeks with 35 days to go! Holy moly that is only 3 weeks away! Only 5 weeks until Jillian is considered full term!

31w4d. I haven't taken a bump pic today.. I might update with one later. To me, I think my bump has shrunk some which may mean Jill is head down vs. breech or transverse

31w0d

9-11 weeks left! Time is slowing down slightly. Keith is gone and the excitement over the holidays is gone. Now I feel like I'm more in countdown mode until my shower, Keith is done with being underway, Jillian is due, my sister gets here, we move, etc. and it is making things seems so far off and the days are dragging. I'm also alone so I struggle trying to entertain myself for days and days in the house.

I went shopping with Cram again today (: I had a good time and I was glad to get out of the house. I came home and napped and had a tough time physically getting out of the bed though. I guess the extra weight from Jill is really putting some wear on my lady area. I feel like I did an intense work out!

I felt some hiccups before my nap today pretty low. I am hoping that and the kicks I was feeling right in the middle near my ribs mean that Jillian has flipped head down finally. My midwife says she still has plenty of room and not to worry about her position, but she seems to loooooove having her head on my right side and legs/feet on my left. I'm not worried, but I think I'd feel better if she was head down because I've heard at this point, they tend to stay that way once they switch.

Speaking of my midwife, I had my first appointment this past Monday. The office was pretty laid back (which I was ready for from reading reviews online). I weighed myself and brought my own urine sample to the lab lol. They're lucky I remembered the weight after I went back and sat in the waiting room to wait for the nurse! By the way, I weighed 138.8 on Monday.. today I weighed 135.0. I really hope I didn't lose. I know it isn't the scale, because I weighed the same on my home scale after my appointment Monday (I double checked because I was surprised that it was so high after the holidays). Anyways, my appointment went well. My fundal height is 2 weeks behind. This is the first time anyone has ever told me the measurement. She quickly followed it up by saying they like to see it within 2 weeks of where I really am. I'm hoping that is okay. I have a feeling Jillian is a tad small. Anyways, everything else looked great at my appt and I got to sit down and ask my midwife questions without feeling rushed or like I'm annoying her. She seems to have similar views on interventions as I do which made me feel great about the care I will hopefully receive when I go into labor. Next appt is Tuesday. I can't believe my appointments are so close together now!

Wish I had something more interesting to write about, but I had a huge post Thursday :P

How far along? 31w0d!
Total weight gain/loss? 138.8 at my last appt, but 135 today. Up 15-18lb in the last 11 weeks so pretty average weight gain since things have turned around
Stretch marks? No change this week
Sleep? Sleep is still giving me problems. Busting my pillow out has helped some. I have less crotch pain on the couch even though I get more broken sleep.. I can't win :P
Best moment last week? It honestly wasn't a great week. I think I have some winter blues. My appointment went well and I had fun shopping today!
Movement? I have felt hiccups 3 times in the last 2 days. I thought I was weird bc other March Mamas have been feeling hiccups for weeks and weeks and I hadn't felt them yet until now
Food cravings? I've been wanting wings lately
Belly button in/out? The top maybe 1/4 of it is out, the rest is just getting flatter, but is still in (so same)
Braxton Hicks/contractions? I had some tightening in my lower belly today after walking around for a while
What I miss: A good night's sleep
What I am looking forward to: my baby shower!!!
Milestones: Next up is 35 weeks with 35 days to go! (still about a month away though..)

Today at 31w exactly

WTF

Yeah.. so that cool little ticker to the right.. it says 65 days left.

no idea whose baby this is btw.. thanks google images!

I am beginning to make preparations for labor as if Keith will be out to sea (it is a very real possibility it seems the closer and closer we get to March). I am not going to lie.. it is freaking me out quite a bit. How did I just now realize that I can't just leave the dog at home to fend for himself for days? I probably won't want to drive myself to the hospital either if I am contracting.. I have some shit to take care of apparently :P Thank goodness I don't have a kid already bc I'm sure I would have forgotten to make arrangements for him/her if Keith wasn't going out to sea :P

I've been in a funk lately. I hope I can shake it soon! I am hoping it has just been the weather and the dark and the fact that I am home by myself 80% of the time.

Last Saturday, I ended up going to get that 3d/4d ultrasound. I teared up after I left because I'm a brat and I was really disappointed. I pictured something like this:

In reality, what I have is the most stubborn daughter on the planet. Baby Jillian did not want to cooperate (like at her other two 3d ultrasounds..). She was sleeping and facing my back. She had her face covered in placenta and she wouldn't budge with any amount of prodding or me changing positions. I got 6 pictures and they all look exactly the same..

Obviously my child's nose isn't cut off and points upward bc it looked perfectly normal at my a/s

I could tell the guy felt awful for me and he printed me a bunch of pictures (like the same 3 in color and in black and white as well as gave me the CD which I don't think was included in my package). He told me I could call and come back this week for another try. He WAS able to get a perfect and clear shot of her girly bits (the first time the cord was b/w her legs and the second time her legs were crossed so I had a small doubt in the back of my mind that there would be a surprise penis that we couldn't see before). He said she had a textbook labia (odd..) lol

This time I thought I was prepared. I knew Jill was still in the same position bc I've been feeling her in the same spots for weeks (she is transverse with her head under my right side of my ribs which explains the pokes and arms I keep feeling on my right side when trying to bend over). I had an iced coffee on the drive to my new appointment. This time she was awake at least so I got to see her move. But this time she had not only placenta in her face, but she kept trying to suck on her arm and the cord was in her face. I got to see her smile and move her mouth open and close. We got some better pictures, but not great ones. She was facing a little more towards my front, but with all the crap in the way, he couldn't get a good picture of her whole face so I have a bunch of shots of different parts of her face as he moved the wand around and zoomed in and out past placenta..

My sweet girl has a cute little nose, her head seems really small and round, and she's got adorable little cheeks! Her chin is so tiny too! Thankfully she isn't sporting the mustache-looking upper lip now that she has a bit of chunk on her face. In the 2d, he said he could see that she had hair! He didn't point out what he was looking at though (I think he was trying not to waste any time getting the good shots since she wasn't cooperating)

This is what I'm talking about with the huge upper lip and tiny chin. This is from the anatomy scan at 19w5d

Overall, I wouldn't do it again because I didn't have a fantastic experience either time I went this week. I wish I had a less stubborn child in there that didn't love her placenta so much! I loved the experience we had at my sister's ultrasound at 29 weeks with my nephew. It was so cool to see him. He didn't have as much fat on his cheeks as Jillian does though. Jackie told me she wished she'd done it a few weeks later. I have heard you should do it b/w 27-32 weeks because baby is close to what he/she will look like and after 32 weeks things start getting squished in there. Jill had a lot of fluid according to the tech.. she just really loves her security blanket! Maybe this means she'll love having her taggie blanket I made her!

I got a few things today at the consignment shops (I visited two I hadn't been to before today.. one was meh and one had awesome stuff, but I wasn't willing to pay their prices.. like 25 bucks for a bouncer. Maybe it was a pricier bouncer, but if I'm shopping at consignment stores, I'm not going to pay 25 bucks for a used bouncer when I know I can get a new one on amazon for 30 even if it isn't the same bouncer). I didn't get anything terribly exciting. I got a Boppy, a head support thingy (this is for her stroller, swing, and bouncer.. NOT her car seat. You shouldn't put anything between baby and car seat unless it came manufactured with the car seat. I am only pointing this out because I had NO clue and I had registered for all the cute little headrests and seat belt covers and I had pinned patterns to make covers for car seats until I read a blog on car safety for babies and toddlers), a cute outfit that says "daddy loves me" (the dad stuff melts me), and a lamaze toy that I had on my registry that still has tags on it. In the pictures, I also have my target buys from a few days back because they were still on the table downstairs. I got her an outfit with a onesie that says "everybody loves me" with ruffle butt pants and a little pink sweater. I also got her a sleeper with an owl on it that comes with an owl bib and an owl hat! (I loooove baby hats if you can't tell). I also got her some sunglasses that match a pair of shoes she has and a bow (all of the target stuff was on clearance).

Welp, I guess my weekly update on Sunday will be short lol. I shared everything today.

Yesterday's bump 30w4d

I probably should have picked a day at the beginning of pregnancy to do bump pics.. but most of my earlier ones are on Wednesdays so I keep doing Wednesdays (hump day bump day on my fb groups) and Saturdays (my ticker change day) so I will have comparisons. It doesn't change much from day to day so I don't know why I keep doing both every week.. :P


BTW, I am super excited bc my lovely friend is making me a special necklace to wear for my shower with this:

excuse the vacuum cord and puppy's blanket/bed area behind me

She and her sister make hand-dyed jewelry that is non-toxic and safe for baby to chew on! I plan to order a few for looking cute and giving baby something to play with while nursing or baby wearing! They also do pacifier clips that are absolutely gorgeous! Jill is most definitely getting a pink one to go with all of her adorable clothes that I've spent all of my husband's money on! haha
Boubeads