February 15, 2008

• 
  WARNING:
  This is an entire post about BABY!
  There may be some TMI moments.
  
  

  Baby and Me Last Week:
  Last week we were at 31 week, which means that he was approximately 17 - 18 inches in length (head to toe, not otherwise preverts!) and was roughly the size of a soccer ball. He weighed approximately 3.5 lbs, which is like carrying four navel oranges under my shirt.

  He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He will be gaining more weight than height from now until his birthday. He's moving a lot, too, which is a little bit of a pain because your he kicks and somersaults to keep me awake at night and to get me moving when he wants breakfast, but it's a good thing, because all this moving is a sign that my son is active and healthy.

  A kind of gross thing that I also read about is that his kidneys are functioning and are excreting several cups of urine each day into the amniotic fluid, which he is also swallowing so it just recycles throughout the day. A really cool thing is that his reproductive organs are continuing to grow more sophisticated too, and would be quite visible on an ultrasound. Translation: my baby's packing. I saw his testicles on the last ultrasound.

   As far as I go, according to the sources, my hardworking body is putting in overtime these days, making some less-than-subtle preparations for the upcoming labor. I am getting an increase amount of hip and lower-back pain, because the pregnancy hormones are relaxing the ligaments and tendons throughout your pelvic area, so the bones can spread to make room for delivery. My giagantic and expanding uterus may also be putting some pressure on the sciatic nerves that run from my lower back down through your legs.

  Other really neat things that are going on with me are breast changes. (OVERSHARE ALERT: this may be too personal, reader descretion advised) As I get closer to the big day, the milk glands in my breasts are starting to produce colostrum, a thick, yellow milk high in fat and antibodies that will nourish the baby for the first couple of days before the actual milk comes in. Colostrum is perfect for the newborn baby as it is full of fat that helps line the baby's immature digestive tract and helps the meconium, or waste product, pass easier. As a matter of fact, my breast milk will provide all the nutrition this little child needs to grow strong. It makes me feel like superwoman!

  That was last week. Here's what's going on this week:

  As of  Valentine's day I have 51 days to go (and counting!) I am in week 32 (37 weeks is the magic number -- that's when your baby is officially deemed full-term, even though pregnancy may go to 40 weeks or beyond!) At 32 weeks I am in the 8th month and in the 3rd trimester.  This week he is taking up a lot of space in my uterus! He is approximately 18 - 19 inches in length and weighs 4 or 5 lbs, so he is roughly the size of a bag of potatoes. I should be gaining about a pound a week from here out and roughly half of that goes right to your baby.

  This week with the exception of his still-developing lungs, all other major organs have completely formed -- which is great news if he decides to arrive early, which is pretty impressive, considering I have almost two more months ‘til my due date! He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he fattens up in preparation for birth.

  My boby is also continuing to go through lost of changes. In order to accommodate me and my son's growing needs, my blood volume has increased 40-50% since I got pregnant. My uterus pushing up near my diaphragm and crowding my stomach which leads to lovely, lovely heartburn. I can also blame my growing uterus and hormonal changes for fun back aches. The ever expanding uterus shifts my center of gravity and stretches out and weakens my abdominal muscles: Fun! It is changing my posture and putting a strain on my back. Though I have been told by some that I don't waddle, I feel "heavy" and this makes bending, rolling over in bed, getting out of bed, getting out of low chairs and/or the car and a pain in the ass.

  Last but not least some:

  Fun baby shower games! • Guess how many times she'll pee in the next ten minutes! • When her belly button pops out, will the baby be done? • How many of us can fit in one pair of her panties? • Who can finish a half gallon of ice cream first? • Guess where she left her keys!    Let's pretend! • At your baby shower, pretend you understand how the diaper disposal system works. • When installing your car seat, pretend you don't seem like an extra from The Planet of the Apes. • Pretend it was the dog who farted. • Pretend that onion rings are part of the "best-baby" diet. • Pretend your prenatal vitamin is buried at the bottom of the ice cream container.

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