Ultrasound and Doctor Appointment

FINALLY I got to the doctor after a week of being snowed in and missing appointments.

The ultrasound was first at 8: 30am. It went just fine. They said the baby is currently 8 pounds 7 ounces (approximately). She is head down (yay!) and is still a girl. :) We didn't get any new ultrasound pictures because as the technician said "she's big and she's right up against the glass in there." Meaning she's just to cramped to get a good picture of. No problem, we'll see her in color very soon.

We then went over to my doctor's office. My appointment wasn't until 2:20 but they said for me to come by right after the ultrasound and they'd try and work me in. Luckily they could so I was seen pretty quickly. My doctor did the Strep B test and an exam to check my cervix. She also looked over my ultrasound results.

My uterus is measuring 38cm which is only now a little bigger then it should be for this week. But I am 3 cm dilated and 60% effaced. She doesn't think I will make it to my due date but didn't think I would go this week either. As for her opinion on baby's size? She just said she feels certain this one will be bigger then Belle.

So all is well with Moya, and we're now officially at the "any time now" phase. ... here we go!

Belly Picture - 37 Weeks

37 Weeks!

Nursery Phase 4

Finished the dragon mural today. Need to do a lot of organizations till of all the toys and stuff but the painting is done finally. Yay!! I think it turned out pretty well. You can't really see in the picture but there are little stars in the sky. Also the moon I bought lights up.

Nursery Phase 3

Well the plus side of being snowed in is that I've been able to get a lot done on Moya's room. Today I finished the tree and the dragon. Tomorrow I'm going to do the leaves and the stars and that should be the end of this side of the room. The other side I'm not sure how much I'm going to do yet.

Oh and the dark blue I was going to do behind the tree... yeah that didn't work out. The spray paint I got for it I tried and it looked horrible so I just painted over it. I actually think this will look good. In the day it'll look like a dragon in the tree in daytime and then at night the stars will glow (I have glow in the dark paint) and it'll look like night.

Belle also did her dragon for the room too. I let her paint a small area for Moya. She said this is the dragon in the tree's mommy looking up at her baby in the tree saying "what are you doing up there." She also made a dragon light switch cover which is the dragon's dad apparently, which you can kinda see here. Both very cool and very sweet. :)

Weekly Update - 37 Weeks

How your baby's growing: Congratulations — your baby is full term! This means that if your baby arrives now, her lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though your due date is still three weeks away.Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

How I am feeling: Stressed and annoyed. We're still snowed in! My doctor appointment is at 8:15 monday morning. It is supposed to be 42 degrees today and rainy. I'm hoping that will make it possible for me to move my car up the hill. But being this pregnant and snowed in is not enjoyable.

Aside from that... in the negative column I feel large, moving around gets more difficult every day, I ache after trying to sleep, and I can feel my cervix changing and probably starting to dilate a little which can hurt some from time to time. In the plus column I can still feel her moving a lot and despite all the negatives still have a decent amount of energy.

Only 3 more weeks till my due date!

Belly Picture - 36 Weeks

36 Weeks

Nursery Phase One and Two

The Concept: I let Belle help come up with an idea for the mural for Moya's room. It was a debate between Dragons and Kung Fu Panda (or rather a Panda theme). :) In the end the dragon won out. I also wanted to add kind of a night/stary sky element to it. So here is what we came up with.

Phase One: We cleared out Gaga's stuff and moved her downstairs.

Phase Two: Painted the blue base color and put the crib together so I know where to start the mural.

Snow

Pretty? Yes. What you want to see out front of your house when you are 36 weeks pregnant? Not so much.

It first snowed Wednesday night. Then again last night along with heavy wind. This morning it wasn't just new snow but a nice crusty layer of ice over all the snow. It was weird... like a candy coating over a white fluffy desert. It's snowing again now too.

I'm supposed to have an ultrasound and prenatal appointment on Tuesday morning but I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen. I know I've got time before my due date but prenatal care is also important. Anyway, I'm nervous. I love snow and any other year I'd be totally fine with this. But right now I'm just wishing it would stop snowing.

Saturday it is supposed to warm up to 41 and get warmer a little bit more every day after that. So I'm hoping I can make an appointment for the doctor next week and make it too it.

Birth Date and Weight Poll

Mommy: Jan. 7th 8 pounds 12oz

Daddy: Jan 2nd 9 pounds

Gaga: Jan 9th 9 pounds 5oz

Grandma: Jan 5th 9 pounds 4oz

Papi: Jan. 12th 9 pounds 12oz

Belle: Jan 11th 8 pounds 6oz

Anna Cuneo: Jan 12th 9 pounds 2oz

Jon: Jan 12th 7 pounds 4 oz

Melissa: Jan 11th 9 pounds 1 oz

Linda Graves: Jan 12th 9 pounds 11 oz

Mareena: Jan 10th 9 pounds 4 oz

Dana: Jan 11th 9 pounds

Tracey: Jan 9th 9 pounds 4oz (21 inchs)

Keri: Jan 11th (8:03pm) 8 pounds 3oz

Monette: Jan. 14th 9 pounds 5oz

Crista: Jan. 21th 8 pounds 13oz

Rochelle: Jan 14th 8 pounds 2oz

Autumn: Jan 13th 8 pounds 12oz

Noelle: Jan 16th 9 pounds

Mary: Jan 19th 9 pounds 5oz

Jennifer: Jan 18th 8 pounds 8oz

Tanya: Jan 13th 8 pounds 6oz

Weekly Update - 36 Weeks

How your baby's growing: Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position. But if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying she'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.

How I am feeling: BIG. I feel big. Moya is still moving a round a lot despite the fact she must be running out of room in there. I wear out easier but am nesting so it is a battle constantly.

But mostly this week I feel nervious. We had a snow storm this week that has us snowed and another storm is coming in tonight. Now I know I still have 4 more weeks before my due date but being unable to get to the hospital easily if I went early makes me very nervous. I'm trying to not think about it, rest some, and also use the time to get things in order here... and constantly talking to Moya saying "don't come out yet please."

Belly Pictures - 35 Weeks

35 Weeks!

Weekly Update - 35 Weeks

from babycenter.com
How your baby's growing: Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that she's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, she isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times she kicks should remain about the same. Her kidneys are fully developed now, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete — she'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

How I am feeling: This last week everything seems to be getting harder and more uncomfortable. Definitely reaching the difficult phase of the pregnancy. And despite what the babycenter.com blurb says above Moya doesn't seem to have any problems still moving around like crazy and yes even doing somersaults. :)

Doctor Appointment

Went to the doctor this morning. Everything is going good. Blood pressure was great which was nice to hear. It was about at this point with Belle that my blood pressure started to go up. I was at 35 weeks with Belle when put on bed rest. I'm at 34 weeks right now. I am not counting myself out of the woods yet for it happening again but so far it is looking hopeful that I'll get to skip that crud.

Uterus is measuring 37 cm. Rule of thumb is that your fundal height should roughly equal the number of weeks you are. So I'm at 34 weeks which means I should be measuring 34 cm give or take a cm or two. So to be at 37 cm at 34 weeks is a tad on the big side. My doctor wants me to have another ultrasound to see how big this baby is. She asked "So how big was Belle again?" I told her 8 pounds 6 ounces. She said "Oh yeah well this one will be bigger then that." :) So... should we start the due date and weight poll now? :)

I go in on the 23rd for the ultrasound and next doctor appointment. I'll be a little over 36 weeks at that point. I'm glad to get another ultrasound. I know it isn't long now till we'll get to see her in person but I just love getting to peak at her in the womb.

Belly Pictures - 34 Weeks

34 Weeks!

Weekly Update - 34 Weeks

from babycenter.com

How your baby's growing: Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help 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). If you've been sitting or lying down for a long time, don't jump up too quickly. Blood can pool in your feet and legs, causing a temporary drop in your blood pressure when you get up that can make you feel dizzy.

How am I feeling: Anxious! The nesting instinct is starting to kick in. We're moving things around so that we can get the nursery up and running. We'd been talking about it for awhile and I was all "Oh it'll take time, it doesn't matter if she comes before we're done." But now I'm suddenly wanting it all done NOW! Poor Brad spent most of the day organizing and moving stuff around. We've still got a lot to do but we're making progress.

I'm definitely getting into that final stretch uncomfortable feeling. Sleeping is very difficult and walking around isn't getting any easier. I've also started having those little cervix pains. Don't know exactly how to describe it but I had it with Belle. I think it is just my cervix slowly starting to get ready to dilate.

Anyway, otherwise I'm doing okay really. And Moya is still moving around like crazy. I swear this kid is going to be a strong one.

Belly Picture - 33 Weeks

33 Weeks!