Baby Jensen | Weeks 33-36

1/27/2015
33 WEEKS

Trimester: Third.

Baby: Size of a honeydew melon [19 inches, 4.5 lbs.]. Antibodies are being passed from me to baby as she continues to develop her own fetal immune system. Even though her bones are hardening, the skull is still not solid and the skull bones are not fused together. This allows for baby's head to reduce its diameter as it passes through the birth canal during delivery. Baby's brain is developing more distinct functions and is capable of controlling breathing, digestive functions and body temperature. Baby can now tell the difference between day and night. Her lungs are almost completely ready for breathing on her own and if she is born this week, she would need only a little medical support.

Movement: According to my app this week my amniotic-fluid level has maxed out, meaning there's less fluid to cushion the blows of her kicks. And I am definitely feeling it. Her movements aren't painful but they are much more sharp and often catch me off guard.

Symptoms: Frequent trips to the bathroom, back aches, heartburn, gas, constipation, colostrum production, moodiness, occasional shortness of breath [sometimes it feels like she is pressing against my lungs with all her might], round ligament pain, braxton hicks contractions, heightened sense of smell, and dehydration. [Every time I wake up to use the restroom in the night I have to chug a glass of water. I'm drinking more throughout the day, but I'm still PARCHED all the time.] 

Cravings: I'm eating about every one to two hours. Yogurt, fruit, sandwiches, and chips are always appetizing. This week I had a difficult time with dinner. Not a whole lot sounded good, then getting up the energy to make something was challenging. Because of my recurring cravings for soda, Jay came home from work with his hands and pockets full of Sprite cans. Haha. He's the best.

Sleep: I tossed and turned a bit more this week, and I'm getting up to use the restroom on average three times rather than two.

Exercise: Walking.

Stretch Marks: None.

Total Weight Gain: 19 pounds. 

Swelling: None.

Maternity Clothes: Pants: down to strictly leggings. None of my pants fit, and even my one pair of maternity pants are snug. Tops: everything fits but some tops are more snug than others.

Belly Button: Out.

Doctor's Visit: We got another great report at our doctor's appointment. Baby's heartbeat was 147 and she is measuring closer to 32 weeks. My doctor says, "It's perfectly normal for someone of your size to measure smaller, I don't think you'll be having a very big baby." 

Childbirth Class: This week we discussed postpartum care and postpartum depression. We also watched a birth video where they showed much more than Jay or I wished to see. Unfortunately some of the things we saw in that video will remain engraved in our brains forever. No disrespect intended, every birth is a miracle and the female body is absolutely incredible. But ya know, watching a stranger give birth up close like that... Not my favorite moment of the week. And of course the mother gave birth without medication. The class really seems to be pushing unmediated births, which is great but it would be great to see more videos of medicated births since that's the route we plan to take.

What I'm Looking Forward To: Finishing the nursery once the crib is delivered!

Best Moment of the Week: Completing a few small projects for the nursery. The whole room has been a seriously fun project and just the fact that we have a spare room to turn into a nursery is a dream come true. I can hardly wait to see the end result.

Worst Moment of the Week: Having heartburn and dealing with the frustrations of constipation. I know my belly is not huge, but things are starting to feel pretty darn squished and tight in there.

2/3/2015

34 WEEKS

Kella loves sneaking in my pictures.

Trimester: Third.
Baby: Size of a pineapple [19-22 inches, 4.9 lbs.]. Most of the lanugo [body hair] is gone. Baby's immune system is no longer relying on the antibodies from the placenta. The vernix [thick white layer of protection present on baby's skin] is disappearing; however, a little bit of it will still be left at birth. The digestive system is fully working by itself. Baby is peeing up to a pint of urine a day into the amniotic fluid. Even though the placenta is capable of supporting baby until birth, it will start to age this week. 
Movement: Movement from this little one is blowing me away. She's getting stronger every week. It used to feel like she was pushing against my stomach with either her bum or her head, but this week it also feels like she's stretching out her feet and/or hands.
Symptoms: Frequent trips to the bathroom, back aches, heartburn, gas, constipation, colostrum production, moodiness, occasional shortness of breath [sometimes it feels like she is pressing against my lungs with all her might], round ligament pain, braxton hicks contractions, heightened sense of smell, and dehydration. [Every time I wake up to use the restroom in the night I have to chug a glass of water. I'm drinking more throughout the day, but I'm still PARCHED all the time.]
Cravings: On Monday night we had family home evening with an older couple from the ward and somehow we got on the topic of Wendy's frosty's. On the way home I kindly asked Jay to drive over to Wendy's so I could get my frosty. It was wonderful. Other than that, most food sounds appetizing most of the time, and I'm still eating often but consuming smaller portions in an effort to prevent heartburn.   
Sleep: Minus two to three trips to the bathroom and an occasional spell of awful heartburn, sleep has been good.
Exercise: Walking.
Stretch Marks: None.
Total Weight Gain: 19 pounds. 
Swelling: None.
Maternity Clothes: Pants: down to strictly leggings. None of my pants fit, and even my one pair of maternity pants are snug. Tops: everything fits but some tops are more snug than others.
Belly Button: Out.
Childbirth Class: Our last class was incredibly informative. We learned how to preform CPR on a baby as well as what to do when a baby is choking. We also learned about car seat safety and I realized just how uneducated I was in that department. Jay and I feel a new level of confidence now that we have completed this class. Honestly I wish the class could keep going because there is SO much to learn about pregnancy, labor and delivery, and babies. But I'm grateful for all the other resources available to us. And I know we will learn so much as we go along.
What I'm Looking Forward To: Next doctor's appointment.
Best Moment of the Week: Putting the crib together with Jay. We opened the box and laid out all the pieces on our living room floor. I asked Jay if it would be better to assemble it in the nursery, just in case it wouldn't fit through the doorway once we put it together. He was confident it would fit and I trusted his judgement. Two hours later we carried the crib across the hall, turned it to the side hoping to slide it right into the nursery, but had no such luck. We got away with only having to take off the base and the door to the nursery. Within 30 minutes the crib was resting in one piece in it's new home. It's so strange but so exciting to walk past the nursery and see a crib in there. The only downside to having the nursery put together was having to move Jay's office down to the basement. It makes for a great set-up for him, but he feels so far away.
Worst Moment of the Week: Getting horrendous heartburn in the middle of the night.

2/10/2015
35 WEEKS

 
Trimester: Third.
Baby: Size of a canary melon [19-22 inches, 5.5 lbs.]. While baby won't get much longer, she will continue to pack on the pounds, including large amounts of baby fat, right up 'til delivery day. There's a lot of fetal brain development going on inside that tiny head, which is still soft to allow an easier exit through the birth canal. 
Movement: Movement from this little one is blowing me away. She's getting stronger every week. It used to feel like she was pushing against my stomach with either her bum or her head, but this week it also feels like she's stretching out her feet and/or hands. Braxton hicks contractions are becoming more frequent. They're not at all painful or uncomfortable like I thought they would be. My stomach just gets really hard and misshaped for about 30 seconds and then goes back to normal. Super crazy.

during braxton hicks

normal

Symptoms: Frequent trips to the bathroom, back aches, heartburn [I've discovered Kirkland's acid controller and a few tricks that have helped: eating smaller portions, eating less before bedtime, drinking very little throughout a meal and drinking A LOT after a meal, chewing gum after eating, and avoiding acidic foods.], gas, constipation, colostrum production, moodiness, occasional shortness of breath, round ligament pain, braxton hicks contractions, heightened sense of smell, and always thirsty.

Cravings: Ice. Nevermind that the temperatures outside have been in the negatives, I can't have a drink without ice. Most food sounds appetizing most of the time. I'm eating often but consuming smaller portions in an effort to prevent heartburn.   

Sleep: Still making about two trips to the bathroom every night. Heartburn interfered with sleep at the beginning of the week. I have been sleeping great since discovering a few remedies and preventive tricks.

Exercise: Walking.

Stretch Marks: None.

Total Weight Gain: 23 pounds 

Swelling: None.

Maternity Clothes: Pants: down to strictly leggings. None of my pants fit, and even my one pair of maternity pants are snug. Tops: everything fits but some tops are more snug than others.

Belly Button: Out.

Doctor's Visit: Baby's heartbeat was 143, she's measuring between 35 and 36 weeks, I'm almost dilated to 1 centimeter, and 50% effaced. 

What I'm Looking Forward To: Baby shower next week.

Best Moment of the Week: Finishing the nursery!

Worst Moment of the Week: Heartburn in the middle of the night.

2/17/2015

36 WEEKS

Trimester: Third.

Baby: Size of a large cantalope [19-22 inches, 6 lbs.]. Baby will gain approximately one half of a pound per week from now until birth. The protective fat layer will make up about 15% of baby's weight at birth. Her cheeks are developing fat. The cheek muscles are also developing, creating that lovely chubby appearance. Baby is sleeping about 90% of the time. Her bones are soft to allow a safer journey through delivery. Most of her systems [from circulatory to musculoskeletal] are ready for prime time, though her digestive system -- which has only done practice runs so far -- will kick into gear as she takes her first suckle at the breast or bottle.

Movement: I was told that movement would possibly become less frequent towards the end, but that has not been the case and I am grateful. Feeling her move inside of me is one thing I will for sure miss about pregnancy. Braxton hicks are a little more frequent than last week, but still nothing painful or uncomfortable in any way. Sometimes I'll lift up my shirt and watch her dance around in my belly and it is still just so hard for me to comprehend the fact that there's a little human in there. And while my stomach is definitely getting bigger, it still doesn't seem big enough to hold that little human! She's either a super tiny thing or just really squished in my belly.

Symptoms: Frequent trips to the bathroom, back aches, heartburn, colostrum production, moodiness, occasional shortness of breath, round ligament pain, braxton hicks contractions, heightened sense of smell, and always thirsty. 

Cravings: Most food sounds appetizing most of the time. I'm eating often but consuming smaller portions in an effort to prevent heartburn. Still can't get enough ice. This week I was craving strawberry everything. So I bought a bag of frozen strawberries at Sam's Club then made strawberry lemonade and strawberry cheesecake to snack on throughout the week. Not the wisest of choices for someone battling heartburn, but it was worth it.

Sleep: Not great. Up two to three times to use the restroom and then it takes me awhile to get comfortable enough to fall back asleep. This week I've been waking up starving at 5:00. So I usually eat my breakfast, then go back to sleep for a few hours. 

Exercise: Kella and have walked the same one-mile route every day. But the bigger I get, the more challenging that route becomes. I find myself having to stop often just to catch my breath. I should mention that we're walking in at least 12 inches of snow most of the time which makes for quite the workout. I'm very grateful to Kella for keeping me active. If it weren't for her I don't think I would be as motivated to go out and walk, especially in this cold weather.

Stretch Marks: None.

Total Weight Gain: 23 pounds. 

Swelling: None.

Maternity Clothes: Pants: down to strictly leggings. None of my pants fit, and even my one pair of maternity pants are snug. Tops: a few tops fit but when I'm home all day I love to wear Jay's shirts and sweatshirts.

Belly Button: Out.  

What I'm Looking Forward To: At this point Jay and I are just crossing our T's and dotting our I's. We've got a few small things we would like to accomplish before baby comes, but for the most part we are set and just anxiously anticipating each doctor's appointment for progress reports. 

Best Moment of the Week: On Thursday we met with a pediatrician in town to see if it would be a good fit. The meeting went perfectly and Jay and I both feel really good about our decision to go with them. Once of the best things about this place is that it's only 1.7 miles away from our home.
When Isabelle and Kiery said they wanted to throw me a baby shower I tried to convince them it was not necessary because I already had a lovely baby shower in California. But they were insistent saying things like, "This is a big deal, you deserve multiple celebrations!" I was very touched and told them to keep it small and simple. The shower was held on Tuesday at Isabelle's house. Britney, Tonya, and Paula came to celebrate with us. We ate Chinese chicken salad, popcorn, cupcakes, and a delicious homemade Hawaiian punch. Then I got to open a few presents from those that attended as well as from those that couldn't make it to the shower.