33 weeks

I haven't posted in awhile but everything is good, just been crazy busy.

Our girl is doing well. We had a growth scan last Wednesday at 32+2 and she was measuring at 5lbs! that is 59th percentile for weight!! She's on track to be a big baby! I have another scan at 36 weeks to check again. Look at those chubby cheeks!!!

As for me, well the back pain gets bad some days and I still don't sleep well, its really hard to get comfortable.  I'm looking very pregnant these days and I think I'm starting to waddle.  I can't stand up for more than about an hour at a time otherwise I start getting braxton-hicks pretty bad.

I've also reached another milestone and that is reaching my pre-pregnancy weight.  Here is me at 4 weeks (just got positive test a few days before) and me at 33 weeks, I weigh the same in both of these photos.

Here is another belly comparison (sorry/not sorry for all the naked belly pics). Since I was overweight before becoming pregnancy my belly hangs down a bit at the bottom (one of the reasons my back hurts I think). Here is a comparison of my belly with no support and me with my hand pulling it up a bit from the top which is basically how my support band keeps it positioned. 

We started our childbirth classes last week, its a 6 week series that includes newborn care and breastfeeding.  It was pretty interesting but makes for a long day.  I'm supposed to have my labor support bag packed by next week, ack!!!

What else...

We've made a lot of progress on the nursery finally! Still got a lot to do but most of its organization at this point. 

I had to start taking magnesium because of horrible leg cramps that won't go away, it  helps a lot!

Baby shower is this coming weekend, my brother is coming down for that and we'll video conference in the family birthday party going on in Minnesota.   I'm excited for that. 

Crazy dreams still abound, I give birth just about every night as I sleep now. 

Random thoughts

Forgetting to pull your dress socks up so they are all bunched up around your ankles + ankles swelling = I now ate socks.

When she changes position from heads up to heads down all in one go its one of the weirdest things I've ever experienced.
And on that note she shoved her head back in my crotch today, ouch.

I don't know what I'll have for dinner tonight, I had bacon 2 nights in a row. Eggs maybe, I have a cut on my foot that is taking a long time to heal, Matthew said I need more protein.

way to go cervix!!

This is the last week of the second trimester and my cervix is holding strong with good measurements! yay!

Baby girl is also doing well, she is measuring right on track size wise but weight wise she is in 75th percentile! Chubby baby. Last estimated weight at the ultrasound last week was 1 pound 14 ounces which is exactly double her weight from 4 weeks previous.  Heart rate was a little high at 179 but tech said it goes up and down.

After all the measurements were done I fished a little and the ultrasound tech (nicest one EVER) turned on 4d for us! We got to see her in 3d but LIVE, it was SOOO freaking cool!  She kept putting her hands up in front of her face but we got a few good pics.

If everything continues to be good I won't have to go back to the Maternal Fetal Care center anymore, I have another appointment with the MFM in September so technically I'm still high risk but all the docs are pleased with how everything is going. 

Pain wise, well that comes and goes, I have days where I feel almost normal then I have days where walking is almost impossible. I have found that I can't be on my feet for more than 20-30 minutes at a time and I can't bend from the waist, both of those things trigger pain.  I have Yoga tonight, I'll have to tell teacher I can't bend from the waist but I think the yoga actually helps so I want to keep going.  I need to start walking on the days I feel good but I'm kind of concerned with getting very far from home and having a bad pain episode with no where to sit down. 

Other symptoms, my hands have started to swell a little, blood pressure is holding steady and I drink tons of water so must just be pregnancy.  Its not bad, just enough to make my rings tight once in awhile.

I do seem to be on an upward trend for my weight, I have days where I am starving! Last night 2 hours after dinner I ate a bagel with cream cheese, a pickle, some grapes and a handful of nuts and then was hungry again before bed but didn't eat again. Guess little girl doubling her weigh every month will do that!

How far along?  26 weeks!  

Total weight gain: -7.6lbs!   

Baby is the size of: bowling pin

Maternity clothes:  bought a few new shirts last week

Stretch marks: None that I didn't already have

Sleep: what's sleep? I toss and turn a lot from back pain

Best moment this week: I was sitting in a meeting with my hands crossed across my stomach and she was kicking so hard she was moving my hands

Miss anything? Beer

Movement: She's quiet when I'm up moving but if I sit down and get quiet she starts dancing

Food cravings: green grapes

Anything making you queasy or sick? Not really

Labor signs: Nope.

Symptoms: Back pain, gas, heartburn, pelvic pain 

Belly button in or out? In.

Wedding rings on or off? On.

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy

Looking forward to: Getting the stuff cleaned out of the nursery room

Oh and here is a quick reference on the months/weeks thing

Glucose and pain and other what nots....

24 weeks, viability, yay!!! Now that being said, this little girl needs to stay in and cook longer! 

Since the last post I've been to see the chiropractor twice and been to pre-natal yoga twice, my back is not really much better than it was before. 

I've been having some issues with constipation (totally new for me) and that in turn is causing me a pain in the bum, like, literally. Sorry for the TMI. I've had this same pain twice in the past, once when I had a bout of colitis coupled with a ruptured hemorrhagic ovarian cyst and the other time after my IVF egg retrieval. It appears to be related to digestion coupled with swollen girly parts (inside parts), I guess it just happens that mine are swollen and full of baby.  Hopefully this passes soon, its a pain in the ass, ha ha. 

Baby girl has been moving around a lot lately, you can see it from the outside now pretty easily and Matthew finally felt her kick for the first time this morning 

I saw my OB last week and my MFM today, the only new issue to report is my groin pain (not the pain in the ass, this is an ache in my pelvic region at the end of the day) is my pubic bones separating. Apparently this happens to all pregnant women but is happening to me early due to my EDS. It's not so bad unless I overdo it.  My MFM said that while I was still at risk for pre-term labor due to my EDS that I was in no immediate danger since my cervix has looked good so far. He talked to me about what to look for in terms of contractions and said that most women usually begin to feel them by 28 weeks.  I talked to him about my anesthesia concerns and he advised me to talk to the anesthesiologist but that the kind they use for epidurals should not be affected by my EDS because its local not systemic. 

In other news I had my 1 hour glucose tolerance test today, and.... I failed it, by TWO points, 2 freaking points!  So now I have to go have the 3 hour test, ugh, not looking forward to that, that icky orange drink

makes me feel like crap the rest of the day.

Here is my 24 week belly

Oh, and here is when I'm sitting looking down!

Looks like I finally "popped"

So here is my weight change since becoming pregnant. It's pretty easy to see where the morning sickness kicked in. Lowest weight was at 18 weeks, I'm at 24 weeks now and have been on an upward trend for a few weeks but am still about 10 pounds down from where I started.  

22 weeks

Not much new to report other than back pain.  Every morning I wake up with my lower back in extreme pain. I did something I never thought I'd do, I made an appointment with a chiropractor. I know this pain is only going to get worse and I have to do something. I found a Chiro who is familiar with EDS and is willing to work with me.  My appointment with him is Thursday, I'll report back.  I also signed up for a prenatal Yoga class that starts next week, hoping that will help as well.

My only other complaint is the heat. A full on St. Louis summer plus being pregnant do not mix. I get overheated at the drop of a hat, I can't be outdoors for more than 5 minutes without getting sick.  It was 106 when I got in my car yesterday after work.  My remote start is broken so I can't even cool it down before I get in (yeah, first world problem, I know). I have an appointment on Friday to get that fixed.

I've started the process to find a daycare and WOW is that a process! Apparently 7+ months out from needing care is too late to start looking.  So far I've contacted 4 of the 6 centers that take infants and would not be a complete pain in the ass to drop/off pickup at.  I've visited 2 of the 4 so far. One has no availability until April, the other has an opening in mid-February.  I'm going to see what comes from these 4 visits then contact the other 2 if I need to.  I spent an hour and a half at KinderCare yesterday, the babies are so cute!

Weight wise, I gained a couple of pounds last week and figured that was the start of the upward trend, but then I lost it again this week, so still holding steady pretty much.  Here is the 22 week bump.  I still have days where I just look fat and not pregnant, actually most days.

I've had a couple dizzy spells, I'm going to have to be more diligent about my fluids as my BP has dropped again.  3 quarts is not enough, has to be a gallon apparently. Good to know, I can handle that. 

Her movements are getting stronger, not able to really feel from the outside yet but I am hoping soon so hubs can feel her.  

I thought I didn't have much to say this morning but I ended up rambling like usual, that's about it for now though. 

Here is a progression pic for the past month