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Week 27 Milestones: Baby is about 10" CRL and 15" head-to-toe. He is starting to have regular and predictable patterns of sleep and waking. Eyelids are beginning to open and the retinas are forming. My Journal: Another week flew by in a flash, and yet was filled with lots of busy activities as usual. We've been doing a lot to get ready for Avery's arrival, which seems to feel closer and closer each minute. I guess maybe I've started an early "nesting" thing because I am really eager to get everything all set up. I started painting this week, and although we set aside next Sunday as big day of painting (Harmony will be away), I might just keep going on my own during the week since it's going pretty well. I've even finished painting Avery's little dresser and it looks great! I did white as the base colour and the printed some moon and star stencils onto heavy cardstock and did blue stars and yellow moons on the front of the drawers and top of the dresser. Paul had an idea to try to do the "phases" of the moon somehow, so across the drawer it goes from a waxing moon to a full moon (right in the middle of the round knob!) and then to a waning moon. I'll add a picture of the dresser to the "Baby's Room" page once we've finished all the painting. The only painting left to do now is on the baseboards and window frame, everything else is done. Then we'll be sewing the valence (my mother-in-law found fabric with a celestial theme and angels too) and setting up the furniture. I've been really tempted to buy a crib from IKEA (there's a nice white one that also converts to a toddler bed!), but one of my friends still has her daughter's crib in storage and probably wants to get it out of there anyways, so it seems a little silly to go and buy one. One thing I'll be looking for though is a celestial-themed bedding set and mobile for the crib (I don't have too much bedding left over from when Harmony was a baby, and didn't keep the hand-me-down mobile since it was pretty old). I should really start my search soon (and Christmas shopping too), while I can still waddle through the malls at a decent speed. Besides, it's so much fun to shop for all this stuff for the nursery and get it all put together. I can't wait to see the final result, and I'm hoping that it'll be ready by the end of October. Another little item that's almost complete is Avery's cross-stitch bear! I only have a small part left to do and then it will be done... except for his name, birthdate, weight, etc!!! Those additions will have to be added a little later on! In the midst of all these baby preparations, we're trying to include Harmony in preparing for a new sibling... I think she is keenly aware of these household changes and all these baby items popping into view, but isn't too talkative about her feelings on the matter. Funny to think that the little girl who was begging for a sibling at the beginning of this year may be starting to have doubts about that! I guess it's a case of "watch what you wish for", especially now that people are reminding her that she will have to share lots of things - including her parents' attention. Even now, I'm finding I have less energy to do things with her as I slow down, and she's probably noticing that too. There's still room for her to sit in my lap though (just barely!) to hear a story, and since I love reading to her and with her (especially now that she can read), I think this will be something we can still do together as "our" special time, even after the baby's born (I can breastfeed and recite "Fox in socks" at the same time I'm sure). Maybe we'll have to replace some of the more active things we did together (like playing badminton) with quieter things like reading (or scrapbooking), but hopefully she won't feel pushed out completely if we can squeeze in a little time for her. I'm going to keep trying to talk to her so she knows what to expect when Avery comes along, so that hopefully the adjustment of being a big sister after 6 full years of being an only child won't be too tough to make! Test Results/Ultrasounds/Appointments: I went in for my glucose test last Wednesday and am waiting for the results - I probably won't hear back until my next appt. with my OB, which is next Wednesday. The test itself wasn't too terrible (a few cups of that stuff that tastes like orange pop, but in a bad way), and this time I didn't have to fast! (when I'd taken the test during my pregnancy with Harmony, they did make you fast for the morning of the test). I'm a little nervous about what the results will be, but hoping for the best. A different kind of appointment this week was a trip to the dentist! The last time I'd gone was the day before I found out I was pregnant, and having my gums so sore and bleeding at that time was one of the things that had tipped me off that I might want to try testing again. This time was not much different - those gums were still sore and bled a lot more than they normally do. I also got the bad news that I have three cavities - yikes!!! I can't have them filled until after the baby's born though, so I have an appt. in mid-January for X-rays, etc. Physical: Well, I've been off-and-on sick for a couple weeks now, and this bug just seems to be hanging in there! And of course it's hard to tell what's pregnancy-related and what's just from being sick - I've been a little more nauseous over the past couple weeks than I have been for a while, but that might be hormonal changes. It's mostly been a stuffy nose, sore throat, and bit of a cough - it's not serious enough to slow me down at all, but just enough to be an annoyance. Hopefully it's just taking a longer course because my immune system is not at it's peak (and I can't take anything to help my body fight the virus!) and it'll pass soon. Meanwhile, this belly just keeps on growing. I've started getting backaches, which is no big surprise (I signed up for this journey, backaches and all!), and sometimes my legs and hips feel a little out of whack as well. For now I'm just trying to help relieve the aches and pains with my heat pack and trying to get my feet up once in a while. I've also noticed I'm starting to get more tired and sleepy now - again, no big surprise. I tend to feel really exhausted by about 3 or 4pm, and have had a couple "cat naps" at that time this week. I also feel sleepy earlier in the evenings and have gone to bed early once or twice. I've been gradually "slowing down" (especially physically!) over the past few weeks, but I'm just trying to let it happen and enjoy it. One of the positive sides of lying down with my heat pack with my feet up (or having a little cat nap) is really getting to focus on Avery's movements! Often when I'm lying down, he'll move around a lot to re-adjust his position or to just get some practice kicks in, so I get to be really aware of where he is. It's actually been really fun playing "guess where the baby is lying now", especially when Paul gets in on it too with his guesses. I find he is often lying transverse still, but starting to be more diagonal about it - like his head will be at the top right corner and his feet will be at the bottom left, or vice versa. He's at a very neat size right now where he's big enough that I am starting to be able to tell where his head, spine, bum, feet, hands are, and he is still small enough to be flipping around and changing positions on me all the time! This can sometimes be a little uncomfortable, especially as his space is becoming more and more limited, but it's so nifty to think about him moving around like that and wonder what he thinks about all this! Weight Gain/Food: Not much has changed here - at about 14lbs total gain now, and still giving in to those donut and hot chocolate cravings once in a while but not too often. I had one of each last night as a treat after my prenatal Aquafit class, but I figure they were both outweighed by having gone to the class. I only have another week left on my pool membership, so I may not be able to keep going every week, but I will still try to go every couple weeks until December. The pregnancy guides I've been reading have all said that weight gain starts to really pick up in the third trimester (no surprise there since the baby has so much weight to gain on his own body), so I'm focusing on maintaing a nice, healthy gain from here (I'm a little bit under the "average" gain pattern, so I have that advantage), and hopefully saving a few pounds for those Christmas holidays and sweets that go with them! Emotional: Besides feeling really restless about getting ready for baby, and a little grumpy with my cough and cold, I've been doing okay these days. A little sensitive, a little impatient, but getting things organized has actually really helped me keep my cool. That nesting instinct has been getting really strong though, and sometimes I'll be cleaning and cleaning to the point of getting more tired than I should let myself get. It's the same feeling people usually get when they are in a good cleaning and organizing "groove" (myself included, even when not pregnant), but it seems even more exagerated, like I just really want to keep going until I get everything clean and tidy! I've been almost glad that Harmony's school bus arrives so early in the afternoon, because otherwise I could see myself painting or cleaning until dinner even when I'm tired. The tired and sleepy feelings I've had have also made myself feel a little "spacey" sometimes and with no caffeine to help out, sometimes it's hard to wake up from that. I really think I'd have a clearer head in the evenings if I started giving in to those tired afternoon feelings and having a little nap, but I'm just too worried I'll sleep through an alarm and not be there to meet Harmony's bus. I guess I'll have to be happy with the occasional time she lets mommy have a little cat nap on the couch while she plays or colours after school. It definitely helps with my patience levels too since I spend tons of time with her from 3 to 7pm, including bath and bed routine (which she hasn't been great with lately)!
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