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Week 33 Milestones: The average baby is 4lbs, 5oz by this point (so ours is probably bigger!) and is 15 and 3/4" long. The baby's skin colour is turning from red to pink beacuse of the fat that's now being padded on, and the head size has increased because of rapid brain growth. The amount of amniotic fluid has reached it's peak and will reamin constant from now until delivery. My Journal: This past week has been such a great one, I have been feeling so positive!!! A lot of really nice things have happened, one after the other, so that really has helped keep my momentum going and kept me energized. I was really feeling blue the week before last so I was glad to have this "pick me up" week... First of all, it's Paul's birthday this week (actually, today!) so we're in the middle of parties and all that fun stuff. Part of my present to him was throwing a party for him and his friends over the weekend - I braved having a bunch of people over for a 10-hour "LAN party" and Halo marathon. I ended up nodding off briefly during the party (probably since I missed my afternoon nap), but I was glad to see Paul having such a good time. The baby was really awake and active for most of the party as well - I think he was hearing all those different voices and just wondering what on earth was going on out there! We had a little family thing tonight too, just the three of us (well, four if you count Avery!) with a special dinner and cake and presents, etc. So all these special events (and treats!) have made for a special week. Our prenatal classes also started last weekend, and could not have been better!! I am so glad we signed up for the full course and not just a refresher, because I feel that we've already gotten sooo much out of it. And we haven't even reached the "newborn care" portion either, which was one of the main reasons we wanted to go for the full course instead of just the refresher class. It's a little strange being both the only couple in the room who already have a child and the only couple in the room under age 25, but it is not overly uncomfortable or anything. Our course instructor is incredible - she adds so much on top of the usual dry "information" about childbirth. I find her views about what labour and delivery are all about (or should be all about!) are very in line with mine - she speaks a lot about what helps a woman feel confident and empowered during labour and what can take away her feelings of control over her body and situation. For example, putting on the hospital gown right away can really make a woman feel like a "patient", and things like the gown, going right for the bed, and lying flat on her back for labouring and pushing can make her feel like labour is no longer something she is doing, but rather has become something that is being done to her... I really wish I'd taken a course like this when I was pregnant with Harmony because maybe then I would have had the courage to stand up for myself a bit better. But then again, as even the instructor herself was saying, we all have to say in the end that we made the best decisions we could have, at the time, with the information we had. She also makes a good point that having a positive birth experience isn't about having everything go exactly the way you want, it's about coming out the other side and feeling that you had some control and say about how things did go. She advocates always taking 5 minutes to think over any major decision during labour since it's such an intense and emotional time for parents - unless it's a true emergency, there is always just 5 minutes. I of course took copious notes during all this ("You can take the university student out of the classroom but you can't take the classroom out of the university student"?) and am going to try to take as much of this knowledge with me to the hospital. The one very positive thing is that Paul and I both agree that we feel more confident about the possibility of a VBAC, and feel like if Avery does come early, we would actually be more prepared for it! There has also been lots of great work news this week... My boss for one of my part time jobs let me know that he actually had work for me beyond December (the original plan was that since his grant from the university was expiring in December, my part-time work for him would end then as well). I was a little nervous telling him I was pregnant, but he ended up just sending me congratulations and saying that I could take some time off and just let him know when I was ready to take on some more work. So that was really great to find out - that instead of being totally done this job in December as I'd thought I would be, I'll actually just be taking a few months off and then be able to start working a little bit again in the Spring. Paul also got good news at work recently - he signed his contract renewal papers today, so that's a huge relief! He also went up a level, which means he gets an automatic raise! This will start at the beginning of December, just in time for Christmas bills and baby costs. On a practical/material level, we are now totally ready with baby "essentials"! Last Thursday was Remembrance day, so we took advantage of Paul's day off work by doing some shopping for Avery's crib. We ended up having to go to three different stores but we finally found the one we wanted (there's a picture of it on the Baby Gear page). It's all-white and has a one-handed drop rail on the side, which was why we didn't go with our original plan of a crib from IKEA. I can't wait to get that all set up in the baby's room to see what the complete nursery looks like. Maybe now I will be able to stop worrying so much and these "feathering the nest" instincts will stop consuming so many of my waking moments! I just don't know why I have been so stressed about the whole "getting ready for baby" issue, but maybe it stems from having had so little time to prepare for Harmony... My last shower was given a week and a half before she was born and then I had that very short week and a half to scramble to get everything ready (and write thank-you notes!). This time though, I've made sure we have all the important things so that we can feel ready and prepared for Avery's arrival and be enjoying the last few weeks of pregnancy instead of rushing around. Meanwhile, I caught word that plans may have been started for a shower, but I managed to make the point without offending anyone (I hope!) that since everyone is really busy with the holidays/university exams at this time, and since I'm only 4 weeks away from being full-term and maybe about 5 (maximum 6!) weeks away from Avery's actual arrival, etc. that it is probably not the best timing for a "baby shower" as such. I've heard suggestions for a "welcome baby" party instead though, which I think everyone would be much happier with. I'd rather be able to just be relaxed and focused (and excited!) in the few weeks before Avery's birth. So with all of these positive things happening, it has actually brought things into balance a little more, and made me realize that the "ebb and flow" of how I am coping with the changes and challenges during pregnant is a lot like what has been happened to my belly... My belly stretches to a certain capacity, Avery grows to reach that capacity, things get uncomfortable, things are stretched as tightly as possible, his movements become painful, and then all of a sudden, my belly will "give" another half inch and the process starts anew. Right after that "popping out" though, things are comfortable again for a while - the baby has more room to kick and move around, I can sit and sleep more comfortably, etc. My life is a lot like that too right now, but in reverse. As the pregnancy continues, the capacity of what I'm able to do gets smaller and I have to adjust accordingly. I'll be active to my maximum capacity, and then find my energy diminishing, so I need to cut back on what I do and increase the amount of time I spent resting. When I'm at this maximum, it is really uncomfortable and painful (like still needing to drive places often even though I was no longer able). Then when I make major changes (like hanging up the car keys), things are more comfortable again. I've been feeling a little more comfortable since I'm in the car a lot less often, so it's like the comfort that arrives when my belly "gives" another little bit to make more room. It was kind of neat to realize the similaries and to tie life events in with the metaphor of my belly, growing inch by inch. As my physical body changes to accomodate this baby, my lifestyle needs to change too. And I should accept these life changes as being just as natural and expected as the necessarily physical changes, instead of being frustrated by them. Especially since some of them go hand in hand (the life changes are often because of the physical changes!) Test Results/Ultrasounds/Appointments: My 32 week appointment last week went smoothly. The nurse said my blood pressure was "textbook" perfect, which was nice to hear. Avery's heartbeat was also right on track - around 150. My OB was also able to feel his head this week and said he is head down! So who knows if he'll stay there, but that's good news if he is mostly settled into that position. The only questions I had this week were about my problems driving, which she said was normal for this far along. She also reassured me that it actually wouldn't do the baby any harm; even if it felt really uncomfortable for me, he is just fine. So it was a pretty quick and routine appointment, I guess I am starting to get used to going! Physical: Well, it's official. I'm bigger now than I ever was with Harmony. No, seriously, I pasted two photos side by side and my belly is huge right now compared to how it was with Harmony right at the end of things! Avery is also sticking out way more in front and up - I have been carrying "high" with him right from the start and that hasn't changed. Weight Gain/Food: Another week, another pound. My total gain is now 22lbs. I'm still trying to eat healthy although I'm finding it harder to be motivated to cook healthy meals (many nights I just feel too tired). I find I'm getting more and more food aversions though. Throughout the pregnancy, I have been less and less a fan of Kraft Dinner, which is unfortunate because both Paul and Harmony really like it and usually have it on "Sparks night" (Wednesdays) since we need a quick dinner. Last week I just skipped it altogether because it just put me off so much. I couldn't stand to look at it too much and even the smell of the pot after they had the KD made my stomach feel queasy. I also had an aversion to pizza for the first part of the pregnancy, although that's starting to wane now. As far as cravings go, lately I've been on a big peanut-butter-and-banana-sandwich kick. And of course, the usual milk cravings! I think I had 4 glasses of it today. Emotional: Well, we got special channels last week and one of the main reasons I wanted to get them was to watch "A Baby Story" on TLC. I watched it so often during the last few months of my pregnancy with Harmony and really wanted to have the same experience. It is so awesome to see all those babies being born and I just cry my eyes out everytime I heard those newborn cries! It has really helped me realize that "oh my God, I am going to get to meet my little baby soon"!!! We also watched a video during our prenatal class that showed a baby being born and I had the same reaction - just totally in tears over it! I am just starting to get so emotional over the fact that I get to have this baby soon and he will be this little person to love and care for. I'll even get teary-eyed sometimes when I talk to Harmony about the things that Avery will do after he's born (like I was telling her that he will look around when he hears her voice when she comes home from school in January, just like right now he kicks when he hears her voice). Even though it feels like I've been pregnant for such a long time now, I still haven't forgotten what a miracle this really is.
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