Weekly thread for Oct. 19-26

[scheelimama]

Just thought I would get this going. No question this week. As for me: 36 w 5 d, holding steady around 30 lbs. on the weight gain, blood pressure was slightly elevated, but was lower by the end of my appt. I'm really feeling ready. I mean, I'm not getting overly anxious, but I'm just not sure how much longer I can do this. My hips and pelvis are so loose and everything is achy. I'd be really happy with only another week or two of being pregnant, but I'm trying to be realistic as well.

I know the baby is starting to get too big b/c I'm not feeling much movement any more. Still enough to know baby is alive and well, but not like it was 2 weeks ago. My mw swears I'm having a small baby since I'm measuring pretty small, but I don't really think that means anything. With dd#1 I measured 37 wks at 41 wks just before she was born and she was 8 lbs. 5.5 oz. With this one I measured at 34 wks this past Wednesday. People say I don't look big enough to be having a baby in a few weeks and they actually assume that b/c I'm carrying small means I should not be too uncomfortable. Imagine being 5'4" and carrying quite small but still having a good sized baby. Where does it go? Into your ribs and stomach and bladder and smashes everything down! Okay, so that's my pet-peive and dh has heard me complain too many times this week about that, so I thought I would burden you all this time. Well, that's enough for me for now.

ETA: Anyone else checking the sticky's obsessively to see if anyone is in labor or had their babe yet? Am I the only nut around here. :LOL

[MonkeyPrincess]

I seem to be on the other side of the fence...I'm not ready to be done yet!

Although I am very uncomfortable, sick to death of peeing every 15-20 minutes - literally! I wake up every two hours or so (getting myself ready for nighttime nursing?!), and pray before I look at the clock that it's almost morning cause I'm sick of waking up all night, why can't I just sleep...I'm exhausted!!

I had a little "scare" on Saturday morning, I thought my water had broken (it didn't). I was in tears thinking "Not now, I can't have this baby now!" Mainly because I have so much to do still...that was, however, really good motivation to get the baby clothes washed and put away I feel like with the other kids, all the stuff we had to do to the house, my husband switching jobs, and just life in general that I haven't had any time to just focus on this pregnancy. We haven't even made it to the farm yet this season, one of my all time favorite things to do, and if I had the baby last weekend, there's no way I'd get there this year...wierd reason to not want to deliver, huh?! Anyway, I'm hoping I'll have some time to focus on the baby and do pregnancy stuff in the next few weeks.

Anyway, sorry for rambling...I have a mw appt tomorrow, I guess I'll update with anything worth updating about afterwards

[MonikitaUT]

37 Weeks 1 Day

I went to the chiropractor today for the first time, due to my pelvis acting up. It's been progressively hurting more and more, and popping in a NOT good way. The latest trouble has been that if I'm sitting I can't lift my left leg up. That makes getting out of the car when I'm a passenger very difficult. It also makes driving and stepping from the gas to the break difficult. (Eek!) Hopefully the adjustment will help!! I'm being a good girl and icing it right now.

I haven't had any more real surges, so I guess those over the weekend were just practice surges. Part of me thinks that me being at work could possibly be holding off labor, but I know I could have weeks left yet either way. At any rate, I know I'll have her within 5 weeks! (They don't let you go past 42 weeks, right?)

Here's to sending vibes to all of us mamas to be at peace with our pregnancies over these last few weeks!

Oh, and yes, I'm checking the labor & birth stickies somewhat obsessively! :LOL

[BoobyJuice]

Had my last appt on Monday. I'll be 38 weeks Wednesday, guess that makes me 37 wks 6 days right now. I actually gained 4 lbs in the last week and a half, but that only brings me up to 24 lbs. Wierd for me, I was over 40 with my first 2 pregnancies and not doing anything differently this time - actually not exercising this time . I've dropped; all my clothes fit differently overnight and the dr measured me a few cm smaller than I was the 1.5 weeks earlier. I actually feel sooooo much better now that I've dropped. I was hanging almost straight out before like my belly was on an invisible platter. When I dropped I (well the baby) went more upright. That's taken so much pressure off my back and stomach muscles. I was peeing all the time anyway so having a head down there doesn't seem to change much.

I'm ready and not ready for this at the same time. I was really impatient the last few weeks but now that I feel better a lot of that has disappeared. Now I feel more like I need to wash all the baby clothes, etc than actually get the baby out. Of course when I'm having contractions I think there is no way I can do 2 (don't even think 4) more weeks of this. I've always had contractions that start and stop . . . an hour here . . . 30 minutes there. This time they are serious, whomping contractions that require concentration to relax - much more like what I got in labor with the boys. It is starting to make me wonder (ummm, worry) how strong this labor is going to be.

Everyday I say I'm going to pack my bags for the hospital and don't get around to it. It's getting down to it now, need to get that done. My little two I already hae are being horrid;; seems they are anticipating sibling rivalry or something. Now they are sick on top of fighting and grouchy. Ummmmm, I may see if the hospital will keep me for a few extra days

[jecaly]

36 weeks or so

oh, boobyjuice, getting closer! and monika, it sounds like that pain a lot of us have had--i hope your chiropractor can fix things up for you.

i'm entering the nesting phase for real, i think--which is a little frustrating because there's a fair amount of transitional chaos in the house, and i just want everything to make sense. we have WAY too many newborn baby clothes, so i just went through and weeded out a bunch of stuff to store or pass on.

i saw my backup midwife (at the hospital) yesterday--i'm up to 40 pounds gained, and am measuring pretty big--38 cm, she said, but i take fundal measurements with a grain of salt. we should get the results from the gbs test from my midwife next week, when she comes for the home visit. eek, the home visit.

physically, i'm still feeling pretty good--doing yoga once or twice a week, but that's about it for exercise. no horrible discomforts, though (knock knock). the sky's really gorgeous right now; we had our first real storm of the season today, and now the sun's out and setting among a lot of clouds. how neat it will be to watch someone see the sky for the first time!

oh, i have two questions: 1. peri bottles: will any squeeze bottle do? do they sell the real ones at drugstores? 2. my birthday's at the end of the month and i really want to leave town for some hot springs. i'll be at 37 weeks and a few days, and we'll be about 2 hours from home for a day and a half. barring signs of imminent labor, that's probably okay, right?

*jennifer

[AmandasMom]

I'm 35 weeks, very uncomfortable, it's so hard to get up, get out, and do stuff. At my dr's appt last week, i had her check my cervix, everything is high and closed. I blood pressure was high/borderline at 147/80. She isn't putting me on meds or worrying too much yet because the 2nd number is staying at 80. I go back next week for GBS test, then back weekly after that. Today I have a bad case of swelling in my legs. If you press on them, you will leave an indent in them. It's gross!

I was at hellmart the other day buying a few sleepers, when I realized that all the sleepers and hats and stuff I was buying were pink-ish and girlish. I'm having a boy! I guess I still can't accept that I'm having a boy, I try to make myself think about it, but ... a boy? I don't know anything about boys. Guess I'll just take it 1 Day At a Time. (anyone care to show their age and admit remember that TV show? )

Besides worrying over the baby being a boy, I'm still worried about labor, VBAC, ruptures, repeat CS, etc etc. I need to stop worrying and relax. Sleep would be nice too, but I haven't slept through the night in over 4 years so I don't expect to anytime soon.

[yogagirl]

34 1/2 weeks?

I keep getting confused. My mws are coming over for the home visit next week. At last week's appointment she announced this saying we need our birthing supplies ready by then and I started crying! I have been feeling so overwhemed and emotional lately. My dh got laid off last week, my mom's having a shower for me this Thursday and for some reason that's stressing me out and I'm preparing an open house for my little soap making business next week.

I'm feeling better now though and my dh's been wonderful following my "orders" in organizing the house the way I'm picturing it in my head.

I feel really big! People keep asking if I'm with twins. My mw says I'm just measuring 1 cm over. I'm not even sure what that means. I guess I could of asked her but I'm not the quickest lately.

Oh yeah, I'm taking a Birthing from Within class and the facilitator is pretty wacky. That has helped make this first pregnancy all the more interesting! This is such a trip!!

[momsgotmilk4two]

I'm 36 weeks today! Woo hoo! I really hope I only have a couple more weeks to go. I'm not feeling too uncomfy actually, just so excited to see this baby and my other two kiddos were a bit early. Plus the kids are sooo excited to see the baby and I'm tired of not being able to bend down or snuggle very well with my kids. Other than that I'm feeling pretty darn good! I see a chiro and it's like magic on my back. I'm measuring a week ahead, not that that means anything.

OP, I have a friend who was just like you. They even told her sadly that she'd have a 5lb baby full term. Nope, baby was over 8lbs. Same thing happened to my mom. She is very small boned and carried small. They said I'd be 6lbs and I was 8lbs, 8oz. Personally I think you are just more fit than most of us:LOL I would bet anything that I will have a perfectly normal size baby, not a linebacker. My other kids were 7lbs, 14oz (at 37 weeks so I guess that's fairly large for dates) and 8lbs, 4oz at 39 weeks. Normal size babies.

[clynnr]

Originally Posted by BoobyJuice

Everyday I say I'm going to pack my bags for the hospital and don't get around to it. It's getting down to it now, need to get that done.

Me too!! I finally packed a bag for the baby (all diapers and a "going home" outfit), but I haven't packed mine yet. I'm less than two weeks out now, and still no bag! :LOL

Okay, I'm 38 weeks, and I think I've hit the point where I feel like I'm going to be pregnant forever. I love being pregnant! I do not love not being able to sleep, having an itchy belly all the time, needing help to put on my socks, and in general feeling like a beached whale trying to get around. I want a baby! A beautiful, tiny, new, soft, good-smelling, all-mine-and-dh's baby!!!

I'm having BH all the time, but nothing real yet. Went to the doc yesterday, and I'm still dilated about 1cm, but now I'm about 1/3 effaced, so that's good news! DH is going crazy because he needs to know when I'm going to have the baby. He keeps asking me, "How long will it take for you to dilate? How long until you efface? How will we know when you'll go into labor?" I keep telling him that no one knows, not even scientists know, but he has to know. Finally yesterday I told him to ask his mother, since she knows everything! :

Originally Posted by scheelimama

ETA: Anyone else checking the sticky's obsessively to see if anyone is in labor or had their babe yet? Am I the only nut around here.

I check my subscriptions every time I log on, then I come here and check again, just in case there was some malfunction. I can't believe no one has gone yet!

[TalkToMeNow]

Originally Posted by clynnr

I check my subscriptions every time I log on, then I come here and check again, just in case there was some malfunction. I can't believe no one has gone yet!

Yeah, I know... come on, get with it people! Someone have a baby!

Alisha, I am a pretty small person myself. 5'5 and usually about 110lbs. I just have a really small frame. Mabel was 21.5" and 8lbs 5 oz. Everyone was amazed she came out of me! I know what you mean about "where does the baby go". I'm measuring small, too. The midwife doesn't think the babe is very big, but I don't see why it wouldn't be around the same size as Mabel.

I'm 37 weeks 5 days. Still washing and sanitizing linens for the birth and gathering supplies. Someone should've told me a homebirth would be this much work! I can't really complain, pretty normal end of pregnancy pains. A lot of pain/ stretching in my cervix. Lots of BH ctx. Nothing very exciting going on.

I have a question: For moms that have had more than one already, did the labor contractions feel the same? When they started were you like, " Oh yeah! I remember that." ? Just wondering.

[indiegirl]

Originally Posted by clynnr

I can't believe no one has gone yet!

You're telling me. How great is that? We are all cooking our babies really well!

I'm 38.5 weeks, 39 on Friday. I was a mess a couple of weeks ago and things have really evened out. The house is CLEAN, I tell you! That made all the difference in the world. Preparing for a homebirth is such a PIA but it's worth it in the end. I just forget how much stuff there is to do and then I get overwhelmed.

My PSD is killin me, though. I can hardly walk properly sometimes. That is really the only discomfort I am feeling. My cervix is soft and mostly effaced but I'm not dialated and my cervix is posterior. My surges have been constant but not intense and I don't feel as if we're in the "big time" quite yet.

Dh's contract ended last Friday but he got work this week, so I have had the financial pressure of not keeping him home this week--plus, two of my labor support people are out of town this week. Come Saturday, I'm doing whatever I can to have this baby b/c dh has an entire week before his next job starts and we have some money saved for him to stay home. It would just be perfect if I could have her this weekend! Please baby, please!

I've slept better with this pg than with any of the others as long as I don't nap in the afternoon.

I've been busy knitting, knitting and more knitting! Gotta love that--it's a perfect nesting urge and so productive!

Jesse

[momsmyjob]

I'm almost 35 weeks. I'm feeling better at this point then I have at this point with my other pregnancies and sleeping better too. I can't help it though, the kids are keeping me tired. I had been taking GNC prenatals but I started taking Rainbow light and like them so much better and feel better too.

I ordered my birth kit last week so I'm hoping to get it this week I still can't decide on the pool I want..small or big. I better hurry up and order that. It's getting so exciting. I can't wait!

[scheelimama]

Amanda,
Thanks for the "big baby, small mama" support. Please tell me that you are just as uncomfortable as the rest of us. Why would you be any less comfortable just b/c you are carrying small??? AHHH...my big pet peive, drives me crazy that ppl think that.

Anyway, I was wondering the same thing about second time labor pains. I remember what late labor felt like, but, for the life of me, I can't really remember what those early surges felt like. My mom says I'll remember when I feel them. So, do you really, or is it different the second/third/etc. times or do you really remember? Anyone?

[tuffykenwell]

I am at 37 weeks and 2 days and still going strong. Not feeling too badly other than the need to have a three hour nap every day LOL! I am now officially within the range that I can have a homebirth so I am getting kind of nervous but in a good way.

Still have to gather up all of the homebirth supplies...I should get the last of them tomorrow.

I had the midwives home visit this week and that was pretty cool. I asked the midwife based on what she knows now (about the babies size etc etc) if there was a window after which she would not be comfortable with a homebirth (remembering that I am a VBAC) and she said she felt pretty comfortable up to 41 weeks and after that we would play it by ear based on how things are progressing etc. That sounds pretty fair to me so I am satisfied with that right now. I am hoping not to hit the 41 week mark though...getting a bit impatient right now LOL!

Steph

[Britishmum]

I haven't visited much, but I'm due sometime in mid to late November! Although I thought it was going to be October - I spent all afternoon on Friday at the birth center with my midwife. I've now been having very frequent contractions for six days. It wouldnt bother me, but my dates are not at all definite, so I could have only been at 33 weeks when this started.

They sent me home to rest, and I saw the midwife again today. She reassured me that she's happy with how I'm measuring, and that I shouldnt worry, if the baby comes now, it will be fine. This happened with dd#2, where I didnt feel the contractions but had labour for weeks - I walked around in the end for 3 weeks at 8cm dilated. Apparently I was at 2cm today. For some reason, though, the contractions this time are far more painful, and constant. I didnt really notice them last time.

My biggest worry is that last time, once my waters broke it was less than 20 mins before the baby was born. Really fast and furious. I don't have any family here, and most friends go to work. I have visions of having this baby with just my 4 yr old and 2 yr old here, while dh rushes home from work. It has even occurred to me to practice with my 4 year old how to dial 911. Am I worrying overmuch? I don't know! But maybe a lesson in how to do it wouldnt be a bad thing now - she knows the system, but we've never actually practiced using the phone.

Agh, now I"m freaking myself again.......

But at least I got my hospital bag packed after last week's scare.

[TalkToMeNow]

Alisha, I think I'm as uncomfortable as most... some people are definetly having a worse time. But I was horribly uncomfortable with Mabel!! It has nothing to do with how you carry!

Britishmum, sorry you're having a hard time with the ctx and worrying about having the baby alone.

I have all my supplies, the linens are sanitized, everything is put away and ready to go. Except diaper pins for the bed... can't find those. I'm almost ready to have the baby! I just need my midwife to get back in town!

[MonikitaUT]

Britishmum - It might make you more at peace with your worries about birthing fast alone if you read "Emergency Childbirth" - I think it is by Dr. Gregory White, if I remember correctly. It is kind of old and some of the info is a little out dated, but it is a really good reference to have. I HTH!

[Grantsmommy]

38 weeks tomorrow!

I can't wait to meet this baby! I'm feeling huge, as I have for the last few months. I'm also tired beyond belief! I look forward to Thursdays because dh has that day off and can play with ds while I nap! I think they are planning to make a carrot cake today - YUM!

My calf muscles are sore, as if I've been exercising with weights (haven't been doing that). Anyone else have that? Also, I find it difficult to sit on the toilet to pee sometimes because of my huge stomach. (Don't you love it when the bay smashes its head into your bladder? What a feeling!)

All that aside, I'm just so happy to be this close. Just think, any of us could be holding our babes any time now! I wonder if we have a girl or a boy cooking in there. Come out little Ava or Trent!

Ds is sooo excited too. I got impatient and went to Babies-R-Us the other day to pick up the last of the supplies that I needed to have before the baby arrives (car seat, burpees, etc). Ds was so excited to help put the car seat together and really wanted to carry the diaper pail upstairs! He's so cute!

Got to go pick up ds from "school." Take care everyone!

[Megamama]

Almost 35 Weeks here..

Had a midwife visit today..I had dumped some sugar in the urine but otherwise all is ok...still only 10 lbs gained from original weight. I'm measuring about a week ahead, which is cool. The baby is head down, but not quite in position yet, which is OK according to the midwife.

My MIL came today and grilled the midwife on what exactly should happen with the birth, so she is more comfortable with the process now.. they are being a big help around the house, I feel a bit like a queen on a throne sometimes. We had this big plumbing thing last week and now the house kind of smells weird to me, which I'm going bonkers with..no one else can smell it...!!

All in all, I'm calmer and better suited to wait than I was a week ago. I was tired of pregnancy then, now I'm happy to do this for another month..I can't wait till you other mamas have some babies, though!

[BabyOsMommy]

36weeks, huge, waddling, and not ready to have a baby because I still have stuff to do. Rolling over has become an olympic sport at night, and wakes dh pretty much every time, but I have to do it because my hips hurt and my head's all plugged up. Every once in a while the same side of my nose is stuffed that my hips hurt on, and I feel like I've won the lottery or something.

Not tracking weight gain, really. Babe's doing well, measuring a week ahead even though I've dropped and he's in my pelvis, but posterior, so I'm supposed to watch tv on my hands and knees all week to try to turn him around. I want to knit, though so I'm not following orders very well.

So basically, when asked how I'm feeling, I just say, "pretty good considering I'm walking around with a head in my pelvis". Turns some heads.

The only really irritating thing is I'm already getting THE calls. You know the ones that ask you if you've had the baby yet? Drives me INSANE. It's too frickin' early for him to have arrived, even if he is my second. So I've started screening by answering machine already. I call display and answering machines...