merry christmas!

Feeling: Tired at times, since it's been so busy the last week. Christmas eve I went out for lunch with my mom and sister, in the evening Jeremy and I went to church with his parents then back to their place. On Christmas day we went to my parents' place for lunch, then to his parents' place in the evening. On the 27th we went to Lisa and Geoff's place for lunch and to celebrate my dad's birthday. On the 28th my mom hosted a baby shower for me!
Movement?: Last week my midwife was concerned that he's not head-down, since I'm measuring 3 weeks behind. But this week I'm measuring 36 weeks, and she could definitely tell the difference between his head and butt - I think he's starting to chunk out!
Cravings: Ice cream cake....
Wishing for: Another 2 days - I can't believe it's going to be January in 2 days!
Movies: no movies, spent my free time with the puzzle Jeremy got me for Christmas
Current Project: trying not to have too many projects right now, and enjoy the calm before the storm... easier said then done since we're putting the final touches on the nursery and getting all the home birth stuff gathered. We've got the tub and tens machine, and the midwife dropped off all the drugs and fluids we'll need.

At 38 weeks pregnant, only two more weeks (or plus two more, max) before your baby makes his appearance. Your little one isn't so little anymore — weighing in at close to seven pounds and hitting the height charts at the 21-inch mark (or less).

As you prepare (best you can) for baby's ETA, he is also getting ready, big time. Vernix and lanugo continue to shed from your baby's body into the amniotic fluid. Your baby's lungs continue to mature as more and more surfactant is secreted.

Here are just a few of the amazing photos Melissa took of me a few weeks back...

Bonnie

Feeling: Pretty good, considering people keep telling me it looks like I have a basketball in my belly. My left eyelid has been twitching for over a week, which is really annoying.
Movement?: He's been in the same position for weeks now - with his legs on my left. I'm still trying to get him to turn so he's facing in. I sit forward all the time, and a few weeks ago I replaced my office chair with the exercise ball. Also my chiropractor has tried a technique to get him to move - but he still won't budge.
Cravings: Tea and Christmas food
Wishing for: Another 10 days of baby hanging out in my belly. After January 1st he's free to make his debut whenever he'd like!
Movies: more Christmas movies... Rudolf, Miracle on 34th street, and A Christmas Carol
Current Project: keeping my eye on 2 puppies. We're fostering a guide dog puppy for 9 days while her owners are on vacation. Her name is Bonnie and she's a 4.5 month old goldendoodle. Addy and Bonnie love wresting in the living room, but hitting the Christmas tree makes a big mess.
Weight: down 1 pound, I have no idea how that happened with all the cookies I've been eating! So up 25 pounds in total.

With just three more weeks to go and at about six and a half pounds (though weight and height vary from fetus to fetus), your baby is doing just fine. You can expect weight gain to be about half an ounce per day. (Boys, though, are likely to be heavier at birth than girls) Since your little one is considered full-term at 37 weeks pregnant, if your baby was to leave the wet nest this week, he or she would likely thrive. That's because Mother Nature and you have done such a fine job.

So what's keeping your little one busy while waiting it out until D-day? Practice, practice, practice. Your baby is simulating breathing by inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid, sucking on his or her thumb, blinking, and pivoting from side to side. Here's an interesting fact: Your baby's head (which, by the way, is still growing) will, at birth, be the same size circumference as his or her hips, abdomen, and shoulders. And guess what's making an impression (literally) these days on those shoulders and hips: fat — causing little dimples in those cute elbows and knees, shoulders and hip, and creases and folds in the neck and wrists.

Logging all the vitamins I've been taking, so I can remember them for later:

Multivitamin: I've been taking New Chapter Organics Prenatal, but just discovered Thorne Prenatal - which is much more affordable.

Iron: Starting taking Floridex liquid when I found out I have low iron stores (third trimester).

Super DHA liquid (Genestra): was taking this even before pregnancy, since it's good for brain development.

Folid Acid + B12 (Genestra): was taking this before pregnancy til the end of second trimester.

Biotone EFA (Genestra): good for skin elasticity and maintaining hormonal balance - great for acne too. I started taking them around week 26, but wish I had started earlier.

AFA-Gen (Genestra): good for boosting immune system and helping with fatigue - taking during month 9, and first few months of breastfeeding.

Probiotics: started taking around week 26, hopefully helps prevent Strep B.

happy bday addy

Addy turned 1 year old on the weekend. She's such a good pup.

Feeling: Starting to feel ginormous. The midwife said that the baby has 'engaged' so now it feels like I've got a baseball in my pelvis.
Movement?: Not as many big movements anymore, but he still squiggles around all the time.
Cravings: Pineapple and anything home baked.... cookies, brownies, cake...
Wishing for: Looks like I got my wish for a white Christmas! There was a big storm last week, which was nice because it meant Jeremy got to stay home for the day.
Movies: more Christmas movies... Charlie Brown, Garfield, It's a Wonderful Life
Current Project: wrapping up all my projects at work so I can hand them off before I leave. We've got most of the Christmas shopping and wrapping done, just some baking left to do. We assembled the dresser to use as a change table in the baby's room - now we just need to add accents like art and curtains.

Your baby's skull isn't the only soft structure in his or her little body. Most of your baby's bones and cartilage are quite soft as well (they'll harden over the first few years of life). At 36 weeks pregnant, the skull bones are also not fused together yet so that the head can easily maneuver through the birth canal.

He is now about six pounds in weight and measures slightly more than 20 inches in length. Growth will experience a slowdown now, both so your baby will be able to fit the narrow passageway to the outside and also so he or she can store up all the energy needed for delivery.

By now, many of your baby's systems are pretty mature, at least in baby terms — and just about ready for life on the outside. Blood circulation, for instance, has been perfected and your baby's immune system has matured enough to protect him or her from infections outside the womb. Other systems, however, still need a few finishing touches. Once such notable example: digestion — which actually won't be fully mature until sometime after birth. Why's that? Inside his or her little gestational cocoon, your baby has relied on the umbilical cord for nutrition, meaning that the digestive system — though developed — hasn't been operational. So your baby will take the first year or two to bring that system up to speed.

week 35

Feeling: I'm getting so excited to meet this guy. We're now at the point where he'd be healthy if born now, but if he waits until week 37 we're good to go for the the home birth. We're hoping he holds out until January.
Movement?: Still lots. He gets hiccups at least once a day, and when he's moving around it looks like my whole belly is shifting.
Cravings: Christmas cookies
Wishing for: a white Christmas, we got a dusting of snow early this week and they are calling for a big storm on Wednesday
Movies: all kinds of Christmas movies... Elf, Christmas Vacation, and White Christmas
Current Project: Jeremy finished painting the nursery and installed the closet organizer. Now I'm adding baskets and all the clothes. Yesterday I decorated the tree - it's huge! 9 feet tall. Melissa took some maternity photos of me on the weekend, and I can't wait to see how they turned out.
Weight: up 26 pounds!

At about 20 inches and five and a half pounds, most of your baby's growth over the next month or so before you meet will be in weight (with a gain of anywhere from one pound to several), not height (baby's pretty much reached the in utero limit in that department). Accordingly, fat continues to accumulate at a rapid pace these days. Back in the middle of your pregnancy, your baby's weight was made up of only two percent fat; now at 35 weeks pregnant, that percentage has soared to closer to 15 percent (and will increase to 30 percent at term). Which means your baby's once skinny arms and legs are now quite plump…and irresistibly, squeezably soft.

I've spent a lot of time this week thinking about and praying for Laura. For those reading this blog, if possible, please say an extra prayer of strength and reassurance for Laura, Dan and baby.

Right now I'm: 34 weeks and 1 day pregnant. 6 weeks to go!
Feeling: It usually changes every hour or so - haha. Right now I'm feeling great after coming home from aquafit class, and after the great trip I had last week to Toronto. I got to see everyone at work, and spend some time catching up with Ev.
Movement?: His little foot / knee is always poking me in the left side! I think his back is on my right side, so I've been trying to get him to move to the left (which is suppose to be the best position); hopefully in the next few weeks.
Cravings: clementines again
Wishing for: snow... it's December already!
Movies: It's been forever since I've seen a movie. Instead, this weekend we went to Jared and Aleks' place for dinner and to meet their daughter Maya. On Saturday we also got to meet Hayes' new owner at his graduation ceremony. We're so proud of Hayes!
Current Project: buying baby stuff and Christmas gifts, and decorating the house. This week we ordered the stroller and bought the car seat. I'm also washing / organizing all the baby clothes Jay and Tammy generously gave us - we're set for the next year! This weekend Melissa is going to take some maternity photos of me, so hopefully I'll be able to post a new one next week :)

Your baby could be as tall as 20 inches right now and about five pounds. That's how tall your baby is at 34 weeks pregnant. Your baby's fingernails now reach the end of the fingertips and may even curl over the tip, making a manicure one of the first things you'll need to do for your little bundle.