My Pregnancy Journal: 28 Weeks - the Start of the 3rd Trimester!

 

  I've been linking up with the “My Pregnancy Journal” meme over at Happenings of the Harper Household. She has since had her little girl (Yay!), but I still wanted to continue to keep a pregnancy journal. I'm excited to keep  sharing and journaling some of my weekly symptoms and photographing my growing belly!

  28 Weeks!

 

This week, I am starting my 3rd trimester! Yay! I am now 2/3 of the way there (depending on when our little boy decides that he's ready, of course). Baby boy is measuring about 1.5 to 2.5 pounds and measures about 13.6 to 14.8 inches. He is  continuing to get ready for his grand entrance by practicing his breathing skills! His little lungs are almost developed enough for life on the outside! He is also adding some fat to his frame, which will help to smooth out his wrinkly skin (I think I'd be wrinkly if I were floating in fluid for 28 weeks too!). My body is continuing to prepare and my colostrum has come in to get ready to nourish our little one (maybe that's why I've been so sore and tender lately). Also, Braxton Hicks contractions will start to increase as my body prepares for labor. It is so amazing that women's bodies were designed to grow life and prepare to deliver them! I am constantly in awe of everything that is going on inside of me!   

 

 About me & baby boy this week….

Symptoms:  I am pretty sure that our little boy likes to hang out on my sciatic nerve that runs down the left side of my body. Hopefully he's comfy, because it's not so pleasant for me! :) Chiropractic adjustments do help, but the relief usually just lasts a day or two before the little guy is back to putting pressure on my sciatic. I have also found that certain yoga positions can help to lessen the ache and a warm bath really, really helps! I love water for relieving pain! Hopefully it will also help during labor! I have been feeling our little boy move and roll and kick - he is as active as ever! I love it though - it is so fun to feel him move around! I think that I have been feeling some Braxton Hicks contractions. They feel like my whole belly is getting tight for just a few seconds. been getting headaches that can last for most of the day or just a few hours. Overall though, I am feeling pretty good! I am feeling a bit "bigger" and noticing that I tire more easily and that it is just a tad harder to get out of a deep armchair! ;) 

Weight Gain: I am up to 154.6lbs. I have gained 3.4lbs in the last 2 weeks. I'm not exactly sure what the "going rate" is for weight gain right now, but my midwife seems to be happy with where I am at!

Cravings! No real specific cravings this week. I definitely have a desire to eat a lot of healthy foods, like beans, veggies and salads. I have been feeling like eating smaller meals and not making "heartier" dishes. That could be because I don't have as much room anymore, so smaller, more frequent meals definitely sounds better to me.

Food Aversions: Still no food aversions! I have a bit of a prenatal vitamin aversion, haha! I am a bit tired of taking them every single day, but I still do (no need to worry!). 

 

What made me cry this week:  No tears for me, thank you very much! :

Medical Stuff: I had my 28 week appointment with my midwife yesterday! I always look forward to those! I did have to have the diabetes blood work test though. (Boo!) I am 99.999% sure that I do not have diabetes, but I guess it's better to be safe than sorry. I really hate needles and I was so worried going in! Last time they drew blood, I passed out, so I was worried that the same thing would happen again. I really wanted to do better though and since I had just finished reading The Birth Book, by Dr. Sears, I thought I would give some of the relaxation techniques a try! Might as well get some practice in before I really need it for the big day! I am happy to say that with hubby's help (and little man too - he patted my leg and said, "It's ok mama") and I also had a friend pray for me, that I actually did amazingly well! It hurt at first, but the anxiety and intense pain wasn't there like it had been before! Yay! I was so happy that I got through it and was able to relax. It gave me a lot of encouragement for delivering this little boy. Also on a happy note- I didn't have to drink that gross glucose "drink"! My midwife gave me a list of alternate foods to eat or drink 1 hour before the test. So, I had a 4oz glass of apple juice, 2tsp of honey and a small banana. Yum! So much tastier! 

 

 

Little man helped out with the doppler again - he just loves it! He also loves sitting on the little stool right next to our midwife while we are chatting. It is so cute! He just has to sit next to her (or play with the spray nozzle in the birthing tub...) We got to hear our little guys heartbeat again! I don't think I will ever tire of that. My midwife also felt to see where our little boy is positioned and he seems to be chilling in the most common position - head down, his butt is on my right and his legs are on my left. It would be nice if he stayed that way - seems like he may be anxious to meet his mommy, daddy and big brother!

Approximate location of our baby boy ;)

Thoughts from little man:  Little man is generally unaware that I have a big baby bump. Or, perhaps he just doesn't think that this belly should affect my range of motion or activity level! If you ask him where his baby brother is, or what's inside mommy's belly, he does know that that is where his baby brother is. He also is pretty good at saying his new brother's name (yup! we picked out a name...finally!) and after a bit of thought, he will usually say it with a smile on his face. :)

Something I am excited about: We have our first Bradley Method class coming up on the 16th and I am excited to see what that is like. Also, I am sure excited to be in the 3rd trimester. Nesting seems to have really kicked in and I can't wait to work on decorating the nursery!