34 Weeks and "On the Healthy Side of Normal"

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.

How far along: 34 Weeks

Total weight gain: 44

Maternity clothes: Yes!

Stretch marks: Nope

Sleep: Now that I am back on the magnesium I am sleeping much deeper for much longer.

Best moment of this week: Seeing our little Vivienne's face at my 34 week growth scan!  The tech was even nice enough to show her in 3D although she didn't really cooperate because she kept putting her hand up in front of her face.  She might even have been sucking her thumb!  She has some real cute chubby cheeks and a giant Horton head too.

Luckily, the growth scan didn't reveal anything scary.  They wouldn't check my cervical length because it's a mute point at 34 weeks.  She has all the amniotic fluid she needs, but still plenty of room to flip around.  Unlike her sister was at this point, she is head down.  My placenta is ageing as it is supposed to and the umbilical cord has all 3 chambers.  There were really no concerns.

She is measuring in the 82 percentile which means she is on the "healthy side of normal."  Anything over 90% is classified as a huge baby.  Not sure what the next steps would have been if she'd been "huge" because it is not something we need to worry about.  With her giant head, big round belly and long legs, she is measuring ahead at over 35 weeks and is roughly already 5 lbs. 8 oz.!  

Miss anything: Being able to relax.

Movement: All the time!  She's crazy. I'm supposed to be doing kick counts but they really aren't necessary.  

Food cravings: My stomach is so squished that I barely want to eat, but I keep gaining weight!

Anything making you queasy or sick: No

Have you started to show yet: I'd say so.

Gender: The tech double checked for us and she is most definitely a girl.  

Labor signs: No and I hope it stays that way for at least 2 more weeks.  

Belly button in or out: Still in but it has almost disappeared

Wedding rings on or off: Been off for awhile now

Happy or moody most of the time: I'm too tired to be either one.  

Looking forward to: Meeting this little girl in 2-5 weeks!

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there! 

28 Weeks Later

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.

How far along: 28 Weeks

Total weight gain: About 37 pounds!  Too much weight gain so far, but I passed my glucose test so there's that.  

Maternity clothes: Oh yeah.

Stretch marks: Nothing new

Sleep: My allergies are starting to kick in so breathing at night is rough.  

Best moment of this week: Scarlett sitting on me, but then as soon as she got off Vivienne started to go crazy punching, kicking and jabbing!  It was like she was saying, "Hey, big sis, come back here!"

Miss anything: I miss racing.  I can't go for a 2 mile run without desperately needing a bathroom these days so there is no way I could even pull off a 5K.  I've been tempted to sign up for one, but I also worry about complications arising even though I know it is perfectly safe for me to run and exercise while pregnant.  I think mentally I'd rather just stay close to home.  

Movement: Tons!  The other night I woke up to hear being transverse.  She was kicking her legs and arms simultaneously.  I really thought she was trying to bust out.  

Food cravings: Nah.  

Anything making you queasy or sick: Just really strong smells.  

Have you started to show yet: YES!

Gender: Female

Labor signs: No, but I worry about how my cervix is holding up although nothing can be done.  

Belly button in or out: In

Wedding rings on or off: off

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy

Looking forward to: Just checking more things off my to-do list like gathering baby gear and packing our hospital bags.

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there! 

26 Weeks Pregnant

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.

How far along: 26 weeks

Total weight gain: 34 pounds give or take

Maternity clothes: Oh yeah

Stretch marks: Nothing new

Sleep: Yes, please!  

Best moment of this week: Sleeping for 12 hours on a Friday night!

Miss anything: Downtime.  I've been so busy lately and all I want to do is R-E-L-A-X

Movement: She is a wiggle worm!  I miss having a belly band so I can play music.  Scarlett listened to a lot of Mozart while she was in there.  

Food cravings: Nope.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Not really.  Just strong smells offend me.  

Have you started to show yet: I'd like to think I look pregnant now and not just fat.  

Gender: Still a girl as far as we know.  

Labor signs: Nope, but fingers crossed my cervix holds out until she's full-term.  

Belly button in or out: In, but it never popped out with Scarlett.  

Wedding rings on or off: Off for awhile now.  

Happy or moody most of the time: I'd like to think I'm happy.  My family might think otherwise.  

Looking forward to: Getting the glucose test for gestational diabetes over with.

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there! 

24 Weeks and Things Just Got Real

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.


How far along: 24 weeks

Total weight gain: 29 pounds.  Over the last month, I just haven't been able to do much.  I move around a lot at work, but once I am home I am usually parked in the sitting position.  I know, I know, not good.  Once I get us into a new normal routine and the weather warms up, I'll be taking out dog, Leia, for lots of walks.  

Maternity clothes: Yes!  And I hate them.  No matter what size I buy my shirts ride up while my pants slide down.  

Stretch marks: Nope.  

Sleep: Not bad.  I usually wake up once during the night.  

Best moment of this week: Scarlett kissing my belly and saying, "I love you Vivienne.  I love you so much!"

Miss anything: Just the usual stuff.  Going for a run regularly and relaxing with a drink with my husband.  

Movement: Boy, is she a wiggle worm!  I just went through a 4 day period where she non-stop flipped, kicked and punched me.  Luckily, she seems to have slowed down now.  

Food cravings: No, although sugar is hard to resist!  

Anything making you queasy or sick: Just nasty smelling things.  

Have you started to show yet: Yes!

Gender: Still a girl!  I had another ultrasound this week and I had the tech checked. She assured me that nothing had "sprouted" yet.  

Labor signs: Here is where things get sticky.  At the start of my pregnancy, my OB laid out a plan to check my cervix at the 20 and 24 week mark.  Why?  Well, I have an incompetent cervix and my daughter was born a month early when my water unexpectedly broke.  She felt this was the best plan of action since I had no other signs that my body would deliver early.  

My 19 week ultrasound showed that I had 4 cm of cervix - "oodles of cervix" my OB said.  Then, my 24 week ultrasound showed that my cervix had thinned to just under 3 cm.  I had "lost" about a centimeter of cervix thickness in 5 weeks.  

At this point, my OB assured me there is nothing to be done.  It is still thankfully closed, but it has thinned.  I'm not in the danger zone yet, which is less than 2.5 CM, but I'm getting close.  Given this information, it is not hard to surmise how it happened that my daughter was born a month early.  If logic dictates, which it rarely does with our pregnant bodies, I'll continue to lose another centimeter a month which leads me to believe that by 36 weeks I'll be having a baby again.  Let's just hope she waits until AFTER Memorial Day so I can help her big sister at her big yearly dance recital.  

Belly button in or out: In

Wedding rings on or off: Off

Happy or moody most of the time: Happy, but getting stressed with everything that needs to be done before this bambino arrives.  

Looking forward to: I can tell you what I am NOT looking forward to:  My blood glucose test at my next appoint at 28 weeks.  Yuck to drinking that stuff.

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there! 

22 Weeks and Feeling Great!

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.

How far along: 22 weeks

Total weight gain: 30 pounds still

Maternity clothes: Oh yeah, you know it.  

Stretch marks: No new ones.

Sleep: Not bad but my arms are starting to go numb while I sleep.  

Best moment of this week: Matt got to feel Vivienne kick for the first time.  

Miss anything: Things have gotten very stressful here lately, but it is all for the greater good and I will share at some point.  I do miss working out - I just don't have much time except to do a few squats here and there.  

Movement: Mostly when I am sitting or lying down.  

Food cravings: No, my hunger has slowed down if that makes sense.  

Anything making you queasy or sick: Anything with too much flavor. I'm still preferring bland food.  

Have you started to show yet: Oh yeah, there are times I feel huge and other times that I feel not so big.  

Gender: Female

Labor signs: No!

Belly button in or out: Still in.  

Wedding rings on or off: I took them off at the request of my husband who feared for the survival of my fingers.  

Happy or moody most of the time: Mostly happy.  

Looking forward to: Taking our hospital tour!  Since we moved here from the West Coast when our first daughter was about 16 months old, we haven't seen the hospital where we will be having Vivienne.

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there! 

20 Weeks Pregnant and Halfway Baked!

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.

How far along: 20 weeks

Total weight gain: 30 pounds, but my weight gain seems to be slowing down. 

Maternity clothes: All of the time.

Stretch marks: Nothing new.

Sleep: Yes, please!

Best moment of this week: The OB let Scarlett hold the wand for the doppler so she could find the baby's heartbeat.  I really wish I'd had my camera ready to snap a picture.  She was thrilled that she could be a big helper and she loves doctors!  

Miss anything: Being able to relax and unwind - there is so much to do.

Movement: Oh yeah.  She's been moving quite a bit.  

Food cravings: I just really want bland foods which means carbs which leads to unnecessary weight gain because my body hates yeast. 

Anything making you queasy or sick: Really flavorful foods.  My tastebuds just can't handle it.  

Have you started to show yet: I think so!

Gender: Another girl!  We are so lucky!  You can watch our 4 year old daughter finding out that she is having a sister HERE.

Labor signs: Nope, in fact I have "lots of cervix" according to my OB.  I have an incompetent cervix so they are monitoring me closely to see if I will deliver early again.  

Belly button in or out: In

Wedding rings on or off: On, but I think I'm going to have to take it off soon.  

Happy or moody most of the time: Tired.  Just so tired.  

Looking forward to: Another ultrasound at 24 weeks to make sure my cervix is still holding up!

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there! 

16 Weeks Pregnant

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.

How far along: 16 weeks!

Total weight gain: 25 Pounds!

Maternity clothes: Oh yes!  I was using a button extender on my jeans but it was just too uncomfortable to wear any more.  Besides, I was getting tired of pulling up my sagging pants.  

Stretch marks: Nothing new.

Sleep:  Sometimes I sleep like the dead.  Other times I barely sleep.  

Best moment of this week: All of the running and working out I was able to squeeze in.  My body is happy to be moving again. The funniest moment though was when my 4 year old got to hear the baby's heart beat for the first time at my 16 week appointment.  It was very strong and loud.  She was immediately quieted down by it.  When the doctor explained to her what it was she quipped, "That is so weird!" 

Miss anything: Not really.

Movement: Nope. 

Food cravings: No although I have a hard time with food that has a lot of flavor.  I think I've been craving a lot of carbs because the taste is so bland.  

Anything making you queasy or sick: No thank God!

Have you started to show yet: I've had a lot more remarks on my baby bump!

Gender: My husband and daughter are convinced it is a girl.  I've switched from Team Blue to Team Pink, but I had a friend tell me she had a dream that I was having a boy too (she's pregnant with her third.)

Labor signs: No!

Belly button in or out: In

Wedding rings on or off:  On 

Happy or moody most of the time: I think no different than normal.  

Looking forward to: Finding out the sex in 3 weeks!

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there! 

12 Weeks Pregnant and Finally Heard the Heartbeat!

Disclaimer: This is my second pregnancy.  With my first pregnancy my daughter was born preterm, breech and via C-section.  Due to my age, my medical history (hello, incompetent cervix!) and my daughter being delivered preterm I am being classified as high-risk.  Things could get a little crazy in here so proceed with caution.

How far along: 12 weeks!

Total weight gain:  Around 14 pounds, but I was weighed on a full stomach having just eaten prior to my doctors appointment. 

Maternity clothes: Still just my shirts for the length.  Definitely can't button my pants anymore.  

Stretch marks: Same old same old.

Sleep: I ran out of Magnesium Citrate which I take for my adrenal fatigue and I'm actually sleeping better without it.  

Best moment of this week:  Hearing the baby's heartbeat at my appointment.  Our 4 year old still doesn't officially know there is a baby in my belly yet.  Our doctor was really good about not letting on either.  When she listened to the heartbeat my daughter was full of questions and she simply told her that sometimes we use a stethoscope to listen to mommy's heart and sometimes we use the Doppler.  My daughter quickly said, "Or a baby."  I think she is on to us.  

Miss anything:  A nice glass of wine to relax with at the end of a hellish week.  

Movement: Not yet, but we could hear baby kicks along with the heartbeat! 

Food cravings: No, just hungry all of the time.  

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Chicken and pork, sometimes salad.  

Have you started to show yet: I think I am!  

Gender:  Still thinking it is a boy since this pregnancy is far less brutal than my last.  

Labor signs: No!

Belly button in or out: In

Wedding rings on or off: On

Happy or moody most of the time: Tired.  Just really tired.  

Looking forward to:  Our anatomy scan where we find out if this is a boy or a girl, is set for January 30!

* Since we did not spill the beans on this pregnancy to our family until I was 14 weeks pregnant, there will be a fair amount of backtracking until I can get caught up.  Hang in there!