Week 34

Week 34 was a whirlwind.  I am still in a bit of shock with everything that happened this past week!  We had some major developments happen; some good, some not as good, but mostly the stress we have added to our lives is pretty high at the moment.  But before I dive into all the craziness, a quick overview on the pregnancy!
Baby P and I are doing well.  We had a small scare one morning when I thought my water broke, but fortunately it had not!  Again felt totally unprepared for her arrival and everything we had not quite done ran through my head as we drove to Labor & Delivery.  Even my husband this time was saying, "We are definitely sitting down when we get home and discussing the 'baby bag' to make sure we get that ready for next time"!  I was not as scared as last time (when I was having contractions), I actually felt a bit more calm.  Maybe because this time I had a better idea of what was going to happen and in all honesty I did not feel it deep down that it was time.  But our doctor insisted that we go and get checked out to make sure because if my water had been broken the chances of infection increases.  In essence the pouch of water is sealing everything in there to protect our little bp.  :)
Other than that one little incident we have been doing good.  I feel a little bigger every day and getting around is becoming a bit more of a challenge as she is packing on weight!  I love feeling her stretch, kick, and trying to guess what she is trying to do.  I so can't wait to meet this little girl!!! :-)
Now about our crazy week, well apparently we like taking on challenges and one big challenge we have decided to do is MOVE!  Yes you are reading that correctly, we are moving one month before my due date!!!  I can't believe it either, in fact putting it out there is stressing me out!  We have a beautiful 2 bedroom 1 car garage condo at the moment that we love, however adding a tiny human to the mix does make it feel like we could use a little more room.  And by some miracle a condo across the street from us has opened up and it is a 3 bedroom 2 car garage with a bedroom on the first level which will be a great help overall!  We had to act quickly and on Monday it was official!  I know this is the best thing for us with the extra space and room, but it is going to be tough.  I cannot do as much as I am use to when it comes to moving and that is what bothers me the most.  I will be relying mostly on my husband to get things done.  Luckily our families have offered to help but at the same time they are no young spring chicks!  My father has a lot of back issues and my mom has arthritis in her hands.  Then there is my mother-in-law who is super busy with her work and cannot take off a lot of days.  We have had some friends offer to help and that will be greatly appreciated :)
Another thing is that my dog Ariel, had a small accident and it looks like the only thing that is going to help get her back 100% is surgery.  She has an issue with her back knee and after surgery she will need 5 weeks of recovery.  And it an expensive procedure as well!  I am so worried about her, she was our first "baby" and she needs this surgery so we will go forward with the vet's plan; it is just one other thing added to our plate of craziness.
Our last piece of news is that we lost a family member on my husband's side of the family.  She was his great-aunt who has been sick from some time, but still getting the news is hard.  We send out our prayers and thoughts to her children.


My little girl, Ariel Marie:

How Far Along? - 34 weeks  

Size of our BP - 4-4 1/2 lbs 

Maternity clothes - found some comfy shirts brand - Michael Star 

Gender - baby girl 

Sleep - getting a bit more difficult as little bp grows!

Food cravings - fruit!  I love peaches, pears and mandarin oranges!   

What I miss -  not really something I miss but something I cherish more is my body.  I have learned that I will never complain about my body once I get it back in shape to pre-pregnancy weight.  I appreciate my body a lot more now!

Symptoms - heartburn, swollen feet/ankles/calves, braxton hicks contractions (all the same)

Belly Button - still an innie and I am pretty determined to stay that way! Also can still see my toes!

Best Moment This Week - I had a couple real good moments.  One was getting a massage, I really appreciated it and needed one!  There is a great place here in Austin that caters to pregnant woman and that is where I went for my massage and had a great experience there :)  I also had dinner with a friend I had not seen in a while.  It was a great evening to have some girl talk!  We may not have seen each other in a while but she has been awesome at keeping in touch with me through text messages.  It is those little things that make a huge difference and she has been amazing this whole pregnancy.  I know it is hard to keep in touch with friends during a pregnancy especially the ones who are not going through it or have gone through it but I truly appreciate the friends who stay in touch and just check in every now and then!  It helps to make me feel like I am still part of the bigger world.  

Week 33

Hello.  I can't believe I am at 34 weeks and how time is going by so fast!  This past week we had our second class which involved learning more about Cord Blood Banking and more about labor and delivery.  It has been interesting to learn all the different stages of birth however I will admit there are just somethings I did not want to know.  I do feel pretty overwhelmed after each class, but in the end it is better to be over prepared than no clue what is going on.  We have one last class this coming week and it has been the one class I am most looking forward too, it is the Newborn Class.  I am eager to learn about how to take care of our bp!  I do have experience of being around newborns, as I was there when my niece was born but that was over 7 years ago!  I also have had a lot of friends have babies recently who have given me great advice, but I know every baby is different and I want to know all the possible things to do!  I must admit, that is what scares me a bit more at the moment is how to care for a tiny human.  I again have been around them but this one will be extra special because she will be mine. She will be 100% my responsibility and depending all on me.  That is scary!
It also makes me think of something else on a different level.  As many of you know, I was adopted at the age of 2 days old, and I have been searching for my biological family with no avail.  This little bp I am having will be the first blood relative I will ever know.  That blows me away many times.  When I do sit and think about it in that way it almost brings me to my knees.  This little baby we have made together is truly going to have a piece of me in her.  I have never known anyone who will have my blood and DNA literally as a part of them.  Don't get me wrong I am very blessed and I have amazing parents who raised me who I am forever grateful for, it just has been painful growing up knowing that the people who made you are not part of your life and trying to understand why.
I am more at peace with it as an adult but it does make me think more of my biological mother and what it took for her to place a child for adoption.  It also makes me look at from my mother's perspective that she was not able to carry her own child and what it took for her to choose to raise someone else's child. All I do know is that it all was in God's hands and I would not be where I am today had those decisions not been made.

A side note, it was also a big weekend that it was ACL (big music festival here in Austin).  I have been every year since I have met my husband and this was the first year I did not go.  It felt weird not to be there but I knew in the end it would of been a mistake if I had went.  It is all outdoors (and dusty so I always get sick with my allergies), and the weather is so unpredictable rain/shine so I knew the logical decision was not to go.  I will admit it was a hard one to swallow, especially because a lot of our friends where there.  I remember dropping off my husband and getting a text from a friend right after that and I had a small cry.  I missed seeing my friends and hanging out with my husband.  I had a good cry and shook it off.  I know that was a small sacrifice to make and I don't regret, I just need to cry sometimes and move on :)

How Far Along? - 33 weeks  

Size of our BP - 4lbs! 

Maternity clothes - still looking for a comfy t-shirt! 

Gender - baby girl 

Sleep - cherish those couple of nights where I sleep completely thru the night!

Food cravings - egg & potato breakfast tacos (and a strawberry frosted donut on the side isn't too bad either!) 

What I miss - my feet not swelling for being on them for an hour, I mean come on I need to do stuff!  

Symptoms - heartburn, swollen feet/ankles/calves, braxton hicks contractions

Belly Button - still an innie and I am pretty determined to stay that way! Also can still see my toes!

Best Moment This Week - My best friend was in town so I got to hang out with her!  She has a little 7th month old girl and was also helping out with her nephew so I got to hang out with some cute little babies!  It was nice to see the babies at the age they are at (7months)!  I can see how much they have grown in 7 months and was amazed what little personalities they have already :)  I can't wait to see my little one's personality!!  

Week 32

Week 32 has been a good week.  I actually got through it without being sick (knock on wood) and had an overall good OB visit.  I had a long talk with my doctor about my experiences while she was away. I made sure to make it very clear to her that I was not happy with my overall experience at Labor and Delivery.  I also made sure to let her know I am a first mom and I have no clue what to expect. so please don't put those demands on me.
Also speaking of not knowing what to expect, we met with a doula this week.  She was very nice overall and I am glad we met her.  We did have a couple of concerns with her, and some of her answers were not exactly what we wanted to hear.  For instance, she voiced that she had to maintain relationships with the hospital and the staff so she did not want to overstep.  I completely understand that but I did not want to hear about it.  I do not expect her to be ugly to anyone I just want to make sure she is going to be a strong advocate for baby and me.  I would not tolerate her getting ugly with our OB so I do hope that she can find the balance between being an advocate and being respectful to all involved.  We should know by the end of the week if we are going to go with her or not.
Another thing that happened this week is fear has crept in.  I started thinking about everything that could go wrong, and not just with baby and me but everything.  During the weekend, I guess that is when I have time most alone, I just notice my mind just tends to go there.  For instance, I had it in my head that what if something bad happened to my husband.  I could not shake that feeling all weekend.  I know that I need to have faith and be strong in it, however with all the pregnancy hormones going on inside of me it was hard to shake off those feelings.  I was proud of myself though for not giving into the hormones and calling my husband all day with my fears/worries.  It was not until I spoke to my mother-in-law days later, that it hit me how scared I was all weekend and had a good cry with her.
I am telling you these pregnancy hormones are no joke.  I feel that I can get them under control pretty well overall but I do have my days.  I will be happy to report that I have yet to go off on anyone, especially my loved ones, because those closest to you tend to hear it more.  I just feel like it is easier to cry at the little things and the feeling of being overwhelmed by emotions come easier as well.


Here are some pics of some cute stuff we got for our little bp recently: (can't wait to see her in them!)

How Far Along? - 32 weeks  

Size of our BP - just around 3 3/4 lbs & about 17 inches long!

Maternity clothes - wish they sold more comfy t-shirts  

Gender - baby girl 

Sleep - I think a successful night is when I don't wake up to take a bathroom break!

Food cravings - lately it has been spaghetti from Mandola's (if anyone wants to take me I will gladly go!)

What I miss - walking long walks.  

Symptoms - definitely feel heartburn in the evenings no matter what I eat but pretty mild.  

Belly Button - still an innie and I am pretty determined to stay that way! Also can still see my toes!

Best Moment This Week - having my parents in town this past weekend.  It actually went real well and it was nice to have someone here while my husband's work schedule has picked up considerably.  I hate being alone, especially for long periods of time.  My mom was a cleaning machine, and we were able to organize my closet a bit more (and by that I mean clean out the clutter to make room for baby stuff)!  

***DOCTOR UPDATE - I can officially go off the medication that was stopping the contractions!!  Mostly because I am technically at 33 weeks, but I will take it!  So happy to be off all medication :-)    ***

Week 31

Another week has gone by and it was another tough one.  Apparently I am to be challenged as the end gets closer, but I am trying hard to stay positive.  I somehow managed to catch the stomach virus that has been going around and had a bad case of it for three days straight.  What was strange to me is that I did not feel "sick" I thought it was another case of preterm labor.  Because the only symptoms I had were cramping and diarrhea, and in all the books/online it says those are symptoms of preterm labor!  So needless to say I was worried all weekend long!  Thankfully today has been a better day with no symptoms.
Before I got sick I was having a decent week.  Still lining things up since we are less than two months out before our estimated due date.  One thing we have been talking about is hiring a doula.  A doula is an assistant who provides physical as well as emotional support during childbirth.  She is there do help in a non-medical way.  The reason we have talked about is that my husband works a lot of weekends and mostly in the evenings.  He is not able to leave when he wants to and if I go into labor and he is not able to get there right away I am going to need some additional support.  Another thing is that my parents live in a city an hour and half away as long with my mother-in-law so it would take them awhile to get to me as well, so just knowing we have someone in town who will know exactly what to do is comforting.  We are going to meet with someone this week and I will report back on how it went!
On the emotional front I kind of decided to give in to my fears this weekend.  For some reason I was focusing on everything that could go wrong.  It was tough to get through and even more so because I was so wrapped up in those emotions I did not want to share them with my husband.  I feel like I burden him so much already, and he had such a busy weekend with work, that it would of been way too much for him.  So I just held it all inside and prayed.  It brought me comfort but in the end talking to him about it made me feel much better.  I just need to keep praying and remembering all of this is in God's plan.
Here is a picture of what baby penguin should be at for 31 weeks:

How Far Along? - 31 weeks  

Size of our BP - just 3 lbs - the size of a melon

Maternity clothes - enjoying the cute new fall stuff coming out 

Gender - baby girl 

Sleep - a bit more difficult when you are sick :(      

Food cravings - healthy stuff esp. when sick

What I miss - having a strong immune system

Symptoms - nothing new to report    

Belly Button - still an innie and I am pretty determined to stay that way!

Best Moment This Week - finding out from the doctor that she had her head down, instead of being breeched.  It just seems the closer we get we want to hear more and more that she is not breeched!