Week 33

How far along are you? 

33 weeks. Time is flying… 

How big is the baby? 

Baby Girl is the size of a durian fruit (whatever that is). She is 17.2 - 18.7 inches long and weighs about 4.2 - 5.8 pounds. 

How I’m feeling: 

Sleepy and slow but healthy and happy overall. I’m a little anxious to have everything ready in case she makes an early appearance. Hopefully most things will be sorted out by the end of the week. 

Healthy eating? 

About the same as last week. 

Food cravings: 

Fruit, fruit, and more fruit. I’m averaging 1 - 2 smoothies a day. Loving peaches!

Food aversions:

Heavy meals. I haven’t had pasta since I was back in Kansas which is unusual for me. 

Exercise: 

I taught six yoga classes this week. I also attended Yoga for Birth. 

Total weight gain/loss: 

+ 29 pounds 

Sleep: 

A couple of times this week, just as I started to drift off, I woke up coughing because I felt a choking sensation. Each time I got out of bed and propped myself upright on the couch to try and get a bit of rest there. Guys, acid reflux is a huge bummer. Sorry to keep droning on about it. Goodness knows I’m ready for this part of pregnancy to be over! 

By my bedside: Gaviscon, body butter, ginger chews, and baby books

Maternity clothes?

Mostly maternity. 

Stretch marks?

Not yet... 

Best moment(s) this week: 

The highlight of the week was being really productive. 

• I placed a large IKEA order. For the nursery I ordered... 

Two chests of drawers

Two photo rails 

This chair (to be slipcovered)

This footstool (to be slipcovered) 

And a lampshade

• In the UK they recommend the baby sleeps in the same room for the first six months. So, I rented a Bednest from the NCT.

The Bednest

• I ordered fabric samples for slipcovering the nursery chair and footstool. 
• I ordered fabric samples for the master bedroom’s headboard. 
• I started my hospital bag packing list.
• We attended an NCT breastfeeding class.
• Dave built the storage bed for the guest room.
• I emailed a guest speaker from Yoga for Birth and got a copy of her cesarean birth plan and the name of the doctor who lead the procedure (she was at the Whittington) just in case I need it on the day.
• I ordered a couple more baby books including Fresh Milk by Fiona Giles, a recommendation from Lizzie. 
• We went to an all day hypnobirthing workshop. 
• I changed my mobile plan so I could get a new phone. 
• We attended our usual NCT class on Monday.
• I had a massage with the person I think I’d like to be our doula. She’s coming on Sunday to meet Dave and talk through everything.

Movement: 

I still feel her frequently throughout the day. 

Belly button in or out? 

When I take a deep breath in it pops out. When I exhale it goes back in again. I showed Dave and he thought it was hilarious! 

Symptoms: 

Fairly constant heartburn and acid reflux. 

I have more pubic symphasis discomfort this week while lying down in bed, moving to stand, putting pants on, etc. A lot of my clients experience this at some point during pregnancy and I know what I can do to minimize the pain. I need to refrain from asymmetrical yoga poses which means it’s time for me to adjust my teaching methods. As with the acid reflux it’s not all bad because I know both conditions are a sign that the hormone relaxin is hard at work. So, on the upside is everything is softening making it easier for Baby Girl to exit.

Anemia. 

All my organs feel squashed. I get this funny feeling like I’m being hit in the throat sometimes. Apparently it’s probably heartburn related but it seems to be worst when she’s moving around. 

General stiffness when I rise in the morning. 

Gender:  

She’s our girl! 

Labor signs: 

After talking with another mum-to-be from our NCT course I think I may have been feeling Braxton Hicks contractions for several weeks now. Every now and then I’ve experienced moments where my belly feels taut and hard like Baby Girl is firmly pushing her back out but it expands the full width of my belly. I’m happy my body is practicing for the big day! I hope I can get out of the way and let mother nature do her thing when the time comes. 

What I miss: 

Sleeping without any drama (or a mountain of pillows)!

What I'm looking forward to:

Most of the nursery furniture is arriving on Friday! 

Sunday we have nothing planned which will be refreshing after the action packed weekend we just had. 

Weekly wisdom: 

Connect with other new parents-to-be. I really enjoy swapping stories with our NCT group. It makes me feel much less neurotic! 

Milestones: 

It is ALL about the the baby! 

On Saturday we attended our NCT breastfeeding workshop. The breastfeeding counsellor answered our questions, taught us about what to expect in the early days regarding feeding and dirty diapers,  positioning, how partners can help, etc. She also gave us a list of people and places we could contact if we need extra support. Each couple was given a baby doll to hold throughout the session. We took turns carrying it around. Dave was happy to practice and very conscious of what I needed when it was my turn to hold her. I’m excited for him to become a dad. He’s going to do a great job!

The class ended and we went to lunch with all of the other couples. We are so lucky to be in a group of people we genuinely like and throughly enjoyed chatting with them. Afterwards, we went home, ran to the grocery store, Dave built the storage bed in the spare room, I ordered nursery furniture and fabric samples for a slipcover for the nursery chair and a headboard for our room, ate a BBQ dinner, watched a silly show about pop culture in 1988, and did some hypnobirthing homework. 

Sunday we went to our hypnobirthing course in Hampstead. The first thing I should mention is that we were seated in bean bag chairs and propped up with additional pillows. Have you ever watched a room full of pregnant women try to get out of bean bag chairs? It is a sight to behold! The teacher started with introductions, shared how hypnobirthing helped her, explained the role of hormones in labour, and how fear impacts the body. Then we spent the rest of the day practicing different relaxation and breathing techniques. This provided another good bonding opportunity for us. I must admit there were some moments I found it hard to take Dave seriously as he read relaxation scripts to me. He actively participated and gave it his all because he knew it was important to me but this was WAY outside of his comfort zone! When he said something like “now picture yourself on a mist of grayish blue – the color of blueberry” it was a challenge not to laugh because he’d never say something like this outside of class. 

Dave’s take: 

On Friday we got on the Tube after dinner. There were no free seats but someone noticed I was in need and offered their spot to me. I sat down and Dave stood up. All of the sudden a guy struck up a conversation that went like this: 

Guy: Congratulations, man! (Handshake.) That’s awesome! (Sideways hug.)

Dave: Thanks. (Handshake.) We’re excited. 

Guy: I don’t even know you but I’m so happy for you. (Handshake for Dave, handshake for me). 

Dave: Thanks. Yes, it’s very exciting. 

Guy: Is it twins?

Dave: Um, no. No twins. 

Guy: Aw, she’s beautiful (gesturing to me). Congratulations, man! (handshake). 

Dave: Thanks. This is our stop. We’ve got to get going. 

Guy: Well, congratulations again, man. (Handshake and sideways hug). 

Dave: Thanks. 

This kind of thing does NOT happen on the Tube. And, because it’s so odd, we only went one stop before Dave evacuated us from the intense attention. Way to go for protecting the wifey and bubs from the over the top enthusiasm of strangers, honey! Good instincts! 

Dave was impressed by the size of two things this week: how huge the uterus is at full term, and how tiny a baby’s stomach is when it’s born (the size of a marble). Both of the visual aids our teacher showed us made his eyes get as big as saucers!