baby m: week 32

I’m a week late on my 32 week post, but things have been CRAZY around here! Since my last update, I have finished all of my coursework, made the move to Omaha, started childbirth classes, unpacked my house, and had a fantastic baby shower! As busy as the past few weeks have been, it’s all been a really great experience! Now I’m ready to focus 100% on preparing for little Miss Murnan to get here!

J and I started childbirth classes 2 days after arriving in Omaha – nothing like jumping right in! We have a 7 week prepared childbirth course as well as some additional classes scattered throughout the weeks. I was really impressed with the childbirth class. It was very interesting and engaging. I felt as though we left with some very useful tips and information. I also left leaving feeling like I had a lot more to learn – I guess that’s what the next 6 weeks are for!

We also went to an advanced relaxation course last week. It dealt with strategies for pain management throughout the stages of labor. It wasn’t quite as helpful as I had hoped, but I left with a better idea of what additional questions and concerns I want answered – at least that’s something, right?! :)

I met with my Dr. here in Omaha for the 2nd time last week. I felt completely reassured that I made the right decision – she’s great! J was busy with work and my mom happened to be in town helping me unpack the house, so she came along to the appointment. It was really cool to have her there to hear the baby’s heartbeat and meet my Dr. The best news of the appointment….. baby is no longer breech!!!

We’ll be doing one more ultrasound next week since my Dr. here has never seen any of my previous ultrasound images. I’m really excited to see how much our baby girl has developed since 27 weeks!

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32 Week Survey

This week, baby is the size of a: squash

Due date: June 24

How far along: 32 weeks

Next appointment: May 16

Gender: GIRL!

Total weight gain: 25 pounds ahhhhhhhhhhh!

Exercise: Unpacking my house!

Stretch marks: Still worried about getting some around my belly button, but nothing new since my last update

Swelling: None

Maternity clothes:  A couple of weeks ago I picked up a couple of dresses from Target and some tanks from Old Navy. The weather hasn’t really cooperated, but the sooner I can NEVER wear pants again, the better :)

Belly button: Out, out, out! That sucker can be seen through anything I wear

Sleep: I’ve been sleeping A LOT! I get up about 5 times a night to pee, but other than that, sleep has been fantastic!

Food cravings/aversions: MAJOR sweet tooth

Symptoms: Some pelvic pain and the occasional leg cramps

Movement: Still feeling LOTS of movement from our little girl. Her feet are now up in my ribs, so that can be a little painful. It’s still crazy to see my whole stomach shift as she moves around.

Labor signs: Not for awhile :)

What I miss: Being able to wear whatever I want

What I’m loving: Being DONE with our move!

What I’m looking forward to: Preparing for baby these final weeks

Best moment this week: MOVING TO OMAHA!

Milestones: Moving into our first home and starting childbirth classes with J

Goals: Buy the rest of the baby gear we need and start assembling everything!

 

baby m: week 28

**I am writing this post from Baby M’s newly designed nursery while sitting in our new rocker – best view ever!**

Yet again, the past 4 weeks have flown by! I cannot believe that I am officially in my 3rd trimester! Overall I have been feeling great, but it’s been a major adjustment to slow down and not be a part of all of the house activities going on this week (aka – no carrying heavy boxes, assembling furniture or painting walls).

J and I are currently back in Omaha since I have this week off from school. We made ourselves a pretty ambitious to-do list for the week, and we’ve basically stayed on track with all of our tasks. One major milestone we achieved was picking a Dr. to finish out my pregnancy and deliver our baby here in Omaha. It was really starting to weigh on me that we didn’t have a plan set in stone, so meeting our new Dr. and making the final decision feels great! She’s an extremely nice, competent woman who I know will keep me calm and focused through delivery. I was even able to get my childbirth classes switched over to my new hospital and scheduled out ALL of my appointments up until my due date – CRAZY!

I had an ultrasound a couple of weeks ago to check the position of my placenta, and I was VERY happy to get the news that it had moved up right where it was supposed to be (this lessens the chance I’d have to have a c-section delivery). Little Miss M still wasn’t very cooperative and refused to show us her face – we did get some nice images of her feet though :)

Without further ado, here are the latest and greatest belly pictures:

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28 Week Survey

This week, baby is the size of an: eggplant (or a Chihuahua, depending on your preference for vegetables or puppies)

Due date: June 24

How far along: 28 weeks

Next appointment: April 17

Gender: GIRL!

Total weight gain: 20 pounds (hoping that slows down one of these weeks)

Exercise: Walking, treadmill intervals, and packing boxes for the big move!

Stretch marks: Still thinking I’m getting some around my belly button, but they aren’t looking any worse since 24 weeks

Swelling: Some in my feet during our long road trips

Maternity clothes:  My wardrobe staples are two basic Gap Maternity dresses my mom bought me earlier this year. They are basic cotton dresses with long sleeves and v-necks. Cute and really versatile! I’m completely in maternity tops, but still hanging on to those pre-pregnancy pants, haha. I did find a cute pair of maternity capris at Old Navy, and now that the weather is nice they are becoming a new favorite!

Belly button: Out, out, out! And amazingly gets bumped WAY too often – ouch!

Sleep: Pretty good. We’ve been sleeping on the futon mattress at our new house over spring break, so my back is a little sore and it’s REALLY hard to get off the floor to pee 5 times a night

Food cravings/aversions: Nothing consistently – but still loving carbs, carbs, carbs

Symptoms: Lower back pain and leg cramps

Movement: LOTS of movement from little Miss M! It still throws me off when she kicks my bladder, but other than that, it’s the best feeling! It’s so cool to see her little fists and feet poking my tummy throughout the day!

Labor signs: Not for awhile :)

What I miss: A full wardrobe

What I’m loving: Getting semi-settled in our new home

What I’m looking forward to: Moving to Omaha!

Best moment this week: Meeting our new Dr. in Omaha! She’s awesome! And washing up Baby M’s clothing and bedding – laundry is more fun when it’s full of baby gear :)

Milestones: Making the final decision on a Dr. in Omaha, rescheduling childbirth classes, and getting our new home ready for the big move – especially the nursery!

Goals: Get a TON of schoolwork done this week to prepare for the end of the semester – only 3 weeks left!!

 

Making a Move!

J and I have BIG news! On March 15 we closed on our first home…. in OMAHA! That’s right, we’re moving back to the heartland to be closer to our friends and family. We couldn’t think of a better place to welcome our baby girl.

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Closing weekend was fast and furious – only 3 days in Omaha. J assembled the nursery furniture and a china hutch with the help of our dads. I got some basic cleaning done, but mostly I made an inventory of the work we should try to get done over spring break.

We’re now back in Nebraska for a whole week and have gotten SO much done!

  • Puppy-proofed the backyard fence
  • Did major spring clean-up of the lawn (imagine 10+ bags of leaves and sticks)
  • Painted 6 rooms
  • Assembled more furniture
  • Installed our washer and dryer
  • Washed up Baby M’s bedding and clothes
  • Rekeyed locks
  • Bought a rocker for the nursery

 

Whew. It’s been a ton of work, but getting all of these tasks done now will make our move at the end of April so much easier!

I’ll do a bigger house update after we make the move – stay tuned for some pretty awesome before and afters :)

baby m: week 24

24 weeks – I can’t believe how fast the weeks are flying by! It seems like just yesterday I was counting down the days to my 20 week ultrasound. Since then, we found out we are having a sweet baby girl! Seeing her growing strong and healthy was the absolute best moment of my pregnancy so far!

I posted last week about my changing pregnancy expectations, and I’m happy to report that I’m feeling much, much better this week. In fact, I’ve swung to the opposite side of the spectrum – I can’t even count the number of times I’ve cried out of sheer HAPPINESS the past few days, haha.

At 24 weeks I am feeling great both physically and mentally. I have had a surge in energy and have continued to make exercise a priority. I feel as though my weight gain has slowed down a bit (I’m hoping it stays that way for a few weeks), and I’m getting more accustomed to dressing my blooming belly. I was able to register J and I for our birthing classes last week – we will be doing a 7 week prepared childbirth course, infant care, infant and child CPR, and advanced relaxation techniques. We aren’t starting until the end of April, but it felt good to get the dates on the books!

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24 Week Survey

This week, baby is the size of a: cantaloupe

Due date: June 24

How far along: 24 weeks

Next appointment: March 6

Gender: GIRL!

Total weight gain: 18 pounds

Exercise: Treadmill intervals and home exercise DVDs (pilates, yoga, toning…)

Stretch marks: Faint signs around my belly button :(

Swelling: None

Maternity clothes: I’m still clinging desperately to my pre-pregnancy jeans. My belly bands have been a lifesaver, but I must admit they aren’t the most comfortable to wear all day. Most of my regular clothes have been packed away, so I’m 100% in maternity tops. I have been LOVING wearing dresses on days when it’s not frigidly cold – definitely looking forward to spring!

Belly button: In and out – depends on how much I eat :)

Sleep: AMAZING! Other than getting up 2-3 times a night to pee and the occasional leg cramps, I have been sleeping great!

Food cravings/aversions: Still loving breakfast anytime – lots of eggs and hash browns around here!

Symptoms: Leg cramps, itchy belly

Movement: Yes! I feel Baby M all the time now! Her movements are strong enough that J can feel them and we can see my belly jump when she kicks. Her head is still down by my right hip, so I feel her boxing in my lower abdomen. I feel her feet up by the left side of my belly button. It’s the best feeling ever :)

Labor signs: Not for awhile :)

What I miss: Sleeping on my stomach and COFFEE!

What I’m loving: Feeling and watching her move – it makes me so anxious to hold her!!

What I’m looking forward to: Seeing my sister in 2 weeks! I can’t wait to see how her belly has grown since Christmas!

Best moment this week: Scheduling our childbirth classes – made the whole ordeal seem just that much more real!

Milestones: Seeing our healthy baby girl during our 20 week ultrasound

Goals: Get a head start on my student teaching portfolio so I can focus on baby in the final weeks of my pregnancy!

Thoughts and feelings from dad: Love feeling and seeing her move! Excited for some big changes coming for our family and looking forward to our upcoming appointment this week!

 

expectations

I’ve been pretty silent on here this week. Overall l have really enjoyed my 2nd trimester, but this past week has been a struggle. For the first time, I really, REALLY have begun to understand the dramatic change my body is undergoing. I have new aches, none of my clothes fit me right, the number on the scale keeps climbing, everyday tasks leave me winded, and the smallest wrong movement can send me into days of pain. Uggggggghhhhhhhhh.

Whew. Glad that’s off my chest.

I HATE complaining – especially about something as much of a blessing as pregnancy. I wouldn’t trade my experience carrying my baby girl for anything, but some days are harder to get through than others.

I slipped on the ice a couple weekends ago and wound up with horrible abdominal pain for 4 days – all I wanted was a hot, HOT bath to soothe my aching muscles, but I settled for a warm compress on my back instead. That was when I realized that my body was truly different. Something as simple as slipping (not even falling) on the ice sent my overprotective mommy hormones into overdrive. My muscles overreacted, and I felt the effects for days to come.

My weight is a struggle. I have NEVER been this heavy in my life, and it’s more than just a number on the scale. Every pound I gain literally weighs me down just a little more. I now feel every extra pound as I go about seemingly simple household tasks. I am not used to feeling winded from doing laundry or bringing in the groceries. I am trying to be diligent about exercise and need to continue to make it a priority for baby and me.

Body image is a whoooooole different issue. I can’t tell you how weird it is to look in the mirror and not see my waist. It’s GONE! I am s-o-l-i-d. I was joking with my sister last night that I have suddenly turned into a brick house. I mean, I knew I would get a belly, but I guess I never considered the part where your waist disappears in the process. You’d think I’d at least be happy about my growing bust, but growing 3 cup sizes in 4 months has made me reconsider the perks of being small chested. I’m definitely looking forward to fitting into my old bras again :)

I think this week was just a turning point in my pregnancy. For the first time, I can really see (and feel) everything my body is going through – and it’s a wonderful thing. Last night I was sitting on the couch with Ruby on my lap and J by my side and Baby M started to kick. J was able to reach over and feel her little movements too. It was such an amazing feeling to have a little quiet time as a family. That’s when every achey muscle, every extra pound gained, and every too tight pair of jeans is 110% worth it.