Jun 29, 2011

38 weeks

Had my doctor's appointment today and no news to report! I am not dilating yet. Boo.. Oh well. I guess baby boy Swanson has some more cooking to do! How fun would it be to have a firecracker baby this weekend though!! I am ready. I am so HOT, all I want to do is sit in the AC. I am also incredibly tired. This past weekend I think I slept more than I was awake and every day after work I don't have energy to make dinner and so we have been ordering out a lot. That definitely won't be able to continue once the baby is here. Too expensive! My sausage feet ache and Zach doesn't like to rub them because he says they are dirty haha.

Update from babycenter.com:

our baby has really plumped up. She weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long. She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)

Jun 22, 2011

Maternity Photo Shoot

Zach and I went to Blind Photography last Monday to do a pregnancy photo shoot. We were recommended to Becca by our friends Carlie and Joey. It was super fun and I think we got some good shots out of it. I uploaded them to facebook just because it was taking too long to email them. Here are some of my favorites, but definitely not all of them. Let me know if you want the original file to make a print or something.















FULL TERM BABY - 37 weeks

I look tired there..because I am!! :-)

Yesterday we had a doctor's appointment and I was under the impression from the nurses and receptionist that they would be checking my cervix. They didn't, because I was 36.6 weeks and not 37 until today. Ridiculous! Never thought I would say that I was disappointed to miss THAT kind of appointment haha! Anyways, next week they will do that and hopefully I'll be dilated!! Very exciting. Just three weeks to go! Everything is good and normal. Next appointment is Wednesday.

I had to laugh because when we were in the waiting room, I asked Zach what he would do if we went in there and I was 4 or 5 cm dilated and they sent us to the hospital. His response was, "Well, we'd have to go get the bag." It's so funny to me that the hospital bag is the first thing he thought of, especially since there's nothing in there for him. He makes me laugh :-)

Update from babycenter.com:
Your baby is now considered "full term," even though your due date is three weeks away. If you go into labor now, his lungs will likely be mature enough to fully adjust to life outside the womb. (Some babies need a bit more time, though. So if you're planning to have a repeat c-section, for example, your practitioner will schedule it for no earlier than 39 weeks unless there's a medical reason to intervene earlier.)

Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel. Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

Jumping Belly

Here's a short video. I was trying to get it when the baby was bouncing around. You'll see him push out and then sort of jump a few times. Mostly on the left side. Not a great video but just thought I'd post it! Cute! :-)


Jun 19, 2011

36 weeks (late)


This post is a little late. We were really busy last week, but this week we don't have anything going on after work except my doctor's appointment. Tuesday is the first time they check my cervix, and it's probably the only time I'll ever be excited about that kind of appointment haha!!

I tested positive for Group B Strep at my last appointment. This just means that the bacteria is on my skin. I'm not sick or infected, but I am carrying the bacteria. Just because I tested positive now doesn't mean I always would or that I even would during my next pregnancy. The only thing that it means for the pregnancy is that I will be given antibiotics in my IV drip during labor and delivery to make sure the bacteria doesn't pass to the baby during a vaginal delivery. If the bacteria passed to the baby, he could get really sick. The chances of that happening if antibiotics are given is rare, so we are not worried :-)

The nurse also pressed on my belly and said that the baby's head is low in my pelvis. That's a good sign :-) I can feel that he's started to drop. Aside from not being able to see my belly button from above anymore, I can feel my bladder being flattened. Zach and I took the baby basics class at the hospital which taught basic things like bathing, feeding, diapering, swaddling, etc... This week I'm going to look into the infant CPR class. This one isn't free, but in the chance that we need to know something like that, we both want to be prepared.

I can't honestly say that I'm feeling great anymore. I seem to sleep good, when I can actually sleep. I get up at least three times a night to pee, and I roll a lot. Rolling is really hard to do lol. There is so much weight in my belly that any position I am lying in hurts. My feet ache all of the time and they are pretty constantly sausage feet. I think I'm getting ready to be done being pregnant. I really want to hold our baby boy :-) A little more than 3 weeks to go!!!

Update from babycenter.com:

Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position. But if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying she'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.

Jun 10, 2011

35 weeks

Haha don't mind my white belly compared to the rest of my body!! Belly is getting bigger and bigger! The little guy sure is growing.

I'm feeling good...sleeping okay and not awful sore. The worst part is my feet. They hurt so bad that sometimes it keeps me awake. I've started swelling around the ankles and feet each day until I can get home and put up my feet. Doc says that's normal, which I knew, but I still mentioned it to him at my appointment on Wednesday. Everything was good, gained three more pounds. Baby's doing good. Now my appointments will be once a week and in two weeks he will start checking my cervix. How exciting! I was thinking that 5 weeks seems so long, but when I think about being at the doctor each week and possibly being dilated in two, it doesn't really seem that long. I'm so excited!

This weekend is my baby shower here in Iowa. Other things to do this weekend: pack the hospital bag, finish the nursery, wash baby clothes/sheets. We're ready!!! :-)

Update from babycenter.com:

Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds. Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

Jun 4, 2011

Prenatal Massage

I haven't been too uncomfortable or sore..mostly just my back and my feet at times, but I decided to get a prenatal massage on Friday since Zach went down to Texas for the weekend. Well, I guess I was disappointed. I've never had a massage so I didn't know what to except, but I was expecting it to feel absolutely amazing to the point where I would actually fall asleep (and I can't sleep through anything at all). And maybe a regular massage would feel that way, but a prenatal massage is different in a way because it is mostly for relaxation and the massage isn't too intense. She had my lay on my side while she worked one side of my back and leg, and then roll over to do the same on the other side. I think I had a hard time relaxing because I've never had a massage before and I'm not used to a stranger touching me so personally. For the last part, she had my lay on my back to do my arms and neck/face. I've been told and read that you shouldn't lay on your back later in the pregnancy because the weight of the uterus can pinch a main blood vessel to the heart on the spine. I knew this, but figured that a few minutes wouldn't hurt. But after five minutes, I started to feel dizzy and a little nauseous. I wasn't really thinking anything of it until my arms both started to shake and I started sweating. I started to feel like circulation was actually being cut off somewhere and like I might pass out, so I told her I had to roll over. I guess I didn't really believe that lying on your back could be dangerous. Sometimes I wake up in bed on my back, but our mattress is so soft and I have so many pillows that I'm never actually flat on my back. The table I was on for the massage was really flat, so I think that's what made the difference. Needless to say, I guess it wasn't the greatest experience. I kind of wish I hadn't spent the money on it, but I didn't know. I think a real massage where you actually lay on your belly and/or back would be nice, so maybe I'll have to do that after the baby sometime.