We are in the third trimester, people! I am actually going to be 30 weeks pregnant tomorrow, but this is the recap of my seventh month of pregnancy (from weeks 24-28). Things are starting to feel markedly different around here, physically and mentally, as we shift into a much more focused period of baby preparations. For most of the first five months, I felt like I had all the time in the world. I checked a few things off here and there, read Bringing Up Bebe, and obviously took care of my prenatal health, but I didn’t feel ready for some of the more specific baby prep books or to-dos. I was really pretty laid back about the whole thing, which I thought was weird, because it was not like me. Well, as I should have predicted, I have moved into information-gathering and serious nesting mode, and there is no turning back! What has helped is devouring the huge stack of books that lives next to our reading chair, making detailed lists of all kinds, and physically preparing our home for baby’s arrival!
Medical and Physical Updates
Praise God, we are still working with a so-far-so-good healthy pregnancy. I know that is often the case until the very end and then anything can pop up, but I am still very thankful!
Glucose Test: This month I had the fun glucose test, where you drink a super sugary orange drink like a kids’ orange soda and then have your blood drawn an hour later to see how your body processed the sugar. I don’t see how that can possibly be good for a growing baby, but I seem to have passed (my OB practice works on a no-news-is-good-news basis).
RhoGAM Shot: The only other notable appointment was when we discovered that I am Rh negative and Will is Rh positive, so I had to get a special shot to prevent my body from creating antibodies to attack the baby’s (likely positive) blood. Apparently this is more important for future babies than this one, but I can thank my Pops for my rare O- blood type. 🙂
Symptoms: I am still feeling and sleeping great most of the time! The only notable symptoms have been one random day of nausea and vomiting (which I don’t know for sure was pregnancy-related), one day of strange cramping in my right side, and the ever-fun heartburn. I think being out of town so much has made it harder for me to control my diet and keep that at bay. I can’t complain, though!
Diet: The sweets cravings have reached an all-time high (low?), to the point where Will and I were literally in tears laughing about it when I finally confessed how much time I spend plotting where I’m going to get my next ice cream. We were on our way to a wedding when I told him I was weighing all the places that sell ice cream we were passing, trying to figure out which one would be open late if there was no ice cream at the wedding and thinking my best bet would probably be a McDonald’s McFlurry (and I was ok with that). I don’t see this addiction getting better as we move into the summer months, unfortunately. I definitely stick to froyo, lactose-free, low calorie (Halo!) or coconut milk varieties and small portions, though.
Exercise: This month I loved my Barre Amped Prenatal Workout DVD and walking Pippa! We also rode bikes around and kayaked in Sanibel, and I’m still feeling good. I’m actually trying to increase my exercise now in preparation for labor.
The Bump
Everyone keeps telling me how small I am, and I get a lot of comments like, “you’re in your third trimester?! But you’re tiny!” I’m wondering if this is just something people say to pregnant ladies to be nice or if it’s normal not to get really big until the last couple of weeks (or both). The doctor said I was measuring just right, so I’m thinking it’s ok! From my perspective, this is the biggest belly I’ve ever had, so it doesn’t feel “small” to me! I’m loving my stretchy Lilly dresses and summery casual maternity clothes. The days of normal pants or shorts are definitely long gone!
Preparations
Nursery: We made MAJOR progress on the nursery this month! As I’ve talked about ad nauseum, I cleaned out all our storage spaces, which took up most of my free time in April. Then, as you might have seen, dear friends helped us move the big guest room furniture to the storage unit. Then, I had the baby’s dresser (which will be the changing table) and crib delivered, and Will built the crib on Mother’s Day! We had a small snafu with the crib where Will drove all the way out to Tysons to pick it up from Pottery Barn Kids in a U-Haul pick-up only to find out they brought out the wrong color. But thankfully, they shipped us the right color and picked the gray one up for free (thank you, PB Kids!). Now we’re working on furniture configurations, then we need a glider, and the rest is the fun decorating part! I can’t wait to share photos when it’s done!
Reading: We’ve been reading up a storm! I read The Big Book of Birth on our babymoon and highly recommend it! It is very engaging and readable while still being informative. Will dutifully took on The Birth Partner on the beach like a champ, and I am so proud and thankful. I know the real deal will throw us curveballs, but we have been comparing notes on what we’ve been learning, and it has been really consistent. Next I’m taking on The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and The Happiest Baby on the Block. In other baby-education news, we go to our first class at the hospital tonight!
Other: We interviewed a really great pediatrician whose office is across the street from our apartment that Erin recommended, and really liked them. I have also been shopping for all the bows and perfect take-home and newborn photo outfits, obviously, which is more stressful than it sounds. And I FINALLY finished our registries! I will do a whole post on what we’re registering for soon. That part was fun but took a ton of time and research, mostly just to figure out what, exactly, we need!
All the Feelings
My Favorite OB: The OB/GYN practice I go to is in the hospital where I will deliver and consists of four doctors you see on a rotating basis. They make an effort to make sure you’re seeing all four, because the one who is on call when you go into labor will be the one delivering your baby. I don’t mind this, but I definitely found my favorite during this month! She’s funny, and I think I just liked that she got super excited about hearing the baby’s heartbeat, even though they listen for the baby’s heartbeat at every appointment. She also recommended Sanibel Island to me for our babymoon, and we actually went and loved it!!
On Becoming Parents: This could, and maybe will be its own post, but we are getting more excited and more scared about this whole thing by the day. I, of course, am starting to freak out about all the things that could go wrong during labor and delivery. Also, I’ve definitely had moments of feeling overwhelmed by the rest of our to-do list and the knowledge that our care-free childless marriage will be changing in some big ways very soon. I like having Will all to myself and generally fear change, but I know we will not be able to imagine life any other way once she’s here!
Whew! Sorry that was long! I think that about covers month seven. Month 8 is productive so far, and I’ll be back with another update at 32 weeks!
See all my pregnancy posts here.
