Today's Appointment

Today, I again went on the fetal monitor, his heartbeat was strong and I again had light contractions. Though I would've liked if Nathan moved around more then he did, the doctor said we both look healthy. He's still low but hasn't dropped yet. My cervix is thinning but I haven't dialated yet. But who knows, it could still be at anytime!


Also, Aaron and I found Nathan's Pediatricians, which is a huge relief! They're in Newtown, CT, which is a very nice area. The facility was very cosy and clean with separate rooms for the ill and well. We met both doctors, whom were very nice and accommodating. Overall, we're very happy! :)



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38 Weeks Pregnant

Fetal Development This Week

Preparing for Birth

Only two more weeks (or plus two more, max) before your baby makes his or her appearance. And what an adorable appearance that will be! Your little one isn't so little anymore — weighing in at close to seven pounds and hitting the height charts at the 21-inch mark (or less).
 
As you prepare (best you can) for baby's ETA, he or she is also getting ready, big time. Vernix and lanugo continue to shed from your baby's body into the amniotic fluid. Your baby swallows that amniotic fluid (yum yum?) and some of it winds up in his or her intestines where it — along with other shed cells, bile, and other waste products (triple yum) — will turn into your baby's first bowel movement (meconium) and perhaps your first diaper change.

Your baby's lungs continue to mature as more and more surfactant is secreted (remember — it helps prevent the lungs from sticking to each other when your baby begins to breathe…definitely a good thing).  At 38 weeks pregnant, all systems, almost go!

37 Weeks - Full Term!!!

Today I had my weekly OB appointment. It was my first time on the fetal monitor measuring his heartbeat and my contractions. I also had to push a button every time he moved to make sure he's active, which he is! His heartbeat was great and I had some irregular contractions, which is typical and doesn't mean I'll go into labor just yet. My OB, Linda said he is low and should drop this week. She also said it'll probably be another three weeks before I go into labor and that he's already measuring about 7 lbs!! He's going to be a big boy! :)

 

Fetal Development This Week

Full-Term Baby

With just three more weeks to go and at about six and a half pounds (though weight and height vary from fetus to fetus), your baby is doing just fine. You can expect weight gain to be about half an ounce per day. (Boys, though, are likely to be heavier at birth than girls. And here's a bit of boy baby trivia to back that one up: Moms carrying boys tend to eat more than moms carrying girls — a foreshadowing of teenage refrigerator raids to come.)  Since your little one is considered full-term at 37 weeks pregnant, if your baby was to leave the wet nest this week, he or she would likely thrive. That's because Mother Nature and you have done such a fine job.
 
So what's keeping your little one busy while waiting it out until D-day? Practice, practice, practice. Your baby is simulating breathing by inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid, sucking on his or her thumb, blinking, and pivoting from side to side (one day you feel the tushy on the left side, another day it has swung around to the right side). All these are skills needed for his or her next gig  — starring as newborn.

Here's an interesting fact: Your baby's head (which, by the way, is still growing) will, at birth, be the same size circumference as his or her hips, abdomen, and shoulders. And guess what's making an impression (literally) these days on those shoulders and hips: fat — causing little dimples in those cute elbows and knees, shoulders and hip, and creases and folds in the neck and wrists.





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Nursery Photos :)

Still a work in progress, it's just about finish except I eventually plan to put up some wall decor and later we'll put in the crib. As for everything else we're mostly all set and ready for our little Nathan to join us... almost! Still need to put in the car seat, get a swing and find our Pediatrician. =)

36 Weeks Pregnant

A couple more recent baby bump shots :)

I had my weekly appointment today and everything is good as usually. Got the swab test and will find out the results at the next appointment. The Midwife also did a brief examination, have not dialated or effaced yet. Next appointment is Tuesday and will be hooked up to the fetal heart monitor. Should be a good one. =)

Fetal Development This Week

Fetal Skull and Bones

Your baby's skull isn't the only soft structure in his or her little body. Most of your baby's bones and cartilage are quite soft as well (they'll harden over the first few years of life) — allowing for an easier journey as your baby squeezes through the birth canal at delivery (and less prodding and poking for Mom along the way). At 36 weeks pregnant, the skull bones are also not fused together yet so that the head can easily (well, relatively easily) maneuver through the birth canal.   

So your little bruiser (who you've now learned won't be bruising you all that much with those soft bones) is now about six pounds in weight and measures slightly more than 20 inches in length. Growth will experience a slowdown now, both so your baby will be able to fit the narrow passageway to the outside and also so he or she can store up all the energy needed for delivery.

By now, many of your baby's systems are pretty mature, at least in baby terms —  and just about ready for life on the outside. Blood circulation, for instance, has been perfected and your baby's immune system has matured enough to protect him or her from infections outside the womb. Other systems, however, still need a few finishing touches. Once such notable example: digestion — which actually won't be fully mature until sometime after birth. Why's that? Inside his or her little gestational cocoon, your baby has relied on the umbilical cord for nutrition, meaning that the digestive system — though developed — hasn't been operational. So your baby will take the first year or two to bring that system up to speed.

8 Months Pregnant!!!

In the home stretch!! Wow, time has flown by so quick! I can't imagine my belly getting any bigger, he's going to break through! Only 5 weeks left if I make it to a full 40 weeks, with my luck I'll be later, but who really knows. 

Had my appointment yesterday and everything is looking good. Doctor found the heartbeat fast and sounded great. I will now be going every week until he's here, next week they'll check me for any infections, which hopefully I'll be looking good.


No contractions yet, just the Braxton Hicks tightness only once in a while. Once I do feel those painful contractions that last 45 seconds about every 4 to 5 minutes, we'll make that exciting trip to the hospital!

Fetal Development This Week

Week 35 of Pregnancy: Fetal Weight Gain

At about 20 inches and five and a half pounds (but with about five more weeks to grow), most of your baby's growth over the next month or so before you meet will be in weight (with a gain of anywhere from one pound to several), not height (baby's pretty much reached the in utero limit in that department).  Accordingly, fat continues to accumulate at a rapid pace these days (on baby, not just on your hips). Back in the middle of your pregnancy, your baby's weight was made up of only two percent fat; now at 35 weeks pregnant, that percentage has soared to closer to 15 percent (and will increase to 30 percent at term). Which means your baby's once skinny arms and legs are now quite plump…and irresistibly, squeezably soft.
 
Also continuing to grow at an amazing pace is your baby's brain power. Luckily, the part that surrounds that amazing brain — the skull — remains soft. And for good reason: A soft skull will allow your baby to squeeze more easily through the birth canal. (Mother Nature was really thinking this one through — imagine trying to push out a rock-hard head…ouch!)






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