Happy Thanksgiving!

34 Weeks

Ugh. Let's talk about being uncomfortable. I'm exhausted from not sleeping well, my entire body aches, and no matter how I attempt to sit or lay, I can't manage to feel comfortable. I'm in a fairly grumpy mood today as a result, so I'm going to spare you my complaining and move right along to a more pleasant update on how Miss Abbey herself is doing.

From Baby Center this week, our baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers (which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born) are filling her out and making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. In terms of potential premature labor, most babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

Happy Birthday, Louis!

Our little man turns 4 years old today! He's a big fan of homemade vanilla cupcakes :)

O, Christmas Tree

Since I'm already having difficulty with most household tasks these days, I've decided not to wait until Black Friday this year to begin decorating the house for Christmas. Instead, I started plugging away at the project this past week.

Let me just tell you, I'm so glad I did. It completely exhausted me this year just to get the tree up. As it stands now, I've really only got one room completed and will continue working on the others.

Here are some pictures of the dining room in it's Christmas finest, although I'm sure I'll continue to add to the decor as I go:

Also, here are some pictures of our tree lit up:

33 Weeks

As of today, I have exactly one month left until my maternity leave starts! I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am by that fact. I am absolutely, positively ready to be done.

Mike and I are continuing to work on the nursery and have begun to stock up on the rest of the necessities we'll need for Abbey once she arrives. I'm beginning to work on packing my hospital bag and we're planning to install the carseat in my vehicle in the next few weeks.

Now that our Preparation for Labor course is over, it's hard to believe that in only 7 more weeks our precious little girl will be here!

From Baby Center this week, our baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and her skeleton is hardening. The bones in her skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for her to fit through the birth canal. These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as her brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

Happy Veterans Day!

32 Weeks

Well, it appears that all is still well in babyland. I had my 31 week appointment last Friday and Abbey is still measuring right on schedule. I gained another 2.6 lbs. putting me at a total weight gain thus far of 18.4 lbs. which I'm content with.

Now, for the bad news. I recently discovered that due to my short torso and the fact that I'm carrying high, my ribs on the right side are beginning to seperate from the muscle connecting them in order to make more room for the baby. While I'm glad to finally have an explanation for the fact that I've been in so much pain lately, I'm dismayed that there is nothing the doctor can do about the situation. I was advised to simply take Tylenol for the pain (which does nothing, by the way) and to wait until Abbey starts dropping for the pain to decrease. Thankfully, my ribs should return to their normal position after giving birth although that provides little reprieve for me in the meantime.

[Insert a long and drawn-out sigh here.]

The best I can hope for is that she will begin to drop shortly.

From Baby Center this week, by now, our baby weighs 3.75 pounds and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in my uterus. I should be gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes directly to the baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

31 Weeks

So far, our Preparation for Labor class at the hospital is going well. We had our first class Monday night and couldn't help but giggle like the two immature "kids" that we are when it came to watching the videos - which, I'd like to mention were straight out of the 1980's. I get that the premise of childbirth hasn't changed much in the last 20-some years, but it was still like watching the Flashdance version of labor and delivery.

Don't worry, the class wasn't a complete waste of time. I really did walk away from it feeling much more informed about the stages of labor and what to do if preterm labor occurs. They also gave us a ton of booklets and pamphlets that were extremely informative. Next Monday we're going to focus on different birthing options and relaxation techniques and then the final week will include a tour of the L&D floor, the NICU, and the nursery in the hospital I'll be delivering at.

From Baby Center this week, our baby measures over 16 inches long. She weighs about 3.3 pounds and is heading into a growth spurt. She can turn her head from side to side and her arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath her skin. She's probably moving a lot, too, so I (may) have trouble sleeping because her kicks and somersaults keep me up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that our baby is active and healthy.

Baby Shower

So I realize I'm a bit behind in posting this since my shower was held on October 25th, but better late than never, right?

My baby shower was absolutely wonderful and I had such an amazing time. It was hosted by my aunt and mom and was held here - http://www.eriescottishrite.org/index.htm. (P.S. No, I'm not Scottish. My hostesses just thought the setting was pretty during fall and it was one of the few places that would accomodate the number of guests who were invited.)

As it turns out, approximately 60 family members and friends were able to attend. Mike and I were so completely touched by the generosity we were shown. The food was amazing and we received so many thoughtful gifts.

I misplaced my camera for part of the shower so, unfortunately, I missed out on taking all the pictures that I had hoped to. I'm especially bummed about not catching a picture of the beautiful cake before it was completely devoured. I did manage to at least get some pictures, however.

Enjoy!

Some pictures while opening gifts:

Mike and I after helping to clean up afterwards:

The gifts at home in Abbey's room before being put away: