Baby

Jen's Baby Updates - Week 27

Sunday, January 19th, 2003

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Development

Midwife Visit

Movement

Symptoms

Exercise

Other Babies

Gifts

Names

Miscellaneous

I've decided that I don't want him to come out. He's very safe where he is, I always know where he is and what (in general) he is doing. This has got to be the best part of having a child, because you have the excitement without any of the worry or inconvenience. I can enjoy feeling him move, and seeing my belly move when he shifts around. It is really convenient, because I can take him anywhere without even a car seat. I don't have to change any diapers, and I don't even have to feed him (at least not directly).

I think I'm just realizing that my pregnancy is almost over, and it makes me a little sad. I only have three months left. I've really loved being pregnant so far, and it has been really easy. I know it won't be as easy once he's out, but hopefully the joy of having him actually here will make up for no longer being pregnant.

I know that postpartum depression is largely chemical, due to the changes in your hormones, but I can see that it could also be just because you've lost the easy joy of pregnancy and moved on to the combined joy and work of having a child.

From what I hear, though, the last trimester isn't particularly easy, so maybe that will erode my enjoyment a little bit and make me wish it were over. That may be mother nature's way of easing the transition. We'll see.

It no longer seems like it is taking forever. It seems like it has gone very fast. This is probably to prepare me for how quickly my child will grow up. <sigh>

Midwife Visit

I just got back from my 26 week appointment with my midwife. Everything seems fine. My uterus is up at 27.5 centimeters, just slightly higher than the expected 27 centimeters, but well within normal range.

My belly has been lopsided lately, bigger on the left side. Cat felt around and said that the baby is standing on his head with his back to my left side. It is good that he is head down, labor-wise, but he can still move around quite a bit, so we can't count on anything yet.

Next time I go (3 weeks from now) I'll be doing a blood test to check my blood sugar and see if I am developing gestational diabetes. It is a standard test these days; I'm not exhibiting any symptoms.

Cat said that I could start experiencing Braxton-Hicks contractions sometime soon (or I might not notice them at all). They are basically practice contractions, so the muscles can get stronger and prepare for actual labor. My workmate says that she is having them already, and she is a few weeks behind me. She's already had a baby, though, so she knows what they feel like.

Cat said that I should be drinking a lot of water because it prevents premature labor, as well as stretch marks and varicose veins. I drink quite a bit of water already, but I'll be trying to increase it.

Movement

He was SO active last night! He was kicking (or something) harder than I've felt it before. I had to put my glasses on and watch my belly for a while before I could go to sleep. It just feels and looks so cool!

Travis's parents were here briefly, on their way to Florida, and they could see him move from across the room! He is pretty obvious when he moves, now. My whole belly shakes.

Delia got to feel him move, and so did my workmate, Ellen. The list of lucky people is growing! If you want to feel him move, just ask me! I'm not shy about it, but it might not occur to me to offer, especially if he isn't moving right them.

Symptoms

Weight

I'm just about to catch up with Travis, who weighs only 170 pounds. I've gained 25 pounds, which means that I should start slowing down on the weight gaining soon. The funny thing is that the baby only weighs about 3 pounds, so the other 22 pounds is just water and placenta, and general extra weight. I'm happy to say that Travis and I don't think that I look like I've gained weight other than the obvious locations, though I think that the maternity clothes make it look like I have.

Repetitive Stress Injury?

I think I'm developing some sort of repetitive stress injury. I don't know if it is because I've been working on my computer A LOT lately, or if it is related to the pregnancy, but the tendons of my right hand are getting achy. Pregnancy does exacerbate injuries like that. A lot of women start wearing wrist braces around the last trimester to deal with carpal tunnel syndrome.

In a possibly related problem, my right hand is also feeling tingly and numb occasionally. Again, this is not an unusual side effect of pregnancy, so I'm not very concerned about it. Everyone that has mentioned it has said that it goes away after the baby has been born.

Vision

I'm also having vision problems... well, I've been having them the entire time, but hadn't thought to mention it. Due to the increased volume of liquid in your body (I think), it is not uncommon to experience vision changes while you are pregnant.

In addition, shortly before getting pregnant, I switched to soft from gas permeable contact lenses. I have an astigmatism, so soft lenses alone are not enough, so I've been wearing glasses on top of them. Anyway, ever since I did that, my eyes have been getting worse. My old rigid lenses kept your eyes in shape, so they can't get worse. Not so with soft lenses. My right eye, in particular, is pretty bad. Even with the glasses, I have some trouble seeing street signs, and my computer screen is blurry. They don't like to change your prescription or anything while you are pregnant, so I'm stuck with this for a while longer, anyway.

Even if they would fix my prescription, it turns out that they don't make soft contact lenses any stronger that the ones that I have, so I either need to get new glasses with more correction or switch back to hard lenses. I'm thinking I'll go back to hard lenses. I don't like wearing glasses, and the additional comfort just isn't worth it.

I hope that our son has Travis's perfect vision!

Skin

Travis says that my skin is generally browner than usual. I hadn't noticed it myself, although I have developed the linea nigra that I had mentioned earlier. It isn't very dark, but it is there.

Sleep

I'm still sleeping really well. Today (Sunday), I didn't get up until 11:30, and then I went back to bed at 3:00 to sleep for two hours. It was really nice. I'm sure that I'll have insomnia tonight because of that, but it was worth it. Something about sleeping during the day just feels so good, even if it does leave me a little cranky.

Exercise

I'm still using the treadmill, and I still think it is great. I'm walking at 3.5 miles/hour now, and I have been going at least 3 miles, sometimes 3.5 miles. It depends on what I'm watching. I usually try to stay on for an entire show or two shows if they are sitcoms. I've been walking every other day at least, sometimes every day. I love it! I had forgotten how good it feels to work out.

Names

No new names at the moment, but Delia and I are planning on going to the bookstore this week and really looking through all of the name books to see if we can find something unusual that I like. If we do, I'll check it with Travis, and if he approves, you'll hear about it.

I've gotten some advice from people who say that we should NOT tell people the names that we are considering, because it really isn't anyone else's business, and they could turn us against a name that we really like. We're pretty stubborn, though, so that's unlikely. I've been having fun hearing people's reactions.

I realize, though, that people are more likely to react positively to common names, and that any unusual ones that I present will not necessarily be as well-received. That's all right, we're not expecting people to love unusual names on first hearing/seeing them.

Remember, we haven't decided on a name yet, so don't get your heart set on anything we've said!

Miscellaneous

Classes

I've signed us up for the general childbirth classes at the hospital. They start in February. I really wanted to take Bradley classes, but there aren't any being taught around here (the usual instructor is giving birth any day now). I'll get a book and do some research on my own.

My Body

I love to rub my belly and feel how taut and firm and LARGE it is. I had worried that my skin would be the only thing supporting the baby, and that it would be getting all stretched out, but really it is my stomach muscles that are doing it, and they are doing fine. Although, if I laugh too hard, which Travis makes me do far too often, my stomach muscles can twinge painfully, making it uncomfortable for me to stand upright until I stretch them out.

Hair Dye

I dyed my hair a few days ago (if any of you thought that my hair was naturally red, you don't know me very well!), because I had visible blonde-brown roots that were about a half-inch long. Oddly enough, the dye didn't take! All of that is growth since I've been pregnant, and the old wives' tales say that your hair changes when you are pregnant. It is vaguely tinged red, but not as bright as it should be. Very odd. Travis thinks that the dye is just old, not that my hair has changed. Possible, but I prefer to think that my hair has changed. That's a more interesting story.

Top

Development

Midwife Visit

Movement

Symptoms

Exercise

Other Babies

Gifts

Names

Miscellaneous