Belly Picture

Hopefully this will be one of the last belly pics before she comes...maybe one more when we are in the hospital! Momma and baby are both huge! :)

36 Weeks

Had my doctor's appointment yesterday. Rachel is measuring only 2 weeks big this week, so not as big as sometimes, but still big. My cervix was still closed, but the doctor said her head was "wedged" in my pelvis and was basically sitting on my cervix. Hopefully I will begin effacement and dilation soon! But if it doesn't start on its own, the induction was scheduled for November 20th, but most are confident she will make her grand entrance before then! We hope anyways! her being so low makes it kinda hard for Momma to walk around. At least I am not having to go to work! :)

On a side note, Dr. Cox also had me do another 24 hour urine analysis to check the levels of protein to see if the preeclampsia has worsened in the last couple weeks. I was very sick again yesterday. Sick enough GGma had to come pick me up from the doctor appointment! (Thanks GGma!) I have a lab appointment this afternoon to turn in my "pee jug." I will update with more information on that later.

Below is the info from babycenter.com, although it probably isn't accurate on Rachel's size! :)

How your baby's growing:Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) 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.

Babysitting Cousin Brennan

Last night we kept Brennan for Aunt Jennifer and Uncle Cole when they went to the Music Theater production that Uncle Joshua was in. Here are a few pics from the evening!

Always smiling! :)

Watching TV

Playing on his play mat

Laughing

Hanging out!

House Update

The house is really coming along now. We have a closing date set for November 20th, which is less then a month away! (However, I still think Rachel is going to beat the house!) When we were out there today the cabinets, trim were up and done and they had painted. We weren't satisfied with paint and ask that another coat be put on, so I guess there is that to go and then counter tops and flooring will be installed! It is really looking like a house now! Below are the most recent pics.

View of dining room from front door/hall

Rachel's room...PINK!

Front door/hall/stairs from living room

Kitchen from dining room

Outside front

35 Weeks

According to my due date I still have 5 weeks to go, but I don't think it will be that long! ( I am hoping at least. Rachel has dropped, but as of last weeks appointment I wasn't dilated. I go to the doctor again on Tuesday and we will see if I am then. I think she will come early...my prediction is November 9th, we will just have to see. You all can post your predictions if you want! :)

Although we know Rachel is bigger then what the info below says, I will still post it as I have throughout the pregnancy! :)

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

House Update

The house is really coming along. All the mud and tape is done and the wood working is well on it's way. The trim is more then half done and the cabinets were delivered yesterday. We are being told it is between 3-4 weeks until closing! I don't have the pics of my camera yet, but will post them as soon as I do!

34 Weeks

6 weeks until the actual due date, hopefully less! :)

How your baby's growing:Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, 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. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that 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.

Update on Rachel's Size

After having the sonogram yesterday, they determined Rachel isn't a "giant" but she isn't small either. She is just...well...large. By the calculations of the sonogram she is measuring at 35 weeks 5 days and weighing 5lbs 5 oz. (I was exactly 33 weeks yesterday) So she is just under 3 weeks big instead of 4. (thank goodness!) Although she will still be big, she isn't has big as I had feared. I haven't yet talked with my OB to see what she thinks. This information is what the sonogram tech gave us. I will update more after I visit with the OB!

I hope everyone has a great weekend! :)

Week 33

I guess we will find out this afternoon how close Rachel is to an average size 32 week fetus...for some reason I think she is overachieving! :)

How your baby's growing:This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

Dr. Appointment

Well, we had another Dr. appointment yesterday and found out that my feet aren't the only thing that is giant! Rachel is a giant too! As Dr. Cox was listening for the heartbeat we got to talking about how big Daddy was when he was born and how that might affect Rachel's size. She said "We will do a sonogram at 36 weeks to see about how big she is. Just to be on the safe side." Well...after we finished this discussion she did the measurement on my belly... She then said "Yeah, you are measuring on the big side. You are 32 weeks and 4 days and you are measuring just over 36. We will just go ahead and do that sonogram this week." So for those of you that can't do the math, that puts me about 3 1/2 weeks ahead of schedule! Which leaves me wondering what in the world is going on! Is she really that big, is there a lot of amniotic fluid, or is it even possible my due date is wrong?! I don't know for sure what is going on, but I guess if she really is that big, we have a pretty safe bet she will be healthy! We'll just have to see! The sonogram is scheduled for Thursday at 3:45pm. I will keep you posted! Until then "my giant" will keep growing! :)

32 Weeks

8 weeks to go by my due date, but hopefully only 7 until I am induced. We'll see...

How your baby's growing:By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your 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.

House Update

We are still moving right along. We went out to the house last night and all the drywall in the house had been hung. They now have to mud and tape, which will probably take the rest of the week, but then it will be ready for paint! If all goes well, we just might get done a few weeks early! Here are some pics we took last night. :)

A Few More Pics From the Shower

Here are a few more pics from the shower. I wasn't able to get them all off my camera until today. :)