30 Weeks... and Already Counting Down the Days!

"OMG. Becky, look at her... belly. It is so big."
But really... strangers need to not make stupid comments.
Honestly, a girl (bless her heart) said to me, "Oh, wow. What are you? Nine months pregnant? I'm nine weeks."
I just made myself smile and say, "Congratulations"

We went to the doctor today and everything is looking great; no issues, no complaints, no concerns. The only thing we're going to keep an eye on is little one's growth. He seems to be measuring just a tad big, about 32 weeks instead of 30. We're hoping that it was just a bit of a growth spurt and that he won't turn into a little giant. My first thought was, "but he can't get too big, he needs to fit into those little newborn sweaters we have"... then I thought, "he needs to be nice and not give momma any extra baby to push out."

We went to our childbirth class again tonight. 

(Scene:) The entire room of couples practicing relaxation and breathing techniques aloud:

Deep, long breath in....

Hold it. Hold it. Hold it.

Then one full, long exhale out.

 Deep, long breath in....

Say "HE" 4 times in rhythm in little exhales

Then one full, long exhale out.

Leave it to me to start laughing out loud.  

I'll have to practice more on this rhythm breathing thing before next week.

How far along?   

30 weeks

Baby's Size?

~15.2- 16.7 inches & 2.5- 3.8 lbs

Boy or Girl?

BOY!!

Fun Facts About Baby?

As of right now, he is nameless. We just can't seem to decide on "the" name. 

He is most active at night and early in the mornings.
He's measuring at about 32 weeks instead of 30 weeks.
His brain is getting bigger-- grooves and indentations are forming.
Skin is smoothing and lanugo is disappearing-- fat cells are starting to regulate body temperature.
Bone marrow is making red blood cells.

How is Mommy Doing?

• Symptoms?   Heartburn. Squished bladder. Occasional, but awful, calf cramps at night.

• Mood?  Happy but starting to get a little impatient to meet him! Also, maybe a little overwhelmed thinking of all we still have to do to get ready.

• Cravings?  Soft serve vanilla ice cream. I could eat it every day.

• Dreams? Crazy. A few dreams of being a clueless mom, like holding him by his neck and trying to get him to breastfeed, and a couple dreams of him looking like a really weird/scary baby. {Where are the sweet, cute, cuddly dreams?!?}

• Body Differences? Belly button is starting to pop out. I'm fighting the war on stretch marks, still hopeful I might make it through without any, or very little. Not always used to having a belly that sticks out; sometimes I walk into door frames or open doors and hit my belly.  

How is Daddy Doing?  Back in school. His schedule is super stressful and busy, which means really LONG days, but he's doing a good job of helping around the house on projects when he has "free" time. We can't wait for this class to be over!

How's the Nursery? It's slowly starting to come together!!  Sneak peek of a little something....

We're Looking Forward To:  Seeing our little guy's precious face for the first time!!!   

From the Beach to Birthing Class

A Week at the Beach

A relaxing week at the beach is just what Mommy needed! We had some really nice beach days and some that were a little chilly (on those days we spent our time wisely and went shopping!). We had such a fun girls' week; so many laughs and great memories made! 

28 weeks

...and sweet flowers to welcome me home!

Childbirth Classes Begin

Our first class was... interesting, exciting and terrifying. I walked in with my two pillows and my labor partner by my side and thought I was all ready to go... until they showed us a video of natural birthing techniques.  I'll be honest, it terrified me! Somehow I'll pull up my big girl panties because there's no turning back now! After the video one lady in the class was asking if she could deliver on all fours, another asked if her dog could come be her focal point.... I was just sitting there thinking of how I will NOT be yodeling (like a lady in the video-- it made me laugh even thinking of myself trying to do that!) and wondering if I can go ahead and order my epidural now! Best part of the night was when the partners got to practice massage techniques, I could practice that any day, every day! 

Finishing the Second Trimester

We're almost done with the second trimester!

And I've never had a wave of reality hit as hard as it did on the labor & delivery hospital tour last week. 

On the inside I felt like an emotional, sentimental, bawling mess with a gazillion thoughts running through my head; on the outside, I'm sure I just looked like a pale deer in the headlights trying to hide my watery eyes when the nurse said things like, "...when we lay your newborn baby on your chest right after it's born..." OMGosh, I just can't believe this is happening. I dream of that moment; I cannot wait! And I'll probably laugh and cry and want to sleep and not be able to sleep for hours.

They gave a list of all the things you can bring to the birthing suite and made labor sound like such a pretty experience....  I'm gonna go ahead and be that naive first time mom and picture myself really calmly breathing, my husband whispering sweet coaching encouragements in my ear, while we have some scentsy burning, spa music playing, dim lights, and a warm bath tub to soak in before I carefully move to the bed, receive my epidural once I'm far enough along and then proceed to, somehow, push a bowling ball sized live human out of my body.

That's my soothing, enjoyable labor plan right now.... and I'm just not ready for that dream to die quite yet.

On another note, I passed my glucose test! Whew!

Also, I want to take a moment to document and remember how sweet my husband has been through this journey. He makes this so much more of a fun, sweet, and special chapter in life. He surprises me with candy, notes, and other little things to brighten my days, surprised me with a big ole weird shaped pregnancy pillow, he rubs my feet, helps around the house, tells me I'm beautiful every single day, and is busting with excitement to meet his son. I'm lucky and grateful to have this kind of support.