Baby Update

If any of you read my blog when I was pregnant with Taylor you know that I did almost weekly updates. Not so much this time around. I feel badly for this baby! And I just want her to know that she is wanted and loved and that her birth is highly anticipated!!! =)

I was 35 weeks on Tuesday and here's what G.erber says is happening with Baby:

In week 35 the average baby weighs around 5 to 6 pounds and measures about 16 to 19 inches in length. Your baby will begin to gain weight more rapidly than ever before…adding about ½ to ¾ pound each week from this point forward. Healthy fat is being deposited all over your baby's body, especially around the shoulders. Because of her size, your baby may move around less as her surroundings become more cramped. Her head may be resting on your p.ubic bone (OUCH! No, thank you!!!) in preparation for labor and delivery.

Other developments taking place this week:
* Central nervous system will continue to mature.
* The lungs will most likely be fully developed by Week 35.
* Your baby develops daily activity cycles. You may notice she is often more active at night, when you're trying to rest.
* Even though they won't be considered full-term until the end of the 40th week, your baby's respiratory and digestive systems are nearly mature.
* Immune system starts to develop.
* Umbilical cord is now about 20 inches long and 1 to 2 centimeters in diameter. At birth it will be about 2 feet long and a ½ inch thick.

At this point I am really starting to feel full term and frustrated. I already told you about my p.ubic bone situation. Overall it's not as bad as it was a couple weeks ago, but still sore.

And then a week ago I did something to my back and it hasn't been right since. I've seen the chiropractor twice and he's trying to help me, but it is *so* sore. It makes me feel a little bit helpless, because even the most basic chores feel so hard to do - wrestling Taylor to change his diaper, laundry, climbing the stairs, getting the kids in and out of their carseats. I'm a pretty competent and independent person and it is hugely frustrating to not be able to do the things I usually do with ease.

I have occasional contractions and some Braxton Hicks which haven't been a big deal. But last night was a wild night of contractions - some of them pretty painful - so another five weeks or so of that doesn't thrill me.

My lightheadedness is so unpredictable. Sometimes I'll go for a few days without any, and then there are days like today when I feel lightheaded most of the time. That also makes it hard to accomplish much.

Swelling. Oh, my goodness. The swelling. You should have seen my ankles (or lack thereof) when we got home from Illinois. Two days in the car was brutal on the swelling. Today it's not so bad. I pulled off some very impressive swelling during my pregnancy with Lily. And then with Taylor I hardly had any at all. So, I'm thinking that since this is a girl I can look forward to some really nice looking ankles these last few weeks. I *am* thankful that it's flip flop season because my feet can just lop off the edges of my flip flops and I don't have to try to squeeze my feet into any actual shoes. =)

We still don't have a name for her. We talk about it a lot but we usually don't get anywhere. There is a name that Andy really likes and I just can't seem to love it. There is a name that I like a lot but he isn't going for it. And there is one name that we could both live with but we haven't felt like it's "the one". It's strange not to know what to call her because we had Lily and Taylor's names picked out much sooner than this. Stay tuned...

Does this post sound whiny? Sorry. You moms out there know what it's like toward the end! The days are flying by, though, and I know she'll be here before I know it. I truly can't wait to meet her!