33 Weeks 3 Days

How Far Along: 33 Weeks 3 Days (6 weeks 4 days until due date)

Size of baby:  17 inches long and weighs a little over 4 pounds (a pineapple)

Gender: Girl - Emma

Maternity Clothes: Yes, all maternity.
Weight gain: + 16 pounds (official measurement from Thursday's visit with the doctor)
Movement: Yes, her movements are slower and have moved up into my ribs; her butt digs into my ribs. Feeling Emma move is the best feeling; I feel like she's telling me that she's okay in there.
Symptoms: Uncomfortable. Emma being right under my ribs has made my upper belly ache/hurt. My right side and back is also aching. Increased appetite. Some acid reflux.
 What I miss: Not much. I'm trying not to complain too much. ;)
Cravings: hot chocolate. egg nog. margarita.
Best moment this week: Good doctor's visit.
What I am looking forward to: Christmas time with the family. I can't believe that next Christmas, we'll be a family of 3; I can't wait to start holiday traditions with Emma! Maternity photos on Thursday.
Doctor's appointment recap: Hemoglobin and urine were good; this should be the last time that the hemoglobin will be tested - they have been doing it every two months since I've been testing well. Weight gain was + 2 pounds from last time, right on track. Blood pressure was my normal low. Fundal height is measuring right on track and Emma's heartbeat was great! The doctor checked Emma's positioning and Emma was still head down, with her little butt up. I'll go back in two weeks and will be tested for Group Strep B.

Greg's first assemblage - the swing.

The finished product!

32 Weeks 4 Days

How Far Along: 32 Weeks  4 Days (7 weeks 3 days until due date)

Size of baby:  16.7 inches long and weighs 3.75 pounds (size of a large jicama)

Gender: Girl - Emma

Maternity Clothes: Yes, all maternity.

Weight gain: + 16 pounds (official measurement Thursday at Doctor's appt.)

Movement: Still very active, about once an hour. Emma was quiet for two days this past week, moving but not as often.

Symptoms: Hiccups have lessened a good bit. Tired. Uncomfortable. Trying not too complain too often.

 What I miss: Energy and being more agile. Excited and ready for Emma's arrival.

Cravings: Baking has commenced. I can't seem to get enough sweets, which isn't all related to pregnancy.

Best moment this week: Greg and I are getting the few last items needed for Emma's nursery. (I wanted to get this done before January so that I don't have to do anything during that month.) The Nutcracker was great - enjoyed the music and dancing. We are also trained in adult, child and infant CPR, which was our last class at St. Mary's. Next hospital visit will be for Emma's birthday.

What I am looking forward to: Short work week then Christmas week. Greg and I are going to enjoy our last quiet Christmas for awhile! Doctor's appointment Thursday.

31 Weeks 6 Days

How Far Along: 31 Weeks 6 Days (8 weeks 1 days until due date)

Size of baby:  16 inches long and weighs about 3.3 pounds (about 4 navel oranges)

Gender: Girl - Emma

Maternity Clothes: Yes, all maternity
Weight gain: + 14 pounds (official measurement from Thursday's visit to the doctor)
Movement: Emma has found a new toy to play with inside me. She used to like to kick/punch the bladder but now her legs have found my ribs. Ouch - this is uncomfortable! Her movement's are pretty regular; I feel movement at least once an hour. I don't know if it's normal for a baby to move in utero this often, but I can stare for hours at the belly movements!
Symptoms: acid reflux. sore. sides of the belly is achy - the skin stretching? Tired. Swollen feet. Some cramping
 What I miss: being more active/energetic.
Cravings: Anything that's in front of me, I will eat. I have a sweet tooth.
Best moment this week: Finishing up the Christmas shopping, childbirth class, doctor's appointment
What I am looking forward to: Infant CPR class this weekend.
Doctor's appointment recap: urine and blood pressure (98/60) were good. It's weird to me that my blood pressure has continued to drop; from what I read, it usually goes up in the 3rd T. Weight gain has been right on track. Greg had to ask where the baby was positioned, so the Dr. pressed hard all around my belly. Emma was head down, with her butt pressing hard against my side (uncomfortable!). She's moved a little bit since then but I think that she prefers being head down; I feel her hiccups low in the belly. Doctor said that everything is right on track and they'll start doing an inside investigation at 34/35 weeks, which is right after Christmas. My next appointment is Thursday, December 22.
Childbirth Education recap: This was a 9am - 4pm class that we had on Saturday and it was LONG! We watched videos and had floor mat exercises for breathing/relaxation techniques.For the video, I think they found women that had the most extreme and painful births. The instructor was an advocate of natural (no drugs) delivery but I still plan on having an epidural. Out of about 8 couples, 2 other couples had the same due date.

30 Weeks 4 Days

How Far Along: 30 Weeks 4 Days (9 weeks 3 days until due date)

Size of baby:  15.7 inches long and weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage)

Gender: Girl - Emma

Maternity Clothes: Yes, mostly all maternity. The dress in the picture above is non-maternity (hope I didn't stretch it out too badly!)
Weight gain: + 14 pounds
Movement: YES!! Emma is very active; in the morning, she starts low in my belly and travels up through the day. Her movement can get uncomfortable at times. I can't really figure out in which direction she is laying in but I do feel her hiccups down in my belly, which makes me think that she is head down during this time.
Sleep: I'm not sleeping that great lately; I've been tossing & turning. Hopefully, I can catch up this weekend on sleep.
Symptoms: Tired from lack of sleep. A little swollen in my legs/feet if I'm standing for too long. Increased appetite.
 What I miss: Not much; I'm excited that we are going to meet Emma in less than 10 weeks.
Cravings: None this week.
Best moment this week: I thoroughly enjoyed Emma's baby shower on Sunday and can't wait to put everything away! Let's not even think about the game this weekend ...
What I am looking forward to: Busy week ahead; doctor's appointment on Thursday (the weighing in will be a little scary with Thanksgiving and the baby showers occuring in the past few weeks). All day childbirth class on Saturday.

29 Weeks 6 Days

How Far Along: 29 Weeks 6 Days (10 weeks 1 day until due date)

Size of baby:  15 inches long and weighs 2.5 pounds (size of a butternut squash).

Gender: Girl - Emma

Maternity Clothes: Yes, tops and bottoms. I'm close to all maternity tops - baby has grown and don't want to expose the belly in public! I think that I can still get away with wearing a few non-maternity dresses.
Weight gain: + 12 pounds (official measurement last Tuesday, November 22, from the MD appointment)
Movement: YES! Emma is active all throughout the day, although I think it's getting a little cramped in there; Her movements are slower.
Sleep: Sleeping okay. Waking up a few times with dry cough, although I am finally getting over this cold.
Symptoms: Developed a cold. Other than that, doing great!
 What I miss: Not too much - the growing belly is a bit daunting.
Cravings: Homemade chocolate chip cookies - delicious! (Greg said the batter was the worst thing he's ever tasted - note the sarcasm)
Best moment this week: Good visit with the OB. Blood pressure & urine are perfect. Fundal height is right on track and weight gain is going well (slowed down dramatically from last visit). We had a great time at the baby shower - I'll be blogging and posting pictures about it sometime early next week.
What I am looking forward to: Atlanta Baby Shower this weekend.
BellyButton: still an "innie" but stretching out. Greg's excited that it's almost an "outie" 

28 Weeks 4 Days

How Far Along: 28 Weeks 4 Days (11 weeks 3 days until due date)

Size of baby:  14.8 inches long and weighs 2.25 pounds (size of a Chinese cabbage).

Gender: Girl - Emma

Maternity Clothes: Yes, tops and bottoms. I'm close to all maternity tops - baby has grown and don't want to expose the belly in public!
Weight gain: + 13 pounds
Movement: YES! Emma is active all throughout the day. Greg feels her bouncing around almost on a nightly basis and thinks he felt her foot during one of her rambunctious moments. I love to watch my belly move and shake with the forces of Emma.
Sleep: Sleeping great; hopefully my snoring isn't disturbing Greg's sleep too much. Greg says I roll to my back a lot.
Symptoms: Not too bad. Some acid reflux, tired, back hurts if I'm sitting for too long.
 What I miss: Nothing. I can't complain, really, with the pregnancy so far. It's been enjoyable and I'm getting excited about meeting Emma.
Cravings: Sweets - trying not to eat too much.
Best moment this week: Feeling Emma move, every hour or so. UGA vs KY was ugly on Saturday but it's great to be SEC East Champions; hope we get tickets to the SEC championship so that Greg can go.
What I am looking forward to: off to Savannah for the holiday weekend: excited about Savannah baby shower! Doctor's appointment on Tuesday. Short work week.

Baby Classes

Oh yes, the exhilirating busyness of finalizing preparations for Emma has begun. Our classes started this week. Greg and I signed up for as many classes as we could and two of these classes were this past Monday & Tuesday: Baby Nutrition (breastfeeding) and Baby Basics. With something going on every weekend until the end of December, time is going to fly by! (Although, the pregnancy has been going by very quickly - I can't believe that we are in the 3rd Trimester and 7 months along.)

The husbands were encouraged to attend the breastfeeding class; Greg is still unsure why he had to go but he'll probably go with me for the second class too, unless he has to travel for business. The first hour was very boring and pointless - the video was advocating breastfeeding. Why sign up for the class if you aren't going to breastfeed? I did learn that I will be nursing within one hour of the birth so let's hope that I will remember the basics when I'm drugged up and exhausted. (Yes please for the epidural/spinal) I am going to make nursing work but let's hope that Emma let's Mommy have an easy time with it. We go back the week after thanksgiving for the 2nd portion of the class.

Baby basics was interesting; we learned to change diapers, swaddle and bathe the baby. We also had a small tour around St. Mary's. Although we didn't have too much of a decision to make, I am glad that we chose St. Mary's because of the one-on-one attention by the staff. The rooms are nice & roomy. It's also a Catholic hospital and they have daily prayers read over the intercom twice a day. Emma will be born in the same town where Greg and I went to college and met; also, the same town where we spend many, many Saturdays.

Greg & I are exhausted after the fun weekend of tailgating and football, combined with these two classes after work on Monday and Tuesday. We are looking forward to sleeping in this weekend, attending the last home game of 2011 and Molly's 1st Birthday Party.