Week 35

Dear Ellison,

You are 35 weeks old now! According to our ultrasound this past week, we know you are weighing in at about 4 pounds 9 ounces which puts you in the 29th percentile.  You are probably measuring over 18 inches from head to heel.  You are running out of room in there!  Your kidneys and hearing are fully developed, and your liver is now able to process some waste products.  Most of your basic physical development is complete.  Your big job over the next few weeks is to gain more weight!   Here are the little details of the week...

How Far Along? Thirty Five Weeks...35 days to go!

Weight Gain? According to our MD appointment last week, we're at just about 30 pounds gained.  My goal was to stay under 40 pounds (I mean, I can seriously gain 5 pounds at lunch not pregnant), so I am feeling OK about it all.  :-)

Sleep?  Other than getting up a few times to pee, I am sleeping OK.  My hips are pretty sore in the mornings from laying on my sides, but I'm not having much trouble falling asleep.

Miss Anything? Mostly just my energy!  I am worn out so, so easily!

Movement?  Oh yes.  Still a wiggle worm.  I am so entertained by watching her rolling around!  It's fun because I can usually feel when she's going to get really active so Barrett gets to see her going crazy too!

Food Cravings? Fresh, cold fruit...especially melons.

Any Aversions? Yep...still eggs and big chunks of chicken.

Gender? It's a GIRL ~ Ellison Gray.

Symptoms?  I'm losing my ankles from time to time again.  I'm really just noticing it and the end of the day a couple times a week.  I wore my Sperry's today, and I guess they are a little more snug than they used to be, because my ankles were pretty angry when I got home!  A little elevation and a foot massage (thank you to my awesome hubby) seem to cure the issue.

Best Moment this Week? Lots of good moments this week!  At our 34 week appointment, we found out that Ellison has finally decided to flip!  So, she's head down now and we're just waiting for her to decide when she's ready to meet us!  Seeing her on another ultrasound was so great.  We can't wait to see her in person!

My sister and two of my best friends threw us a baby shower this weekend!  It was so perfect!  We got so many wonderful things that we still needed for Ellison's arrival.  Later that evening we had a cookout at our house for our out of town friends, family, and some of Barrett's friends.  I was completely worn out, but we love being able to spend time with our family and friends, and we love celebrating our little one!

Looking Forward To...  We are really pretty much ready for Ellison whenever she's ready, which seems so crazy to me because I remember thinking we'd never get to the bottom of our to do list!  We are having our house professionally cleaned on Thursday (thank you Groupon!) and I'm asking them to focus on our baseboards, floor, windows, and blinds.  Big momma is in no position to get those things done now!  Barrett is taking a Dad's 411 class this week and we have our breastfeeding class Saturday.  After that...bring it on Ellison.  :-)

34 Week Appointment and a Job Well Done!

We had our 34 week checkup today....and Ellison flipped!  We're officially doing this the old fashioned way.  She's head down and now we'll just wait on her to come when she's ready.  It was so, so great to be able to have another ultrasound.  She is so much bigger than the last time we saw her at around 22 weeks.  It's apparently very hard to get a good picture when babies are this far along.  We did get a few sweet profile shots and a good shot of her foot.  :-)

The ultrasound tech gave us an estimate of her size even though it wasn't ordered.  Shhh...don't tell the doctors!  :-)  It looks like she's weighing in at about 4 pounds 9 ounces, which is in the 29th percentile.  So, she's running on the smaller side of average but still looking great!  The tech said if she kept on growing like the average baby, she'd be right around 7 pounds.  We know that this estimate can be off by as much as 2 pounds either way, so we're looking at her being somewhere between 5 and 9 pounds...which is a giant gap and makes the estimate seem really silly!  But, mentally I can handle a 7 pound baby, so that's what we're going with! 

Everything else looks good.  My blood pressure is great, my fluid is measuring at 15 cm (which is apparently right in the middle average), and I'm measuring right at 35 weeks (34 weeks and 3 days today).  Ellison's heartbeat was 142 BPM and sounded strong and steady.  The doctor also said that it was great that I had stopped gaining weight so fast...I didn't realize I was gaining that fast and also didn't realize I had stopped gaining!  She asked if I'd changed my diet, and I wanted to say, "Nope...and I eat dessert every night!"  But, I just said no.  :-)  Anywho, it looks like we're holding steady at right around 30 pounds gained for now, so I'll take it. 

Our next appointment is in two weeks when I'll have my group B strep test done.  Then, we'll be visiting the office once a week till Ellison makes her arrival!  We are getting so close!  Can't wait to meet our little peanut!  :-)

Week 34

Dear Ellison,
You are 34 weeks old now! You're probably weighing in at 4.75 pounds and are measuring around 18 inches from head to heel.  Your fat layers are filling you out making you rounder and your skin smoother than ever.  Your central nervous system and lungs are continuing to mature.  You are now able to react to and recognize simple songs, so we should really start practicing our lullabies!  You're also already peeing about a pint a day!  Here are the little details of the week...

How Far Along? Thirty Four Weeks...42 days to go!

Weight Gain? I think we're still around 28-29 pounds, but we'll see what the scale in the MD office says this week.
Sleep?  Still up at least 3-4 times to run to the bathroom and switch positions.  My hips have been hurting a good bit from laying on them and my bones do a lot of creaking and cracking when I climb out of bed!  But, when I am asleep I'm sleeping pretty hard.  I don't really have any trouble falling asleep, and I'm not being kept awake by heartburn or reflux, so I'll pick my battles wisely!

Miss Anything? Being able to see my feet.  This would also include being able to tie my own shoes and paint my own toenails!  Oh well...just a good excuse for me to go have a nice pedicure.  :-)

Movement?  Yep.  I don't know what she's doing in there....but sometimes I'll feel her way over in my right kidney and way over on the left at the same time!  It's like she's strectched out sideways like she's chilling in a hammock.  She's super active, but so far hasn't woken me up at night.  Wishful thinking for a good sleeper?  :-)
Food Cravings? Still wanting fruit and veggies.  I bought the most delicious ice cream the other day and have thouroughly enjoyed an ice cream cone for dessert a few nights.  If you haven't tried Edy's Slow Churned Frozen Yogurt Caramel Praline Crunch...run, don't walk, to the store and get you some.  Divine.

Any Aversions? Yep...still eggs and big chunks of chicken.

Gender? It's a GIRL ~ Ellison Gray.

Symptoms?  Possibly some actual contractions?  Maybe not.  I mean...how am I supposed to really know what they feel like!? I've just felt tightening/crampy/pressure down low in my pelvis.  Nothing major and nothing lasting a significant amount of time or coming very often at all.  Maybe just getting in some practice?

Best Moment this Week? We had the most wonderful, productive, relaxing three day weekend!  The nursery is pretty much complete, I started on baby laundry, our new washer and dryer came in, and we even had some time to be completely lazy one day.  It was lovely.  I really feel like Ellison could come on anytime and we'd be ready for her.  What a relief!  There were times that I never felt like we were going to get to the end of our to do list.  While we've still got a few things to check off, I feel super accomplished at this point!

Looking Forward To...  We have our 34 week OB appointment this week.  We get to have another ultrasound (yay!) to check Ellison's position and see if she's decided to flip around yet.  We are so pumped to get to see her again.  Our last ultrasound was at 22 weeks, so she's going to be so much bigger now!  It will also give us a chance to see about how big she really is at this point.

We're also having a baby shower here in Charlotte this weekend.  I am so excited to see so many of our friends and family and am so thankful that so many people are able to come together to celebrate Miss Ellison.  We'll also be having a cookout at our house later that evening to continue celebrating with some of our friends and family.  I remember when this shower was scheduled and I thought it was so far away!  I can't believe it's here already!!

Week 33

Dear Ellison,

You are 33 weeks old now!  You're probably weighing in at a little over 4 pounds and are more than 17 inches long from head to heel.  Your skeleton is hardening, but the bones in your head will remain unfused to help you escape during birth.  Your brain is developing like crazy and soon you'll be able to coordinate breathing with sucking and swallowing.  You're also able to keep your eyes open when you're awake now.   Here are the little details of the week...

How Far Along? Thirty Three Weeks...49 days to go!

Weight Gain? According to the MD appointment this past week, we're at 28.1 pounds gained.

Sleep?  Sleep?  What's that?  OK, it's not that bad.  I have had a little more trouble getting good solid rest this week though.  I'm up at least three times during the night, but more often it's 4 or 5 times.  I've been having some more hip pain too that I think is from sleeping on my side.  I just don't feel completely rested in the mornings and have had to come home and take a little power nap after work a few times.  I also had to have a small cup of real coffee this week...twice.

Miss Anything? Strangely, I miss my second trimester!  Don't get me wrong, I am so, so excited to be getting closer and closer to meeting our baby girl.  The second trimester was kinda nice though!  I was getting good sleep, I had days where I felt like a cute pregnany lady, and I thoroughly enjoyed every single kick, punch, and jab from Ellison.  Now, sleep's a little rougher, I'm feeling bigger and bigger by the second, and some of Ellie's kicks really hurt! She's a strong little nugget!  I truly haven't had much to complain about during my pregnancy.  In general, I've really felt pretty good.  I think I'm just starting to get a teeny, tiny bit antsy!
Movement?  Oh yes.  And she is so strong now!  Some of her jabs are pretty serious!  She gets way over into my right side sometimes and it's all I can do to get her to move out of there!  I do still really love to feel her though.  I'll catch myself stopping midsentence to pay attention to her.

Food Cravings? Same stuff...fruit, cold water.  I have eaten almost 2 pounds of cherries this week.  They are the most perfect, sweet snack! 

Any Aversions? Yep...still eggs and big chunks of chicken.

Gender? It's a GIRL ~ Ellison Gray.

Symptoms?  Still having Braxton Hicks a few times a day.  I'm also experiencing some sharp round ligament pain from time to time.  And, I'm hot and tired...but who isn't these days?!

Best Moment this Week?  We had our 32 week appointment last Wednesday.  We got to hear Ellie's sweet little heartbeat again and were able to sort of get a plan of attack for the next 7 weeks or  so.  We have also gotten so much done in the nursery!  At this point, we've really just got some details to tie up and we have to finish clearing out the closet.  Other than that, we're just about ready for Ellison's arrival!

Looking Forward To...  Barrett and I have a three day weekend!  Our new washer and dryer are being delivered on Friday, and I am super pumped about it!  We'll spend the rest of the weekend relaxing and finishing up some last minute details in the nursery.  I'm definitely looking forward to sleeping in three mornings in a row!

Week 32 OB Appointment

We had our 32 week checkup today.  We met Dr. Hauschka, who was great and we really liked her.  She said "It's so 'effin hot" and "swamp ass" during our appointment which made me like her even more because she's a real person.  :-)  Things are still looking good with our little Ellie Bean.  Her heart rate was strong and perfect at 146 BPM and we're measuring right on track at 33 weeks (I'm officially 32 weeks and 3 days along). 

The only thing is that Ellison still seems to be sitting breach.  The doctor couldn't be 100% sure, but she said she felt like it was probably her little butt that she was feeling down low.  So, we're scheduled for an ultrasound at our 34 week appointment to see exactly what's going on in there.  We're excited to get the ultrasound because we weren't necessarily going to have another one because everything has been going so well.  It will be nice to get to see her picture one more time!  She'll be so much bigger now than she was at our last ultrasound around 22 weeks!  If she's still sitting quite comfortable breach, they may check again once more at 36 weeks depending on how comfortable she looks where she is or how much space she has to still move around.  If it doesn't look like she has any plans of heading head down, then we'll schedule a C-section for the last week in August.  I have to be honest and say that I wouldn't be that sad if that ended up being the case!  I mean, I get that it's abdomnial surgery and maybe part of me should want to do it the natural way, but it wouldn't be so bad to have a scheduled day and time.  The type A part of me likes a schedule.  I could get things squared away at work, make sure my house is in order, take a shower, shave my legs....  Anywho, I guess we'll see what Ellison's plans are soon.  We all know that her plans are the only ones that really count!

Week 32

Dear Ellison,

You are 32 weeks old now! We are officially 8 months pregnant!  Wow!  You're weighing in at around 3.75 pounds and are measuring almost 17 inches from head to heel.  You're gaining about a half a pound a week now.  You have fingernails, toenails, and real hair on your head.  Your skin is smooth and soft as you begin to plump up for birth.  Here are the little details of the week...

How Far Along? Thirty Two Weeks...56 days to go!

Weight Gain?  Up 26.9 pounds.

Sleep?  I fall asleep pretty quickly, but am definitely up every 2-3 hours using the bathroom and switching sides. 

Miss Anything? I feel like I'm out of breath so quickly these days.  I miss being able to climb the two flights of stairs in our house without needing to catch my breath!
Movement?  She's really rolling around a lot!  I can tell when she's awake and asleep because when she's awake, her presence is definitely made known!  She's getting bigger too...I can feel her pushing on both sides at the same time now.  Most of her kicks and punches are still pretty low, but every now and then I'll feel some strong pushes in my ribs or near my belly button (which I still have, by the way!).
Food Cravings? Same stuff...fruit, cold water.  I've also noticed that I've wanted ethnic foods lately...especially Asian.

Any Aversions? Yep...still eggs and big chunks of chicken.
Gender? It's a GIRL ~ Ellison Gray.

Symptoms?  I started to lose my ankles a little on Thursday!  We had such a busy week and it's been so hot outside.  I'll notice that if I'm standing for too long or if I get too hot, my ankle bones will start to disappear and my rings will get tight.  So far, it's only lasted for a short amount of time and if I kick my feet up and drink some water, they go back to normal.

Best Moment this Week?  What a busy week!  We met Ginger, Ellie's potential day care provider, on Tuesday.  She was really nice, and we definitely liked her...we just need to decide if we're going to be more comfortable with Ellison in a home day care or in the Child Development Center at work.  It gave us lots to think about!  Our maternity photo session was so fun!  It's nice to get all dolled up every now and again.  We had our childbirth class on Saturday and feel much more prepared for the upcoming event!  We also got a call this week that our glider and ottomon are ready to be delivered...about 6 weeks ahead of schedule! 

Looking Forward To...  We have our 32 week appointment coming up on Wednesday.  It will be our last appointment with a new doctor and then we'll go back to seeing Dr. Rogers again for our visits.  Our glider and ottomon are being delivered on Saturday and I'm looking forward to getting it in place...the nursery is really coming together now!

Maternity Photos Sneak Peek

We took our maternity photos this past Thursday.  We lucked out with the weather for sure...it was only about 90 degrees (not 100+ like it has been), there was a little breeze, and the storms held off.  Our photographer, JP Soto, was so fun to work with.  He'll also be taking Ellison's newborn photos in a couple of months.  We took our photos at 7:00, and by the time we settled in at home around 9:00, there was already a little edited sneak peek waiting for us on Facebook!  He worked so fast!  We love, love, love the few we've seen so far and can't wait to see the rest!

Week 31

Dear Ellison,

You are 31 weeks old now! You're weighing in at around 3.3 pounds and are measuring over 16 inches from head to heel, and you're heading into a growth spurt!  You can turn your head from side to side and your arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump up as fat as accumulating beneath your skin.  Your irises are reacting to light and all five of your senses are in working order!  Here are the little details of the week...

How Far Along? Thirty One Weeks...63 days to go!

Weight Gain?  According to the scale at the OB's office last week, we are up 26.5 pounds.  Ellie's growth spurt is becoming Mommy's growth spurt!

Sleep? I'm still sleeping pretty good.  I'm up 2-3 times at night, but I'm still falling back to sleep pretty quickly. 

Miss Anything? Mostly sleeping/laying on my belly, but nothing I can't live without for the next 9 weeks or so!

Movement?  Still feeling lots and lots of movement!  I'm feeling fewer big kicks and a lot more general movement.  I love to just sit and watch her roll around.  I'm constantly telling Barrett to watch my belly!
Food Cravings? Same stuff...fruit, cold water.  These may be heat related cravings though as opposed to real pregnancy cravings!

Any Aversions? Yep...still eggs and big chunks of chicken.

Gender? It's a GIRL ~ Ellison Gray.

Symptoms?  Still feeling some Braxton Hicks from time to time, but nothing major.  Ellie has been poking her elbows (or some body party) into my ribs in the last few days.  Usually I can get her to move out of there though.  It has been insanely hot here in the last few days, so I'm just drinking lots and lots of water and trying to stay cool!

Best Moment this Week?  We are making big time progress in the nursery!  We have our new shades hung, found the most perfect mirror for above the dresser/changing table (on sale for $30 no less!), and are just about done painting the end table and shelves.  Now that we're home until D-day, I feel good about checking things off of the ever growing to do list.

Looking Forward To...  We have a few baby prep items coming up this week.  Tuesday, we're going to meet Ginger who runs Ellison's potential day care, Fourth of July is Wednesday, maternity pictures are on Thursday (fingers crossed for no rain and for it not to be 100 degrees), and Saturday we're heading to Childbirth Class. 

Holy Heat Wave!

Whew!  It has been scorching here the last few days!!  This was the weather forcast...

And this is what my car said when I got into it on Friday afternoon...

Yikes!  Way too hot.  I havent' been able to tell if I'm just pregnancy overheated or normal human being overheated!  Or, is everyone overheated, but I'm more overheated?  Who knows...all I know is that this momma is kicking my feet up, drinking lots of ice water, and soaking in the AC!  I refuse to let the weather beat me!