Nursery is Almost Finished Time is really speeding by now and I feel like I got a lot accomplished during my first week of working part time. I got a huge amount of cleaning done and the nursery is pretty much put together now, and I've updated that in the photo album. We just need to get blinds and curtains installed and get bedding for the crib, although we'll probably wait until the baby is born to do that since all the Pack N' Play stuff is now in order. John also got some work done on the attic floor this weekend and I got all of the baby's clothes, blankets, etc. laundered and put away.
I had a good doctor's appointment on Friday and my blood pressure, sugar and baby's heartbeat are all normal. I'll go back in 2 1/2 weeks to get my Group B Strep Test, then I think I'm on to weekly appointments after that. I can't believe tomorrow will be 33 weeks - wow! I've been feeling some cramping on and off, mostly at night. It's not painful, just like minor PMS cramps. Also some discharge, but the doctor assures me this is all normal. I'm hoping it's just my body gearing up for what's to come in a few weeks!
My friend Jenn came to visit yesterday and spent the night. She gave me a one-woman baby shower. It was so thoughtful of her since it looks like I'm not going to get an actual shower. I had said I didn't want one so I really can't be upset about it! She got us a bunch of stuff that we had requested on our registry, including a bottle warmer and 12 bottles of varying sizes, some burp cloths, bassinet sheets, an ear thermometer and some other health stuff for the bean, and a cute bib. It was all very practical and I really appreciated it as it was all stuff we were going to have to buy ourselves! I cooked a turkey breast and we feasted on that and potatoes au gratin for dinner, along with homemade orange-pumpkin pie with gingersnap crust for dessert. It was a great visit!
Tomorrow evening we have our tour of the Labor & Delivery ward, and then Tuesday we have to attend services for John's great-aunt who passed away. It's shaping up to be another busy week, but I hope to get the refrigerator and kitchen cabinets cleaned out one afternoon at the very least.
2006-10-15 (31 weeks)
32 Weeks Tomorrow I had a busy week but I finished up the office job and now have more time to rest and get things done to prepare for the bean's arrival! My wonderful coworkers had a pizza party to send me off Friday and gave me a huge bag of diapers, a boppy pillow and a savings bond for the baby. So thoughtful!
Our carpets are now installed and the house is somewhat back to normal. John got the crib assembled today and we've been painting some shapes on the nursery walls to add a bit more punch. He also started repairing the floor in the attic and it's almost ready for painting so we can begin assembling the guest area.
I'm planning to do my freelance job in the mornings this week and spend the afternoons cleaning (and I mean REALLY cleaning), doing a bit of painting and working on my checklist. That includes things like getting the cats to the vet for their annual appointments, getting the car tires aligned and then getting the whole thing washed and boiled since it's gross....getting our wills drawn up, life insurance - it's a big list. But at least I feel like I have time to manage it all now. My parents arrive 6 weeks from Tuesday and that's my goal for getting everything wrapped up since I'll be at 38 weeks and can go into labor at any time by then!
2006-10-08 (30 weeks)
One Week Left at My Office Job I'm ready to leave work, definitely. If we weren't on deadline to finish remodeling projects at home I might be able to juggle 2 jobs at this stage of the pregnancy, but with weekend being taken up with hard work on our apartment, I'm now pretty much overtired. I have one week left of training my replacement though, and then I'll only be working part time from home. Yay!
It was a great week and we made tremendous progress on our projects. The nursery is completely painted now except for the different colored wall designs, which we can do after the new carpet is installed, carefully. John took care of our bedroom ceiling yesterday and I'm going to paint the doors in there today. We also got the guest bedroom area painted in tthe attic and a good chunk of the hallway done, and John will finish the high parts today and install some lighting. We'll also set up the bedroom up there temporarily so we can sleep up there since the carpet installer is coming on Thursday. We still have to repair and paint the floor up there and finish painting the walls, but then it's fun stuff like installing blinds and curtains and arranging the furniture.
Oh yeah, and the bean is doing great too :) I had an ultrasound appointment first thing on Friday and the baby is measuring about 5 days ahead due to extra long arms and legs. The head and stomach were right on target for my due date. The tech said the weight is estimated at 3 lbs 12 oz right now and that is good. With my APL Syndrome growth can slow in the 3rd trimester, but it certainly hasn't so far! In a few weeks they'll be doing non-stress tests and a few other things to ensure the baby is still growing on target.
I also had a prenatal exam right after that and my OB verified (as shown on the ultrasound) that baby is head down and kicking me in the ribs. My blood pressure was good 110/60 which was the same as last time. And I had a fasting blood sugar of 76 from earlier last week, which is on the lower end of normal, so that's great too. Basically, the bean is in bulking up mode now (I can't imagine my tummy is going to get even bigger, but it will!)
I've been having a gut feeling I'll deliver the week before my due date, so we'll see. I'll certainly be ready by then as my parents will be here and we should have everything in order for the baby. Bradley classes are going well and I'm doing everything I can to stay educated on all the nuances of the natural childbirth I'm striving for. I feel good about it, if a tiny bit nervous. I'm actually hoping my labor won't be too quick (but not horribly slow either) so that I can ease into things and get used to the contractions. But what will be will be!
2006-10-01 (29 weeks)
The Home Stretch Tomorrow makes 30 weeks - wowee! My energy has kept up and I made it through another wedding this weekend. It was a long day but I got a decent night's sleep last night so hopefully I can accomplish some stuff on my ever-growing task list today.
This week we finished painting the nursery and got the trim painted. I have to finish the doors and closet and then we're going to paint different colored shapes on the walls and the paint will be complete. We ordered the carpets finally and they should be installed early next week. That means we have a deadline to get the rest of the painting done, plus John has to patch and paint the ceiling in our bedroom before the installer comes. We're probably going to set up the guest bed in the attic and sleep up there for a few days while our bedroom is being worked on. That will be a good trial run to see how things should be arranged up there for my parents.
We picked up the stroller this week, an early Christmas gift from my parents. And they're shipping us the matching car seat so that's done. We've also made it through 3 childbirth classes already! Tomorrow I begin training my replacement and I'll do that for the next 2 weeks, then I'm done with the office job. Then I can really tackle the huge to-do list I've got.
