31 weeks

How far along:  31 weeks + 2 days

How big is baby: The size of a coconut (I don't get the fruit comparisons anymore). 3.5 pounds

Weight Gain: Somewhere around 20 pounds. I think.

My body has become unrecognizable and it's a trip.

 Sleep: Sleeping is getting more uncomfortable. I still wake up on my back a lot. Still get up 3-4 times a night to go to the bathroom. Turning over is, like, harder than it should be.  I use multiple pillows to support various parts of my body these days so every time I need to turn over or adjust, my whole apparatus has to be reconfigured.

Craving: No cravings.  I am trying my best to eat less crap.  But I'm no where near perfect. 

Feeling: Lots of movement from baby boy. It's fun, but sometimes he hits my under a rib or something and it feels, not fun.

Random: However, I'm still feeling a nervous about the eventual birth of this baby.  I go back and forth between feeling super empowered and excited about letting my body do what it's made to do and oh hell no I don't think I can do this without getting knocked out.  I don't know, maybe that's normal.  Intellectually I know my body can do it, I know it is designed to do it.  BUT, I am a realist and I know that when I'm in pain, I want it to stop and give me all the meds to make it stop. When you're in a hospital with access to ALL THE MEDS, that is going to take some serious will power to resist.

Dan and I decided to hire a doula to help us with labor. I feel really good about the decision, although the dummy in me feels a sense of pressure to not let her down with anything less than a perfect natural birth.  Obviously, as any good doula will say, this is ridiculous and I should stop thinking like that. Her purpose is to help us have the best experience possible, regardless of what it looks like.  I think I just have a weird complex from like, high school basketball or volleyball about not messing up or letting coach down! I have problems, clearly.

But our doula! She's great and I feel good that we will have someone on our team who knows what they are doing, has been down this road (herself and with other moms she has supported) and can be a calming, encouraging voice and support for us.

I have my baby shower this weekend and I'm really excited! My Mom will be here as well as my sister, Shannon.  I feel lucky to have such supportive family and friends who are willing to celebrate this baby with me!

29 Weeks

How far along:  29 weeks + 3 days

How big is baby: The size of a small cabbage (???). Almost 3 pounds!

Weight Gain: Stop asking me how much weight I've gained, ok?

Sleep: Sleeping is uncomfortable. I tend to be a back sleeper, which they say isn't the best position for pregnant women to sleep in.  Apparently you have a large vein along your back and it can become compressed with the weight of your uterus, so back sleeping = not good.  I think also our mattress is too soft for my pregnant body.  It's hard to turn over and I feel like I sink into it, making it even harder to turn around.  Another excuse for a new bed, I think.

Craving: Still no big cravings. I'm trying to eat more fruits/veggies, generally healthier things.  Key word there is TRYING.

Feeling: I know this is only my first rodeo, but this baby seems particularly active. It's fun to feel him moving around and definitely a reassurance that everything is ok in there..

Random: Dan and I caved and decided to make an appointment to Fetal Fotos to get another glimpse of our baby boy.  Our insurance only overs the cost of 2 ultrasounds (unless medically needed) so we didn't know if we were going to get another one before he is born.  It was SO FUN to see him on the ultrasound! He is so much bigger and more developed than the 20 week ultrasound - looks looks like a real-deal baby in there and I know this is so cliche to say, but he is so cute!

The tech noted he was pretty chubby for being only 29 weeks and definitely stronger than most at his age.  That made Dan pretty proud.  I immediately got nervous that I was growing a mondo-sized baby that I would eventually have to push out of my body.  I'm excited he's growing healthy, but hopefully he isn't too ginormous. 

The tech also said she could tell he had a good head of hair! And eyelashes! OMG, I can't wait to see what he looks like.  The ultrasound was seriously so fun and made things even more real and exciting for us. I think seeing him look so clearly developed made us connect with him even more. We keep staring at the pictures they printed for us and commenting on how cute he is. We can't wait to meet him.