Goals - April 2020
In Our Birth Center Bag

Baby #3 / 41 Weeks

Baby #3 / 41 Weeks

Well, I'm still pregnant at 40 weeks and 6 days so I guess I'll just keep writing pregnancy updates! Chris joked this week, "Well, we thought you were having a baby but it turns out you're just pregnant." It kind of feels that way!

Even though on some days it feels like this pregnancy will never end I know I'm in the final stretch. While I'm a bit impatient to hold this baby I'm also thinking of how I am lucky to get extra time to savor being pregnant. We don't have plans to grow our family beyond three kids, and we were on the fence for a long time about having a third. So how lucky am I to be experiencing this at all? This is the last time I'll be pregnant and the last time I'll feel a baby kick inside of me. These are the last few days that I'll ever experience the excitement of anticipating a baby of ours being born and what she'll look like. There's nothing else like that. This part will all be over so soon and I know I'll look back at this time with nostalgia. So I'm trying to see these extra days as a gift. I'll be able to say that I appreciated and savored my pregnancy as much as I could have.

Baby bump status: My belly feels tight and stretched although I still feel really good in my body and don't feel terribly uncomfortable. My usually small belly button has opened up and flattened out. The only pants that still fit are a pair of maternity leggings and my pajamas pants so it's leggings every day. The baby still moves a fair amount which is reassuring. I went to a midwife appointment this week where the baby was monitored for several minutes. Her heartbeat is healthy and she's also sitting really low in a good birthing position. So all looks good! With going past my due date I'm a little nervous about how big the baby might be getting since Dash and Cedric were each nine and a half pounds. But I haven't gained much weight in the past couple of weeks and the midwife estimated she's weighing around seven and a half pounds (although I think it's pretty hard to estimated just from feeling through my belly). I'm really hoping for a healthy baby that is less than nine pounds!

How I'm feeling: I've been so convinced that this little gal would show up early it feels surreal that we're still waiting a week after our due date. Going several days past your due date can mess with your head! Despite a big belly that says otherwise, it can almost feel like we aren't having a baby after all. On some days I've felt my excitement flag because it feels like this big thing we've been looking forward to will never happen. And then on other days I feel more zen, am able to tap into savoring this extra time, and get excited knowing that we're inevitably closer and closer to meeting her.

Eating: I'm feeling little motivation to eat very healthy. I'm not eating terribly but vegetables have not been calling my name. I'm very unmotivated to cook dinner for the family and have definitely been phoning that in, especially since I'm not usually eating much dinner. I tend to eat a bigger breakfast, a snack or two (especially apples with peanut butter), lunch, and then I'm pretty much done eating for the day. I would also like to lay some blame on the pandemic for upending of our usual meal planning and grocery shopping. I really miss Trader Joe's since Chris has been doing the shopping.

No particular cravings other than baked goods and carbs but that could also be craving comfort while we're at home during this uncertain time. I feel really good if I make myself a smoothie in the morning to get some greens, fruits, and protein. I make mine with frozen banana, frozen cherries, frozen blueberries, frozen chopped spinach, whey protein, peanut butter, two dates, and cinnamon. So good! Indulgences lately have been a big breakfast of homemade French toast and enjoying cold brew coffee with sweetened creamer.

Exercise: Walking 10,000 steps per day, usually with a walk around the neighborhood. Chris and I have gone on some walks together while my mom has kept the boys and those have been really enjoyable. Whenever I go for walks and especially in the evenings I feel a lot of Braxton Hicks contractions. I pay close attention hoping they'll turn into something more but so far they haven't. I'm getting a little bored of my walks in the neighborhood and miss getting steps during my exercise classes. Last night I turned on Lizzo while cleaning the kitchen and very much enjoyed getting steps while dancing and cleaning. And who knows, maybe this baby girl needs some dance moves to get her going?

Sleep: It occurred to me that one benefit of our at-home life is that I haven't set an alarm for the past few weeks. I don't need to get up and get myself ready for the day before the boys are up since we aren't going anywhere. I don't have to set my alarm twice a week for a 5 a.m. Orange Theory class. I don't stay up late on Monday nights after an 8 p.m. High Fitness class. I'm often able to sleep in until 7 a.m. which really helps me make up for the sleep I usually lose in the middle of the night due to heartburn, needing to eat a snack, insomnia, or all of the above. So I'm at least thankful that I'm getting pretty well rested in the weeks before this girl arrives.

Preparing for another baby: We could not be more ready. All that's left to do is continue keeping the house clean so that when we arrive home with a newborn it will be to a clean house.

One change in preparing for the birth is that I found out that because of the coronavirus I will not be able to use nitrous oxide during the birth as I've been planning. Apparently, if you have coronavirus you can shed more of the virus if using nitrous oxide. Additionally, oxygen is in short supply and I assume being sent to places where it is most needed. Of course I would rather have oxygen go to where it's needed most but this change is still a really big disappointment to me. As I've envisioned giving birth and felt nervousness creep in about how hard it will be I've felt calmed knowing I had an option to use something that could take the edge off. Having that plan change so close to giving birth threw me for a loop. But I didn't get too down about it because what can I do? It's not as significant a change as being told that I can't have an epidural I'd been planning on, for example. I spent a day or so grieving the change but am reminding myself that I've had two nonmedicated births and I can do it again. I trust my body. Plus I'll be at a birth center which will be even more supportive of nonmedicated birthing and with all the support tools to help me.

Looking forward to: The moment when I realize I'm in labor and that this is finally happening and getting to telling Chris. One perk of all the waiting is that I'm feeling less nervous about the birth because I'm just so eager to actually give birth. I'm still focusing on the amazing moment when our daughter is born and she's in my arms. That will be MAGIC. I hope it's soon.

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