Pregnancy Update {30 Weeks}

A few ladies from my church threw me a baby shower last Sunday afternoon.  It was a fun way to celebrate our new baby girl.  The theme was Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and it was decorated in turquoise (my favorite color!), silver, and purple.   Maybe it's stereotypical to say that it was special just to be honored, but it was!  Of course, the shower was helpful, too, because we received some things we really needed.  It has been over five years since we have had a baby in our house! 

How far along? 

about 30 weeks

I have 10-ish weeks to go.  I say 10-ish  because I'm assuming our baby girl could be born any time in the month of January.  I had two babies who were born late.  One of them was a week late (though looking back at my dates, I think maybe he was only about four days late).  And then I had three babies born early.  One of them was three weeks early.  I'm anticipating that this baby will be born close to her due date (mother's intuition?), but I have no way of knowing for sure. 

Gender:  
We're having a girl, which evens out our boy/girl ratio.

Feeling:

Will you hate me if I say I feel amazing?  I told my midwife last week that I am just waiting for the third trimester yuck to kick in but it hasn't. 

Any aches and pains?
The nightly heartburn I was feeling at the beginning of the second trimester has vanished, thankfully, because just the thought of antacids make me ill.  I am experiencing mild lower back pain now, usually in the evening after being on my feet all day.  If I am ultra-conscious of my posture (shoulders back, bottom tucked, pelvis tilted) and avoid swaying when I walk, I can keep the achy back in check right now.  All bets are off as the pregnancy progresses.

Sleep: 

I have had a couple nights of mild insomnia.  I fall asleep with no problem and then wake in the night, unable to fall back asleep.  If I lie there long enough, I eventually drift off, but regardless of how much (or little) sleep I get, I am awake with the sun (or sometimes before).  That's why Saturday morning was so surprising.  I slept until 8:30 am, the longest I've stayed in bed in months!

Movement: 

She is still most active when I settle down for the evening and am not lulling her to sleep.  Over the past few weeks, she has started jabbing me with an elbow or knee hard enough that I gasp with surprise. 

Food cravings:

Last week I ate kale almost every day with a splash of apple cider vinegar.  My other go-to snack is oatmeal with a spoonful of natural peanut butter and a few dark chocolate chips. 

Milestones: 

I'm visiting my midwife every other week now.  It's a busy time of year to have another thing to add to my schedule, but it means the pregnancy is in the home stretch!

Exercise:

The short story is that I am still running but that I've had to modify my routine for the third trimester.  I'll save the long story for a separate post early next week. {Update: Running and Exercise in the 3rd Trimester}

Getting Ready For Baby:
I set up a online baby registry for myself as a make-shift list of things I need (or want).  As we are given things or purchase them, I mark the items off the list.  A bit unconventional but it works for me.

Contractions:

I had a scary episode around 28.5 weeks.  Brian was home and we were busy doing projects all day.  In the late afternoon, I noticed that I was having Braxton Hicks contractions.  That's not entirely abnormal, but when I had three or four in a fifteen minute window, Brian told me to go sit down for awhile.  I had just made myself a cup of hot chocolate so I drank that while reading on the couch.  I casually timed my contractions and saw they were coming three minutes apart.  They were not painful, but they were uncomfortable and the regularity was alarming. One of the kids brought me a full glass of water and I drank that.  It took close to an hour, but the contraction eventually slowed and then stopped altogether.

Labor signs:  
Besides those worrisome contractions, I found out at my appointment last week that Baby is already head down.  That makes things seem so real... and close!  Labor needs to hold off at least seven more weeks, though.