This past week has really been a hard one. I think its officially hit me that I dont sleep at all at night. And if I do its for a very short period of time. Im too hot, too cold, and when I just think that I am about right, I have to get up and pee. (: I have been going to the Dr. every week now. But nothing has changed in the past two weeks. The Dr. said the baby is still sitting really high and I havent dilated anymore than a 1. So... no progress yet. He's not ready to come. But I have been having contractions so that is giving me some hope. I am really ready for him to be here. Besides the little mess of my room. I have all of his things washed, folded and put in the right places. I have my bag to the hospital packed and the carseat by the door. Now I just have to wait. Has anyone tried drinking castor oil? My neighbor lady swears by it and said I should drink 4 tb of it with a pepsi and he will come right out. As much as I would love to have him out... is that safe? And I really am miserable enough that I dont want to be even more miserable and be throwing up. So lets hear your thoughts on it Ember.. and anyone else who reads this. I have been walking a lot. 3x a day usually.. hahaha. And sitting in my rocking chair while I watch tv. Someone told me that will start labor as well. I have 2 weeks left and I am just ready to be done, and do anything to give him a little nudge to get here.
Fetal development in pregnancy week 38:
fetus in ninth month As you know, you've arrived at the final leg of your pregnancy journey, and if you're still carrying your little love around, they've just about reached their birth weight (somewhere between 6 to 8 pounds is average depending on whether they're a boy or girl). There really isn't a lot to report on baby this week, so lets do a quick recount of where we're at: all internal organ systems are pretty much ready for the outside world, they've got their meconium stockpile building up (their first black baby poo), lots of healthy baby fat, a rapidly developing brain (that'll keep growing with them for years to come), and they've more or less reached official baby status-- all they need to do is "head out" and say hello to the rest of the world and especially their ready-to-pop momma.
And how's mom doing? Hang in there momma, it's only a matter of time before the obnoxious and painful fake contractions you felt in your back, lower belly, and pelvic region will be replaced by real contractions... which are even more obnoxious and painful. You'll know when the real ones kick in because they're if you're feeling weird electrical tingles in your legs and inside your vagina, this would be none other than your not-so-little baby hitting various nerves as they settle into the pelvic area more intensely painful (woo!) and they spread over the entire uterus, through the lower back and into your pelvis.
If you're having trouble sleeping (which about 100% of women in this phase of pregnancy are), try to take little catnaps during the day, get one of those neato full-body pregnancy pillows, or at least lots of pillows that you can shove between your legs and under your belly to support your awkward shape more comfortably. Also, if you're feeling weird electrical tingles in your legs and inside your vagina, this would be none other than your not-so-little baby hitting various nerves as they settle into the pelvic area. If you're feeling sharp shooting pains instead of tingles, this would be your extra-evil-but-adorable baby pressing on your oh-so-very sensitive sciatic nerve. All we can recommend is some wincing, sitting down, and putting your feet up.
Fetal development in pregnancy week 37:fetus in ninth month It’s the calm before the storm. Changes in your baby's weight have leveled off with only a few ounces of fat added this week. At this point your baby should weigh in at around 7 lbs and 20 inches (with boys somewhat heavier and longer than girls). Happily, as far as internal organs go, they are now developed enough to function in the outside world although the oh-so-important immune system is still developing and will continue to do so after birth. With a large boost of antibodies provided by breast milk when nursing begins. Fighting infection and staying healthy should be well within their physical capacity when your little fighter is born.
And how's mom doing? Your health care provider will assess the likelihood of where you are relative to your upcoming birthing process—seeing as you’ve now arrived at that waiting phase that could turn into labor at any time. Various charming indicators such as loose stools, expelling your mucus plus (along with the bloody only 4-5% of women actual deliver on their predicted due date. What’s more if this is your first pregnancy, you can expect to be anywhere from two days to two weeks late show – see week 35), a dilated cervix and increased Braxton-Hicks contractions are all signs that labor is only a few days away. The infamous water breaking may or may not be your first true indicator that labor has commenced. However, water breaks for only 15% of mothers and despite what Hollywood would have us believe, is more frequently just a slow leak rather than a large gush.
Be patient: if labor doesn’t start this week, or even next, keep in mind that only 4-5% of women actual deliver on their predicted due date. What’s more if this is your first pregnancy, you can expect to be anywhere from two days to two weeks late. You can distract yourself by keeping track of fetal movements, mostly to reassure yourself that all is well with your little miracle. In the off chance that movements do start to decrease substantially, try not to freak out and instead, call your doctor of midwife and discuss it with them.
If you still haven’t decided whether to breastfeed or not, here’s a good reason: some experts estimate that mothers excrete between 400-700 calories a day while breastfeeding, and to compensate, you should be eating roughly 500 extra calories a day (mmm that’s like one spoonful of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream).
So today I wanted to bake. I have been in the mood to cook all day. So I started about 3 things at the same time knowing that I was going to run out of energy half way through the first one. SO I fugured that if I started making deer meat enchiladas, tapioca, and brownies at the same time.... I would get them all done and then be tired. But in that process I didnt read the directions on the tapioca pudding all the way through before I started making it. SOOO... I poured two boxes of tapioca together and added the sugar. THEN I read that your only supposed to use 3 TABLESPOONS of tapioca. And there were 8 oz of tapioca in each box. 8 oz of tapioca x 2 boxes of that = a crap load of tapioca. So I googled a few measurements and figured that for everything to even out I needed to times the recipe by 10. So this picture is my massive amount of tapioca pudding that I made. And of course.... as it was cooking it got thicker and bigger and eventually started overflowing. So I skipped the brownies, finished the enchiladas and now I have enchiladas and a TON of tapioca pudding for mothers day dinner. YAY (: As much as I love tapioca, I am already sick from eating it so much. My thought behind all of this was that I was going to clean the house spick and span and have dinner and dessert cooked for my mom for mothers day. Well... most of that got done before I ran out of energy and my feet swelled up like balloons. So... hopefully its the thought that counts. HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM... here's 3 gallons of tapioca. (:
