How far along: 38 weeks as of Tuesday, June 19. Still hanging in there.
Size of baby: Beansprout weighs about 6 pounds, 12 ounces, and is about 19.5 inches long, the length of a leek. His organs have matured and are ready for life outside of the womb. Wow. Time for him to think about making an appearance! I am more than ready.
Movement: Well, this one is a little long this week, so I will add it to the "Extras" section at the end.
Sex of baby: Boy!
Sleep: Ok. I'm waking up at least three times each night, and I am not able to sleep in much. I'm not overly tired, though. I'm also having some hip and back pain, but nothing too troublesome.
Cravings: Frozen yogurt.
Symptoms: Swelling, some sharp abdominal pain on my right side that the doctor says is likely caused by Beansprout pushing on an organ and irritating it. When the doctor was checking out this pain, she noticed that there was something "bouncy" in the vicinity and was worried that he had moved from head-down to a sideways position. She checked, and luckily, Beansprout is still hanging out upside down. Thank goodness!
What I'm looking forward to: Meeting Beansprout. Please come soon, baby!
Extras: I had a little scare today. I have noticed decreased movement from Beansprout over the last couple of days. I know that he's getting cramped in there, so it is more difficult for him to move. Usually, when that happens I drink some orange juice and he gets going right away. That worked yesterday, so I wasn't worried. Today, though, I drank the juice and got only a couple of movements from Beansprout in response, even after waiting 15 minutes or so. I called the doctor, who told me to come in to labor and delivery, even though I felt some movement, because it was a noticeable change in Beansprout's normal pattern. Of course, I am freaking out at this point and am petrified that there is something wrong. We head over to the hospital, where we got star treatment. I got set up in a room right away and had a nurse to myself. She hooked me up to the fetal monitor and said they'd do an ultrasound to check Beansprout's amniotic fluid level. Beansprout looked great on the monitor and had a strong heartbeat, which fluctuated appropriately in pace. He also had a fine level of fluid (on the low side, but ok for this late in pregnancy) and was moving some during the ultrasound, although I couldn't feel anything. I did see him blink, though, which was so neat!
They monitored me for an hour, and I felt no movements for the first forty-five minutes or so. During the last fifteen minutes, he started perking up, and I got several comforting movements. The doctors told me that in this last week or so, I may not feel too many movements because of the lack of space and the positioning of the baby. Despite knowing this, it is very hard not to worry when Beansprout isn't moving as frequently as he was before. At the end of the day, Beansprout is looking great, and I have to trust that he's doing fine even when I can't feel him as much. Let's just say I am ready for him to arrive so that I don't have to worry every day! Come on Beansprout, we're ready for you!
On a less anxiety-inducing note, we are finishing final baby preparations. My mom arrived on Friday and is staying through the birth. It is very nice to have her here to help me with the last-minute errands; thanks, Mom! Mark installed the car seat today (correctly; we got it checked by a police officer!), and all of the furniture is set up in the nursery, other than a small table which my aunt is bringing on Thursday. The newborn clothes, blankets and towels are washed. We just have a few pictures to hang, and then we'll be good to go. It's go time!
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