Hiccups

Cheezel has them.

The OB said that inutero baby hiccups are pulse like, which is good to know. As long as its not a tick I'm happy!

Maybe its the Ribena I'm drinking...

Growing

I had to buy the next size up for my tubigrip. I was just getting so tight, and by the end of the day, it felt like I was being strangled from below. It wasn't worth the discomfort even though I'm sure it was helping with my pelvis.

I did do a bit of walking today, but I walked really slowly, and I have been icing. So its not as bad as yesterday.

On the subject of Braxton Hicks: I think I've had them. But its more the tightening of the uterus that I notice rather than the cramping per se. Which apparently is completely normal and I should be thankful. Then again, I am only 33 weeks-ish so there is quite a few weeks to go before I could be having full blown Braxton Hicks.

Cheezel has been getting me in the ribs often these days. Makes me sit up straight anyway.

Architect thinks we have no problems with our house moving deadline. He says we will have a more definitive answer to that burning question by mid August, so we can give rental notice either way then.

I guess I really should start packing...

32.5 weeks

Despite my good night's sleep, I still look tired! My cough and cold are slowly running their course, at last. Now Hubby is feeling ill. :(

11:43pm

Having a hard time with the pelvic instability tonight. I think I spent too much time sitting today and it has really made me quite sore. I am icing when I can. I have so much to do, but I really should spend tomorrow doing nothing. Maybe I will take it easy for a few hours in the morning and see how I am before venturing out in the afternoon to run some errands.

Very frustrating not being as able bodied as before! And we're not even moving yet! Sheesh.

Footnote on the new house

So we finally got the keys to the house late on Monday.

We had a meeting with the hydronic people on the Tuesday and we have nutted out what goes where.

Wednesday the Builder started to demolish the bathroom. We were to have a debrief late in the day after he had gutted the room.

Well, it seems they built them solid back in the day (80s maybe?). The Builder had quite a time with the wire they had used to reinforce the plaster walls, so it could hold up the layer of cement that the tiles were laid on. Not to mention the cement sheet on the floor for the tiles. And the bathtub weighs a ton!

The Architect is going in tomorrow for a few hours to give the Builder a hand. This potential drawback will cost us time. A move in before Cheezel is born is looking shaky, but we are being cautiously optimistic.

Good news is that painting will take 3 days, carpets should be 1 day, and the hydronic takes 2 days.

Its just the bathroom/s that will hold us up.

7 and a half weeks til B-day...

The Good and the Ugh

32 weeks OB check up, alls well as usual.

We had a little sneak peek at baby today; head is down, back is on the left and the hands and feet are on the right. Ideal! Now stay there for the next 8 weeks or so.

On the ugh side: my cough has turned into a nasally cold. Yuck. Not sure which I prefer, but I knew it was going to progress to this stage. As long as I'm over it in a few days and before the baby shower.

I always thought honeydews were the same size to canteloupes, but apparently baby is the size of a honeydew, even though it has already been compared to a canteloupe earlier on. Oh well.

Just another 8 weeks or so

So it has taken almost 32 weeks for me to become uncomfortable.

3 times last night to get up to the toilet, all of which were painful to get up off the bed.

My hands have started to swell a bit, particularly the right. Feet so far are ok.

I even had my first bout of heartburn.

I have a cough at the moment, and all I am taking is lemon and honey, buttermenthol drops and gargling. I rarely get coughs, so I want this one to run its course quickly.

So tired.

Being pregnant

Someone asked me if I was looking forward to having my pre-baby body back.

And actually, I'm not really minding too much how I am now (of course, ask me when I'm 8.5 months pregnant!). But I am really enjoying being pregnant. I can understand how many mum's feel now who say that they liked being pregnant. I can so empathise. I know I will miss that feeling of someone kicking me from the inside!

A friend just had their 12 week scan and all was well, so now its all official, and its been interesting talking to her and how similar the feelings she's had leading up to this moment in time for her and her husband. The initial shock, the trepidation with scans, the paranoid eating habits (or lack of eating) and all the usual pregnancy symptoms.

I'm glad that we will be having kids 6 months apart, and that I can give her some advice when she asks for it, as its all still so fresh in my mind. It will be good to have someone to ring up and chat to when you need that support too.

Stretching

I've been naughty today and not worn my tubigrip for the whole day.

I just wanted to let my belly breathe and stretch without feeling constricted. Such a relief not to wear it, but I know it helps to support me (I also spent the day in my pjs ~ it has been rainy all day and I have not left the house!).

Tomorrow we have pilates, so it will be back on with the tubigrip, promise.

I should also not blow my nose after a hot shower; too conducive to nosebleeds! Such a pain.

Balancing

I had a toasted sandwich with avocado, cream cheese and cherry tomatoes to offset the vanilla slice.

:)

Guilty pleasures

So it was my birthday yesterday, and I was bestowed many sweet gifts. All edible.

I just had a vanilla slice for afternoon tea (after my healthy cereal breakfast of course!). I have 3 more vanilla slices plus a macaroon cake to go!

Must pace myself...

31 weeks

I have just entered the single digit countdown (weeks that is, not days!).

Eeek!

Belly belly

Ah the uncomfortableness has started to kick in.

Sometimes my uterus feels really hard, and when I'm lying on my side in bed, its quite uncomfortable. I am sleeping with a U shaped pillow between my legs, and supporting my belly. Its hard to roll over with my pelvic pain and a huge pillow in the bed. Poor hubby, I am taking up a bit more room.

I am walking like a little old lady (still no waddle though). A bit of a pain when you are loaded with grocery bags and its raining: you just can't hurry!

Baby is the size of a head of lettuce apparently. Feel more like a watermelon to me!

I am not delusional

I have been avidly watching maternity programs on Discovery Health, and one of my favourites is Deliver Me. Another one I watch often is A Baby Story which shows a variety of deliveries from C-sections to water births. Very informative and shows the spectrum of experiences (good and bad) and options available. Of course these two shows are US based and is quite different to Australian practices but still, I'm sure an epidural is still administered the same way. Leave me out of that if possible!!

BUT. But I am not discounting the possibility of needing (or wanting) to have one. I watched one particular episode of Deliver Me where the mum-to-be was adamant about no drugs and no intervention. Well, they sure didn't hold back on the screams she was emitting from the pain she was experiencing! She had been labouring at home for 17 hours before she came to the hospital. And then after 24 she had still not progressed and she conceded that she needed an epidural. And when they told her it would take an hour for it to be administered she screamed Noooo!!!! 36 hours later she gave birth to a large baby vaginally. She also haemorrhaged quite severely and nearly had to have an emergency hysterectomy. Quite scary and a reality check. Had she stayed at home to birth, she may not have survived.

I mean, I want to do it all naturally. But I have not a clue as to how much it will hurt. This woman said "it was like a lightening bolt shooting through your body and it's just wrong!". Now how can I imagine that?! I don't know what her pain threshold is so I can't knock that she tried to go without but conceded. I am open to whatever is available to me, and I will never say never, until I am in that situation. Only then will I be able to say whether I can go without. I won't be afraid to get off my high horse!

30 week OB check up

All good. BP and baby's heartbeat good. My glucose screen was fine, so no diabetes, iron and calcium levels excellent.

He wasn't too concerned about the pelvic instability or the diastisis ~ just the usual pregnancy war wounds.

Baby's head is down, which is excellent. Which is what I suspected with the pressure I get in the bladder at times, and I'm sure Cheezel is currently in the optimal position as I feel the kicks mainly on the right side. So hopefully that is the position by the time delivery comes round in 10 weeks time.

Next appointment in a fortnight.

Yawn

My first restless night of sleep. Feel tired this morning but couldn't sleep in.

I think I had my first Braxton Hicks last night too, at least the most obvious feeling ones that I've really noticed. But I'm not entirely sure.

It felt like I had a tummy ache, low down, and my uterus felt quite hard. It wasn't all over my uterus, just down low. And they lasted about 10-15 seconds, then subsided, then came back a couple of minutes later; this happened about 4 times.

That along with the SPD and trying to find a comfortable position in bed. Oy. Plus my belly is getting that little bit bigger where I am needing some support now I think. At the moment I'm just using my rolled up pj pants as a prop, might need something more. I have also introduced a sausage pillow to put between my legs. Apparently it makes it easier to roll over and alleviate the SPD pain, but frankly, it feels just as uncomfortable with a pillow.

And I woke with my left leg feeling like its about to have pins and needles. So I roll over but that strange sensation remained. Quite a bizarre feeling, and wriggling my toes and massaging the leg didn't help, so I had to just get up. Its probably the uterus pressing on some nerve internally.

*yawn*

Dad's

Craig did his Dad's Only workshop. I think he found it interesting. He asked lots of questions, which I'm glad he did. Now we have a month until our big workshop day.

Reminds me, I must book my TENs lecture...

Physio

Saw the physiotherapist this morning.

I have a tubigrip (elastic band thing that goes around my bump to help with stability).

Apparently I also have about a 3cm gap between my stomach muscles or 'diastisis' (separation of the rectus abdominis muscles), which again adds to my instability, along with the pubic symphysis dysfunction. And my butt muscles and my inner thigh muscles are tight and sore from trying to keep my pelvis together.

So I have to wear the tubigrip, I have to ice for 10-15 minutes, I have to stop doing thigh squeezing pilates exercises, and I have to roll to get up out of bed etc.

She gave me some massage that absolutely killed, but I feel better for it.

When I got up (earlier than usual) this morning, baby hadn't moved for an hour and a half, which was unusual, as the morning Cheezel is usually quite active. But by the time I got to my appointment, there was movement. So I was relieved. Cheezel just had a sleep in I guess!

SPD

Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction.

I'm 99.9% sure that's what it is.

Okay, so walking a distance is a bit of a pain. Walking around the house is no problem. I was like a little old lady going to the market today. Sheesh.

Anyway, I booked a physio on Monday morning, so hopefully they can prescribe me a hip brace or something. Maybe some more strengthening exercises.

I iced it a bit and that sort of helped fractionally. I still have to be careful and keep my legs together! Ha! Just gotta keep taking it easy and get it back to how it was before the pilates class; I'd be happy with that, and I promise to be super good from then on. Honest. No pushing my luck.

:(

Still a bit sore this morning.

Mind you it was already niggle-ing a bit before I aggravated it. "It" being the gap between my pelvis bones at the front (pubis symphysis joint).

Its just difficult to get up off the couch, roll over in bed, getting out of bed etc.

Walking, standing is fine.

I'm really disappointed in myself for doing this.

Stoopid!

Silly stupid

I over did it at pilates today. Our usual instructor was away and the stand in gave me an exercise that I shouldn't really have persevered with. I did make it easier on myself by reducing the tension, but I just shouldn't have tried to do it.

Silly me. And I'm sure if I had told the instructor, they wouldn't have minded. In fact, I'm sure they would be disappointed that I had done the exercise without complaining.

My own fault, no one to blame.

I just strained those ligaments holding my pelvis together, the ones that hurt when I power walk. I have been best friends with my warmed up wheat bag tonight. I shall be taking it very easy for the next few days.

Push and shove

Ah the kicking and spinning and bulging out. I'm starting to have a little more discomfort when the baby moves, especially when rubbing against bone and other organs. The weeing is relentless!

Strange happenings in the night

Weird.
Last night, I had to get up and go to the loo. I got up, as I have for the past week or so, and made my way down the corridor. All of a sudden, I had the uncontrollable shakes. I felt warm yet cold at the same time. It was quite a task to do what I had to do whilst shivering hard!

I ran back into bed and needed Hubby to cuddle me back to warmth. I lost my breath and everything and my heart was pounding. Such a strange feeling. Time to invest in a bathrobe I think (I need one for the hospital anyway). I think it was particularly cold last night, and I was still warm from being in bed, so my body had a shock coping with the change in temperature.

And I had my first night cramp. My right calf just seized. Lucky my pilates instructor gave me some tips to relieve it.

So it begins, the nightmare 3rd trimester issues.

29 weeks

Cheezel is the size of a butternut squash. Something we have been eating a lot of ~ yum! I have a box of Cheezels waiting for me in the pantry to munch on in a weakened moment...

I've had a few nose bleeds, which I read is normal as I have more blood volume or something. But it only really happens on the odd occasion that I blow my nose. Luckily they're not gushers.

The movements are becoming stronger and a little more uncomfortable. I'm dying to know exactly what position the baby is in. I can't really tell. Well, I have a vague idea; I think its transverse, with feet on the right side of me. But its been in that position since I could feel the first kicks. Surely Cheezel wouldn't stay in the one position for so long? I need to know so I can help it get into the optimal delivery position (head down, facing my tail bone, feet up preferably). I think the OB said he could tell at around 32 weeks, which is not that far away now.

Some advise counting kicks (which my OB hasn't asked me to do, just asks if there has been any; I think they don't want to freak expectant mothers out about not feeling enough kicking). Well Cheezel is kicking way over the minimum they suggest (at least 10 kicks an hour) so I'm not worried. Now that they are stronger, I feel them more often, whilst I'm out and about, and not just during quiet times.

Hubby has his Dad's Workshop next week. Then we have our Day Antenatal Workshop, and my Breast Feeding Workshop. I might see if I can sneak into the Early Pregnancy Workshop to speak to the physio about my rubbing pelvic bones. Or maybe there really isn't much I can do about it at this stage, except keep doing my strengthening exercises. Well at least it bodes well for a natural delivery. My body is co-operating, just need the baby to do the same and get into the right posi too!

Movements

The moving and kicking is getting stronger, some times a little uncomfortable too. Goodness! I have 3 months of this getting stronger and even more uncomfortable!!

I'm watching a lot of maternity type shows: Deliver Me, Bringing Home Baby, A Baby Story... can never have too much information I say.

Meh

Had a small meltdown today.

I feel like things are closing in on me, a little overwhelmed: baby, house, dogs...

I just want to be on a lovely tropical beach, drinking lovely mocktails with nothing to worry about, and the warm sun shining down through the dappled palm fronds above.

Surely not too much to ask.

I miss my Mum too. Wish she was still here.