Almost 37 weeks

I had a check up this morning, and there is not much to report. Everything is still looking good, and the baby is definitely head down and has moved lower. I already knew that based on the fact that I have to use the bathroom every 15 minutes or so, but it's nice to have the confirmation from the doctor too. I'm not really dilated at all yet, so it looks like we'll make it into February before the baby comes.

Jacob got to have a playdate with his friend Scarlett while I went to the appt. He hasn't seen much of her the past several months because our ECFE class is on the same day as playgroup. They had so much fun playing together that we stayed for awhile after I got back. He didn't want to go home and made me chase him all over the house to get his shoes on.

I will have a check up every week now until the baby is born. We're getting really close now!

New fun and exciting poll

Just to make this last month extra fun, I added a poll at the right for when you all think the baby will be born. You have until Feb. 7 to make your guess, and if she is born before then...well, I guess you can just cheat. The poll obviously doesn't reveal whose guess is whose, so if you want to make yours public then you'll have to leave a comment.

Unfortunately, there is no prize for being right, other than the knowledge that you were right. That seems pretty good to me.

As a reminder, the "due date" is Feb. 22.

34 weeks

Here we are with 6 weeks to go until the baby's due date. We are making some progress in getting everything ready that we want to, but there is also a certain frantic feeling to all of this. I had a similar experience with about a month to go with Jacob, and we managed to get everything done before he was born. Of course, we were worried about having things ready by 37 weeks and then he made us wait 4 more weeks to make his appearance.

We are making good progress on Jacob's new room. The bed is assembled, he has tested it out by jumping on it, and he's checked everything out and played in it. The only things left to do are to get the closet cleaned out, put his stuff in there, and start trying to get him to sleep in the new bed. We were going to try it this past weekend, but it still kind of smells like paint when the door is closed, so we'll give it another week.

My next doctor's appointment is on Friday, and then I go back in 2 weeks. Once February hits, I'm going every week. I think that's where the frantic feeling is coming from--that and the fact that in 2 1/2 weeks my doctor is going to tell me (like he did last time) that if I go into labor at that point, they will not do anything to stop it. The good thing is that I know we are minimally prepared in case the baby comes a little early. We have diapers, some clothes, a place for her to sleep, and the carseat. The rest will fall into place.

30 week check up

I'm actually almost 31 weeks, but we make the appointments when we can get them. Who's counting anyway, right?

I had a very quick check up yesterday with my OB. Everything is going really well. My blood pressure was very good, I think it somehow gets better when I'm pregnant than when I'm not. Either way, it's especially good to have normal blood pressure during pregnancy. The baby's heartbeat was very strong. I had assumed that we are not doing more ultrasounds, since we never heard back from the clinic, but I asked just to make sure. He said that if there was going to be a problem, the second ultrasound would have shown it getting worse, not better. So we are officially finished worrying about her kidneys.

He did say that they will probably watch especially closely for wet diapers when she is first born. As long as she is able to wet some diapers, she will not be considered to have any urinary tract issues. But he is leaving all of that up to the nurses and pediatrician, which makes sense.

I made my last bunch of appointments, which I consider a milestone. I remember making these the last time, and it felt like the end was near. I go back in 4 weeks, and then 2 weeks after that, then I start weekly checks. Yikes! I only went to 39 weeks with my appointments, with the hope that I won't need a 40 week one. However, my last one is scheduled 3 days before my due date, so it's close enough. Do you hear me, baby? It's close enough.

Thanksgiving, here I come!

We are having 3 Thanksgiving dinners over the next 3 days. I've been a bit concerned that my diminished stomach capacity will prevent me from enjoying these dinners the way they are meant to be enjoyed. Of larger concern, though, was the glucose tolerance test (for gestational diabetes) that I had at my last appointment. Would I have the results in time to know if I should be watching what I eat extra carefully?

I "passed" the test! So now I have a free pass to eat whatever I want this week. Until my stomach reaches its capacity, that is. So hopefully no one will feel offended if I only take tiny portions. It's not because I don't like the food, it's because I only have room for a little at a time!

27 weeks and a new position

On Friday night, I started feeling more than kicks and punches. This was squirming and flailing that made my belly move on its own. Then the squirming seemed to change to stretching, and I could feel it on both sides at the same time. Kind of uncomfortable, but it was always brief. Suddenly, my entire belly moved and I actually felt the baby move into a head-down position. I know the head is down because now I have tiny little feet kicking my ribs.

This sudden transition caused me to "grow" overnight. A baby lying sideways doesn't stick out as much as a baby that is vertical. I'm relieved because now the nerve in my back that was being pressed by the baby's head can go back to normal, but now I have to get used to the outward growth. Balance has been a little tricky the past couple of days, but it's getting better.

Depending on whose calendar you go by, I am either in the third trimester now or I will be next week. It's hard to believe that we only have 3 months left until the due date! Time is going to go really quickly, and we have a lot to do around the house before then. Where is that "nesting" instinct when you really need it?

Everything you never wanted to know about kidneys

I wasn't sure if I was going to post about this, but since we've received promising news I figured it's good information.

At our ultrasound last month, it was discovered that our baby had enlarged kidneys. The fancy medical term is renal pelvic dilation. Apparently, this is the most common "anomaly" that is picked up on routine ultrasounds, with about 50% of babies being referred for a follow-up scan.

In the picture above, the gray-colored section inside the kidney is the renal pelvis. It's basically the holding area for fluid in the kidney. When this area is enlarged, it often means that fluid is being retained in the kidney instead of emptying to the bladder. Depending on the cause of the fluid retention, it can cause urinary tract problems in the baby and possibly lead to infection after birth. Detecting the enlargement at 20 weeks does not mean the baby will be born with dilated kidneys, because ultrasound cannot tell us why the kidneys are enlarged, just that they are. We were referred for a follow-up to monitor the size of the kidneys.

In our case, the enlargement in each kidney was the same, which is supposedly promising. That was a sign that even though they were slightly larger than average, it could be completely normal. What you don't want to see are measurements that are significantly different. Anyway, we had our follow-up on Tuesday. We got promising results. The enlarged areas have gotten smaller, which is what they want to see. It is very common for the enlargements to correct themselves as the baby develops, and resolve completely before birth, so this is what we are expecting to happen.

The radiologist recommended another follow-up next month, but I am waiting to hear from my doctor before we schedule it. The current measurements indicate that they are right on the border between "normal" and "mild enlargement." They would be checking to see if they measure completely within the normal range next time. I'm expecting that my doctor will say to skip the follow-up and wait until the baby is born. They would do an ultrasound on her then, and if they are normal we have nothing to worry about. Even if they are still slightly enlarged, it won't necessarily affect her health. There are several options for treatment if needed, but right now we are encouraged by the decrease in size, and it is very likely that it will be resolved before she is born.

Congratulations if you read the whole thing. I warned you that it was more than you ever wanted to know!