34 going on 35...

What a coinkidink! Not just my age but also my gestation.



I thought I was uncomfortable before, but I really had no idea:

• My lower ab muscles now literally scream with pain and soreness, just trying to hold everything up and together. I think part of the discomfort is also the round ligaments just being over-stressed. The pregnancy support brace I wear helps but doesn't eliminate the discomfort.
  
• My overcompensating back gets tweaked after just a few minutes standing or sitting unsupported.
• My feet get ridiculously sore and swollen after too long standing.
• I am CONSTANTLY hungry this last week or so. Nothing seems to satiate my appetite for any length of time but at the same time I still can't eat all that much at each sitting. If I don't eat often enough (not always possible with work) I get heartburn and nausea.
  
• The baby NEVER stops moving now and now it really feels like a little human being twisting and turning around inside of me. It's beyond a little weird, sometimes it's just plain overwhelmingly uncomfortable.
• Even pregnancy tops are beginning not to cover the bulge appropriately. I'm constantly pulling up my pants and down my tops.

I've got to the point where I just don't remember what it's like NOT to be pregnant any more. I literally stand in line at the store, staring uncomprehendingly at the 20-something girl in front of me, with her tight jeans tucked into her Ugg boots, and her cute figure-hugging top that peeks just below her form-fitting winter jacket, and I think: "I wonder how it feels to be so light, to feel so young, to be so free in your movements, and free of bodily pains? To get in and out of a car, up from a seat, or in-or-out of bed without measuring every movement carefully to avoid pain and muscle pulls? To have a full day and not feel like you needed to sleep for eons just to get over it? To have a martini on a Friday night for chrissakes?" and I literally cannot remember that feeling any more. I can't remember the last time I put on a pair of pants that didn't have an elasticated waist or a bra that didn't dig into my ribs when I sat down, or the feeling of having my body entirely to myself, with nothing else kicking around inside of me or making me feel odd or nauseated in some way.

I guess, realistically, it's good news that I can't remember, or it would be daily (no, minute-by-minute) torture to constantly compare the new me with the old one. But, in short, I'm very ready for this to be done. Very ready to get the baby out of me and begin the road to recovery, whether that's from a vaginal or c-section delivery - at this point I just don't care. I want it to be day one of that recovery period so I know it only gets better (at least physically for me) from hereon out. Right now, I just can't imagine another 5-6 weeks of getting bigger and more uncomfortable than I already am.

BUT, I'm still trying to stay true to my goal of taking one day at a time vs. letting the frustration from each day build, one on top of the other. I'm still trying to get to the gym 3 days a week, although I've only managed twice in the last couple of weeks, and watching what I eat as much as possible to ensure that I'm consuming good vs. empty calories.

Today I plan to go and get a pedicure after work. My feet need it and it will be good to do something I haven't done much during pregnancy (remember: first 3 months = sick, month 5 = broken toe?)

As for baby, as I've indicated, he/she seems to be active and growing in leaps and bounds. I can definitely tell the speed at which he/she gains weight it greater here now in the last few months. According to the powers-that-be on the internet, this is what Baby Vixen is doing in week 35...

Your baby kind of looks like she's coated in a layer of cream cheese these days. The thick, white substance that protects her skin from pruning in the amniotic fluid is called vernix. When she's born you'll probably see some vernix lingering in her "hard-to-reach" places like under her arms, behind her ears and around her va-jay-jay, if she's a she.. Other news from the womb this week:

The soft fur, lanugo, that covered your baby's body for much of her stay in the womb is now almost completely gone. Your baby begins to develop her own immune system, instead of relying solely on antibodies received through the placenta. This will come in handy when some grubby relative manhandles the baby without washing his hands first.

This week, your baby measures about 17¾ inches, as almost as long as an American Girl Doll (!) and weighs almost 5 pounds, as heavy as a bag of sugar, minus the cup you put in your decaf this morning.

Hubby and I are also reading the book "Baby 411", a neat dip-in-dip-out kind of book, addressing common questions and concerns about your baby's first year of life. Although I'm not all that keen on reading books about pregnancy or parenting, I figure it's good to have a book on hand that answers the "what should I do when...?" or "is this normal?" type questions at 2am, as well as provide a reader's digest version of what to expect in the first few months especially, when your world, your body, and your brain is upside down. It's a good book because it's no nonsense, non preachy, and broken down by easy chapters to make finding the info you need easy.

So far the most interesting and/or unexpected information I have learned is that newborn baby girls actually have a period right after they are born. Just one and the only one they'll have until puberty. Something to do with mom's hormones crossing over. I never knew this. Odd indeed.