Pregnancy 1: Week 39

39 Weeks:

Full Term: YAY! We officially have carried Patrick to full term! Please note some of you are thinking umm...no full term is 37 weeks. This is no longer accurate. It is the old school measurement of full term but ACOG has since realized the key importance of the continued lung development of baby between 37 and 39 weeks and so they have reevaluated full term and defined it as only 39-41 weeks (also noting that research suggests that around 42 weeks the placenta stops working for the baby and so you should not carry baby to a full 42 weeks or more).

Symptoms: Cramping, constant peeing (now to the point I am up once or twice at night to pee), back pain, muscle pain, exhaustion, & though I keep leaving it out HEARTBURN every week for months now. heehee . Our baby boy also seems to be even more active lately! He is big and all of his movements are taking over my body...at times they hurt and I for a second and like, “ugh stop it” but then I think about how happy I am to be pregnant and how much I know I will miss feeling him in the womb when he is born so I just lay there and enjoy all of his rolls, kicks, hits, and hiccups that he blesses me with each day!

Weight: Well this week I have gained nothing so still at 19lbs gained. I still feel like I will hit 20 but it is a nice feeling to make it this far and have such a low weight gain!

I pushed myself at the start of this week to do a lot of things around the house, I really want to make sure I am still on top of everything when Patrick arrives, but it definitely put my back in a bad place. Thankfully Tomek got a bath going for me and it helped immensely. However, I have to say I never thought I would be 25 calling for my husband to get me out of the bathtub naked because I couldn’t get out. He is so good to me and I am so glad I didn’t try to take a bath without him home (seriously there was no way without his help for me to get out). I am just trying to relax as much as possible before our little one gets here but also 1) be with friends and 2) have the house all ready so I tend to overdo it on some days and just “veg out” on other days.

OB Appointment: We started this week out with our check up and Patrick is still measuring 2 weeks ahead with a heart rate of 158bpm (his typical). We are doing very well. My blood pressure was 122/80, no weight change, urine test (seriously every week to find the same thing) came back normal and good, and overall no symptoms of labor (occasional contractions but nothing major). OB said that if I make it to next appointment then we will check my my cervix for the first time (note I was checked once before technically at 35w4d when I went into Labor and Delivery (L&D) for false labor and I wasn’t dilated at all and no thinning so it was all good but have never been checked at one of my appointments). She also said that if we make it to 40 weeks we will talk about what my next steps are including possible induction (which we are definitely hoping to avoid).

Natural Promotion of Labor: Due to the discussion with my OB I talked to our doula about natural ways to promote labor (knowing that nothing is a guarantee either). First of all she said it is very common for FTM (first time moms) to go past their due dates and not to worry about going to 41 if that is the case (obviously we don’t want, and are literally not allowed to hit 42 weeks), so hopefully our OB allows us this freedom as well. Our doula shared with us natural labor inducing methods including: 1) Semen is known to thin the cervix so if you can handle it having sex is the number one research proven method to attempt to go into labor, 2) Dates starting at 36 weeks every day is also research backed and highly suggested for many reasons including a natural labor process, 3) Lots of walking, squats, and bouncing on the exercise ball were all suggested by our doula as well as our OB. Beyond these three things I can NOT suggest anything else. I talked to our OB jokingly about some of the things I have heard including: castor oil, raspberry tea, eating pineapple including the core, & primrose oil. She noted that quite a few have been proven to be ineffective and the others (not researched just old wives tales) are more than likely to just make you sick and are not worth it unless you are truly desperate (but she wouldn’t guarantee any of them).

Friends Time: This weekend Tomek and I realized this really is probably it before we have our baby and so we each took some time to try and have friends over or go out with friends before our baby boy arrives. This was really nice, though we of course didn’t get to see all of our friends, it helped separate from the lingering angst of when labor will occur. Carly and I went to McAlister’s….yum! It had truly been a long time since I had been there and I love their spuds with cheese and bacon! :) Carly snapped a picture of us outside my place when we got back….I can’t wait to share this future endeavor with her, friends, family, and everyone in our lives! :)

Fun in the Sun: Well fun in the sun for me, and work for my amazing hubby.

Tomek did enjoy some time playing with the pups outside while I laid out, he set out his wood lounger (he made it when he was in his design program and it is still one of my favorite seats outside!), lined with a towel and a pillow for me to sun. I was weary being so uncovered at my size but truthfully I enjoyed it so much, and we have a privacy fence so no one really had to see too much of my pasty white skin. However, as I am learning to accept not only my body size and changes as a pregnant lady but also my body type I have always had, here is a picture of me soaking up the sun.

I laid out, listened to music, and watched my hubby have fun. Though he switched from play to work pretty quickly. He worked so hard moving rocks in our backyard to a pile to be able to use in the future as we finish our yard more and more over the next couple years (We focused on renovating our house when we moved in 2 years ago and this year the focus was on getting the privacy fence, so the next couple will finally be focused on doing the yards up!).

Fall Decorations: Some will say that labor day is the start of fall (though it is technically Sept. 22nd) but no matter the day you choose I decided I wanted to decorate for fall! I love the colors of fall and figured I may not be able to get to it as easily when Patrick does arrive so I went ahead on labor day and 1) cleaned the kitchen, 2) cleaned the bathroom, 3) dusted the house, and 4) decorated for FALL! Plus of course made homemade strawberry cheesecake for our cookout. By the time I was done the fall scents in the house and decorations just put such a big smile on my face! So here are some of our beautiful fall decorations….

Labor Day Picnic: Tomek and I had a long weekend due to labor day and I have to say we loved having more time just the two of us resting and relaxing, watching movies, going out to dinner, etc. But on labor day morning we woke up and he asked what I wanted to do for the day and I thought about it and tried to think of something he would enjoy. So I suggested having a cookout with his family. I love my space during pregnancy, I want my privacy, but I also love when we spend some time with loved ones. Since we had done the friend thing it seemed like a perfect opportunity to have one last hoorah pre-baby with the family. So after some calls we decided we would have an afternoon cookout together. :) Tomek and I went to the store and bought supplies and ended up making so much yummy goodness! We had Polish sausages, hot dogs, corn on the cob (huge price drop at walmart...I was thankful as corn has been an obsession of mine lately!), mac & cheese, and I made some strawberry cheesecake (I have also been in quite the baking mood lately!). Our puppies had fun all 3 (His parents dog Cocoa with our 2) playing outside and receiving so much love, like they don’t get any. We all enjoyed socializing and just catching up one more time before our next time which will probably be in the hospital. By the end of the evening, when everyone left, I was very exhausted (note I did a lot before the party) but I was so grateful for our time together. :) I will also note the enjoyment of avoiding the irony of labor on labor day. However, shout out to some of my September ladies in our support group as 6 babies were born on labor day in my group! :)

Sweet Moments: With only 2 days until our due date I woke up to some pretty uncomfortable cramping. It wasn’t so painful that I was hurting it was actually less intense than period cramps but was just uncomfortable and no matter what way I moved it seemed as though it was just stuck that way. Thankfully hubby suggested using my yoga ball all day and that actually did create a more comfortable position for me and the cramping stopped once I ate, had my date shake, and some water. :) So what is the sweet moment, well my amazing Tomek messaged me once he got to work this:

Isn’t he just the sweetest! He makes me feel so much stronger and able to take on anything! I know with his support we will make it through labor no matter what! He is truly my best support in life!

I am thinking Patrick is going to wait until he had hit his full 40 weeks and maybe even surpass it. As long as my OB is chill with it I am too. Otherwise I will start doing things to attempt to naturally induce labor. But at the moment being pregnant has been wonderful for me (please know I am aware some of you are reading this going...Are you kidding me?! It sucked for me at like 20 weeks on...I understand I am truly blessed with this please don’t be mad at me) and I am totally okay with going another week to week and a half if need be.

Labor Prep: What are we doing to prep for labor still? Just a quick rundown of what we are doing to try to help prepare for labor (bodywise). 1) Dates!! I eat 6 dates a day still since 36 weeks pregnant, 2) Prenatal Yoga. I have been doing prenatal yoga at least 3 times a week since the very beginning of pregnancy including lots of stretching of the lower body. Currently I spend most of my time sitting on a bed, where I have better support to relax or on a yoga/exercise ball so I do a better job of keeping my structure in the proper format (over a couch),

3) We were happily sexually active until about 35 weeks when we went to the hospital. Tomek was so worried that he was partially the cause of that we decided not to continue to do it until we were comfortable with the potential of it causing Patrick to be born. So at 39.5 weeks we have resumed some sexual activity. This is also supposed to help with softening the cervix, due to the prostaglandins in the semen, and so it can help with labor as well, 4) I continue to take my prenatal vitamins every day and will do so after to ensure I have all the vitamins I need to continue to provide for myself and Patrick while breastfeeding, 5) Kegel exercises as well. This is up to you, many will recommend them. I admit to not remembering to do them every single day but I have been doing them since about 15 weeks as often as I remember. 6) We have a doula to help with the actual labor experience but she has also been very helpful in answering questions pre-labor and prepping us. I highly recommend doula services already...and that is before we have even had her for labor! She will help us during labor as well with positioning, comfort methods, reducing anxiety/stress/pain, and help support us both in creating the most positive labor experience we can have.

Labor Symptoms: I would say cramping would potentially be a slight symptom but I guess I never really know either. Also some say that your weight will slow or stop gaining when it is time and so that has also been the case, but again my OB said he is still growing despite my stopping so it doesn’t necessarily mean anything either. So far no spotting, water leaking, intense contractions, or any other symptoms many suggest are precursors for labor. Lastly let me throw in here just since hubby and doula say it counts I ended this week (literally the last 2 days only) with some nesting symptoms. I of course decorated for fall, dusted the entire house, scrubbed the bathrooms, scrubbed down the kitchen, and washed the glass doors.