I’m sure some of you have been wondering if my recent disappearance is because I’m deep in those first few days of new mommyhood (again). Let me clarify… I am not. Instead, I am taking walks, having induction massages (talk about a dousy), eating dates, drinking red raspberry leaf tea, and bouncing incessantly on my birthing ball.

Photos taken on 5/20/16

How far along: 40 Weeks, 3 Days – Once again, it’s super weird to have this pretty arbitrary (at least in my case) date that you’re counting down to and then have it arrive and pass just like that. I’m not totally sure how it makes me feel. This morning as I was taking a nice long walk, I thought, this is it! I’m here. We did it. But then at moments, I get a little negative or at minimum, skeptical, and start thinking… uh oh… is this happening again?

Meaning, is this baby going to refuse to come on his own like his stubborn big sis?

Honestly, I don’t feel like that’s the case. This pregnancy feels different. But, only time will tell… and until then, I’ll be on my birthing ball bouncing away the days.

Total weight gain: I gained about 1.3 lbs this past week, taking my total weight gain to 33.4 lbs. Woot, woot! Go me! Also, my swelling is almost non existent. It’s crazy. Last pregnancy, I was in a puffy, swollen suit. This time, I still have arches AND bone structure in my feet.

Maternity clothes: IMaybe it was a bit premature, but I’ve started pulling some of my maternity clothes out of my drawers. I’m over it. Ready to wear real clothes again… and by real clothes, I mean yoga pants (that don’t tuck into my bra) and nursing tanks.

Stretch marks: I had SUCH a scare last Thursday. I’m not sure what I bumped into, but I had a nice thick line of broken blood vessels across my belly. I stared in the mirror for about 5 minutes before asking the hubs what the f*** I was looking at. There was no way that my body managed a 43-week pregnancy and 40 weeks of a second without a single stretch mark and than BAM… one right across the center of my belly.

Thankfully, it’s fading. I must have run into something and broke some blood vessels.

Sleep: Sleep still isn’t amazing. It’s not terrible, but not amazing. However, I’ve gotten REALLY good at napping. The past 4-5 days, I’ve taken a solid 2-3 hour nap every day. How great is that?

Although, the toddler was CRAZY last night. Oy. She woke up at 1 or so and was whimpering, then crying… Mark went in, then she was bawling. I talked to her over the monitor, then more tears. I went in… even more sobs.

Finally, we just let her whine it out, but she literally kept waking up randomly with the loudest shrieks. Oy. As a result, she’s got her spice on today.

Best moment of this week: I had such a great weekend with the family. The weather was beautiful, we didn’t have much we had to do… it was just nice. And Charlotte was a little doll.

Miss anything: I’m not really in “missing mode”… although, I’d be really happy if little man would arrive. This momma is ready to meet her man.

Movement: Yes! He’s still poking around in there. And hopefully making his way down the rabbit hole.

Food cravings: I don’t know… I’m getting pretty full pretty quickly these days.

Anything making you queasy or sick: My toddler and husband? Sorry to throw you two under the bus, but I’m over this cold! Thankfully, the worst seems to be behind me (knock on wood). I’m still VERY congested, but the exhaustion and sinus pressure/pain isn’t even a tiny fraction of what it was. I’ll call that a win.

Have you started to show yet: I’m at the point where everyone gives me a weird smile. I haven’t quite defined it, but I think it’s a cross between, “please don’t break them waters in my presence” and “aww, look at the wobbling weeble.”

Gender: Mister man.

Labor signs: I don’t know. I mean… baby’s still in there, so no?

Belly button in or out: I’ve gotta hand it to my belly button… it’s really doing some crazy things these days. Who knew it could manage such shapes and SUCH pressure. Do your thing, belly button.

Wedding rings on or off: So, I am still wearing my wedding band, but have taken off my engagement ring. It just became too much at night.

Happy or moody most of the time: I think I’ve been happy! Maybe a little crabby and “woes me” during the height of my cold, but generally happy. Shit… I’m about to have another baby! That’s happy stuff. Plus, I really can’t complain about my physical comfort. I’m really feeling good. My weekly chiropractor visits are paying off!

Looking forward to: I wanna meet my baby!!!!

OB CHECK UPDATE

Weight Gain: 1.3 lbs from last visit, 33.4 total

Heart Rate: 96 bpm

BP: 106/64

Baby’s Heart Rate: Ranged between 138 (where it sat most of the time) to 154 when he got excited

Baby Bump: About 39-40 cm

Other: I had a nonstress test on Friday, too. After nearly 2 hours, baby is not stressed. I’m sure you can imagine how excited I am to do ANOTHER one tomorrow… oh yay.