30 weeks, 5 days - Stranger Comments & Breast Feeding Class

I've said for a long time that I was kind of waiting for strangers to recognize that I'm pregnant and that would be a sign that I'm really, officially showing.  Not the kind of showing that people who know you really well can tell, but the kind that just anyone can tell.  It happened yesterday.  And it was funny and cute and surprising.  The postings from my "birth club" on BabyCenter made it sound like it was going to be horrible and that I'd be plagued with thoughtlessly rude comments, but my first experience with a stranger's comment was an absolute delight.  I was taking a walk yesterday during my lunch break and I walked past a construction site.  I know construction workers have a stigma associated with them and the stereotype is that they're crude and whistle or cat call at women, but these guys are always nice and smile at us and say hello.  Well yesterday, I was walking by and was on the phone with Matt when I passed a big guy who gave me this giant toothy grin as I passed and said, "Hey!  Congratulations!"  At first I wasn't sure what he was congratulating me on, but after a few seconds it was clear.  And he really seemed genuinely happy and happy for me.  Like he was so delighted that I was bringing another child into the world that he couldn't contain it.  You know that kind of smile where you can tell someone is genuinely happy?  When their smiles go up into their eyes and they sort of twinkle at you?  Like his smile just bubbled up and burst out of him.  I realize that I associated a whole lot of emotion and internal commentary to a single smile and two words, but it was just a really nice human moment.

Also, yesterday I went to a breast feeding class at the hospital where I'm going to deliver.  It was wonderful.  I was shocked by how many people were in the class (I'd say 35-50 plus their partners), too.  I wasn't sure about taking the class but I'd heard so many stories about women having trouble nursing that I figured I might as well just take the class to see what I could see.  Turns out, it was a very good move.  The class was fantastic.  The instructor was fantastic.  I learned a lot and had an overall really great experience.  I wish Matt had been able to come, but Sheri came with me and took copious notes so I wasn't alone.  It really made me look forward to our birthing class and for my infant care skills class which will both be in July.  It was also really fun to look at all the pregnant women of all different shapes and sizes and ages and ethnicities and socioeconomic backgrounds.  I mean, it was in Arlington, so there weren't THAT much ethnic or socioeconomic diversity, but it really was pretty cool to see so many different bellies and belly sizes.  Sheri and I kept pointing out people and wondering how far along they were.  It would be kind of fun to know which bellies were almost ready and which still had a while to cook.  Just kind of interesting to see how different bodies develop.

30 weeks, 1 day - Glucose Update

Met with the endocrinologist today (diabetes doctor).  She was fantastic.  My blood sugar was actually too low this time, so that was kind of annoying.  The doctor asked me why my OB sent me to her instead of sending me to get the 3-hour glucose test to confirm whether or not I have gestational diabetes.  I told her that because of my family history and because we did the screen later than it's generally done, my OB preferred to send me straight to the endocrinologist to have her make decisions as opposed to waiting longer.  She explained to me that since my sugar was low today, I clearly don't have out of control, untreated g. diabetes so that's good and that most women who do have it are able to control it with diet.  That's the same thing my OB said, but I told the endo doc (Dr. Go) that I was really frustrated with everything I read because I've been so careful about my diet already.  She was just wonderful and listened and explained things to me so thoroughly.  She walked me through everything that would happen if I do in fact have it and gave me a glucometer with which to test my sugar.  She then explained my options to me: basically, I can either take the 3 hour test or just skip it and start monitoring my sugar.  I told her that I'd prefer to know for sure and she said that she agreed with me and that's what her recommendation would have been but that she preferred for me to make the decision.

Here's how it goes from here: I have the 3 hour test on Wednesday am.  The results should be available to Dr. Go as early as Thursday at which point she'll call me and tell me what's up.  If I do have it, she'll call in a prescription to my pharmacy for testing strips and I'll start monitoring my sugar four times a day and will set up an appointment to meet with her again and go over my sugar levels with her once I get back from the babymoon.  I'll make an appointment with a nutritionist also and discuss what sort of changes need to be made in my diet to keep my sugar levels normal.  If I don't have it, then no worries, the screen gave a false positive, and all is well with the world.  Until I take the test, I should continue on with my regular diet and exercise regimen.

So, while I don't really know anything more than I did yesterday, I feel a lot better because the Dr. Go spent so much time with me listening and explaining things.  She was really fantastic.  How lucky I am to have so many great doctors around!

Oh, and she also said, "Wow, you do NOT look 30 weeks pregnant.  That's amazing."  After I told her that people frequently say that, she said, "Oh, well it's a good thing.  You know that, right?  You know that it's a compliment and that you should take it as such."  I told her that since I'm gaining weight as I should and as far as the OB is concerned, everything is growing the way it should, I'm not worried but that it was nice to get extra medical reassurance.  Like I said, she was really, really nice.

30 weeks, 0 days - Belly pic & Glucose Update

Please disregard the silly shorts I'm wearing in this photo and focus on the mighty fine bump I'm sporting directly above them.  Lookin pretty pregnant these days, no?  And, just for fun, since we're 3/4 of the way there, here's a recap:

That's 6 weeks, 20 weeks, and 30 weeks.  I have a 10 week photo but it's a closer shot so it doesn't actually fit into the collage. And really, it doesn't look any different than 6 weeks so this works.  Anyway, HOLY MOSES!  Look how huge I am!  I mean, I feel huge but when I see the pics side-by-side like this, it really makes me recognize HOW huge I've gotten.  30 weeks.  I can't believe it's been this long!!  I wonder how long we'll go.  My mom said that her babies were all at least two weeks late.  My friend Megan went about 2 weeks before her due date.  Oh my goodness, I just can't believe it's coming so soon!
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Well, I got the results of my glucose test; I failed.  :(  It doesn't necessarily mean anything yet, other than I have to take a more sensitive test.  I'm not sure if I'm going to do that or not, as my doctor referred me directly to an endocrinologist.  Generally, if you fail the first test, they give you another one during which they check your levels more frequently.  Since she referred me straight to a diabetes doctor, they might have a different procedure.  Who knows?  Anyway, my appointment is tomorrow at 1:20.

I'm very sad.  I'm trying to keep reminding myself that it doesn't mean anything yet, but it makes me very sad, still.  I feel like I've tried so hard to be so good and watch my diet so closely, but all I can focus on is all of the other things I COULD have been doing or should have been doing.   I'm just so very sad.

29 weeks, 5 days - Dr. Appointment & More Gender Nonsense

Well, I had another glucose test today.  And, I'm again embarrassed to report that I really like that juice they give you.  You know, the one EVERYONE hates.  Ha!  Oh jeez.  I'm so disgusting.  Hopefully, nothing got messed up this time.  The doctor told me to call her tomorrow to go over the results, but she expects all to be just fine.

As for everything else, the word 'perfect' was again bandied about.  :)  Dr. Lashgari isn't quite as free with her compliments as Dr. Elliot is, though, so it was just about the size of my belly this time.  She was very cute; I pulled up my shirt to bare my belly and she exclaimed, "oh, look at that cute little belly!  You've popped!"  It was cute.  I just love that practice.  Anyway, my blood pressure is fine, weight is great, and as I said earlier, she measured my belly with a tape measure and reported that it's just perfect.  Baby's heart rate is 131.  Next appointment is on June 18th.  We're supposed to have them every two weeks from here on out, but we'll be on our Babymoon in two weeks, so we scheduled three weeks out.

So, now that I've visited the doctor again, it's time to revisit our gender predictions.  The old wives say that heart rates above 140 signal a girl.  Looks like we've stabilized around 130, so that suggests a boy.  They also say that if you carry the baby all in your belly, out front, that it's a boy.  I seem to be gaining weight pretty evenly around my belly, hips, and thighs, so that suggests a girl.  Still craving salty and sweet about the same, so that doesn't help.  I think I'm carrying kind of low -- which would suggest a girl -- but I don't have anything to compare it to really, so I don't know if that one counts or not.  The only new thing we really have is that Matt and I were at his cousin Jaime's wedding this weekend and his family was giving their take: Aunt Kathy, Aunt Cindy and Cousin Michelle all said girl.  Soo... pretty much, we're no further along in the gender prediction boat.  It's looking like the guessing is finally evening out, though.  I think at this point, we've got Gramma Rehbein, Aunt Stevie, Aunt Amy, Aunt Holly, Bossman Mike, Neighbor Allison, Co-worker Lynn, Friend Drew, and Mama (me) who say boy, while we've got Great-Aunt Kathy, Great-Aunt Cindy, Cousin Michelle, Dear Friend Sheri, and Dad (Matt) who say girl.  Now that I've listed them all out, I guess we're not quite even yet; still have a few more boys than girls.  What a fun game!! :)

28 weeks, 6 days - A Note from Dad

Really starting to get real

The fact that the little one poking out of Amanda’s belly every few seconds will soon be introducing her/himself to the world has started to become very real.  I feel a bit guilty saying that; it has been real up until now, but when I realized how soon Baby will actually be here, that feeling kicked up several notches.  I might be more in the neighborhood of where Amanda has been for a while now, getting kicked and prodded every which way at all hours.

I don’t know what has changed, but this weekend, I was telling Aunt Amy and Uncle Dave how, since the pregnancy, I’ve become a lot more aware of the historical value of the time we’re currently in and how much I think about the need to capture or document it for our impending posterity (on that note again, Amanda’s well ahead of me with her blogs).  Specifically I was saying how I want to make sure we get a picture of me, Amanda, and baby standing by the car before we make the trek to Georgia, as this’ll be a nice picture with a good story behind it.  Halfway through this point, just how soon that moment would be here washed over me, along with a few healthy flashes of panic.  When that moment does come, there’s going to be a baby around—and not just for nice moments but all the time.  That rather stopped me in my tracks.

This was a good thing to realize.  Besides the fact that I need to be going forward with bug eyes wide open, the panic and fear left almost immediately, replaced by happier realizations such as the time will also soon be here when Amanda and I are living under the same roof again.

And as if to make sure I didn’t get too panicked or begin to take my moment of clarity too seriously, Aunt Amy and Uncle Dave laughed at me for quite a while when I told them how I had to stop talking about when the baby comes because it’s freaking me out.  Almost like they were really enjoying seeing me in that state, kind of like they knew all about it.  Jerks.

28 weeks, 5 days - Dear Baby

Dear Baby -

You're getting very big these days!  Right now, you're approximately 15 inches long and you weigh over 2lbs!  I can't believe how big and developed you are!  You are very squirmy and really seem to enjoy moving around in the middle of the night.  You don't seem to react differently to spicy or sweet foods, but I have seen you react to light.  It's kind of neat to watch you move across my belly when a bright light shines on you.  You're probably getting very crowded in there, as you're growing very fast at this point.  My website says that you're the size of a pumpkin, but I don't think it's ever seen the pumpkins we carve at Halloween.  That would be very large, indeed!

You seem to get the hiccups very frequently, which really shows that you're my offspring; Papa Fred used to call me, "the hiccup kid" because I got them so frequently as a child and I still get them at least once a day now.  I'm sorry if it makes you uncomfortable when I poke you, but I think it's very neat to feel my tummy and see where it's soft and where it's hard so I can try to visualize how you're laying and what you look like.  Based on the movements and bumps I keep feeling, you must be very strong.

I go back and forth on whether I think you're a boy or a girl.  At first, I was sure you were a girl then I was sure you were a boy.  Now, I just have no idea.  It doesn't matter to me, though.  I'm just so very excited to meet you.  Over the next few weeks, you have a whole bunch of weight to gain.  Apparently, you're only going to get a little bit longer but you should get a whole lot heavier before you come out to meet us.  I've been getting very nervous about meeting you and talking to a lot of people about how they knew it was time to go to the hospital.  Very nervous, but again, very excited, too.

Your dad is busy setting up your nursery in Atlanta and I have all of the things I think you'll need for the first few days of your life here with me in Washington, DC.  Well, not all of the things.  I don't have any diapers yet, but I'll worry about those a little bit closer to your due date.  My coworkers at IBM had a very nice shower for me a couple of weeks ago and my good friends Holly, Sheri, and Jeremy are planning a welcome party for you in early July.  Nana Deb is also planning a party so that all of her friends and our family can get to meet you once you're born.  Everyone is very very excited for your arrival... but we hope it's not too soon.  Better if you stay where you're at for a while yet.

Love you, Baby!  Can't wait to meet you!
love mama

28 weeks, 4 days - Belly pic!

Full disclosure: I took this pic on Saturday, so it was really at 28 weeks and 2 days as opposed to the 28 plus 4 that I titled it, but since I didn't post until today, I thought this would be the right heading.  If that's not officially showing, I don't know what is.  As you know, I'm following the month/trimester guidance posted on Babycenter.com, so by that calendar, I'm 6.5 months along.  My What to Expect When You're Expecting book, however, has me listed at 7 months.  As you can see, I'm for sure showing, but I really expected to be a lot bigger by 7 months.  Weird.  I keep reminding myself what the doctor said last time, "you're not going to believe how huge you're going to get." It's just funny.  Not complaining or anything, I just had a really different impression of how big I'd get at what point when I got pregnant.  Thank you television for setting completely false expectations.  :)

Anyway, I'm still feeling pretty good, so no complaints! Getting a little nauseous from time to time which is pretty annoying, since I thought I dodged that bullet in the first trimester.  I can't be sure it's pregnancy nausea, but I have read that it is not uncommon for nausea to come back in the third trimester so I think there's a good chance that's what it is.  Annoying.  But yeah, aside from that, hooray for feeling good and not having complications!!  I think I might have to start going to the doctor every two weeks or so after my next appointment so they can monitor my blood pressure and make sure there's no signs of preclampsia or other problems but more frequent appointments make the time seem to go by faster.  Which is good and bad, really, I guess.  Good because I'm super excited to meet Baby; bad because holy moly, we are so not ready to have a baby!!!