32/33 weeks

I'm a week behind so I'm going to do a double-update today to catch up.

32 Weeks



How your baby's growing: By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

How your life's changing: To accommodate you and your baby's growing needs, your blood volume has increased 40 to 50 percent since you got pregnant. With your uterus pushing up near your diaphragm and crowding your stomach, the consequences may be shortness of breath and heartburn. To help relieve your discomfort, try sleeping propped up with pillows and eating smaller meals more often.

You may have lower-back pain as your pregnancy advances. If you do, let your caregiver know right away, particularly if you haven't had back pain before, since it can be a sign of preterm labor.

Assuming it's not preterm labor that's ailing you, you can probably blame your growing uterus and hormonal changes for your aching back. Your expanding uterus shifts your center of gravity and stretches out and weakens your abdominal muscles, changing your posture and putting a strain on your back. Hormonal changes in pregnancy loosen your joints and the ligaments that attach your pelvic bones to your spine. This can make you feel less stable and cause pain when you walk, stand, sit for long periods, roll over in bed, get out of a low chair or the tub, bend, or lift things.

33 Weeks

How your baby's growing:This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

How your life's changing: As your baby fills out even more of your belly, lots of things might start to change: Whereas before you were sashaying, you may find yourself waddling. Finding an easy position to sit in — let alone sleep — is becoming more of a challenge. And bumping into chairs and counters is par for the course.

You may be feeling some achiness and even numbness in your fingers, wrists, and hands. Like many other tissues in your body, those in your wrist can retain fluid, which can increase pressure in the carpal tunnel, a bony canal in your wrist. Nerves that run through this "tunnel" may end up pinched, creating numbness; tingling, shooting or burning pain; or a dull ache. Try wearing a splint to stabilize your wrist or propping your arm up with a pillow when you sleep. If your work requires repetitive hand movements (at a keyboard or on an assembly line, for instance), remember to stretch your hands when you take breaks — which should be frequently.

Many women are still feeling sexy at this stage — and their partners often agree. You may need to make some adjustments, but for most women, sex during pregnancy is fine right up until their water breaks or their labor starts.

How I'm doing: My stomach is starting to get very large. It's beginning to get in the way during normal activities now. Some yoga positions are becoming more difficult either because my stomach is in the way or they are just harder because my stomach is so heavy. I can't do a normal forward fold anymore because my stomach touches my legs and even doing "plank" is starting to get difficult because it's harder to hold all of my weight up with my arm strength. I still enjoy yoga a lot. It helps loosen muscle tension. Thankfully, my yoga studio has added a Tuesday evening class so I can continue going to class twice a week (or once a week when we aren't home on Sundays). I also tried out a water aerobics class for the first time with my friend Kelly. It was more of a workout than I expected and I think will be good for some upper-body stregthening which is lacking from my other gym activities. I didn't make it back this Sunday but hopefully Kelly and I will continue that on Sunday mornings. I'm getting to be quite a sight in my two-piece Speedo.

Aches and pains are starting to set in. I have a pretty regular pain in my left butt muscle. I'm pretty sure it's my sciatic nerve getting pinched; which is a very common problem in pregnancy. The only problem is it hurts almost all of the time I'm moving and there's not much that can be done for it; except having the baby. The other main ache is my stomach. I think the weight of my stomach gives me stomach pains when I overexert myself. I did this on Friday and paid for it later. I'm finding I can only carry very light loads now. Anything heavy puts too much strain on my stomach muscles; which pretty much aren't good for anything at this point.

We're starting to organize the house a little bit. We got a few large baby items that we're trying to find places for. The highchair is set up and pulled up to the table and the stroller has a place. We're still looking for a home for the bouncer and sorting through baby clothes. The car seat is going to be installed in the car this week as soon as we get the car washed and vacuumed.

I will be considered full-term in a month now so not much time remains to get things in place and ready to go.

We had an appointment last week. Our midwife was fairly certain that the baby's head was down. If she's not certain at our next appointment she may order an ultrasound to check the baby's position. If the baby isn't head down there are some things that we can do to try and encourage her to move in that direction: some yoga positions, acupuncture, a chiropractic technique, etc. A breech baby makes a natural childbirth a lot more difficult so we really want her to be head-down. Childbirth classes are going well. Scott had to miss a class while he was in Colorado so my friend Ayala came with me a substitute. We have 4 more classes to go.

We went camping this weekend. We stayed at Leo Carrillo State Park which is a lovely campground right near the beach. Yes, I can still manage to sleep in a tent. I'm not 100% comfortable anywhere so it's almost as comfortable as my bed. We sat on the beach and watched the dogs and the kids and saw dolphins swimming in the ocean a few times. Then we explored the tidepools. It was a nice relaxing weekend. Back to work tomorrow.

27 weeks

How your baby's growing: This week your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14.4 inches long with his legs extended. He can now open and close his eyes, and he sleeps and wakes at regular intervals. He may suck his fingers, and although his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with assistance — if he were to be born prematurely. Chalk up any rhythmic movement you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and isn't bothersome to him, so enjoy the tickle. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. Wonder what he's thinking?

How your life's changing: Your body is gearing up for the final lap, so you may start noticing some new symptoms. Along with an aching back, for example, you may find that your leg muscles cramp up now and then. They're carrying extra weight, after all. They may also be aggravated by sluggish circulation and compressed nerves caused by your growing uterus. (As your uterus expands, it puts pressure on the blood vessels that return blood from your legs to your heart and on the nerves leading from your trunk to your legs.) Unfortunately, the cramps are likely to get worse as your pregnancy progresses. Leg cramps are more common at night but can also happen during the day. When a cramp strikes, stretching the calf muscle (by straightening your leg and then gently flexing your toes back toward your shins) should give you some relief. Walking for a few minutes or massaging your calf sometimes helps, too.

It may be the furthest thing from your mind right now, but it's not too soon to think about family planning. You'll want to have made some decisions before your baby arrives. In some states, if you're considering a tubal ligation during your hospital stay, laws require that you sign a consent form at least a month before delivery day. (You can still change your mind later.)

How I'm doing: I feel pretty lucky at the moment. I am still able to sleep well and even though I'm doing things slower, I don't really have any aches and pains to speak of. I really feel like yoga has helped with this. I have noticed a definite increase in flexibility and strength since I started attending regularly. Unfortunately, after this week I will be down to only attending once a week since our birth class is also on Thursday evenings. I have also been trying to go to the gym as much as possible too. Swimming still feels a little strange since I'm more buoyant than before. But I alternate swimming with riding the bike.

As I mentioned, our birthing class starts next week. We will be taking an 8-week Bradley birthing class which focuses on husband-coached natural childbirth. We are taking the class through Birth and Beyond which is a birthing and infant resource center in Santa Monica. Our midwives recommended the class and we'll be taking it along with a friend and her husband who are due about a month after us. We're very much looking forward to getting the ball rolling.

The baby is kicking quite strongly now. She can easily be felt from the outside it's just a matter of being in the right place and the right time to catch it. She's fond of kicking up a storm and then taking a nap as soon as her daddy tries to feel her move. He has felt her though. She kicks so strongly that you can easily see my stomach move, even through clothing. We've tried to catch this on tape but she's been uncooperative so far. She seems to be a feisty one. But she's only kicked me hard enough, or in the right location, to hurt once. Hopefully it will stay that way. She does like to stretch and pushes back when my pants push into my stomach when I'm sitting. She doesn't like my elastic waistbands I don't think.

19 weeks - almost halfway

How your baby's growing: Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces, and he measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. His arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of his body now. His kidneys continue to make urine, and the hair on his scalp is sprouting. This is a crucial time for sensory development: Your baby's brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. If your baby is a girl, she has an astonishing 6 million eggs in her ovaries. They'll dwindle to fewer than two million by the time she's born.

How your life's changing: You're just a week shy of the halfway mark. You may notice some achiness in your lower abdomen (perhaps extending to your groin) or even an occasional quick, sharp, stabbing pain on one or both sides, especially when you change position or at the end of an active day. This is round ligament pain, and it's caused by the stretching of the muscles and ligaments that support your growing uterus. It's nothing to be alarmed about, but if the pain is persistent and continues even when you're resting, or is severe or accompanied by cramping, call your practitioner.

You may also have noticed some skin changes lately. Are the palms of your hands red? Nothing to worry about — it's from increased estrogen. Patches of darkened skin are also common during pregnancy. When they show up around your upper lip, upper cheeks and forehead, they're called chloasma, or the "mask of pregnancy." You may see these splotches on your arms or other areas that have been exposed to the sun. Your nipples, freckles, scars, underarms, inner thighs, and vulva may also darken during pregnancy. That darkened line running from your belly button to your pubic bone is called the linea nigra, or "dark line." All of this darkening is caused by a temporary increase in melanin, the substance that colors your hair, skin, and eyes. For most women, these darkened spots will fade shortly after delivery. In the meantime, protect yourself from the sun, which intensifies the pigment changes. Cover up, wear a brimmed hat, and use sunscreen when you're outdoors. And if you're self-conscious about your "mask," a little concealing makeup can work wonders.

How I'm doing I'm doing fine. I'm feeling good. I went to my first prenatal yoga class yesterday at Santa Monica Yoga and I'm very sore today. I'm going to try and go twice a week as much as possible. Classes are on Thursday evenings and Sunday mornings. I think it will really help. Some positions felt really good already and my belly doesn't weigh that much yet.

Friday marks the halfway point. We are very much looking forward to that milestone. But what's even better is that in 1 short week we'll be going into get our 2nd ultrasound and we'll hopefully get to fine out the gender of this little guy. We are going to find out the gender of the baby, but we are going to keep the name a secret until we meet the baby and make sure it fits. We haven't picked a name yet but when we do we are going to keep it a surprise for the baby's birthday.

We have started to register. We started a registry at one of the two stores in LA that carry the crib we want to get. We're not buying any other baby furniture so we picked out a high quality crib that is made out of wood instead of particle board, isn't made in China, and is from a company that has a spotless safety record--all things that are very important to us. The company is called Munire and this crib is from their Urban line (we're getting pine colored, not white).

We created our first registry at USA Baby and it can be found here. We are very excited to find out the gender so we can register for more things and start buying! We've been holding out on buying pretty much anything until we know if the baby is a boy or a girl. The crib takes 8-10 weeks to arrive (and probably longer over the holidays) and other things are not always in stock in the stores so we won't be following typical Jewish tradition and waiting until the baby arrives to buy things.