Neato

My friend L is taking a photography class and she had to complete an assignment today in which she was to take several photos of a subject (me) using different exposures and framing. This one is my favourite.

Yup, It's 4am Again

I've been up since 3:00 and I can't sleep. I'm sitting here at my computer drinking milk and eating toast. Not a bad way to spend the wee hours of the morning.

I had my regular doctor's appointment yesterday. I saw a locum instead of my usual doctor. I really liked her. She is very calm and zen and that works well for a high-strung personality such as mine. I am happy and relieved to report that everything was fine, great, normal. There is nothing so excellent as a boring doctor's appointment. Here are the highlights:

-My uterus (fundal height) is measuring FOUR WEEKS AHEAD now. You may recall that at my last appointment I was three weeks ahead. I asked the doctor is this was something to be concerned about and she said, "nah, it's not an exact measurement." Whatever that means. But I think we can all agree that baby girl is gonna be a big 'un.

-Maya is much bigger than I thought. The doctor confirmed that she is indeed head-down now. Apparently her head is in my pelvis (although not "engaged" yet, thank goodness) and her bum is all the way up under my ribcage. I was surprised by the fact that she is now taking up my entire belly. I don't know what I thought she was doing before, but I guess it's just amazing to imagine that at 30 weeks, she is already "baby sized". This sounds weird, but I think back to when I was newly pregnant and baby was smaller than a grain of rice... and now she is the size that she is... it seems fantastic and surreal. Keep growing baby girl!

-The doctor had to push and prod my belly to figure out baby girl's positioning. She poked at us pretty hard and I must admit it was a tad uncomfortable having someone with their hand pushed right into my baby belly. Maya must have thought so too because she gave the doctor a karate chop right in the hand. The doctor and I both had a laugh. This was indeed the highlight of the appointment.

I will now have my doctor's appointments every two weeks, instead of monthly. Then, at 36 weeks, I will start going weekly.

Maybe it's because I'm off work now, but time sure seems to be speeding up lately. Here's hoping it keeps going like that until Maya arrives. I am so excited!!

The Ass Crack Of Dawn

I am getting all too familiar with the AM hours. I can almost pinpoint exactly when that first city bird will start squawking and when the lighting in my bedroom begins to turn from pitch black to charcoal grey. Early morning has become a dear friend to me. I seem to jolt awake just before 4am. I'll lie in bed for about an hour and just enjoy feeling Maya's early morning Jazzercise class. Then, when my hunger gets the better of me, I'll meander downstairs and have breakfast, check my email, and read my blogs. A happy little routine this has become. Of course, my contentment with this new early morning agenda is solely based on the fact that I have the freedom to nap any old time I want, thanks to being off work now. Thank goodness for that, otherwise I'd be a crabby, sleep-deprived wreck.

At some point around 7am-ish, D will wander downstairs and I will make him some breakfast. He'll then shower and get dressed and head off to work. I'll probably go back to bed for a couple of hours before getting up (again) and starting my day. This is how my mornings have been going. Everyone says this is good training for when Maya arrives and I'll need to wake up throughout the night, and I suppose they're right. Based on her activity levels in the womb, I think I may just have a little night owl on my hands!

30 Weeks Today

Wow. 30 weeks. Seems like a big milestone to me.

Here are some random updates on this pregnancy as of the Big 3-0:

Weight Gain: Up about 40 pounds, I'd estimate. Not that I care about my weight really, but my doctor will give me a hard time, I'm sure.

Appetite: Ravenous. All. The. Time.

Cravings: Salt & Vinegar chips, fresh fruit, any delicious thing I see on TV.

Sleeping: A joke. Between the hip pain and the need to pee, I'm up at least 8-10 times a night. And I'm acutely aware that it only gets worse from here on out. Luckily, one of the many perks of being off work now is that I can take a nap any old time I want, and I definitely take advantage of that.

Breast Changes: I don't even recognize them anymore. They're huge and my areolas resemble dark brown pancakes. Quite a far cry from where they started before pregnancy.

Belly Size: Pretty darn big. What do you think?


Digestion: Not bad at all. I do have some reflux/heartburn on occasion but other than that, I feel good. No constipation either.

Braxton Hicks: I still get them all the time. Some days I only get 1 or 2, other days, it's more like 15 or 20. I hate them. They're uncomfortable and they make me worry.

Baby Movement: Maya isn't a big schedule follower. But I have felt her more and more each week as this pregnancy has progressed. I typically feel her move around every hour if I'm paying attention, or every 2-3 hours if I'm not. She is generally fairly quiet during the morning, moves a bit in the afternoon and goes crazy after dinner. If I'm awake in the middle of the night, I feel her gymnastics then too. Also, her movements have changed from kicks and taps to those of the squirmier variety lately. And, as usual, some days are super active and other days are more quiet.

Baby Position: I'm pretty sure she's head-down at this point. I tend to feel movement on the sides of my abdomen and just under my ribs. Plus, sometimes she does this lop-sided thing where my belly sticks out on one side and I swear it's her sweet little bum. But at this point, it's all just a guess.

Baby Purchases: None to date. However, I do plan on buying Maya's crib, changing table, and stroller next weekend (or just shortly thereafter). Plus, I have registered, which was a huge step for me!

Best Gift I've Received So Far: An adorable zebra-striped little newborn bikini. So freakin' cute. (All though D says she's not allowed to wear it out of the house because she doesn't want any of the boy babies making eyes at her.)

Nursery Preparations: All clean and ready for furniture!

Books I'm Reading: What to Expect the First Year, First-Time Parents, The BabyCenter Essential Guide to Your Baby's First Year.

Current Mental State: Really excited, happy, grateful for every day, feeling ready to meet my daughter. At this point, I'm still not the least bit scared of going through labour. I think I've just resigned myself to the fact that it's happening and in the end, I will get to hold Maya in my arms so really, I think I am more excited than nervous. At least at this point. My anxiety is markedly less since I've been off work, which is great. I still do have my moments occasionally (i.e. last night when I found a worm in my corn on the cob...gross!!!) but for the most part I am able to keep many of my worries at bay. Sort of.

How I Plan To Spend the Next 10 Weeks: Relaxing, spending quality time with D, enjoying the quiet times and reading every baby book I can get my hands on. We are SO excited!

This Baby's Got Back: A Chronicling Of My Pregnant Sleeping Challenges

I have noticed that my hips have really been hurting over the past week or so. They ache and feel like they're out of their sockets. I don't know if this is a product of my joints loosening up in preparation for labour or a side effect of sleeping on my side. I tend to notice it more at night. Anyone else experiencing this?

Speaking of side-sleeping, I've also noticed that lately, I keep waking up on my back. A pregnancy no-no! Despite my Snoogle maternity pillow and the fact that I am not sleeping so soundly these days, I have found myself waking up on my back at least once a night. I've always been confused about this. I mean, I know why back sleeping isn't great for a pregnant woman, but how bad is it, really? Haven't pregnant women been sleeping on their backs for centuries? Isn't this new no-back-sleeping rule relatively new? My mum never heard of it.

Also, at a little over 29 weeks pregnant, I am getting up to pee at least 8-10 times every night, even if I make it a point to restrict my water intake well before bedtime.

I am curious if anyone else is experiencing any of this nighttime fun and if anyone has any tips to make it easier. I have sort of resigned myself to having these restless nights for the rest of my pregnancy, but I would be delighted to hear if anyone has any tricks up their sleeves to make pregnant sleeping a bit easier.

One bonus of not sleeping so well is that I get to be awake and witness baby girl's nightly squirming show, which I love. This kid definitely likes the night life, baby.

Well, I Did It... Sort Of.

I registered. At least at one place. I wanted to register at two places - one place called Crocodile Baby - a local, very hip, very expensive, modern and organic baby store that I absolutely love. Everything there is just my style. And the other - Babies R Us (natch), simply for accessibility's sake. I am happy to report that my registry at Crocodile Baby is now pretty much complete. And today, I plan on registering at BRU.

Whoa, big step.

If someone would have told me a year ago that I would be registering for my baby's birth, I think I would have laughed in their face while simultaneously trying to pin them down for a big wet kiss (a weird mental picture).

With regard to registering, however, I really doubt I'll get much, if anything from my registries. First off, I really don't have very many friends and secondly, my mum tells me that my extended family is probably going to give us baby clothes, which is a nice gesture but honestly the last thing Maya needs right now. Her wardrobe is already bigger than mine. We'll see what happens, but I'm not expecting much from my registries.

Baby girl's movements are getting so interesting. In addition to the usual kicks and punches that I had been feeling all these weeks, she is now doing these great squirming and stretching movements, which feel amazing. It feels like sweeping elbows and knees, rather than something like an actual kick, per se. Last night at 4am, I just laid awake in awe at the amazing show she was putting on for me. Sometimes I swear I could almost grab a little foot or hand from the outside. I still do get some kicks, but it is so interesting to witness how varied her movements are getting. I feel so lucky. And it never seems to get old; every single movement is like a magical miracle, as corny as that sounds, I just love feeling them so very much.

I have been trying to ascertain Maya's position, as so many of the books and websites say that she may go head-down anytime now. I think she's still small enough to move around quite a bit so I don't know how useful it is for me to figure out her position just yet. And because I feel so many of her movements on the right and left sides of my abdomen (sometimes simultaneously!), I think if anything, she likes to hang out in the transverse position most often.

Last night, I swear I felt a little bum. The cutest little bum in the world.

29 Weeks Yesterday

Usually I try to make it a point to post a little something every Sunday, when I hit a weekly milestone. However, being on maternity leave has made me even more scatterbrained than usual and I'm afraid I completely lost track of time yesterday. I remembered in the middle of the night, however, when the thought occurred to me suddenly, out of the blue..."I forgot to post!" Oh well, so this post is a wee bit delayed.

So yesterday we arrived at 29 weeks. I celebrated by having a facial. I'd never had one before and it was really, really nice. Although, because of having lie on my side for so long, I was contending with some major hip pain before the end of it.

I was really nervous about going, I must admit. Why? I was afraid they'd use some non-pregnancy friendly products on my skin, despite the fact that I went in there with a list of all the things I did not want to be exposed to. Scary retainoids! Frightening salicylic acid! Cursed essential oils!! When I asked the esthetician beforehand if the products had any of this stuff in there, she kinda looked at me blankly and without even checking, responded, "I'm pretty sure our products will be safe for you." Pretty. Sure. Pretty sure? Pretty sure is usually not good enough for me - at all - but for some reason, this time, this one time, I let go of my need to control and consented. I figured, I am not the first pregnant woman to have a facial. And plus, my skin looks fabulous now and feels oh so soft. Maya kicked me through almost the entire appointment, as if to say, "It's alright mum, I'm fine."

I know this sounds crazy, but having this facial and just letting go and accepting that everything will be okay, was a HUGE step for me.

Other than the facial, I've not been up to anything too exciting these last couple of days. Just the nesting. Serious, breakneck nesting. I am all about the nesting right now.

I'm going to have D take a photo of me today so you can see how big I'm getting. Stay tuned!