35/35

Don't mind the laundry in the background!  Luke was unpacking from his trip :)

How far along? 35 weeks down, only 35 days to go!  The books say that he's probably around 18 inches long, and weighs around 5lbs.
 
Total weight gain/loss: Total gain of 24lbs so far.  At this rate I will hopefully won't gain much more than 30lbs total if I gain an additional 1lb per week.

Maternity clothes?  Pretty sick of them at this point.  I'm ready for real person clothes!
 
Stretch marks? Still looking okay.  But with 5 weeks to go, there's plenty of time for them to still appear.

Symptoms:  Adding heartburn to the list of symptoms from last week: Difficulty sleeping, stiff lower back, shortness of breath, occasional light-headedness, swelling with the heat.

Sleep: Since Luke has been back home, I am sleeping so much better than I have been over the last week.  I'm back to waking up to pee once a night (though this could change).

Best moment this week: My family shower!  Lauren, Zibby, Paige, and Becca all worked together to throw an amazing nautical themed shower this weekend.  Other than needing a changing pad, diaper pail, car seat base, and random first aid items, we are ready for baby Lorenz, thanks to the generosity of our family and friends!

Hopkins Ladies at my shower.

Pacifier balloons

Excellent spread!

Have you told family and friends: Everyone knows, and the whole world can tell.

Miss Anything? Not having a baby butt shoved up in my rib.
  
Movement: So much moving.  As an update to last week's post, baby is still head down!

Food cravings: Still no cravings

Anything making you queasy or sick:  I don't really have much of an appetite lately.

Have you started to show yet: Getting bigger every day!

Baby is a: BOY

Belly Button in or out? Still in

Wedding rings on or off? I'm just wearing my wedding band now.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy.

Looking forward to: Finishing up the nursery this week, and packing my hospital bag to be ready for whenever he decides to show up!

34 weeks!

34 weeks vs. 29 weeks

How far along?  Little Man has been baking for 34 weeks now, and it's amazing how much growth has happened over the last 5 weeks.  I added my photo from this week to compare to my photo at 29 weeks, and I'm always impressed by how much bigger I've become because I don't notice it on a day to day basis.  Baby Lorenz is possibly around 4.5 lbs and is the size of a butternut squash.

I'm not going to lie- this is the week that kind of freaks me out.  If I remember correctly, it was during this week of my sister-in-law's pregnancy, she gave birth to my wonderful neice, Lily.  She had a relatively short NICU stay for being 6 weeks early, and was a fighter the whole time.  I was able to see how well the NICU nurses cared for her and her parents, but I would rather not have that same experience with my little guy.  Luke and I discussed it, and have told the baby that he is not allowed to vacate the womb any earlier than July 11.  That would put him at over 37 weeks (considered full-term), and Luke would be done with all of his travel for work.  Crazy to think that we are now chatting about exit strategies and hospital bags!
 
Total weight gain/loss: I go in on Wednesday.

Maternity clothes?  Now that I am on summer break, I am getting away with just wearing my kirkland tank tops (they are the best!), and some sort of maternity bottoms (shorts/capri yoga pants) or my regular athletic shorts.  I am also loving my maxi dresses!
 
Stretch marks? Still waiting for the day I wake up and it looks like the kid is trying to claw his way out.

Symptoms:  Difficulty sleeping, stiff lower back, shortness of breath, occasional light-headedness, swelling with the heat.

Sleep: The last two nights have been awful.  I'm glad that I'm on summer break, so I have the chance to nap during the day, but I can't seem to get comfortable anymore.  My snoogle makes things much more tolerable, but all I want to do is sleep on my back, and that makes me feel sick now!  I think I'll try positioning the pillows and snoogle so I can attempt to sleep at an incline tomorrow night and see if that helps.

Best moment this week: Since I didn't get in my usual post last week, I'm going to include my sister's wedding into this week's best moment.  Lauren (sister #2) got hitched to my new brother-in-law, Chris on June 14th, and everything was awesome.  I also fit into my dress, so that was super exciting :)

Another best moment this week had to do with strangers wanting to help me out now- people are so nice to pregnant ladies! One older lady beat me to the door at Starbucks and said, "Let me help you with the door," as I was reaching to hold it for her.  And yesterday, I met up with Zibby, Lauren, and Chris at Psycho Suzi's where if you are on the patio, you go get your own water.  I wasn't aware of that right away, so when I ordered an OJ and water, the server pointed it out to me but said, "I'll get it for you though- I make an exception for pregnant ladies and people who are handicapped," which led to us joking about how being pregnant can definitely be a mental handicap because pregnancy brain is no joke!


Have you told family and friends: Everyone knows, and the whole world can tell.

Miss Anything? Being able to sit comfortably in the same position for longer periods of time.  I'm always shifting and groaning.  I also miss being able to bend over to grab things without feeling like I might never be able to accomplish the task.  The last thing I miss right now is the ability to balance my laptop on my thighs/stomach.  Baby Lorenz doesn't really care for it when the laptop gets in his way, and he kicks at it until I move it.
  
Movement: We get little hiccups a lot now, and we roll around in the morning, after lunch, and right before bed.  I love that I can find his little butt (or at least I tell him it better be his butt and not his head, because I'd rather him still be head down, and not breech!).

Food cravings: Still no cravings

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Shrimp and fish do not sound appetizing at all.  Which makes me sad, because I love fish and chips.

Have you started to show yet: Getting bigger every day!

Baby is a: BOY

Belly Button in or out? I don't think it's ever going to pop.  Maybe just flatten in the last 6 weeks.

Wedding rings on or off? I'm just wearing my wedding band now.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy.

Looking forward to: Making burp cloths!  I finally got the itch to sew something for the baby, so I picked up some adorable fabric and will work on them this week while Luke is backpacking in the Grand Tetons.  I'm also looking forward to a prenatal massage this week.

Inattentive dog owners

**This isn't really baby related**

My nightmare happened today.  Everything was okay in the end, but I keep thinking about how bad this whole situation could have been.

Those of you who know us, and know us pretty well know that we have two dogs- Lucy and Kale.  We rescued Lucy when she was 13 weeks old, and Kale came to us at about 3 years old.  We don't know much about Kale's past, except that he was found wandering along the highway in Missouri, lived there for 8 months in a foster home, and then was relocated to us as his new foster family with the hope that a change of scenery might help him find his forever home (which ended up being us after 4-5 months of caring for him, making us Foster Failures).  These are our first children, and we love them, despite all of their faults.  Lucy is a bit neurotic (making her almost too human-like), and Kale can be a bit unpredictable, especially with strange dogs.

A little background: A few years ago, Kale bit an elderly dog that spooked him while we were up at the cabin.  The dog required stitches (which we made sure to pay for), and the guilt has plagued us from then on.  Since that event, we are very cautious as to where we take him, worry about the proximity of other canines, and are a bit obsessive compulsive when it comes to proper introductions between him and new dogs.  Kale is 100% fine with humans, but he seems to be a bit prejudice against black, male dogs, especially those that are not neutered.

Flash forward to today.  Luke is on his way home from a work trip, and I decided to take both dogs on a walk so that they could expel a little energy before I have to leave to pick Luke up from the airport.  One of the things I have always told Luke that I worry about is unleashed dogs running up to us while on a walk, and that's what happened to us today.  Thank goodness it happened at the end of the walk, instead of at the beginning because my pups were hot and tired at that point, and not very feisty.  An elderly male pit bull came trotting up to us, and when I realized that no one was moving to get their dog, I had to yell, "Please come get your dog- I can't guarantee that my dog won't bite yours."  You'd think that would get them moving faster, but no, they continued to waltz over until I yelled, "You NEED to move faster, and get your dog RIGHT NOW!"  I had a super-human grip on Kale who was actually too tired to do anything more than do his screechy screaming thing, and I wasn't concerned about Lucy in the moment (she does pretty well with new dogs, until they try to sniff her butt without her sniffing first).

After they grabbed their dog, one owner made this big production of yelling at Duke to get back in the FENCED-IN YARD (why they didn't have the gate shut is a mystery to me...), and I couldn't even look at them, because I was worried that they were going to hit or kick him in some way.  The other owner apologized and told me that if his dog got bit, then his dog got bit and it would be his own dog's fault.  I think he thought that would make me feel better about the fact that I prefaced the interaction with "My dog might bite yours!" and what all could have happened.  I hate that the owner had that attitude.  I would much rather not have to split up a dog fight at nearly 34 weeks pregnant, because even though I know that I'm not supposed to step in between fighting dogs, my instinct would be to get my dog out of the situation.  I just keep thinking about what could have happened, and how badly the whole even could have turned out.  I was super proud of my dogs and their behavior in that moment.  I made sure that they each got a cookie when we got home :)

Anyway, this was more of a rant then anything else.  I just wish people would be more aware of their dogs and more concerned/proactive with their dogs.  I've promised Luke that I will not take both Lucy and Kale on a walk without him, especially throughout the rest of the pregnancy, and that I will only take them on individual walks while he's away.

33 weeks

Being on summer break is messing with my days of the week, so I apologize that I don't have more than a photo update this week.  I'll be back to the normal update next week.

Questions/Comments

Now that I am very obviously pregnant, I've started to get comments and questions about the baby.  Normally I don't mind, but sometimes the things people say are just so unexpected.

Today, I went to get a pedicure for Lauren's wedding this weekend (I can't comfortably reach my toes anymore), and I had this super cute, young nail tech.  I would say she was maybe somewhere between 19-21 years old.  Usually, when I get my nails done, the techs rarely speak to me, but this girl was rather chatty.  She asked me the usual questions: "When are you due?" "Is it a boy or a girl?"  all questions I willingly answer without pause.  Then, she looked at me and said, "You must be in your twenties, maybe early thirties?"  When I told her I am 27, she went on to tell me that I was sooooo young to be having a baby.  Apparently she hasn't seen all the pregnancies pop up in my social circles over the last year and a half!  It's an epidemic in my age group at the moment...  I wasn't sure how to respond to her, so I just said, "Yeaaaaaahh...." and left it at that.  No need to explain that I've been married for 5 years, been with my husband for 11, and have been out of college since 2008!

After that, I could tell she was counting back, and then asked me, "When did you get pregnant?  December?"  I haven't ever had anyone ask me when I got knocked up, and in my mind, it's basically shouting the date we had sex from the roof tops (Again, no need to tell her that November 11th was the date of insemination, and that I actually conceived while Luke was out of town a day or two later...).  So, a question that seemed pretty innocent turned into this huge awkward thing in my head, so my response was, "We found out we were having a baby just before Thanksgiving," so then she went on to talk about how I was pregnant the entire awful winter, while I just smiled and nodded and reflected on how awkward I can be sometimes when I'm thrown off guard.

Today, I've also had some coworkers give me some advice before leaving for the summer: Kegels (so that I can just shoot the baby out), and a man who has no children shouted "One word- Epidural" to me on his way out the door, as though he was imparting words of wisdom on the mother-to-be.  People have had some sweet things to say as well.  One coworker told me that I look really good for being 7.5 weeks out from having a baby, and that I should just have babies all the time, and another has told me that I am the most fashionable pregnant lady she knows (which makes me laugh, because I am not a fashionable person in general!).

Anyway, now I am on summer vacation, and my pre-maternity leave has begun!

32 weeks

Omg. When did I become such a whale?!?

How far along?  And somehow we got to 32 weeks!  These last couple of weeks have been a bit of a blur with everything going on.  To be perfectly honest, I nearly forgot today was the week change, so that's why this week's picture looks like it was taken in the dark (I was in a bit of a hurry). 
 
Total weight gain/loss: See last week.  I don't go in again for another 2 weeks, so I don't know where I'm at now.

Maternity clothes?  Yes.  And I hope that I fit into my non-maternity bridesmaid dress for my sister's wedding on Saturday!  I've been trying it on every week, and I'll be cutting it close, but I'm thinking it'll be okay :)
 
Stretch marks? I lied last week.  There are no stretch marks on my thighs (big sigh of relief).  It'll all probably hit me in the last weeks before this little guy arrives.

Symptoms:  Evening heartburn, swelling feet, sore joints.

Sleep: Again, waking up about once a night to pee, and whenever I need to flip over.

Best moment this week: I have two for this week- the surprise shower that my awesome coworkers threw for me on Thursday, and the couple's shower Hans and Kaitlin hosted on Sunday.  I love that we have so many supportive friends, even if they don't have kids yet.  They are happy to celebrate us hitting this life milestone, and I know this kid will always be surrounded by love.

Awesome group gift from my coworkers- It's a duel swing and bouncer!

Fun shower gift from the Iverson's- Baby Lorenz is destined to be a Soap Opera Villain!

Have you told family and friends: Everyone knows.

Miss Anything? Being able to shut the fridge door without misjudging how far away I am standing, and hitting the door on my stomach. 
  
Movement: As inconvenient and painful as it can be, this is still my favorite part of pregnancy.  I took another video of the baby moving around last week:


Food cravings: Still no cravings

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Blech.  Chicken.   Blech.  Shrimp also still sounds nasty.

Have you started to show yet: Getting bigger every day!

Baby is a: BOY

Belly Button in or out? Stubborn belly button wants to stay in!

Wedding rings on or off? I'm just wearing my wedding band now.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy.

Looking forward to: Lauren's wedding this weekend, and working on the nursery.  We finally got the dresser put together, so I'm slowly organizing all of his stuff!  Nesting has started to set in a little bit...  It was driving me nuts that I couldn't put things in a permanent spot.

Hooray for IKEA furniture.

Single digits!

This is my 5:30am face...

How far along?  31 weeks.  Thirty-freakin'-one weeks.  Nine to go...  This week, baby is about the size of a pineapple, between 3-3.5 lbs, and I can tell that he's getting bigger- little man is starting to run out of space!
 
Total weight gain/loss: Over the last 4 weeks, I gained 7 (7!) lbs.  I have been retaining water and experiencing swelling, so that has contributed to the extra weight gain.

Maternity clothes?  Yes.
 
Stretch marks? I found one on my inner thigh (I'll silently sob over it a bit).  I'm grateful that it isn't in an obvious spot though.

Symptoms:  Decrease in appetite.  I get full very quickly.  A bit of heartburn lately.

Sleep: Still okay- waking up about once a night, but last night I think the baby moving actually caused me to stir at one point.  I woke up to movement.

Best moment this week: Putting the crib together and actually feeling like we might be getting closer to being ready to bring the kid home!

Obligatory bump and crib pic.

Have you told family and friends: Everyone knows.

Miss Anything? Being able to squeeze through crowds.  At my sister's bachelorette party, I couldn't make it up to the bar, so I had to send in another sister to get water for me all night.
  
Movement: It's weird how much the movements have changed since I first started feeling him.  Now, it's a lot more rolls and shifting, rather than kicks and jabs.

Food cravings: Still no cravings.  But I am loving cherries and frozen grapes right now.  It's hot and those are some of my favorite summer foods.

Anything making you queasy or sick:  Blech.  Chicken.   Blech.  Shrimp also still sounds nasty.

Have you started to show yet: Getting bigger every day!

Baby is a: BOY

Belly Button in or out? Still in, but I can flatten it if I gently pull up on the skin around my belly button.

Wedding rings on or off? I'm just wearing my wedding band now.

Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy.

Looking forward to: Luke comes home on Thursday night, and then we have our birthing class on Saturday, and our couple's baby shower on Sunday that is being hosted by Kaitlin and Hans.  I feel so grateful to have such awesome friends who want to celebrate this little guy with us!