Last month (or so) of pregnancy! How crazy is that? Since I finished my grad class, I have been using my weekends to clean and prepare for the baby's arrival (pretty sure that nesting is kicking in). Here are some of the things I have been doing to get ready other than cleaning the apartment:
-arranging, organizing, and setting up the baby's room (don't worry, I just watched while Josh moved the furniture around)
-washing baby clothes, blankets, etc.
-packing a bag for myself and the baby to take to the hospital
-buying cheap pajama bottoms, a nursing bra, and "granny panties" for the hospital
-putting the car seat bases in both of our cars
-filling out the registration form for daycare
-buying a few things here and there for the baby (not too many though, since I have one more baby shower at work this week)
As you can see, I've been pretty busy. I'm starting to feel like we're pretty much ready for this baby to arrive other than a few things here and there that still need to be done. Next weekend I plan on doing one last trip to Babies R Us to pick up any necessities (like a bathtub and changing pad) that we still don't have.
Other than cleaning and preparing, I also attended a breastfeeding class with Josh this week. I don't think he was thrilled about going, but I asked him to since he had the night off. Next week I will go by myself to the second part of the class. Josh and I will also be taking an infant cpr class the week of Thanksgiving, and then we'll be done with our baby prep classes. I definitely recommend taking these classes before having a baby, because I feel so much more prepared and informed now. I think I would be a lot more nervous and stressed out without them.
This week I also had another doctor's appointment, and I had my first internal examination. I am up to 19 pounds gained, and my blood pressure and baby's heartbeat also checked out well. The doctor said I am measuring a little small, but he is not worried about it since the baby has a strong heartbeat and is moving a lot. He also said he prefers his patients to be a little small rather than a little big, which I totally agreed with. When he did my exam, he said the baby's head was down (yay!) and my cervix was softening. This just means that it's getting ready to start dilating and making room for the baby to come out. He said that at my next appointment (the week of Thanksgiving) he will dilate me himself if I'm not dilated on my own. I hope he doesn't need to do that, but it made me feel like he isn't going to let this pregnancy go way past my due date. I'll be seeing him weekly after that next appointment.
After my doctor's appointment I started to notice a few new symptoms that make me feel like I'm getting closer to the baby's arrival. I actually started to feel the baby pressing down more into my pelvis, so he must be dropping lower. This also causes some pain and soreness in my butt and legs, which is not very fun when I'm walking around. I also noticed some intestinal issues, but that's all I will say about that. Then of course, there has been all the nesting and preparing. Hopefully these are all signs that the baby will be here on or before his due date. And with work and Thanksgiving, the excitement and activity may move things along even faster.
When I do my next update I will officially be full term and could safely go into labor. Here's hoping Baby O gets the message and decides to either make an appearance or at least move things along more!
