34 weeks

Today I am 34 weeks pregnant. Yayz!



The belly is huge. (It's much easier to tell when it's not covered up, but I have tried to remain modest for the sake of this blog.) Many people have now started gasping when I tell them that I have six weeks until my due date. They don't see how I can get much bigger. I think I can, and I will. This should be interesting.

Other things that are huge: everything from the waist down. It's a disaster, truly. Cellulite city.

My back and rib pain was much better this week. While I still have a hard time lying on my right side, overall I'm feeling pretty good. (Thank you for your sympathetic comments, by the way.) Apparently the body has magical powers and a remarkable ability to heal itself.

I had my 34 week appointment yesterday. I literally gasped when I stepped on the scale and I saw I had gained five pounds in two weeks. It wasn't so much of a surprise as it was a realization that I really have been eating a lot. I can't help it, though - I am pretty much hungry all the time. It's kind of amazing since I have spent all of my life not really eating that much.

My blood pressure was a little elevated, too. It is normally super low, though, so even with the increase, it was normal. (And who knows, the increase may have been caused by my agitation about my weight gain.)

And I'm swelling. I talked about this last week, but it's gotten worse since then. I can really tell by looking at my ankles and feet. I may have Mickey Mouse feet by the time I'm full term. And actually, the fact that I'm retaining water might account for the weight gain. Whatever the case, I have stopped wearing my rings and my watch.

I asked my doctor to consult his crystal ball and tell me when he thinks I should tell my mom to fly out for Charlie's birth. He said we'd know more after my 36 week appointment when I get an internal exam to see if I'm dilated at all. Then he said, "Your vagina is my crystal ball. I may know more after giving you the exam, but chances are things will still be fuzzy. No pun intended."

Roy and I were cracking up, needless to say.

Anyway, I don't know why I was so shocked to hear I would have a cervix check; I will be four weeks from my due date at my next appointment, after all. I just can't believe I'm at the point where I can tell people, "I'm 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced!" or whatever. This is all so surreal. I'm going to be popping out this kid soon, in eight weeks or less! Wow.

With that realization comes another huge one: I have so much to do before he gets here! I need a personal assistant to help me get everything ready. I feel this huge desire to have everything as organized as possible, and with how tired I am after work every evening, not much is getting done. However, my doctor has signed me out of work starting May 1, so I will hopefully have a few weeks to rest and get some things done.

I am really ready to be off work. I have been sleeping horribly lately, because I have to pee about three times a night and then it takes forever to get comfortable after that, which means that Roy isn't getting a lot of sleep, either. I have been really unproductive both at work and at home lately, so it's high time I got as much rest as possible before I enter the most sleep-deprived time of my life.