Placenta update

We just had another ultrasound to localize the placenta, which was too low at 20 weeks. Now everything is looking great! The placenta is not covering the exit anymore. It is however still low and at 36 weeks we get another ultrasound to make sure Juniors head is dropped and has enough space for delivery. But the lady didn't expect a problem, so I can deliver naturally. That was a big relieve, b/c for some reason it would have felt different to schedule the C-section with my agenda at this point.

The lady also took another good look at Junior and I asked her to look at the echodense focus in the heart again, which was our big shock at 20 weeks. It was completely gone!
Jr was really active and would kick back every time the echo probe would push on the part of my belly where the legs are. Also Jr was boxing, we have cute picture from it which I will post after we scan it, sucking it's thumb and drinking the amniotic fluid.

The lady also saw if Jr is a boy or a girl, we have no idea. That was a big temptation to ask her.. but we didn't. Looking back at some of the video Sean took my guess would be boy, b/c it looks like there was something extra. But I could be 100% of.

Single digits (30 weeks)

I can't believe we are entering the single digit countdown to our due date. 30 weeks definitly sounds very pregnant to me!

Midwife checkup

Yesterday I had another checkup at the midwife. I started going there every 3 weeks now. Luckily Sean got home from work early and was right in time to go with me to my 5.30 pm appointment. It is always nice for him to be involved that way.
The midwife was explaining us how the baby was located and both me and Sean got to feel the head. The head is still down, which is a good sign and Junior is not very likely to turn around into the "wrong" position anymore, since (s)he seems to prefer this position. Now it is the big question if the placenta is still blocking the exit. We have that ultrasound next week and I am really curious to find out.

Everything else the midwife checked was also still fine, my BP is still 120/75 and by now I gained 10 kilo's (22 pounds) and Jr's heartbeat was still nice and strong. Mom and baby are still healthy and right on the charts!

Planning mood at 29 weeks

The other day I was in a planning mood and I was figuring out when all the different classes to prepare for labor will be. So over the last couple of days I have been signing up for classes / tours /trainings etc.... so by the time Jr comes we should be all prepared with a binder full of notes!
May 6th is our first class, which is an extra evening for my aerobics class during which the husbands can join. My teacher will explain the different stages of labor, the role of the husband (Sean pay attention!!) and some breathing excersises to help you through it.
May 27th we have a tour at the hospital where I plan to deliver.
June 10th I have a breastfeeding class at the midwifes office.

I feel my focus shifting towards this kind of planning as compared to work. I still have 6,5 weeks at work, but it is getting a lot harder to concentrate. I guess this is normal, since some of the women in my aerobics class experience the same.

Rocking chair

Grandpa Musters (hihi, looks funny spelling this out for the first time) made a nice rocking chair for the baby room. Today it finally stopped raining after 2 weeks of storm and I decided to stain the rocking chair. We wanted to stain the chair instead of painting it so it will keep it's wood structure and it is a nice contrast with the white furniture.

It took me about 3 hours! Yes, bending down with a belly and stiff neck from sleeping horrible doesn't make it easier. But.. I got it done. Now let's see when I feel up to putting coat nr. 2 on. Maybe I will look at Sean nicely.... honey.... you busy?



Clover is supervising.


Done!

Junior's hiking gear

As we like active vacations we plan on taking Junior for nice hikes in the future. We had already briefly looked into the framed backpacks that exist for hiking. However we didn't feel it was necessary to buy one right away since we won't be able to use it until Junior is 6+ months.

But then a colleague of mine mentioned she was selling hers because her daughters are getting to old for the backpack. We got a great deal on the backpack, so we decided to buy it after all.

Clover didn't want to volunteer showing off the backpack so once again Mr. Hippo was our model!

Last trimester is starting

As of today we are officially in the last trimester of the pregnancy. This is going to be an exciting trimester I think. We are going to some classes and a "tour" at the hospital to totally prepare. Also my maternity leave will start in less than 8 weeks already. On the downside the belly is getting heavier and I will be more limited. I am starting to have the little annoyances now like reflux, bloody gums, shortness of breath and of course still going to the bathroom 5x per hour. But o well, so far I still can't complain as the pregnancy has gone by without any major issues (luckily) so far and I have been able to function normal.