38 weeks

How Far Along 38 weeks 1 day
How Big is Baby 19.5" long, 6.8 lbs is average for 38 weeks.
Total Weight Gain 38ish pounds
Stretch Marks There may be some on my lower belly, but I'm refusing to look at that in the mirror at this point
Sleep Meh - I give up. Guess I'll sleep when I'm dead.
Best Moment this Week Christmas!
Movement He moves a lot, but is having longer periods of stillness. Maybe he's developing a habit of regular naps.
Food Cravings dark chocolate
Labor Signs More and more Braxton Hicks contractions, but they're still not causing any sort of progress.
Belly Button The way I'm sitting right now, it's a flattie. So, the same as it's been for the past month or so.
What I Miss lack of pain.
What I'm Looking Forward To The same as last week: not being pregnant anymore. Soon (ish).

Weekly Wisdom 2nd trimester would be a better time to have the holidays.

Milestones The next milestone, I believe, will be birth.

first home movies of Nathanael

**Skip this one if you don't want to see a bare pregnant belly**

This afternoon, Nate and I were listening to a little Trans Siberian Orchestra. He really likes it. He was dancing, squirming, and kicking a lot. So, I got out the camcorder to capture a little of it on film. Of course, he settled down once the camera was rolling, but I did get a few seconds of kicks and wiggles.

The best video is during Christmas Canon.



This one is A Mad Russian's Christmas, which is one of his favorites. You can see him moving a little above my belly button in the first half, but the real kicks start after about 17 seconds or so.



I guess I should keep the camera on all the time, focused on my belly, so that I'll be sure to catch the best kicks on film.

Rodgers' graduation video

I didn't film the entire graduation because graduations are long and boring. But, being the first big event with our camcorder, I did practice with it some. Here is Rodgers walking across the stage and getting his diploma.

I can live with that

Ok, yet another labor and delivery predictor. The previous one, Madame Zwhatever, was completely random. This one is based on my birth, Rodgers' birth (which I don't really have details for - due date, weight, length of labor, etc), any previous pregnancies (which I've not had), and complications during this pregnancy (which I've also not had). So, it's still made up, but it's made up based on something.

Labor Prediction Quiz

Just about the time you think you can't handle hearing one more "when is that baby going to pop?", your baby will decide to make it's appearance. We predict your baby will be born 3-7 days before your due date. Your baby will most likely be born in the morning. Justmommies predicts that your baby will weigh approximately 7.8 pounds and that your labor will be about 12 hours long.

37 weeks = Full Term

That is one big baby.

How Far Along 37 weeks
How Big is Baby 19" long, 6.33 lbs is average for 37 weeks.
Total Weight Gain It was 37 lbs. at my appointment last Friday, but I'll be weighed again tomorrow.
Stretch Marks no change
Sleep is getting worse and worse and worse. The past few nights, I've been waking up with my hands hurting - I think my fingers are swelling in my sleep.
Best Moment this Week Getting the last of our essentials for Nate (a second car seat base and a thermometer)
Movement Lots. He kicked for the med student who was checking his heartrate last week. :)
Food Cravings I've been drinking more (water and milk), since I noticed the swelling. And it seems like the more I drink, the more I want to drink.
Labor Signs I've been having Braxton Hicks contractions. They're only painful if I'm sitting up straight and my tightened muscles crush my bottom few ribs. I'm fairly sure I've had at least one every day for the past week, but they are too irregular to really track.
Belly Button Outtie. Sometimes I can't even see it; if Nate's up really high, my belly button ends up pointing downwards, on the bottom side of my belly.
What I Miss Getting in and out of the car without grunting. I don't mean to grunt, but somehow it helps me maneuver.
What I'm Looking Forward To Becoming unpregnant soon! And also, my nephew being born tonight or tomorrow!!

Weekly Wisdom the 9th month is kind of like reverse Batman. Let me explain: when Batman's driving, and he wants to look out the side window of the Batmobile, he has to turn his torso because he can't just turn his head/neck while in costume. Big ol' pregnant belly gets to the point where the torso will no longer turn, so you have to check your blindspot and merge with traffic and all that just by turning your head/neck. Or, at least, I do.

Milestones 37 weeks is considered full term. Most babies born after 37 weeks thrive. He has been practicing breathing, which we know from the hiccups I've been feeling. But in just the past couple of weeks, I've noticed that, when he's in a certain position, I can feel the rise and fall of his breaths with my hand on my belly. It is very amazing.