Pregnancy #2: Week 35

I’ve made it to 35 weeks!! Crazy – I never thought I would be doubtful about keeping the baby inside at this point in the pregnancy (with Ain I went into labor at 41 weeks, 2 days and no sign of labor or dilation before that point)!!

How I feel

Now that we are settled into our new home, I’m definitely feeling the need to get the newborn baby things in order. And….we had a little scare at 33 1/2 weeks that gave us the extra push to get the pack ‘n play set up, carseat out, and the “to go” birth bags packed. (If you are curious what we packed for our first – this is the pdf I made. Below I’ll list off what I’m packing this time – we are packing a few less things.)

Anyway – back to that “scare”. Friday night of that week I woke up with a contraction – and this is not the Braxton Hicks that I have been feeling, but this was a pain-in-my-lower-back intense contraction – like the contractions that woke me when I went into labor with Ain. So I was a little worried, but I was hopeful that if I went to the bathroom and chugged water it would help. Nope. Then I tried a shower. Nope. Then I decided to soak in a warm bath – that helped slow the contractions down to 12 min. apart (before that they had been coming every 5-7 min.). I was awake from 2am-6am with the contractions and was finally able to fall asleep again at 7am (having my last contraction more than 30 min. before).

After talking with my midwife a couple of times, I decided to go in and get checked just in case. (My contractions didn’t really come back after 6am – just some Braxton Hicks.) I WAS dilated to a 1 and 50% effaced. This did not necessarily mean anything – I could be dilated to a 1 for weeks before going into labor, but it also wasn’t amazing that I was dilated and still only at 33 weeks. Well, my midwife tested me for a yeast infection, pumped me with fluids, and put me on a prescription to help relax my muscles.

Thankfully, the medication did help space out the contractions (while at the New Birth Company I was having contractions about 10-15 min apart again). Since then, I’ve been able to come off the medication during the day (which is awesome – I now have energy again!! And I’m not loopy.), but I’ve still been taking a full dosage at night. I did try not taking the medication one night, 5 days later and I woke up with contractions again. So, I DO need the medication at night, at least for right now.

Movement – Yes, he continues to move a LOT – more than Ain even did!

Ring on or off? – Well, we had my wedding ring resized so that I could hopefully wear it this whole pregnancy. The past two days both my hands have been swollen more than normal. I’ve had to take my wedding ring off in the evenings a bit, just to be a bit more comfortable. But I do end up putting it back on again. So, hopefully I can wear it this whole pregnancy!

Hunger/Cravings – Not really craving anything this week. I am hungrier than normal and I’m eating bigger portions than my husband much of the time – hehe.

Birth Bag

We are keeping things simple this time. Keep in mind that we will only be at the birth center for 4-6 hours after the baby is born – then we head home!! For the baby we packed:

• disposable diapers and wipes
• 1 burp cloth
• 1 nursing cover
• 2 receiving blankets (1 is a muslim swaddle and 1 is a bit thicker)
• 2 outfit choices with socks
• 1 nighty
• 1 bacon ‘n eggs cloth diaper (for the ride home)
• carseat blanket (specifically fits into the carseat without hindering the straps)

In my bag:

• sweatpants
• 1 going home outfit
• 1 nursing bras and nursing pads
• kimono (for after delivery)
• toiletries for me (deodorant, body wash, shampoo, chapstick, tooth brush and tooth paste, hair ties, big pads)
• camera and batteries
• cell phone & charger
• flip flops and socks (most of the time my feet run hot – I’m barefoot right now as I type this!)
• swim suit top and bottom
• tub inflatable pillow
• Gatorade and extra snacks
• Pineapple juice – here’s why
• battery-powered candles
• hand fan (for when I get hot!)

In my husband’s bag:

• 2 pairs of clothes
• cell phone and charger
• chromebook and charger
• toiletries
• birth plan
• list of phone numbers to call after birth
• change for vending machine
• swim suit (just in case)

In the car, ready to go:

• car seat
• towels (in case my water breaks)

On the way, or just a few hours before we go we’ll pick up some flowers for me to enjoy/focus on while laboring.

Best moment this week?

I had a small baby shower with family and close friends over the weekend. (Thanks to my Dad and sisters for taking all the pictures!!) It was so nice to be treated extra special. My sisters went all out with a really cute woodland animals theme. In fact, I love the theme so much I’m trying to figure out how I can turn our nursery into a woodland themed nursery!! Pinterest is SO fun to explore when you are nesting!! Here is a snapshot of my nursery board:

Anyway – back to the baby shower. Here’s a picture of the beautiful table:

Don’t you just LOVE the “porcupine” cheese dip my sister made?

Above the table was the cutest banner:

My mom made the woodland animals on the table – aren’t they adorable?! (I think I’m going to frame them and add them to the nursery)!!

While at the baby shower, we snapped a picture of my sister and I. (Megan is due in June, so she is just starting to show.)

What I am looking forward to

I can’t wait until we check EVERYTHING off of our “Before baby arrives” list. I can get it all done if I just do 3-4 items a week. Here’s what we have left to do:

• find newborn head rest for car seat (it got lost in the move – I’m sure it’s here somewhere….)
• make freezer breakfast sandwiches
• safety proof bathroom by installing drawer latches (we got the kitchen done last week!)
• sell or donate all extra stuff in Boys room by the end of February (right now it’s just our extra storage space, but I want to get one step closer to getting the room ready for Ain. He won’t need to move in until the new baby is around 4-5 months old so we have some time.)
• buy a dresser for the Boys room (and a twin size mattress for Ain when he transitions out of the crib)
• wash newborn cloth diapers
• get Boys closet organized and ready
• stock up on wipes, toilet paper, snacks
• sew unpaper towels (this has been on my to-do list for awhile now…)
• make more homemade deodorant and laundry detergent
• reorganize unfinished basement – there have been some boxes we’ve thrown into the storage side without regards to organizing it
• freezer cooking

This week I’m working on making freezer breakfast sandwiches, making deodorant and laundry detergent, finding the newborn car seat head rest, and safety proofing the bathroom.

Baby Bump

This week our little one is a little over 18 inches long and about 5 1/4 pounds in weight (about the size of a honeydew melon). On the left is me at 35 weeks with Ain – on the right is me at 35 weeks for this pregnancy!

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