baby ole :: week 37

friday and saturday were pretty regular days this weekend other than adding in extra cleaning and organizing due to having people over on sunday. jodi and gina threw us a co-ed, football themed shower on sunday at our house. it was great to have people over!! it included: jodi, shane & their 2 dogs; matt, gina and dano; jodi, matt, & their 2 kiddos; jenny, kyle & kali; and sarah, derek & chapman. it was a full house and it was fabulous! seemed a little crowded but i think that had to do with 4 little ones and 3 dogs running around. :) it was a great time full of good food, games and lots of great presents (clothes!!).

 shane, jodi and their dogs ended up staying at our house sunday night due to the extreme cold and wind making the roads bad. it was wonderful to have them here even though the boys ordered the royal rumble (wrestling) :) monday we hung out in the morning, then al and i went to our midwife appointment and to get our taxes done (well started). nothing new at the midwife appointment except i gained 4 pounds in 1 week; what?!?!? also he's measuring 38 weeks (completely normal; + or - 2 weeks is fine) and i realized i don't think i've been recording his hearbeat here after the appointments. his heartbeat is currently at 136. last week it was 140. (boys typically get low heartbeats towards the end; completely normal for it to go down to the 1-teens). it started at about 170 and has been 150 or higher until last week.

we love having all the lindmeyers here! boz & titan!

 al & shane played king of the mountain

 some intense royal rumble watching....

 monday and tuesday were extreme cold days again; i've heard report that this is the coldest minnesota (wisconsin) winter. not good. i'm over it! i'd like to be outside once in a while and not worry about tator or the cats. we brought the cats inside monday morning and made them a little room in the small downstairs bathroom until wednesday; i'm sure they're grateful but it also helped eased my worrying. they were more than ready to get back outside on wednesday tho.

thursday brought about some major pubic area aches/pain. different than any other aches i've had down there. it feels like my bones are going to crack. hoping that means he's moving down and preparing to come on time!! :) hopefully once the bones move or stretch or whatever they need to do, these aches/pains will go away 'cause i have lots i still want to do...

How big is baby: size of a winter melon (via the bump) or a leek (via my app); 19-21 inches, 6-9 pounds!

Weight gain/loss: 30-34 pounds (gained 4 lbs in one week :()

Stretch marks: on my sides, and i can see one or two starting under my belly button :(

Sleep: still flip flop a lot but sleeping well. i'm usually very uncomfortable upon first getting into bed: heartburn, hip aches, body hurts, can't get comfy. but i still sleep pretty well.

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: fruit still tastes amazing and i'm eating too much sugar, need to focus on scaling that back.

Movement: just the normal sporadic movement, lots of butt pushing out :)

What I'm loving: the heating pad and the couch :) really trying to enjoy and savor his movements, since i will not be feeling them anymore soon.

Symptoms: heartburn, hip ache, some joint pain, constipation for the last couple of weeks: focus will be taken to add more fiber!! also, tuesday this week brought on lower back pain that is different from my usual hip aches and thursday the pubic area aches/pains; wonder if baby ole is dropping...

What I'm looking forward to: the super bowl, not working any more, spring, getting our taxes back, not having to buy propane :)

Best moment of the week: shower & having people over on sunday!

How I'm feeling: missing working out: lifting and crossfit, like crazy!! i want to be able to push myself and sweat and feel tired from something i did rather than just from normal things. also, got the message about paying for softball so getting anxious to run/sprint a bit in preparation for that.

feeling good about labor and delivery now, which is a big turn from my anxiety before. ina may gaskin's book works wonders!

baby ole :: week 36

another busy and exhausting but great weekend! friday was my work shower at erica's house. it was wonderful! complete with good food, cute decor, decorating onsies and pin the mustache on the baby.

 it was a mustache & bowtie theme :)

then saturday morning al put together the crib and hung the curtain rod in baby ole's room. it's finally coming together; although we don't have the crib mattress yet. then we drove up to the cities, dropped tator off at mom's and went to babies r us. we bought the things we need on our registery since that is likely the last time we'll be up in the cities until after he comes. we had a few gift cards and coupons and paid very little for all that we got! then we had the softball shower; it was so much fun!! manda had a fantastic taco bar, fun games, and the team pitched in and got us the video monitor!! then we played cards against humanity; so very funny!!!

tator helped :)

 cards against humanity

sunday morning we drove back to bloomer, unpacked the car, had a quick lunch and headed into eau claire. we picked up a baby bjorn carrier i found on craigslist for $20! then we went over to the risen's house for some snacks, pizza, playoff football and playing with their adorable kiddos!! to say we were tired/exhausted once we got home sunday night is an understatement; i slept for nearly 13 hours.

tuesday i had a midwife appointment and will now start weekly appointments. nothing much new at the appointment again this week. had the group b strep test, will find out the results next week. watched the video for water birth and am still a bit undecided about it. i like the idea but don't want to commit to it in case it doesn't work. also, i have a fear that it'll be like a hot tub and be too hot for me. we'll see.

al and i had an early dinner date on monday and i need to

beware when requesting a booth; not much clearance these days :)

 as you may be able to tell by this week's (and last weeks) picture,

we're having issues with shirts being long enough :)

and another comparison shot since last week was another 5 or 0 week :)

quite a bit bigger!

How big is baby: size of a honeydew (via the bump) or a coconut (via my app) (flip flopped from last week :])

Weight gain/loss: 27-30 pounds; i'll likely go over my goal of 30 lbs but shouldn't be by much (i'm so ready to workout/lift again!)

Stretch marks: on my sides

Sleep: still flip flop a lot but sleeping well. i'm usually very uncomfortable upon first getting into bed: heartburn, hip aches, body hurts, can't get comfy. but i still sleep pretty well.

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: loving grapefruit this week and granola bars. also sugar :(

Movement: just the normal sporadic movement, lots of butt pushing out :)

What I'm loving: getting things set up, cleaned and ready. also, that i'm actually having some ambition to do my hair :)

Symptoms:  heartburn, hip ache, some joint pain, having to pee all the time!

What I'm looking forward to: football/bloomer shower next weekend (last one until he comes) and not being pregnant anymore :)

Best moment of the week: showers were great!

How I'm feeling: i was very uncomfortable this weekend, just in general. i could feel my stomach muscles stretching and didn't want to move or do much. i spent a lot of time sitting. and was more tired than usual but hopefully once i catch up on sleep it'll be better. al worked 2 overnights this week (tues & wed) and i think that threw both our sleep schedules off.  

baby ole :: week 35

this weekend was a busy, exhuasting one. friday night was the menards christmas party at the metropolis/action city. it was a good time! we chatted, ate pizza then went down to action city. most people played as i watched; and i still had a fun time just watching (i was skeptical). tyler ended up being there too, so my coworkers got to see just how tall he is instead of just hearing me say how tall he is. after their 2 hour play time was up we went back up to the banquet room and chatted, and people played games. i left shortly after, at 10, to try to get some sleep.

then saturday was our child birth class. all. day. long. it was a good class and i was happy to be able to ask questions, especially since the nurse teaching it has worked in labor & delivery for 29 years. but the chairs were uncomfortable and i was exhausted when we got home. i went to bed just after 7. i am considering a water birth and thinking of at least trying to go all natural, but not opposed to an epidural. we'll see...

sunday was the nesset shower in maple grove. so i drove up to mom's and then we headed out. it was a great, relaxed shower full of dinosaurs!! we got some adorable stuff and lots of diapers. i also got to hear angi and kayli's labor/birth stories, which helped ease my mind a bit on my decisions, or lack there of, for keeping an open mind as far as a birth plan goes. after the shower, i headed back to bloomer, unpacked, relaxed a bit with al and tator, and went to bed.

 dinosaur place settings at the nesset shower :)

 a lopsided belly; he's all on the right side.

How big is baby: size of a coconut (via the bump) or a honeydew (via my app)

Weight gain/loss: 27-29 pounds

Stretch marks: on my sides

Sleep: still flip flop a lot but sleeping well (hopefully this little guy is learning to sleep well too :])

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: nothing much, loving cereal

Movement: just the normal sporadic movement, lots of butt pushing out :)

What I'm loving: everyone telling me i look good, even with my mutiple chins :)

Symptoms:  monday night i had to get up and pee 7 times, the most by far. usually it's just once. it was just that night so hopefully it was just a fluke. ear aches this week, can't tell if it's due to a cold or something else? hip aches; the usual. lots of pubic pressure/ache. and a bit of constipation :( i haven't had much throughout the pregnancy, but it's not fun! fiber city for me now. oh and really feeling pregnant tired this week. also, a bit of nesting.

What I'm looking forward to: work shower on friday, softball shower on saturday

Best moment of the week: sleep/naps, shower, childbirth class where we learned a lot

How I'm feeling: i feel both ready for him to be here and ok if he stays for another month or so. sick of the hip & pubic area ache/pain. feeling better about labor and delivery after our class, hearing family/friends recent stories of their own kids births, and started reading ina may gaskin's guide to childbirth.

baby ole :: week 34

this weekend al had all 3 days off and we didn't have any plans! friday we started our lord of the rings marathon in prep for watching the hobbit 2 (we've seen them all before but i don't remember much so al wants to avoid a ton of questions from me while watching in the theater :]). saturday we went into eau claire for some shopping and lunch. the rest of saturday was spent lounging and watching a little more LOTR. we also read up on how to install our carseat base which seems much simpler than i thought they were.

sunday, once al and tator woke up, we set to work on my large-ish to do list that was supposed to happen/start on saturday. we got most of it done! i'm procrastinating on packing my hospital bag and i'm not sure why; i usually love packing. maybe it's because i don't want to commit to packing some of my only comfy clothes away. :) but i should really get on it, just in case this lil guy is an early bird.

monday started a full week of work which i haven't had in over 3 weeks. tuesday i had a midwife appointment and then later that night, we went to a breastfeeding class. nothing new at the midwife appointment, although i did finally get my tdap shot. i haven't had a shot in many years; my arm hurt for a while afterward. the bf class was ok; no new info for me that i hadn't already read about but it was good for al: he said he learned a lot he didn't know. also i was, of course, the girl who asked about beer/alcohol and breastfeeding :) didn't really get all my questions on this topic answered (do i pump & dump if i have more than one? for how long after drinking?) but didn't want to continue on the topic and appear to be a drunk :)

 it's been so cold that tator mostly looks outside rather than going out there;

but i don't think he's minding the blankets & naps too much :)

How big is baby: size of a butternut squash (via the bump) or a canteloupe (via my app)

Weight gain/loss: 25-28 pounds
 

Stretch marks: on my sides

Sleep: still flip flop a lot but sleeping well (hopefully this little guy is learning to sleep well too :])

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: nothing really. i was craving ice cream/a malt over the weekend so we bought stuff to make them at home and it was delicious!!

Movement: daily movement, agressive, much like he's practicing karate. some hard pushing out of his butt (at the top) that was very uncomfortable for a day or two.

What I'm loving: sunshine (even though it was bitterly cold, with highs in the negative degrees, this week)

Symptoms:  heartburn, pressure in the lower ab region, pain in my chest when i sneeze (midwife says it's likely due to muscle/cartiledge relaxing hormones from being preggo)

i've also lately noticed changes to my hair (well weeks ago actually). i lose a lot less hair then i usually do, of which will likely fall out afterwards. but my hair is also so shiny. it's very strange for me as i'm used to very dry hair, so when i see shine it usually means my hair is greasy and i need to wash it. but now i'm confused as to if it's just shine/healthy or greasy. it also doesn't.... "do" the same things as far as styling. i may have noticed this earlier had i not worn my hair in a ponytail every day for, oh, the first 7 months. :) i hope to wear it curly soon and see if it's gotten curlier.

another thing i've noticed is my eye sight, especially when it's dark, is worse. not horribly, but i have a hard time reading the guide on our large-ish tv...

What I'm looking forward to: our childbirth class on saturday, my nesset shower on sunday, work christmas party on friday

Best moment of the week: the weekend off with al!

How I'm feeling: feeling pretty good. a bit tired and i waddle more at the end of the day :) stressing a bit about money since i won't be going back to menards after he arrives; i put my notice in this week.

baby ole :: week 33

this week held my first shower and our last christmas. friday after work, al, tator and i drove to the cities and went to manda & johnny's house for pizza and so that johnny could look at the explorer due to the really annoying beeping/flashing of the check charging system sensor.

saturday morning was the warnke/brown shower at sara's house. it was a great shower with good food and lots of cute gifts! then right after that we packed up and headed to wausau for a smaller version of al's side christmas. baby ole got lots of gifts from auntie althea and auntie molly; al and i got great gifts too. although short, it was a great get together. we headed back home to bloomer saturday night due to the deep freeze that was coming; sunday we stayed inside all day and watched football, cleaned, organized, etc.

monday was work then new year's eve and new year's day. al had to work 3p-3a on both new years eve and new years day :( so for new year's eve i went to courtney's house with trina, tyler, court, derek, steph, tim, randy and smack; same people as last year cept without al and without alcohol for me. we had good food, played cards against humanity (again this year) and had lots of laughs. it was a good time and i headed home at 10pm. it was a pretty perfect preggo new years!

new year's day was cold yet again. spent a bit of time watching college football with al and tator, and did my cutest load of laundry ever! :) first load of baby ole's new clothes. i put away the christmas decor and presents, started packing the hospital bags, cleaned a bit, and relaxed.

How big is baby: size of a durian (via the bump) or a pineapple (via my app)

Weight gain/loss: 25-28 pounds (my weight gain is happy the holidays are finally over! :])

Stretch marks: on my sides

Sleep: still flip flop a lot but sleeping well (hopefully this little guy is learning to sleep well too :])

Diet/Cravings/Aversions: nothing really, my apple a day has turned into an orange a day, raw veggies taste amazing! as does egg salad/hard boiled eggs

Movement: daily movement, agressive, much like he's practicing karate :)

What I'm loving: getting off work at noon, al having weekends off in january

Symptoms: return of daily/nightly heartburn this week, a bit of tiredness, some days my belly is large and some days it seems not very big. if i'm vertical for a longer stretch of time he seems to push out more on the belly particularly on the right side and it's uncomfortable. i then tend to constantly push against him there which then worries others around me. but usually if i sit/recline or lie on my back, he recedes.

What I'm looking forward to: our 2.5 day weekend together with no plans, nothing to do!! also, our breastfeeding class (and midwife appt) on tuesday, and our childbirth class in 2 saturdays.

Best moment of the week: days off work, shower, wausau christmas, new year's eve

How I'm feeling: feeling a bit uninformed (fearful, of the unknown) about labor and delivery although i did finish reading that portion of 'what to expect when you're expecting.' i'll be happy to get to the childbirth class where i can ask questions, tour the hospital, etc. also really nervous about when i'll go into labor, when i'll need to get to the hospital and if someone will be able to take me (al could be working/on a call, mom is an hour 20 away). also been having random feelings/worryings that the baby is not in my stomach anymore or that he's not alive in there anymore, particularly upon waking. makes me very uneasy.