33 & 34 Weeks Pregnant

WEEK 33 & 34

Discharging from hospital!! 34 weks 3 days

Dad to be doing homework and hanging out with me in hosptial.

 

Size of baby?

33: Pineapple

34:  Cantaloupe

 

This week’s major developments?

33: This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark (about the size of a pineapple). He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.(babycenter.com)

 34: Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (about the size of a cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

Gender? BOY

 

Update: Last Monday I had a big bleed and we had to go to the emergency room. We stayed at the hospital for a few nights while they monitored me and baby. They kept saying how good baby looked and how active he was. We got discharged to go home to continue bed rest. Unfortunately the doctors decided I am no longer a candidate for an out of hospital birth. So I had to say goodbye to The Birth Center I was planning on going to and my plan of having a water birth. They do have midwives at this hospital so we will be transferring our care to a midwife at the hospital who has a backup OB doctor. It’s been an emotional time but I am so grateful for the health of my baby, that he gets to cook in my belly longer and for all the love and support are friends and family have shown us.

 

Sleep? Not very good. I am very sore from laying down all the time and it’s very hard to get comfortable. I also get up 5 times a night to waddle to the bathroom.

 

Food Cravings? I haven’t had any specific cravings while being on bed rest. I have been munching on lots of fruit and veggies and sandwiches throughout the day.

 

What I miss? Being on bed rest has been quite the adjustment. I was teaching yoga 3x a week, taking the dogs on hikes, practicing yoga, swimming. Now I can’t do any of that. What I miss the most is teaching my classes. It was such an abrupt end. I didn’t get to say bye to my students and I miss them and teaching very much. Can’t wait to start up again in December/ January. I also miss being able to clean the house and nest. I just lie in bed and see dust everywhere and I just want to clean but I can’t.

 

What I am loving? I love that this boy is still in my belly. I love feeling all of his big movements and hiccups.  

 

Movement? Yes. Every week I am surprised how much you can see my belly visibly move as he stretches and moves and the next week the movements are even bigger. My belly is no longer perfectly round either. It is lopsided with a big lump (which I think is his butt) where he is hanging out.  

 

Symptoms? I just want to move and walk soo bad, very exhausted, feel weak. I think these are bed rest symptoms. Other symptoms include, back pain, vivid dreams, and heartburn which I think I get now just from breathing.

 

Exercise? No allowed

 

Yoga? I have been doing pranayama breath work and reiki on myself and on baby.

 

Meditation? Yes daily it’s keeping me sane and helps me feel connected to baby.

 

Appointments? We have an appointment with our new midwife on Wednesday.