ah, the joy of being kicked
If he wasn't my cute little baby boy, I would be really upset at the amount of kicking I've been receiving.

The movements and the kicks and jabs are a little painful (granted, I'm a wimp), but they are nice reminders that he is active and doing well. He must be head down because I think I am feeling kicks in the ribs.

My appetite has mellowed out from a couple months ago. I no longer have to eat something every two hours. In fact, I think I get full really easily (like, 3/4 of a sandwich is enough for lunch). I read that when the baby gets big he actually crowds out the stomach, allowing it to fill up faster.

I still feel tired most of the time, and I can't exercise like I could a month ago. After walking about 2 blocks, my tummy gets all tight and heavy (like a bowling ball). I'm not sure if they are practice contractions, or just the muscles tensing up from the weight of the baby. I've taken to spending more time on the couch. So much for staying in shape through the end of the pregnancy.

Jerry just finished painting the rocking chair dark blue. It looks really pretty and we are getting ready to finish the nursery. First we will sell a bunch of stuff that's taking up space in there, like speakers and other electronic equipment of Jerry's. Poor Jerry... he's giving up his hobbies of collecting electronic stuff and building speakers. But as he pointed out the other day, some of the things he is selling would not have been safe for a baby to play with, so I guess we can look at it as child-proofing the house.

8 month pre-natal appt.
Had my 8 month appointment today, and everything was normal. They measured my tummy (at 32 weeks I should be about 32 centimeters). I was expecting to be 35 centimeters or something, because I seem to be on the big, round, basketball side of things. But at 32 1/2 weeks I measured 33 centimeters. Doc said that was normal.

Doc said something interesting -- that if I were to start having contractions in three weeks, they wouldn't try to stop them. If it happened today, they would try to stop them... I guess the baby would be mature enough at 35 weeks. THREE WEEKS!

She also said the baby seemed to be in a head down position today, but that could change within the next month. Next month is when they get a little worried if he were not head down.

32 weeks/8months!
We've reached the 8th month (32-35 weeks). We have 8 weeks to go.

This week the baby weighs about 4 pounds with a crown-to-rump length of 11.6 inches, and a total length of almost 19 inches. I can't believe it.

The baby now gets hiccups on a daily basis. They are very close together. Yesterday he had them three times. Poor thing.

After bragging in my last posting that I have hardly any symptoms and feel great, I had a hard weekend. I felt exhausted and kind of flu-like, similar to how I felt in the first trimester. Last night I hardly slept at all ... I alternated between reading on the couch and lying in bed staring wide-eyed at the wall, listening to Jerry breathe. The Kaiser advice nurse says this is all normal, alternating between exhaustion and insomnia.

On a positive note, I am officially done with this semester. Now I get to focus on important things, like watching TV and reading and trying to paint my toenails.

58 days to go
I'm feeling good nowadays. I think I am feeling better now than I did a couple months ago. My main symptoms are the need for my daily nap and heart burn which seems to come and go with no predictable pattern (though berry Tums work wonders). I'm even getting used to the extra attention, inability to bend over, and remarks about my size ("WOW! You're HUGE!" ... something no woman wants to hear even if in reference to her baby).

This is my last weekend of studying... My last final is Monday 5/19. I can't wait! After that we have one weekend free, then two weekends of baby showers (5/31 and 6/7), then two weekends of lamaze classes, then only THREE weekends left before the baby arrives! I'm glad we'll be busy up until then, otherwise we might go crazy.

Jerry is doing a great job getting the baby's nursery ready. He just painted the changing table dark navy blue with yellow accents and may do a mirror to match. He's also painting our rocking chair a dark color. Looks like we both like to be busy in these last few months...

I gotta do what in 9 weeks?
Last Friday I went to the doctor because I wasn't feeling well, and they decided to monitor the baby to make sure he was doing all right. While I was waiting for the doctor, there was a lady in the next room in labor who was very, very vocal about her pain, and I began to realize I am a mere 9 weeks away from being in her position. I had my first moment of genuine freaking out while I lay on the hard table waiting for the doctor.

When the doctor came back in, I asked if the lady in the next room was on drugs or was doing this naturally, and she said she didn't know. I asked if maybe she was at the very end of the labor, meaning the pain was at its most intense (but almost over!). Again, she didn't know. I was really hoping she'd say this was a drug-free birth, thus I would not ever really be in her position (I plan to welcome whatever drugs they offer me.)

The doctor then looked at the printout which shows the baby's heartbeat, my heartbeat, and I don't know what else, and she asked me, "so how long have you been having contractions?" I said I didn't know I was having contractions. The monitor had picked them up without my knowing it. They were weak (not strong enough for me to feel), but were happening often. Apparently, a few things can cause contractions, including dehydration. I told her I drink water constantly; I'm not sure she believed me. They checked to see if I was dilated, and I wasn't. I was told I'd have to drink a bunch of water, then get checked again in two hours. I called Jerry (he didn't even know I was there) and told him I'd be there for awhile, but it looked like everything was going to be OK and he didn't need to come.

They put me in a more comfortable room with a gallon of water and I continued to be monitored. This is where I decided I don't like hospitals. I asked for the bathroom and they pulled a toilet out from the counter... right there in the room! I felt like specifying, "No, I said bath-ROOM, the kind with four walls and a door that locks!" But I didn't want to be the difficult patient considering there were people in labor in the rooms all around me. As if that wasn't bad enough, the remote control for the TV didn't work. THEN, I asked for lunch and they brought me a cheeseburger (I had not voluntarily consumed beef in seven years). I stared at the cheeseburger for about ten minutes, thought about how hungry I was, looked at the small scoop of potato salad and the wimpy, insignificant cookie and realized they would never satisfy Evan or me, so I ate the burger, half of it, anyway. It tasted like those soy/beef burgers from elementary school cafeterias. Not as bad as I was expecting, but overall I was NOT happy with my experience.

After two hours they came in and checked me again. Thankfully, I was still not dilated at all. The doctor said some women "just have contractions through the second half of pregnancy" but still carry until their due date. It doesn't really mean anything. I guess I'm one of those women. As long as I don't have any pain or other weird warning signs, I should be OK.

We learned a few things from this experience: first, any time I have another unusual appointment, Jerry will be with me. He felt helpless being at work and not knowing how I was doing. So I shall keep him better informed and not worry about worrying him. Also, I am packing *normal* food in the back of my car, to be carried with me at all times! No more being stuck without food and at the mercy of those evil nurses. Also, even though we are 9 weeks away from the due date, it's time to start thinking about the things we need to pack, and getting phone numbers and directions to the hospital to family members, etc. It's sneaking up on us.

We got a gymnast on our hands
Evan moves a lot. Last night while I was watching TV, I felt movements at the bottom right-hand side of my abdomen and the top, left-hand side (below my rib cage). So he must have been lying diagonally. We played "watch the baby" before going to sleep, and he was moving a lot. At one point I rubbed my hand over my tummy and felt something distinctly long and hard. I think it was an arm. We couldn't believe how long it was!
In a couple more weeks he will fill up most of the uterus and so his movements will decrease. Right now I am really enjoying his movements throughout the day.
Earlier this morning he had hiccups.

30 weeks
Today we are 30 weeks along! That's 75% there! 10 weeks to go. I can't believe it.
This week the baby weighs about 3 pounds, is almost 11 inches crown to rump, and about 17 inches in total length.
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