29 Weeks!!

How your baby's growing:

Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day.

How your life's changing:

Your baby's very active now. Your healthcare provider may ask you to spend some time each day counting kicks and will give you specific instructions on how to do this. Let your provider know if you ever notice that your baby is becoming less active. You may need a nonstress test or biophysical profile to check on your baby's condition.

Some old friends — heartburn and constipation — may take center stage now. The pregnancy hormone progesterone relaxes smooth muscle tissue throughout your body, including your gastrointestinal tract. This relaxation, coupled with the crowding in your abdomen, slows digestion. Sluggish digestion can cause gas and heartburn — especially after a big meal — and contribute to constipation.

Your growing uterus may also be contributing to hemorrhoids. These swollen blood vessels in your rectal area are common during pregnancy. Fortunately, they usually clear up in the weeks after giving birth.

If they're itchy or painful, try soaking in a sitz bath or applying cold compresses medicated with witch hazel to the affected area. Avoid sitting or standing for long stretches. Talk with your provider before using any over-the-counter remedies during pregnancy, and let your provider know if you have any rectal bleeding. To prevent constipation, eat a high-fiber diet, drink plenty of water, and get some regular exercise.

Some women get something called "supine hypotensive syndrome" during pregnancy. This happens when lying flat on your back causes a change in heart rate and blood pressure that makes you feel dizzy until you change position. You might notice that you feel lightheaded if you stand up too quickly, too. To avoid "the spins," lie on your side rather than your back, and move slowly as you go from lying down to sitting and then standing.

29 weeks...so this means that there are 11 weeks to go. Except I will have a c-section a week early if I don't have the baby already, so this really means about 10 weeks to go MAX. That's kind of scary. 10 weeks is NOT a long time. We're getting close now people! This pregnancy has felt like it's taken forever and I think I know why. We knew early with Dominick since I was testing early but I was hopeful, and not sure I was pregnant until I was almost 5 weeks I think. Maybe even 6. We had our first ultrasound with Dom when I was 6 weeks 3 days along. Which is early, but not as early as this time around.

This time I got my first positive test at 9 dpIUI. That means I was only 3 weeks 2 days pregnant. And you have 40 weeks in a pregnancy. So I've known for a Looooonnnnnng time.

Things are still going great. This baby girl is very very active. I feel her move a lot. This morning she actually woke me up because she was kicking AND she had the hiccups. :)

I'm a little nervous that I don't get enough calcium. I'm not a huge milk drinker. (Although I actually had 2 glasses of milk yesterday). And I'm afraid I won't get the calcium my baby needs. I'll have to make sure I pay attention to this and work to get enough.

The only problem I've been having (of the three they mention this week) is heartburn. My chest is on fire and I feel like there is acid in my throat. I don't feel like this all the time. But I feel like this often. I'll be ready for this part to go away.

I don't feel light headed or anything when laying down, but I will admit it's getting harder and harder to get up from a laying down position! I don't know how I'm going to get up in about 8 weeks! I'll have to stay in bed until someone helps me out! :) It's also getting harder to sit with Dominick in my lap. He likes to sit in my lap on the floor and read or do puzzles, but my belly is always pushing him off. I can't get him close enough to me anymore to have him sit comfortably. I guess he'll have to get used to sitting next to me and not on me for awhile.

All in all, things are perfect. Couldn't be better and I couldn't be happier. Only 10 weeks or so to go!

Happy 29 weeks, Baby Annabelle!

Upcoming Appointments:
Friday, January 21 - Ultrasound
Tuesday, February 1 - 32 week Dr. Appointment