I thought this was going to be my last week-by-week journal, but it was getting pretty lengthy so I decided to split it up. I'm not supposed to be sitting up at my desk for too long, so we'll have to wait on weeks 36-40 for later!
28 weeks, 4 days November 23rd, Did my glucose screening test, and was pleasantly surprised that the orange sweet drink was not nearly as bad as I imagined it would be and heard from others that it was. Results were good! I was happy about that especially since we were just heading into the holidays and it would have been so hard to stick to a stricter diet with all the yummy holiday treats (not to mention the baby shower with desserts I had coming up)! Doctor did tell me I needed to take more iron though for borderline anemia, which was not much of a surprise, since I've been told my iron count has been low before (pre-pregnancy). OB appointments are now scheduled every two weeks!
Weeks 29-31 The strong "boom" kicks and "pow" jabs are starting to feel more like rolls and and moving body parts, with only occasional sharp kicks, as the space in my uterus becomes more constricted. The "rolls" are not soft and subtle but make my entire stomach move! By this time I was now feeling the regular twitches of hiccups every once in a while and occasionally I would feel the pressure of his body up against my ribs. I never really felt like a "foot was stuck" up there but it was definitely more noticeable than the slight "rib tickling" I had previously felt. I almost always feel movement on my right side - rarely do I feel a kick or roll or movement on my left. When I told Dr. Koperek that (an OB dr I was seeing while my regular doctor was delivering a baby that morning) he said that it means that my baby will be right handed, lol. He said it very straight-faced, but I think he was pulling my leg.
Wanting to make sure we were prepared, and nervous because I wasn't able to make it to a tour of the hospital, after our 30 week dr appt we drove around to the women's hospital entrance to make sure we knew where to go. The nurses were very nice and helpful in answering our questions, and though we were not allowed back to see the rooms it was good to see how to get to where we needed to go when the big day comes.
I'm getting bigger and bigger as the days go by! I can tell I waddle at times when I'm tired. And its definitely getting harder to practice tae kwon do, especially the kicks! But I know the exercise is great, so I do what I can and make sure I take it easy and go slow - the tae kwon do still makes a great workout as long as I'm careful. I feel more tired these days, probably because of the low iron. I'm hoping that with some supplements I will feel my energy pick back up. I'm still sleeping well, but have to get up 2 or 3 times a night to go to the bathroom. The heartburn is manageable with tums, and it usually isn't too bad, but uncomfortable. I'm very happy that my hands, feet and face have not been swelling! =)
32 Weeks, 4 days, December 30, My blood pressure was 146/75 which was too high for the doctor's liking, so they had me lie down for a few minutes. Took my bp again and it had come down to 133/88 but it was still too high. They also found a trace amount of protein in my urine sample and I had gained a little more weight this week than before so she mentioned that we need to be watching out for preeclamsia. Doc talked to me about taking it easy at work, getting more rest and getting off my feet more to see if that helps my blood pressure for the next appointment in 1 week. Also scheduled an ultrasound just to make sure that baby is doing well and to check on his growth. The next week showed improvement - ultrasound showed that baby was doing very well and was probably about 5 1/2 pounds (estimate was still around 8 to 8 1/2 lbs at delivery), amniotic fluid levels were good and placenta was in a good position, BP did not concern Dr. Koperek at 136/86 (Dr. Kaminskas, my regular doc was on vacation) and there was no protein this time in my urine sample. Yay!
Weeks 33-35 Heartburn, heartburn, heartburn! Tums is becoming a daily snack, especially in the evenings as I try and fall asleep. I can't help but wonder how much worse this hearburn can get... will my baby have much hair as the old wives tale says? I had to take my rings off at 34 weeks (just a little to tight for comfort - and I don't want them to get stuck!), so I am wearing them on a chain around my neck. A couple of days my feet seemed slightly swollen as well for the first time, but it wasn't much. Also for the first time around week 34 I felt the "pelvic pressure" that the nurses have been asking me about at every appointment. Didn't know what they meant before, but I guess baby is beginning to settle downward a little bit more! Starting next week my doctor appointments will be every week! I scheduled all my remaining appointments on Dec 30th - so surreal!
