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A baby story [Part II]: Weeks 30 + 31

Week 30: Baby’s the length of a cucumber

This week we had another prenatal appointment with midwife Allison. Heartbeat sounds great and everything looks just fine! Nothing major to report from this appointment although we’re going to start seeing the midwives a lot more frequently now that we’re in the third trimester.

Something that I’m pretty sure has started up this week are Braxton Hicks contractions, something I don’t remember experiencing with Sirena’s pregnancy. My good ol’ uterus is practicing for the big day and it’s just sporadic, infrequent cramping that can be a bit uncomfortable in the moment but after a minute the feeling passes and things are back to normal. The 3am insomnia has resurfaced this week which is, in a word, annoying. I love when people say, “Make sure you get rest now before the baby’s born!” It’s my favorite thing to think about between 3-4:30am as I’m lying wide awake and nothing I do can get me back to sleep. 😉

One fun thing Lucia accompanied me to this week was “Dirty Dancing: The Musical” with the ladies in my family. We had such a good time and baby girl really enjoyed the music, especially the finale!

Belly shot!

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Week 31: Baby’s the size of a pineapple

Now that our Maui, Hawaii family vacation is over (le sigh) it seems that things have kicked into high gear with getting serious about Lucia’s upcoming arrival. Kevin and I, along with our good friend Brianne, have been busy making preparations in a number of ways:

  • Party planning: Brianne has graciously volunteered to co-host a celebration for Lucia and big-sister-to-be Sirena. The theme is “Little Miss Sunshine” (going along with the translation of her name which is light) and I’m so looking forward to having close family/friends over to celebrate our girls with us.
  • Nesting: Kevin and I have been busy cleaning our house and making room for our little sunshine-in-the-making. We’ve gotten a couple of things from Craigslist (Rock n Play sleeper for one), a friend is passing along her changing table to us, and we’re in the market for a comfy, used glider/armchair (for the hours of nursing that are in my future). We’re going to make a little nook in our room for the changing table/glider which means we’ve got to move our dresser into our closet. We’ve got a plan for the next couple of weeks to get all of the baby stuff out of the garage to clean/inspect and start organizing it in our house.
  • Preparing for childbirth + recovery: Whether I like it or not (ha!) I’m going to be giving birth again in a couple of months. This week I got serious about preparing for this huge event by starting to reread “Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth,” writing down some affirmations to think about during labor, seriously exercising every day (I need to build as much strength as possible for the marathon-of-an-event I’m about to partake in!), and getting a list together of postpartum recovery needs to have on hand at the birth center and at home.

This week we celebrated Valentine’s Day which has never been a big day for me and Kevin but it has become something of note now that Sirena is around. She made her second set of homemade Valentine’s cards for her schoolmates and family and this year she was sure to make one for “her baby” (that’s how she refers to Lucia!):

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These pregnancy hormones have kicked into full gear lately it seems (they say that happens a lot in the first and third trimesters) and I’ve been really emotional lately. It feels like my emotions are just under the surface for me and any little thing can get the tears flowing. The biggest thing for me lately has been the thought that my special Sirena + mama alone time is quickly coming to an end (I had the same sentiments about the special Lola + mama time before Sirena was born, come to think of it!) Believe me when I say that I am BEYOND excited to spend time with both of my girls in the near future and seeing the two of them together is going to melt me to smithereens. But I know that the beautiful relationship I have with Sirena is undoubtedly going to change with the new addition to our family and it makes me just a bit sad and nostalgic thinking about it. I’m trying to enjoy every little moment with this blonde-haired, chatty, goofy, sweet knucklehead as much as possible while I’ve got her all to myself. 🙂

Belly shot!

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My trusty sidekick right by my side

Other pregnancy updates:

  • Total weight gained so far: 10 pounds
  • Food cravings so far: NONE! A friend asked me what I’ve been craving and I couldn’t come up with anything. With Sirena I craved falafel/hummus and Vietnamese food. With Lucia, in the first trimester I craved meat (so weird) but that’s not happening any more and I haven’t really craved anything in particular. Hmmm…
  • Days until our next prenatal appointment: Seven
  • Fun baby developments: She weighs about 3.5 pounds and measures over 16 inches long…and she’s heading into a growth spurt.  All five of her senses are now in working order and she’s now strong enough to grasp a finger!

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