Week 34

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which she'll need to 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.

10 things I wish I had known in advance about my pregnancy

(Disclaimer...most of these are bodily fluid/function related so if you can't deal I would recommend you stop reading)

1. My boobs would start producing 'stuff' in the first trimester which would necessitate cleaning and moisturizing the nipples on a regular basis. Weird.

2. Between bleeding and increased vaginal discharge I have worn a pad or pantyliner for the majority of this pregnancy. I thought that with the no period thing I would be free!!! But no.

3. Skin tags: icky little flaps of skin that increase on the neck and back region. Very normal but again, icky.

4. Constipation, thank goodness my bout was brief but I seriously thought I was dying.

5. That I would have that early bleeding but that all would be well.

6. That despite my general tendency to cry over sappy things, my strong desire for a child, and my extreme excitement to experience pregnancy that I would not feel overwhelmingly maternal or connected to the baby growing inside me. I love the idea of our child, really like being pregnant, and don't want anything to happen that would be negative but still don't feel extraordinarily loving towards my belly or the baby when it moves.

7. I expected mood swings and potentially crying but didn't expect that I would have a much shorter fuse and anger so quickly.

8. That my temperature would be higher (which is normal) or rather for me that my temperature would be like a normal persons as I run cold usually and I would have to learn how to regulate it.

9. That (knock on wood) it would be relatively easy pregnancy (thus far!). Taylor thought I would be vomiting all over the place (I'm usually a puker), which I didn't and our friend Ian kept saying that he thought I would be likely have problems, which I haven't...maybe he just meant I'm a whiner....which I am.

10. That it would alternatively move so fast and so slow at the same time...and that you can be terrified and ecstatic all at once.

Happy Heart

Here is the newest (and last) picture of the baby inside. Taylor thinks the lips are gigantic! We had an ultrasound to make sure the echogenic foci thing had gone away and it had. :) So the heart and the rest of the baby looks great. They estimated the weight to be 4 lbs 3oz or so which is right on schedule (apparently it is a pineapple this week). Fetal movement is good...the baby moves a lot and loves to stick an appendage (I am guessing foot) in my right lung/rib area so that I have to shove it back down in order to breathe. I had an on again off again backache last week but the chiropractor helped (she is fabulous; Dr. Michelle Gerbi--she practices at Zenana Spa and I highly recommend her. She specializes in pregnant mama's). Taking walks and the massage I got at our prenatal visit on Friday also helped.

The prenatal went well although I was acting like a grumpy 4 year old...if I do not eat on time lately I completely emotionally shut down...not a pretty sight. I am starting to think about when to end my time at work and am filling out the required paperwork. I have to discuss it with my boss but should have that planned out soon. The next prenatal visit they come to the house (we have to make sure that we have our "bags" packed and ready for inspection--a bag for us/me and the baby for when we got to the birth center). We are excited because Taylor's mother will be able to be here for that visit.

We are getting to the end of the Intro to Queer Studies class we are teaching which is good as I am exhausted by the end of the night (3 hours one night a week) but sad because I think we will miss the students who are great and can be inspiring with their energy. I am really glad we did this even though it was not part of the pregnancy plan.

We have 5-7+ weeks to go and we are trying not to panic as we still have the house to finish unpacking/setting up. We made some progress this weekend and I hope that continues. All the boxes are gone now it just needs to be arranged. Sigh. Wish us luck! Also, thanks to all of you who went to the rallies all over the country to support marriage equality and protest the passing of proposition 8 in CA. We weren't able to make it to the one here but some of you called or sent pictures of your city/states rally and we were really excited to see the energy around this.

Much love,

Megan

Hope

Megan and I will celebrate our 8 year anniversary next week. For those of you who have politics on your mind - you might recognize that as being the exact length of time Bush has been 'president'. I pointed out that if we were able to survive as a couple during these dark times, than we can survive as a couple anytime.
We are certainly entering into a new era - both as a nation and in our personal lives. I am only too happy to realize that our baby will be born in such a momentous, historical, and hopeful time.