Nine Months | BUMPdate

How Far Along? 36 weeks (+1 day, but who’s counting?).

Baby Stats: C2 is the size of a papaya, or about 6 pounds. She’s also about 18.7 inches long! Probably longer, if she’s anything like her sister.

Weight Gain: 24 pounds (up 4 pounds from last month). Comparatively, at 36 weeks with Dorothy I was up 31.5 pounds.

Symptoms:

• Hi, heartburn. I didn’t miss you.
• C2 is pretty much out of room in there. She likes to roundhouse kick my right side, which takes my breath away every. single. time.
• My wedding rings are off for the first {extended} time since I got married eight years ago. I feel naked. But my hands are swelling, and I can’t wear jewelry for my c-section. So rather than the hospital cutting them off, I took matters into my own hands.
• Sleep is awful, and every night is different. I wake up when I need to pee. I wake up with heartburn. I wake up with hot flashes. I wake up from crazy dreams. I wake up because I’m not comfortable. I wake up because C2 is practicing her karate. I pretty much see all hours at this point.
• I’m no doctor, but I would guess that baby has dropped A LOT in the last week or so. My back, hips and pelvis just HURT. Walking is hard.

Preparations: Nursery – check. Hospital bag – check. Car seat installed – check. Hair appointment scheduled – check. Bottle of wine in the refrigerator – check. We’re ready when you are, C2.

Surprises: I was feeling down this week. While I have enjoyed the “loneliness” I have experienced with my second pregnancy, I really seem to be the only person who acknowledges that I’m about to give birth. I’m trying to go about my life as normal – like I’m not nine months pregnant – but let’s get real. I need to sit down. I need someone to empathize with me. I need someone to recognize that I’m about to go through another major life change, and help me keep my shit together because my strength is fading fast.

So when I went to my last color guard rehearsal until July this week, I carried that stress with me. There’s 10 of them, and one of me. I had a lot to teach, and not enough time to do it effectively. I had a lot to prep for my “sub”, and only my set of {swollen} hands to help. I was, again, alone.

Then the marching band moms said they needed to see me in the cafeteria, and I walked in to the sweetest surprise baby sprinkle I’ve ever seen.

I felt so appreciated. So loved. It’s incredible what an unexpected kind gesture can do to improve your mood. 🙂 A huge THANK YOU to my guard and the moms for all you have done for me and my daughters!

Big Sister: We are trying to keep Dorothy’s life as normal as possible. School and MOPs are over for the summer, but she’ll have plenty of activity at summer dance classes and Frozen Camp. I’m thinking about enrolling her in Mom & Me swim lessons as well, as something for just the two of us to do. The less change, the better when it comes to this kid.

Dorothy has also started sleeping in for the first time in her life. This is a good thing because I’m getting some extra rest. This is a bad thing because now I’m used to sleeping until 8-8:30 a.m., and I have the feeling that C2’s sleeping schedule will be drastically different.

Momma: Last week, Dorothy fell asleep in the car on the way home… at 7 p.m. An hour-and-a-half before bedtime. Usually, she wakes up when I get her out of her car seat – no big deal. This time, though, nothing was phasing her. I carried her all the way into the house and laid her on the couch, and she was still passed out. She hadn’t eaten dinner, and she desperately needed a bath after running around at daddy’s track meet, so after a few minutes I tried to wake her up for a third time. Nope.

Instead, she curled herself into my chest and put her arm up across her face – just like she used to do when she was a baby.

I sat with her asleep in my arms and cried for an hour because she looked so stinking sweet. And because I’m going to miss these days where it’s just the two of us.

I’m an emotional momma.

Countdown to baby snuggles: 2 weeks, 6 days.

C2:

Eight Months BUMPdate //  Seven Months BUMPdate // Six Months BUMPdate // Five Months BUMPdate // Pregnancy Details // Baby C2 Announcement

Dorothy:
36 Weeks // 35 Weeks // 34 Weeks // 33 Weeks // 32 Weeks // 31 Weeks // Pregnancy Details