This and That

This post may be about a few random things, but that's me -- random.

We had our 36 week appointment today.  Everything is still looking just as it should.  I'm measuring right at 36 weeks and 1 cm dilated (which is completely normal at this point -- sorry if that's too much information for some people).  We will be checking in with one of the midwives every week from here on out!  I'm feeling pretty good at this point (just generally a little uncomfortable).  I had a virus that took a week to get over, but thankfully it's almost gone.  I'm pretty tired too.  The only other thing that really bothers me daily is my right hand.  It tends to go completely numb when I sleep (I've been wearing a wrist brace to bed to help with that).  During the day I usually cannot fully feel the tips of 3 of my fingers.  It's just due to the mild swelling in my hands, but it is a little annoying and it makes it hard to write sometimes.

Moving on, after our appointment Taylor was nice enough to agree to do a little shopping with me (every guys favorite things to do, right?).  We have been so blessed to be given almost all of the baby clothes that are currently in the dresser, but I was feeling like I wanted just a couple warmer pieces that could be layered over what we already have (especially since it's been so cold the last couple of days!  Reminds me that winter is on the way).  We went to Kid to Kid in Duluth (http://www.kidtokid.com/duluth) since they were having a sale this week (buy 1 baby item, get the 2nd for half off).  Their prices are already so low, and with the extra discount I wanted to take advantage.  I'm glad that Taylor came though, because my already indecisive brain is feeling even more so these days.  We found some great items, mostly picked out by the Dad-to-be himself!

This was not something that we needed at this point, but when we saw it (and very much on sale) we had to get it.  I think we'll find Taylor a matching one ;)

This doesn't quite capture everything that we bought, but you can at least see most of it

We ended up paying a little less than $25 for everything, which was pretty exciting to me.  I don't feel the need to buy any more clothes at this point either.  Like I said, we've had so many people give us clothes (both new and used) that I think we're set for the moment.  We've got great friends and family :)

And I've got great co-workers too (to throw out one more random thing in this post).  My co-workers at LifeLink had a baby shower for me yesterday.  I didn't take any pictures, but they were so sweet to bring in lots of of yummy food and many wonderful presents for Baby Rollo.  Thank you all so much!  Below is one gift that I absolutely love (and is going to drive Loki absolutely crazy) :)

This bear talks and plays peek-a-boo

So cute!

36 Weeks

Erika and the baby hit 36 weeks this week. When we hit the end of this week, the baby will be considered "full term." It could be any day now, but both of us would rather he be on time than early. Erika only has a few call days left, and then she has a couple of weeks off before the due date. It would be nice to have those days, if possible. Here is the latest collage:

As per the tradition of these posts, here is the latest from a biological point of view (courtesy of Baby Center):

Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. He now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. He's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered his body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected his skin during his nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of his first bowel movement.

35 Weeks

Erika and the baby hit 35 weeks today. Here is the latest progress collage:

As per the tradition of these posts, here is the latest from a biological point of view (courtesy of Baby Center):

Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete – he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

34 Weeks

Sorry I missed a week on the posting of our progress collage, but here is the up-to-date collage:

We are getting close to the time where he really could come at any time. We do not want him to come early because Erika is taking a couple of weeks off before the due date so she can rest and we can finish up any baby prep we need to do. However, I suppose he will come when he is ready. I do not want him to be late either because I want to know that our baby is going to be a punctual person. I like it when people are punctual. So, right on time would be nice.

Here is the latest from a biological point of view (courtesy of Baby Center):

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. His fat layers – which he'll need to regulate his body temperature once he's born – are filling him out, making him rounder. His skin is also smoother than ever. His central nervous system is maturing and his 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.

Good to know that babies generally do just fine if they are born a little early. Still hoping for right on time though...  

Loki

I know that this may be a random thing to post, since it's not specifically about the baby, but I'm slightly worried about how Loki is going to deal with this change in her life.  She's always been an anxious little dog and tends to have a hard time adjusting to new things (like if we drive her anywhere she hasn't been before she gets sick in the car).

The first thing that seemed to grab her attention that things were changing was when we moved the desks out of the second bedroom (Taylor's desk is now in our bedroom and mine is in a closet since I rarely use it anyway.)  We could tell that the furniture being out of place tipped her off that something was happening.  We also recently took a chair that's in our bedroom and moved it into Taylor's parents basement to make more space.  This was the chair that she used to jump up onto our bed (one of her favorite chill spots during the day and when I'm in the shower in the morning.)  We left the ottoman that goes with the chair in place so she can still get herself up to the bed, but it's still different and she can tell.

She seemed to get a little freaked out when Taylor was setting up the Pack-n-Play, so we decided to put her in it to show her it wasn't scary.  She was less than amused. . . .

Another thing that I wonder about for people with dogs is, how do you teach the dog which toys belong to them and which belong to the baby?  Loki has always been very simple in her toy preferences.  She has a couple plastic balls she bats around, occasionally a rope she chews on, and she likes to eat her little rawhide bones.  We never really buy her stuffed things because she chews them up in 5 minutes.

We've gotten a few toys so far for the baby.  I put them in a basket that was under the crib.  Taylor witnessed the other day Loki crawling under the crib and scratching at the basket.  When the baby starts playing with things that look fun to her I hate to scold her like she's doing something wrong, but we obviously can't have her eating all of the baby toys either.

I'm sure we'll figure this out one day at a time once Baby Rollo is here, but I do love our dog and I want her to adjust well to this change in her life.  She's had domain over everything on the floor for the past 5 years and I know she's going to be less than thrilled with having to share :)

32 Weeks

Erika and the baby hit 32 weeks today. Here is the latest collage and picture:

Things are chugging along. Only about two months left! (Though Erika might disagree with the "only" part.) Here is the latest from a biological point of view (courtesy of Baby Center):

By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, he'll gain a third to half of his birth weight during the next 7 weeks as he fattens up for survival outside the womb. He now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). His skin is becoming soft and smooth as he plumps up in preparation for birth.