How far along: 36 weeks (December 22, 2011... less than 30 days!)
Size of baby:
Interesting Facts: Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. He now weighs 6 to 6 ½ pounds (
like a crenshaw melon^) and is more than 19 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.
At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely he's in a head-down position.
Credit: Baby Center & Planning Family
Total Weight Gain: Around 25 pounds.
Gender: BOY!!! Gabriel Turner.
Movement: He pokes his little behind up right in the center of my belly and stretches out his long(?!) legs to and sometimes
under my right ribs! I can definitely tell a change in his movements as he's running out of room.
Sleep: Good. Getting up multiple times a night to pee and take a few sips of water. Changing positions in bed is getting increasingly difficult, especially when my back is hurting. I use my arms as much as possible, and sometimes even pull my butt over with the back of my pajamas!
Symptoms: Acid reflux; Urinary frequency and urgency;
Lots of Braxton-Hicks contractions {Perry & I got excited one night while running around town because I was having SO many contractions, mostly every 5-6 minutes but some closer together & some further apart up to 15 minutes. Then they stopped once I drank & ate dinner}; Numbness and a painful sensation at the top of my big belly- the best way I can describe it is like my skin was burned there- ouch! Maybe this is from the stretching & downward pull on my skin.
Other Notes: You can still see a little "button" on my belly through my clothes, but I think it's flattening out; My nails are getting ridiculously long. I want to get a pedicure {and maybe a mani too!} before I go into labor. First Perry said no one will be looking at my feet, but then made a good point...
I will be!;
Cravings: A
non-craving I noticed is sweets. We have a house full of donuts and Christmas cookies but I'm rarely in the mood for them. Give me something salty, tangy or spicy!
What we are looking forward to: Meeting our son!!!! Christmas! Ringing in 2012!
Things checked off our "to-do" list:
-Car seat is inspected!
-All the Christmas presents are bought
and wrapped. Perry impressed me by coming up with
perfect ideas for people this year. He really is a good gift-giver. I can't wait to see what he got for me! Then we had a night of wrapping together: I did the tissue paper & boxed everything and passed it off to him to wrap & tag, then later I put ribbons & bows on- so fun!
-I started painting the trim in the foyer. If I get around to finishing it before Gabe is born, it will be a miracle.
-Perry's hospital bag is packed & in the car! With his persistence, I've gotten a good start on mine.
36 Week Belly Picture:
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| Christmas Evening (36w3d) |
