Now we are three

Well, I’m really 37 weeks and 5 days, so, closer to 38 weeks….but, here’s what’s happening with baby this week:

“Your baby weighs close to 6.5 pounds / 2.8 kilograms and may be about 20 inches / 50 centimetres long from head to toe. Your baby’s head is now cradled in your pelvic cavity — surrounded and protected by your pelvic bones. This position clears some much-needed space for her growing legs and buttocks.

Many babies now have a full head of hair, with locks maybe around one inch / 2.5 centimetres long. But don’t be surprised if her hair isn’t the same colour as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes taken aback when their children are born with bright red or blond hair, and fair-haired couples likewise can produce babies with dark hair. And then, of course, some babies don’t have any hair at all.

Speaking of hair, most of the downy coat of lanugo that covered your baby from 26 weeks has disappeared, and so has most of the vernix caseosa, the whitish substance that also covers her. Your baby will swallow her lanugo and exterior coating, along with other secretions, and store them in her bowels. These will become your infant’s first bowel movement, a blackish waste called meconium.”

babycentre

Last night I had a dream about running. I was still pregnant in the dream, but somehow I was running with minimal effort. It felt awesome (in the dream) and I can’t wait to get back into it (in reality).

It is funny how running is one of those things that I struggle with sometimes, forcing myself to go because I know it is better if I do, but not necessarily looking forward to it. I always feel good afterwards, but there is no guarantee I’ll feel great during the run.

Anyway, I didn’t used to enjoy running at all. But, after tearing an ACL, you come to appreciate how much more interesting running can be than sitting on a bike in a gym for months on end. I am sure I am going to feel somewhat similar the first time I run after the baby is born.

In other news, I had a great time at all three baby showers last week. We received way too many gifts, but I guess you can’t really help that. Our baby will definitely be very spiffy in her new clothes when she decides to make her appearance. The best part was getting to see a bunch of people I hadn’t seen in a while.

This week I am being spoiled with three baby showers. Well, I guess the baby is also being spoiled, since the gifts are for her! Last night the ultimate ladies got together for a casual BBQ hangout session. As usual, there was plenty of story-telling and laughter. Everyone gave me/us one of their favourite books from when they were a kid, so now we have a good stock of French & English books to read when the baby arrives! (Truthfully, I’ll probably read them all ahead of time since I love kids books).

Next Thursday is my day of work for a whole year. I don’t think it has really sunk in yet. With the likely mad-rush of painting and moving to come in the next couple of weeks, I don’t expect that I’ll feel any less busy for a while. However, I have been working full-time (or some might argue more than full-time) at the same place since early 2005, so taking so much time off will probably be somewhat of an adjustment (even without the baby).

My current goal (assuming labour & delivery & recovery go well) is to be able to play indoor Ultimate starting in January. I was going to set myself a goal of being able to run a 5 km or 10 km, but it is unlikely there’ll be a race scheduled in the middle of winter nearby, so indoor Ultimate it is.

“Your baby is still gaining weight — about an ounce/ 28 grams a day. She weighs nearly 6 pounds/ 2.7 kilograms and is 19 inches/ 45 centimetres long from head to toe.

You may begin to feel an increased pressure in your lower abdomen and notice that your baby is gradually dropping. This is called lightening or engagement, and your lungs and stomach will finally get a chance to stretch out a little — breathing and eating should become easier. However, walking may become increasingly uncomfortable — some women say it feels as if the baby is going to fall out.

The good news is that by the end of this week, your pregnancy will be full-term and you could give birth any day now.”

-babycentre

FULL TERM! It doesn’t seem like enough time has passed. I will actually be at 37 weeks on Sunday, so the baby could come anytime after that! I’d love for her to be a little early, just so I don’t have to carry her around after 40 weeks, but you can’t predict or control these things. She’s going to come out when she is ready.

She’s still moving around like crazy, and does not like me to be sitting for long periods (I think she feels squished). I’m getting excited to meet this little person inside me!

I’m pretty sure this is not the type of thing the guy who wrote the The Parent’s Tao Te Ching had in mind, but it recently came up in discussion and so I had to go back and watch it again. If you are a hockey fan and haven’t seen Chris Chelios talk about his “favourite” hockey coach, you have to check it out. It’s hilarious.

It has lots of inappropriate lessons and foul language, so be warned.

YouTube Video

A friend who I met in publishing school sent me this lovely gift right when I was first pregnant. It’s called The Parent’s Tao Te Ching. It has some beautiful passages that highlight the way I hope we will be able to raise our kid/s.

To be a wise parent you must become like water.
It is content to nourish all it touches
without discrimination.
While people struggle to move up,
water flows joyfully down,
filling the low places.

As you care for your children
keep their environment uncluttered,
free of useless gadgets and distractions.
Keep your conversation honest and straight-forward,
free of control and manipulation.
Keep your decisions fair and generous,
free of punishment and shame.

So I visited AzureWraps on the weekend. They have some great baby/nursing stuff, including a variety of options for bottles and wraps and nursing bras, etc. Most of their products are organic and/or chemical-free. I went to check out the blue celery wrap system, but ended up with a different kind because the woman at the store explained how the blue celery system was not all that supportive for the baby. However, I am still thinking it might be a question of taste, and it does seem that people who use wraps/slings tend to have more than one system, so I might still get the celery option as well.

AzureWraps also sells an interesting diapering system (made in Montreal), so the debate continues. I explained to the woman who was serving me that we were really leaning towards the biodegradable diapers (the ones made in Germany), in part because Ian and I are really bad at doing laundry. Plus, there are some arguments against cloth diapers related to using resources such as electricity & water more than you would normally.

Nonetheless, I let her pitch me on their diaper system. It does actually seem quite reasonable, and while the initial cash outlay to pay for enough diapers to last you three days seems high, the overall cost is much less than what you are going to spend on regular disposables (to say nothing of what you are going to spend on the “disposable” diaper option we are considering). With their system, you have to do laundry once every three days. Additionally, the saleswoman’s partner was there, and he said he was worried that using cloth diapers would be super complicated but he actually really likes it and finds them easy to use.

Details on their system can be found here: AppleCheeks.ca

In other thoughts, I am not sure how we ever managed to play ultimate every weekend. Our weekends (and weekdays too, for that matter) just seem to fill up with activities. We barely have time to relax and it is Sunday night again. The pace has got to slow down sometime soon, I’m hoping.

We went to the Mtn for a walk on Sat evening. It had finally cooled down enough for it to be bearable, so we walked (and by “we” I mean the dog & I, while Ian ran) in the dark and enjoyed the relative coolness and lack of crowds. I also walked most of the way on Wednesday, so managed to get in 2 decently-long walks last week.

Sunday we stopped in at Outremont’s organic market that is held on the weekends in the late summer/fall, then a friend & I went to St. Denis to pick up a few gifts. I actually bought new running shoes, in part because I need them and in part because I had seen them last week and no one ever seems to sell the new balance sneakers that I like (minimal support). The sales guy was funny in that he didn’t want to actually sell me the sneakers I wanted, because he said they were designed to “go fast.” I guess women who are 8.5 months pregnant tend not to buy sneakers designed to “go fast”? In any event, we managed to convince him I knew what I was doing and wanted that specific pair, so I have new shoes to run in, as soon as I am able to run again!

“Your baby now weighs about 5.25 pounds/ 2.4 kilograms and measures approximately 18 inches/ 45 centimetres from head to toe. His elbow, foot or head may protrude from your stomach when he stretches and squirms about. Soon, as the wall of your uterus and your abdomen stretch thinner and let in more light, your baby will begin to develop daily activity cycles.

This week, your little one is now sporting fingernails and has a fully developed pair of kidneys. His liver can also process some waste products.

There’s much less amniotic and much more baby in your uterus, which has expanded to a thousand times its original size. You’ve probably put on between 25 and 30 pounds/ 11 and 13.6 kilograms and your weight gain has hit its peak. Even your belly button has got bigger and has popped outward. You may be feeling breathless now that the top of your uterus is up under your ribs.”

Well, my belly button has not popped out yet. Ian is anxiously awaiting the day that it does. However, I am not convinced. I had a deep in-y before, and it has taken all this time just to get to the surface. We’ll see what transpires.

Got a great gift from a friend today, including homemade date squares (my favourite!). Mmm.

Breastfeeding information/disinformation seems to be everywhere these days. One of the NYT blogs recently discussed breastfeeding and why moms are “giving up” on it.  The comments by some readers of the article are fascinating. It is obvious people feel strongly about this issue, but some people don’t appear to think before speaking (or posting in this case).

Here’s a cool site a friend just sent. I haven’t had time to check it out in its entirety, but they do have some interesting “green” options for raising kids. As I have mentioned before, it is amazing how bringing a child into the world makes you think differently about your interactions with the planet and what type of environment you want to foster for the little person. So many decisions to think about!

Anyway, have a look at inhabitots.com when you have a chance. I’m not exactly sure what the relationship is between the site writers and the products they review, but they do cover some odd things, such as “MomSpit.”