Week 31

How far along: 31 weeks – began September 11, 2017.

Size of Baby: Head of Lettuce (17 ½ inches, over 3.5 pounds)

Milestones: BB is about halfway to his birth weight with roughly three to five more pounds to go. His neck is becoming more flexible, so he can turn his head with ease, and his joints are also more fully developed now, making it easier to move every limb.

Best Moment This Week: With some of our baby shower money, I was able to order a few more things for our nursery corner like a lightweight rocking chair, a storage cart to keep diaper supplies organized, a storage cubby tower for baby clothes, a baby mattress, a set of glass storage containers that go from freezer to oven, and a couple decorative items. We’re getting the crib from our friend soon, so everything will come together in the next couple weeks. I’m really excited to get everything in place and do as much organization and preparation as possible before BB is born. A big thing I plan to do is make a bunch of freezer meals in advance so we don’t have to worry about cooking those first couple weeks at least. Time is moving fast now!

What I’m Looking Forward To: We have our Birth Basics and Labor Skills classes next week, so hopefully I’ll learn enough to make informed decisions, but not so much that I get psyched out! Actually, I feel surprisingly calm thinking about labor. I used to be terrified of the idea when I was younger, but I’d say it’s one of the less stressful things that I’ve had to think about during this pregnancy. Although, I’m sure this is all easy to say before I’ve even experienced it, so we’ll see what happens once the contractions start haha.

What I Miss The Most: The gestational diabetes diet has been going pretty well. I've already developed a lot of self-discipline from adhering to my gastritis diet, so this hasn’t been too horrible. I can’t say that I don’t crave an ice cream cone or some cookies once in a while though! It’s all worth it to keep BB healthy. I’ve been able to keep my sugars under control over 90% of the time, so the dietitian doesn’t think I’ll need to resort to insulin unless things change drastically. The key has still been taking at least a 10 minute walk after I eat. 

Symptoms: BB’s movements are pretty different nowadays, much more tumbling and stretching than jabs and kicks. Luckily, he’s taken a break from kicking my ribs and I only get pain once in a while when he hits a nerve or shoves me too hard inside. It’s taking longer and a greater degree of focus to turn over in bed and I get stiff almost instantaneously. 

Cravings: Been eating lots of berries, cheese and Triscuits, and almond butter sandwiches. I feel like this section is going to be a lot less interesting the last two months since my diet is pretty one-track now!