Week 36

We are officially within one month of my due date! Time is finally flying and we are very excited about the Bean's debut. She is still very active and especially loves the night life--at least nighttime seems to be the peak of her activity level. She's recently picked up the habit of jamming her feet in my ribs, which actually is kind of painful. The Bean is still packing on the pounds (translation: I am packing on the pounds)— at the rate of about an ounce a day (the Bean, not me). She should now weigh about 6 pounds and be a little under 19 inches long. She's shed most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during the last nine months. At the end of this week, the Bean will be considered full-term. Most likely she's in a head-down position--we have never been able to tell what position she is in from her movements--we kind of just guess if we are feeling a foot or a knee or a butt. I'm weighing my pain relief options at the moment for the labor and delivery--initially the epidural was all I wanted, but now it kind of freaks me out, so we'll just have to see.

One month and counting...

Well, this Tuesday will mark the official one month left mark for The Bean. We are both more than ready for her to get here, but still want her to take her time developing as much as she can.

Tiffany has been busy getting the nursery ready and is pleased with the results. She frequently will pop her head in The Bean's room, smile and then remark on how cute it is. You can see pictures of The Beanery and our new house by clicking here.

Here's the 35-week updated on The Bean's progress:

Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 pounds plus. 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.

The Fat Bean

Well, here we are at the start of Week 34. We're just shy of one month from Bean's official due date, but doctors have told us that babies can come two weeks before or two weeks after the due date.

A number of people have told us that the first baby always comes late. Whether there is any truth to this, only time will tell. However, Baby Center tells us that we don't really need to worry if The Bean is born early because "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." That said, we'd still like Bean to wait until Nov. 16, just in case.

Earlier this week Tiffany and I went to the first of four pregnancy classes hosted by our hospital. For me, it was one of the longest three hours of my life; for Tiffany it was an informative, somewhat anxiety-causing experience. The class consisted of a nurse running through a litany of subjects and directing us to where to look in our books to find more information. It was rather overwhelming!

The last half hour of the class was particularly interesting. We went into a room with dimmed lights and soft music and were directed to sit on the floor (we were told to bring pillows and blankets). The nurse then told everyone to (now I'm doing this in a very soft voice) think of their favorite swing. "Now, get on that swing and swing back and forth, back forth. As you go up breathe in, as you come down breathe out." It was weird. As I looked around the room all the women seemed to be really into it, while the guys all had weird looks on their faces (including me). Then the nurse told us some massages we can do to help our wives.

Anyway, it was an "interesting" experience, and we get to do it three more times! (there is a slight hint of sarcasm in my tone right now, can you tell?)

Well enough of my complaining about weird pregnancy classes. Here's the most recent Bean update from Baby Center:

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well.