36 Weeks

So I'm in my last month and it really hasn't been too bad. I've heard of women feeling sick and moody throughout their entire pregnancy and I have been lucky enough not to be one of them. I've had my share of aches and pains, but for the most part I've felt great. This past week has been one of those not so good weeks. I've been experiencing sciatica pains for the later half of the day, almost every day. I can't remember exactly what set it off, but I've been trying to take it easy. With each day that passes the pain seems to be less and less so I'm hoping it won't be with me for the rest of my pregnancy.

There has been another type of pain that has started this week as well. A pain in the ass that was unavoidable...street construction. The city has resumed it's sewer and water main replacement and I don't like it at all. But I suppose I can look on the bright side and remember that the sooner they get this over and done with, the sooner I get my backyard back. They aren't ripping apart anything else on our property so the noise isn't as bad as it was last summer, but it's the dust that's getting to me. It's all over my car and the window screens on the house. I like leaving the windows open at night but if I don't remember to close them before I go to bed, the dust travels into the house and then I've got extra cleaning to do. Not fun.

Since I don't like to dwell on the negative, I'll move onto a positive thing that happened this week. I finally got my car fixed. Well to be more accurate, I got it re-fixed. I'd had an accident a few years ago and the used bumper the body shop put on the car was red. It was painted blue but because the paint didn't stick very well, over time it started to peel. The work was guaranteed by the shop and the insurance so, since I've decided to sell the car I had to get it fixed. Well, I picked up the car on Monday and it looks great. All it needs now is a good cleaning inside and out and it'll be ready to sell.

As my lil' bean's birthday approaches, I decided it was time to get moving on the whole cloth diaper thing. Paul & I were up for trying it out and so I finally put in an order for our starter kit. We ordered them from Babywear Boutique and were able to pick them up on Saturday. Steph was such a great help and very patient with all our questions. If you're in the Halton region and what to try cloth diapering I suggest getting in contact with her. We're using Bummies prefolds and covers for now and they are too cute. We also ordered a BabyHawk carrier which still hasn't come in but I'm sure it won't be much longer.

After picking up our diapers, Paul & I were off to Home Depot to pick up some important items for the nursery. Originally it was just paint but after spending some time in the store we left with paint, a rug, and a new light fixture shaped as a plane. The plane thing was all Paul's idea but now that it's up, I love it. I haven't taken any pictures yet but I promise to have some soon. So as of now our nursery is an empty room with a painted ceiling and a new light fixture. At least we're getting somewhere! And I'm sure it'll be done soon considering Paul's soooo excited about this lil' bean. And of course while Paul was working hard, I was catching up on my reading. No more pregnancy books though. I've had enough of those and have graduated to breastfeeding books. Dr. Jack Newman's Guide to Breastfeeding to be exact. I'd first heard of Dr. Newman on PregTASTIC and found his views on breastfeeding refreshing. I'd always known that breast milk was best but I had no idea that there was such a bonding experience that takes place between mom and baby. And to top it off, Dr. Newman was homegrown in the GTA. He worked as a paediatrician at the Hospital for Sick Children (among others), and is now a leading lactation expert working out of Newman Breastfeeding Clinic and Institute based at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto. He's got a great website you should check out. I'm only a few chapters in but I can see how passionate he is about breastfeeding and I like it!

And finally, my lil' bean is quickly sprouting. He should weigh about 6 pounds which is as much as a crenshaw melon, and is longer than 18.5 inches long. He is still shedding lanugo and is loosing some of the vernix that covers his skin. These will build up in his intestines to produce meconium. Other than that this lil' guy is almost done baking!

28 Weeks

So this week started off with some news that surprised me a little. I was speaking to Jane from HR and we were discussing my maternity leave and the two weeks of vacation time I've got left. Officially, my last day of work will be June 4. I'll use my vacation first then start my maternity leave. There's only one caveat...there's a two week "waiting period". So to put it simply, I'm entitled to 52 weeks of mat leave but only 50 of those weeks are paid. And to top it off, I've still got to pay into my benefits if I want to continue being covered. Not exactly the ideal situation but I suppose Paul & I will find a way to work around it.

On the up side of things, I now have a doula. Paul & I interviewed a few of them and found it really hard to make a decision. They all seemed like amazing women who have so much knowledge and are so giving of themselves. But in the end, we chose Jody from Timeless Birth. She made us feel very comfortable and her philosophy on birth was the most like our own. And of course our dogs loved her! We've got our first meeting in a couple weeks and I'm really looking forward to reviewing my birth plan with her.

Oh yeah, I'd almost forgotten...I'm in the home stretch! My third trimester started this week and time seems to be flying. Paul is still working on the closet and the bathroom still needs to be done. Not to mention the baby room is still an office. I'm really going to have to get organized if I want to get things done before my lil' bean arrives. If only I wasn't a procrastinator.

As for being in the third trimester, I'm really starting to feel the extra weight. It's not too bad yet but tying my shoes and getting out of bed or off the couch isn't as easy as it was before. I also find myself catching my breath more often. I can't talk as long as I used to and yawning also takes my breath away. My lil' bean is taking over! The other thing I think is happening is hiccups. I'm not completely sure but I've started to feel rhythmic movements that only last a few moments. From what I can tell this most likely is hiccups.

Over the last few months Paul & I have debated on trying cloth diapers. Statistics tell us that a child usually goes through $1500 worth of disposable diapers in the first two years. Cloth diapering will only cost between $150 - 500 depending on which diapers you decide on. After weeks of research I found Babywear Boutique. This store is owned & operated by Steph, a mom of three, about 15 minutes from my house. Since no one I know is cloth diapering, I decided to make an appointment with Steph to ask the questions I had and to find out what each kind of diaper was like. Paul & I spent an hour with her and we really enjoyed learning all about cloth diapers. What surprised me the most was not how easy it all seems but how much Paul was into it. He has always said that he would support my decision to cloth diaper but it wasn't until we were surrounded by them that I actually believed he would do this and not think it was a big mistake.

Well, at 28 weeks my lil' bean is a little bigger than 14.5 inches and weighs about the same as a chinese cabbage. He is still adding fat to his little body, about 2 - 3% body fat and his muscle tone is increasing. He can also blink his eyes now, which have lashes on the lids. His eyesight is still developing though but he can probably see light that filters into the womb. His bone marrow is building red blood cells and the adrenal glands are producing the hormones androgen and estrogen. These hormones will send a signal to stimulate my hormones in order to trigger milk production.