Pregnancy diaries || Week 36 - Final ultrasound & at home photoshoot

Week 36

We had our final ultrasound this week to check babys measurements and position for birth. The midwife had noticed that it seemed like she was laying transverse (horizontal) across my belly rather than head-down, bums-up ready for birth. By the time our ultrasound appointment came around though, she had moved into a much better position for birth, which is comforting to know. The technician also re-measured and checked various parts of her body. Revealing that her weight is bang on where it should be 5lb 15oz according to her measurements, although they often over estimate. She has a slightly larger than average skull, I blame her father, as Chris has a large head and mine is practically child size. Her heart and stomach look perfect, and her femurs (leg bones) are just a little shorter than average, but not abnormally so, she will most likely catch up in another few weeks with the average measurement.

We saw her moving around, sucking her hands and feet. We got a good view of her profile (like in the anatomy scan) and also a few good shots of the front of her face too. She is big enough that we could see details like her ear and her finger pointing around the place.

Side profile and hand

Front view of her face

Ear and shoulder

Sucking her finger

Foot and leg pushing against the womb

 This weekend we organised more of the nursery and washed all of her clothes (my clothes line has never been so pink) it's starting to feel real, although I don't feel ready quite yet.

We made the most of a lazy Sunday afternoon by having an at home DIY photoshoot with our new camera. I saw a few photos on Pinterest that I really liked and we tried to replicate them. I'm pretty pleased with the end result, although a little self conscious about my body as well. This is by far the heaviest I have ever been, but it is the most body confident I have ever been as well, as I love my baby bump and how my body has changed to accommodate her.

Baby "name removed"

We went for a walk up Mt Albert later that evening and watched the sun go down. We are trying to soak up these last few weeks with it being just the two of us but we are also so looking forward to becoming a family in the near future.

How far along?: 36 weeks!

Gender?: Girl

Maternity clothes?: Yes, no way around it now

Stretch marks?: Yes, and my belly is itchy again so I'm keeping a close eye on them

Belly button in or out?: Hasn't changed, still looks like a pouting pair of lips.

Sleep?: Mostly pretty good, but I do get more tired throughout the day than I used to.

Best Moment of the week?: Seeing our baby again and seeing how much more developed she is now

Worst Moment of the week?: Being tired at work

Miss anything?:Yawning to maximum capacity. I get to a certain point in the yawn and then have to stop abruptly because my lungs won't expand past my bump and it hurts. Very unsatisfying since I am yawning a lot these days.

Movement?: YES! Movement all day, where my belly visibly undulates when she pushes against it

Cravings?: Peanut butter on muffin splits (just like I did as a teenager)

Queasy or sick?:No

Looking forward to?: Meeting our little one in only a handful more weeks

Mood/emotional state?: For the most part I'm very happy and positive

Labour Signs?: None so far, not even Braxton hicks (practice) contractions as far as I can tell. As far as I know, Braxton hicks are meant to feel like a non-painful tightening of your belly, but since my bump is rock hard and tight most of the time I don't think I can tell.

Pregnancy diaries || Week 22 - Anatomy scan and gender reveal

Week 22

I have been feeling lots of baby movements and kicks while I am at work. I guess it's because I'm sitting and restricting his or her space. When I get home to show Chris, it all goes quiet; they must be sleeping.
I am still sleeping well, although my hips get sore from always sleeping on my side. I have tried sleeping with a pillow between my legs but that makes it harder to move around, which leads to worse hip pain. So either way, I can't win. I have been sleeping reasonably well despite needing to pee three or more times during the night. But then I am able to go straight back to sleep afterwards. I have been feeling increasingly tired and think that I should talk to my midwife about my pre-natal vitamins as I might be lacking in something. Oh, and I am super gassy.

We finally had our anatomy scan this week.... IT'S A GIRL!!! We are so thrilled to know a little more about our baby GIRL! Gosh, that feels good to say. Our ultrasound appointment was meant to take up to 40 minutes but our technician had checked everything in only 20 minutes and was happy with everything that she saw, saying that it "all looks perfect". All organs, fingers and toes doing what they should. She finishing the appointment by revealing the gender to us and was pretty confident that she had it right. We are so pleased that we have a daughter and can now embrace calling our baby "she" and "her" rather than "it".

I threw up for the first time in ages and attributed it to morning sickness, so I took the day off work, slept until lunchtime and then realised that it must be a stomach bug or something that I ate because it was more than just spew. yuck. I have been noticing a bit of pain when I have been sitting or lying for too long but it quickly goes away when I have been walking for a bit. I have also been noticing over the last few weeks that my hair doesn't need washing as much as it used to. I used to wash it every second day and as it is very fine, and by the end of the second day it looked limp and greasy. Not that it is dry now, it actually looks very healthy, it just doesn't get greasy so quickly. Which is a trait that I hope sticks around. Bonus! My feet are not swollen yet but they do occasionally get hot and veiny.

How far along?: 22 weeks

Gender?:IT'S A GIRL!!!

Maternity clothes?: Yes but just maternity jeans and shorts at the moment.

Stretch marks?: No

Belly button in or out?: In

Sleep?: Not bad, but need to pee a lot during the night.

Best Moment of the week?: Finding out our baby is a girl!

Worst Moment of the week?: Feeling sick

Miss anything?: A cold glass of rosé

Movement?: YES! Lots of movement for most of the day.

Cravings?: Dumplings and Hot Cross Buns.

Queasy or sick?: Just the once

Looking forward to?:My bump getting bigger

Mood/emotional state?: Wonderful, for the most part I'm very happy

Pregnancy diaries || Week 12 & 13 - First ultrasound scan

Week 12

Week 12 started on Christmas day and our baby is now the size of an apricot, which are delicious but are horrible to throw up! (too acidic)
I'm still getting a bit of morning sickness every few days, but generally having 2-3 good days in between. We told more of our friends who were all very excited for us.

How far along?: 12 weeks

Gender?: Unknown

Maternity clothes?: Nope, but getting closer to needing them

Stretch marks?: No

Belly button in or out?: In

Sleep?: Sleeping all the time, anywhere, anyhow

Best Moment of the week?: Telling more of our close friends and Skyping Chris's family

Worst Moment of the week?: Having a weird relationship with food, as nothing appeals

Miss anything?: Not feeling sick

Movement?: No

Cravings?: No

Queasy or sick?: Yes, but mostly just throwing up in the mornings now.

Looking forward to?: Our first Ultrasound

Mood/emotional state?: Happy and excited

Week 13

We got to see our baby! We had our first ultrasound to check our due date and scanning for Nuchal Translucency (NT) which can help predict if your baby will have down syndrome or not by measuring the width of the spine. We were both surprised at how developed our baby was, it looked like a real baby (funnily enough) as opposed to an alien or a mass of cells which we had kind of pictured previously. Our baby was swallowing amniotic fluid, bouncing, turning and waving at us. It was an experience I will never forget and made my pregnancy feel so much more tangible. There is no denying it, there is definitely a little baby in there. The due date got adjusted from 9th July to the 11th of July after doing the measurements. We also found out that I have an anterior placenta (anchored at the front of my womb) which means that I may not feel the baby until a little later than other pregnancies.

Here is a quick recording of the first ultrasound. Absolutely amazing to see!

I went to my cousins baby shower and told my extended family about our baby. Emma (my cousin) was so thrilled when she figured out what I had actually said. "Our babies will only be 6 months apart" it took her a few moments but then it clicked, haha. "What did you mean when you said?..." We ended up talking and sharing our pregnancy symptoms well into the afternoon.

How far along?: 12-13 weeks (after the due date adjustment)

Gender?: Unknown

Maternity clothes?: I caved and got some under-bump maternity jeans. Ahhh.. finally something comfortable.

Stretch marks?: No

Belly button in or out?: In

Sleep?: Sleeping well but need a lot of it

Best Moment of the week?: Seeing our baby. This is really happening!

Worst Moment of the week?: Keeping my pregnancy a secret when I want to tell the world

Miss anything?: Not feeling sick

Movement?: No

Cravings or aversions?: No cravings but can't stand chocolate or mushrooms

Queasy or sick?: Yes, but mostly just throwing up in the mornings now.

Looking forward to?: Telling more people

Mood/emotional state?: Happy and excited