34 Weeks!

34 weeks is a pregnancy milestone because at this point, 99% of babies born will do fine with no long term problems. So hooray for Caleb making it this far!

Wow, well I am officially laughing at myself for feeling "huge" at 20 weeks. I read back some of my old blogs last week and yeah, I had no bump really. Of course, when you are used to seeing your body a certain way, all the changes can seem much bigger to you than they do to other people. At this point, it seems like I get bigger almost every day! With more than a month left, it's funny to think how big I'm going to be before it's all over. What's even funnier is that I have a relatively small belly for a pregnant woman this far along. I'm grateful for that, because I can see how uncomfortable it gets.

I got a hair cut this week, and it feels great to have short hair again! I didn't realize how long it had gotten. I don't love having long hair because my hair is very thick and it just gets unmanageable when it's long. I don't have the patience to style it every day so it ends up all frizzy and bumpy looking. Honestly, it never occurred to me that short hair will help with a baby (I guess they like to pull hair), but now that everyone has pointed out how much easier it will be with short hair and a baby, I am going to make an effort to keep it cut! My hair grows insanely fast, so it will be long again within six months if I don't keep getting it cut.

This week Ethan and I had our last baby class. We toured the hospital and we learned about breathing techniques. We also went to an infant car seat/safety class. I actually didn't want to go to that class - I just wanted Ethan to go and figure out how to install the carseat. That's because I'm lazy :) However, I learned a lot that I didn't know. For example, I learned that babies can't go in a boat until 18 months because they don't have life jackets for them. Who knew. Of course I guess it's common sense. We also learned all about how to install the carseat. We'll probably put it in next weekend so that it's ready just in case Caleb comes early.

Other than the classes, we didn't have too much going on this week and it was nice to have some down time. On the weekend I just relaxed and then we went to dinner with my sister and her husband Neil, and also Neil's parents. Neils parents got us the cutest wooden toys for Caleb:


It's awesome how generous people are and how many people want to do something nice for us and the baby.

This week we have another hypno-birthing class. It's also Purim on Friday and we are going to shabbat and the Purim carnival at the temple. That should be pretty fun :)

Here is the baby update for the week from baby center:

How far along? 34 weeks 2 days

Sleep: Sleep was ok this week. It is starting to get a little bit uncomfortable, but not that bad.

Best moment this week: Probably just the whole weekend we got to spend relaxing.

Movement: Yeah, but Calebs movements have definitely changed. I don't feel him moving as often, but I feel him moving pretty consistently after meals. Also, he always used to be most active at night, but now he is more active during the day after I eat, and seems pretty chill at night. When he does move he isn't kicking as often, it's more rolling and nudging. I think he just doesn't have much room since he's getting bigger. He does get the hiccups a lot lately though! My doula said that getting the hiccups is part of their neurological development, so I guess that's a good thing!

Labor signs: Nope. Lots of braxton hicks.

Belly Button in or out? In

What I miss: I miss being able to do what I want physically, like going on a hike or whatever. Especially during beautiful sunny weather.

What I am looking forward to: Long-term - Caleb getting here of course. Short term, not too much going on this week honestly

This Week: (from BabyCenter)
Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) 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. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that 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.