Bumpdate - 36 Weeks...

So, I've seen all of these posts online about what's going on in mama's life each week as their pregnancy progresses, and I just think that's fun to read, and it's neat to see how we are all very different in our pregnancies, yet at the end we have the same result. A sweet tiny baby :D So, if anyone is interested I'm just going to fill out answers to the most common questions and keep you up to date on baby A and our progress so far!

How Many Weeks: 36 weeks...some days it feels like 100 weeks haha

Size of Baby A: a large cantaloupe

Maternity Clothes: My work clothes are limited as my belly has outgrown a lot of shirts, I have about 4 pair of pants in rotation but I'm honestly always so warm, I am dressing for summer in our early spring weather.

Weight Gain: I haven't gotten on the scale since last week, but I'm right at about 30 lbs of weight gain right now, sometimes less depending on water retention lol. I had set a 'goal' when I first got pregnant to keep my weight gain between 20-25 lbs, but I've already gone over that. The upside is, I can still fit into some of my pre-pregnancy shorts and pants, of course they don't fit the same, but this is helping me deal with the weight gain because I've stayed very active and eaten so much healthier than my first two pregnancies, so I know it's good weight gain to help keep baby A healthy & growing :D

Sleep: I've actually been sleeping better in the last two weeks, however, I'm normally a back sleeper, so having to sleep on my sides makes my hips a little sore, so I'll be grateful to return to back sleeping, even though it'll be interrupted! Also, my husband sleeps with ear plugs frequently now because he's told me that since I've been pregnant I've started snoring :/ I really feel like I get a 'stuffy' nose feeling when I lay down, I don't really remember that with Keaton & Reese...but who knows!

Exercise: I try to workout at the very least 3 times each week, most weeks it's more like 4 or 5 times. I have been doing mostly beach body workouts since I was about 20 weeks, I think my last crossfit workout was at 19 weeks because I was getting hip and SI joint pain. My workouts are generally only 30 minutes long, and now that the weather is nicer I try to get a mile or two walk in with my dog when I can.

Yoga & PiYo have been great to help with lower back & hip pain this pregnancy, although downward dog is a little harder with my big belly in the way :D

Best Moment of the Week: Well it's only Wednesday, but I suppose the best moment of the week so far was coming home Monday night when my husband said to go ahead and start my workout because he had dinner prepped and ready to go on the grill. It's nice when he takes over because I had a long day at work, and if he hadn't prompted me to get my workout in, I probably just would've made dinner and been too exhausted from the extra time on my feet to do it later. He's the best <3 Also, we bought a minivan last week so that we'll be able to all 5 ride in the same vehicle next month! It's a Chrysler Town & Country and it's super awesome with all sorts of features that my 2006 Rav4 didn't have!!!

Our swagger wagon

Movement: He or she is moving all of the time, the baby had hiccups the other day when I was working on a patient, so I had the massage therapist feel my bump so she could feel what it was like. She was amazed. I was sitting in a seminar over the weekend and I kept feeling a little knee poke out right around my belly button area and it looked like I had a horn or something poking out of my otherwise round belly.

Cravings: I have been craving all kinds of fruit, but lately mostly watermelon, pineapple, & grapefruit. We had gotten a watermelon a few weeks ago and it was surprisingly really good for the middle of April, and since then I can't get enough. Every week I go to the store and get a watermelon & a pineapple, and of course my usual apples, bananas, and oranges. I've also been craving sweets more frequently, normally I have SOME willpower, and can limit myself, but I'm out of control, I had an ice cream snickers bar last night with my kids after dinner...and honestly I could've eaten two if I didn't have anyone else around to see me be a total glutton lol.

Belly Button In or Out: Definitely out

Belly button has 'popped'

Wedding Ring on or off: On, although it starts to get tight when I'm getting really warm, last weekend at the seminar it was very warm in the rooms and since I was mostly sitting all day, I was retaining most of the water I was taking in and had to leave it off one day.

Anything making you queasy or sick: Cigarette smoke, but that always bothers me. Tomatoes and tomato sauces are like a guaranteed immediate heart burn with fire in my throat. And I LOVE tomatoes so most of the time I eat them anyway and then suffer through later :/

What I miss: Mostly just being able to get around a lot easier and feeling more like 'myself'. I feel selfish for saying that, and I'm grateful to have had this wonderful experience for the first time to be pregnant and it be a positive and exciting time. But I'm ready to meet this baby and feel more 'human' again.

What I'm looking forward to: My maternity leave, albeit short, it'll be 3 weeks with this baby to bond and get a little bit of a schedule established while I'm not hurrying out the door every morning. Randy will take 2 weeks paternity leave following my 3 weeks off, and I'm also looking forward to that, it'll be very good for both daddy & baby to establish a strong bond. The great thing is, the kids are almost done with school for the year so they'll be around more too, and I'm hoping that helps us all establish our roles in this new family dynamic. 

What I'm not looking forward to: I suppose the labor pains, I know it goes by quickly in the grand scheme of things, and in the end I'll be holding our sweet little bundle...but I can't say I'm looking FORWARD to labor pain lol.

Labor Signs: I have felt a few contractions throughout the days more recently, and definitely feeling heavier with more cramping in my lower abdominal area. Nothing out of the ordinary at this point, that means everything is working and hopefully this labor & delivery will go smoothly.

Nursery: Our nursery is done for baby A, however, I want to move the chandelier from our room that I restored and painted from an antique shop to put in the baby's room. Also, since we don't know the gender of baby A yet, I'll wait to put a few more finishing touches in there when he or she gets here!

Emotions: I am getting anxious because May is going to be a super busy month! My son turns 15 on May 15th, the kids finish school the 24th which is also my due date, and my son graduates 8th grade on May 25th. It's getting down to the wire and although I'm ready to meet this baby, I'm nervous about how my son & daughter will respond to this change in our family dynamic. They absolutely LOVE Randy, but even that was a change after always just being the three of us for so many years. I know it will all work out, but I guess it's the not knowing and being on this side of it that makes me anxious.