Month: August 2010

I’m huge! At least I feel that way… due date is only a few days away. Did I mention I can’t wait to meet this little guy?

I went to a breastfeeding 101 class today at the birthing center. Lots of great information about the benefits of breastfeeding over bottle feeding, some how-to tips, and how to know when you should seek assistance. It was a lot of what I have already been learning from a book I’m reading but the plus is that the woman who conducted the class is available to us via email/phone whenever we have questions or need help. Worth my $40. Lactation consultants who come to your house start at $200 a visit. Luckily, there are also free La Leche League meetings all over if I really want some in-person help. So many great resources out there I never even knew existed.

I celebrated my 35th birthday yesterday! I woke up to a lovely bouquet of flowers…

Jay and I spent the day together enjoying these last days without baby. It was really great. We had dinner at Peter Luger in Williamsburg, BK. It’s one of the oldest steakhouses. It may seem strange that I ate at a steakhouse for my birthday, considering I’m a vegetarian! But… we had a $100 gift certificate that we wanted to use and I had the best piece of salmon I’ve had in a long time. Their creamed spinach is also out of control and we had raspberry sorbet with homemade “schlag” (whipped cream) on top. It was ridiculously good.

We also had our prenatal appointment. I’m 39 weeks now. The midwife said the baby probably weighs about 7 1/4 lbs now and will most likely be a little over 8 lbs when he arrives. I just can’t believe I have a 7 lb baby inside of me right now! It’s so nuts. Everything else is really good. I’m right on target having gained about 25 lbs. The midwife also talked to us about breathing and getting ready for labor. She said if she was a betting person, she would think I would go around Sept 7th or 8th… the usual week over your due date. Who knows?

We met with Jessi, our doula, on Wednesday. We really like her. We went over all sorts of preferences for laboring at home and at the birth center and what our preferences are in case of a hospital transfer. We need to be prepared for all possibilities. She is going to help us with pictures, too, so we can document some of the labor and delivery.

Anyhow, we went to this fantastic store in Ditmas Park called, Sacred Vibes. It is an apothecary, herbal store.

I bought raspberry leaf and nettle teas. These are supposed to be helpful to prepare your body for labor and delivery. I will be drinking these 2 times/day. I also bought a different nettle concoction with fenugreek that is specifically beneficial for drinking postpartum to help with milk production.

I also picked up some eucalyptus oil because I really like it and think maybe it will be calming for me during labor. The store was super cool and I plan to go back. They also have all kinds of spices and other fun looking items.

Maybe my next post will be of Theo!

Belly update!

We are going to the birthing center every week now. Went on Thursday and all is looking good. I added another 2 pounds and the baby’s heartbeat is great. I started to feel him hiccuping and then we heard it on the doppler when we were listening to his heartbeat! The midwife quizzed us on how we can tell whether I am having false labor v. real labor, the dangers signs to look out for right now, when to call the birthing center, etc. We did pretty well 😉

Jay and I went to Far Rockaway beach last night to see some friends for a BBQ. Here is a photo of us on the boardwalk. I’m glad we are still able to have relaxing time together and can hang with friends. Baby is coming any day now!

For the most part, everything is all set up now for Theo. We did a pretty good job of rearranging our room to make space for the crib, dresser/changing table, and a big shelving unit for all things baby.

Here is the view from the windows and our bed:

The crib: (thanks to Jay’s mom Liz for the adorable bumper!)

And his dresser/changing table and storage/shelving unit: (thanks to my Dad for the shelving unit and Jay’s dad for the dresser/changing table!)

Not much longer now… pretty soon these areas will probably be much messier. Can’t wait!

It is hard to believe we are 37 weeks already! We are now officially into our “range of normal”… meaning we can deliver at any time and things should be okay and we are officially able to deliver at the Birthing Center… and our doula is now on call for us. Range of normal is 37-42 weeks.

We had our prenatal on Monday and will be there every week from here on out. Everything is still looking really good. I’ve gained 22 pounds, baby’s heartbeat is great, and my blood pressure is normal. He seems to be positioned well, too. Like I said in an earlier post, my iron levels are back up, too, so we are on target to deliver at the Birthing Center! I had my group B strep test done and will find out next week whether or not I will need antibiotics during delivery.

We chose a doula. Her name is Jessi. We both really like her and I think she will be a great fit. It was hard to choose between her and Briana, the first doula we met. But, I guess it’s just a feeling. This experience should be really awesome! We are working on our birth preferences and I want to start preparing some things I would like to be sure we bring with us… like music, a birth ball, and some eucalyptus oil. This may all fly out the window once I’m in the throws of it all but for now these are things that comfort me.

Overall I am still feeling great. I have slowed down A LOT and have really noticed in the past few days/week that I am just getting bigger and more uncomfortable in these final weeks. Sitting and walking are a bit more of a challenge, especially with all of the walking and stair climbing I do. I have been working from home 2 days/week and as of next week I will be working from home 3-4 days/week depending on how things go until I have the baby. I feel a lot more pressure in my pelvis which I think indicates the baby is starting to drop. That certainly makes walking slower and more uncomfortable. Anyhow, it just puts me closer to the end and closer to us finally getting to meet him. I’m excited.

Jay put the crib together on Sunday and we are awaiting some of the finishing touches. Stay tuned for pictures soon.

Our wonderful NYC friends threw Jay and I a fabulous baby shower in Prospect Park this past weekend. It was perfect. The weather was surprisingly cooperative and absolutely amazing. So many of our friends were able to be there and we just kicked back and picnicked in the park for hours. Jay took care of the grill and managed to cook veggie burgers and hot dogs for about thirty people on our tiny portable grill. Great work, Jay!

A special thanks goes out to Kellie, Lalena, Sarah, Alex, Natalie and Cori for planning our shower so that we could celebrate the impending arrival of baby Theo! We are really happy and really lucky to have such great friends. You all rule!

Here are some pics from the festivities…

Nothing like food, friends, games, balloons and crowns on a summer day. Thanks, again, to everyone who helped put this together and to everyone who could be there. We missed you to those who couldn’t! XOXO

The Floradix is working! I found out today that my iron levels are great. Both my hematocrit and hemoglobin numbers have increased and are above where they need to be. I’m very happy about that. I asked at my last pre-natal what would be plan B if my numbers didn’t increase and they said they would have to bring out the “big dogs”. I wasn’t entirely sure what that meant (probably big, gross pills) but I am glad that I won’t be finding out. So, basically I just need to keep doing what I’ve been doing – taking the iron supplement and trying to eat lots of iron-rich food – and I should be all good.

Our last pre-natal appointment went well. I had blood drawn for the iron test and for a repeat HIV test. My blood pressure and baby’s heartbeat were a-ok. Next time I will be tested for Group B Strep to see whether or not I will need antibiotics during delivery. Lots of women do.

After next Monday, we will be going to the birthing center once a week for the remainder of my pregnancy. Once I hit 37 weeks I will be glad as I can then officially give birth at the birthing center if I should go into labor before my due date. They deliver from 37-42 weeks only.

We met a doula last week, too. Her name is Brianna. She was pretty great. Jay and I both liked her and thought she would be a good fit for us. We are meeting another doula this Thursday just to have a couple of options to see who seems best for us. She also happens to be the other doulas back up anyhow… so we will be going with either one of them and the other will be the back up.

I put our swing together and it is so cozy and adorable! Thanks to my big sis for getting it for us. I hope Theo likes it. We just need the crib set up and we are good to go. More pictures of that stuff soon!

He is still kicking up a storm and I just can’t wait to meet this little person!

Throughout my pregnancy people are constantly asking me, “do you have any weird cravings?” I usually say, “no, not really.” I wondered if I was missing something. I honestly haven’t felt as though my likes and dislikes of food have changed that much from the norm. Looking back, though, on many, many weeks of pregnancy I think I notice some patterns and I guess one would call them “cravings”. First of all, I am on my 4th jar of peanut butter since January. That is a lot. Jay does not eat from these jars at all. Peanut butter is something I have always loved so I don’t think of it as a “weird” craving, but I have definitely wanted to eat it much more during my pregnancy. I think my body just told my brain that it is great source of protein and a good source of healthy fats for a vegetarian. So it has pretty much been my go to snack and/or part of my breakfast (PB toast) almost daily.

Thinking back – especially to the 1st trimester when I didn’t feel good at all – I DEFINITELY wasn’t interested in eating vegetables and raw or cooked food like that. I only wanted comfort foods like, bread, cereal, oatmeal, and waffles. I made waffles a lot. That has carried over throughout but luckily I opened up to the other types of food (vegetables, beans, tofu, yogurt… the usual staples of my diet) once I passed the 1st tri.

I most definitely have had the typical pregnant lady craving for sweets. I am not a big sweet person but I have really incorporated cupcakes, cookies, and ice cream into my diet MUCH more than before. Any offering of a sweet would be immediately followed with a, “what?” …ummm, “yes, please!” I have been eating more ice cream lately, too. Partly it’s the summer time but i think probably more because the baby wants ice cream!

So, I think these have been my cravings. I wonder if Theo will be a big peanut butter fan.