32 Weeks...

Jeff, Tracy and I did a tour of the maternity ward at the Northwest Private Hospital yesterday. It is really nice and the staff seem really friendly. It was a bit of a reality check as we had look in the 'birthing' room as they now have to call it. Up until now I have been pretty okay with the thought of giving birth. It's now only hit me that she has to come out somehow and it is going to involve a significant amount of pain. Saying that, I am confident that I will be able to handle it but it's still a little unnerving.

Antental classes start on Tuesday so I'm looking forward to that. I also have my next OB appointment on Wednesday and am interested to see what position she's in as she was head down at our 30 week appointment and has been pretty active over the last couple of weeks. I have been experiencing 'braxton hicks' contractions since I was about 30 weeks. Sometimes I feel severe pressure in my pelvic area, other times I get a sharp pain that can tend to take my breath away.

Popp Jnr's development at 32 weeks... Bub now weighs approximately 3.75 pounds/ 1.7 kilograms and is about 17 inches / 42 centimetres long from head to toe. Although her lungs won't be fully developed until just before birth, she is inhaling amniotic fluid to exercise her lungs and practise breathing. I'm probably gaining a pound/ 450 grams a week (not too keen on testing that theory out), largely because bub is likely to gain more than half her birthweight during the seven weeks before delivery.

31 Weeks...

I didn't get around to taking my picture this week. Doh!! I had my appointment with the midwife last Thursday. My glucose test came back negative, which means I don't have and won't contract gestational diabetes which is a huge relief. I was also told at my 28 week OB appointment that bub was breech but was thankfully "head down" at my 30 week midwife appointment (which explains the summersaulting she was doing over the past two weeks!) This doesn't necessarily mean she'll stay that way seeing as I have another 9 weeks to go, but as she runs out of room it will be a lot harder for her to change position. She is still pretty active so we'll see what position she's in at my appointment next week.

Popp Jnr's development at 31 weeks... Bub's arms, legs and body continue to fill out -- and they are finally proportional in size to her head. She weighs about 3.3 pounds/1.5 kilograms and looks more like a newborn. She measures about 16 inches/ 41 centimetres from crown to toe. Believe it or not, she still has plenty of growing to do. She will gain at least two more pounds/900 grams before delivery.

30 Weeks...

Popp Jnr's development at 30 weeks... Bub's lungs and digestive tract are almost fully developed and she now has eyebrows and eyelashes. This week she continues to open and shut her eyes. Around a litre of amniotic fluid now surrounds bub but that volume decreases as she gets bigger and has less room in my uterus. She measures about 15.7 inches/ 40 centimetres from crown to toe.

29 Weeks...

Popp Jnr's development at 29 weeks... Bub's brain is growing rapidly, and the head is getting longer to accommodate it. Nearly all babies react to sound by 30 weeks. Bub's nutritional needs reach their peak during the third trimester. She now weighs around 2.5 pounds / 1.1 kilograms and measures about 15 inches / 38 centimetres from head to toe.

We celebrated Father's Day on Sunday at mum and dad's house. We got dad a 4 Wheel Drive Low Range Sand Driving Course. He has been itching to take their new Nissan Xtrail out and was very excited to receive his present.

Harry was baptised last weekend (26/8) so I am now officially a Godmother. (All this responsibility is starting to make me feel woozy :) The service was lovely and Harry performed brilliantly.