Holiday Preparation

I've worn the tree skirt every year for the last eight years while we've decorated for the holidays and I didn't let my large stomach stand in the way of that tradition this year. Sure, the skirt had to go under my chest rather than around my waist, but I still got it on. Don't I look ridiculous? Mina liked it.We had a fantastic Thanksgiving. Jon had vacation from Wednesday through Sunday so we went to FD to visit family. We ate a lot of food and Mina played with her cousins a bunch. I was thankful that she slept well while we were away from home. We've taken this same picture the last few years so here's the Thanksgiving picture. I need to figure out how to smile with my new face. My natural smile gives me triple chins, but this smile doesn't look very happy. Hmmm... Trust me, I'm happy!
We didn't do an official belly picture this week, but we'll do one next week at 32 weeks. Wow.

30 Weeks

I don't know if my belly has grown that much in the last couple of weeks. My weight has stayed the same, but my face has really gotten full. We'll call it round rather than puffy. I've been experiencing a lot of Braxton Hicks when I don't drink enough water or I'm really active. They don't hurt so hopefully they'll just help my body when I do go into labor.

I've been very happy lately. I'm feeling pretty good and I have so much right in my life. I'm one lucky woman. It's a good thing we don't go around the table sharing what we're thankful for at Thanksgiving or we might have to eat cold food because I'd have so much to share. I'd definitely put my extremely helpful, loving husband and funny, snuggly daughter high on the list.

Bring on the Gummies!

I passed my three hour glucose tolerance test so that means I'm free and clear of a gestational diabetes diagnosis. That's great news for my candy addiction. I handled the test pretty well and just had a few issues last night with ocular migraines and heartburn. I was about due for that sort of thing. We'll probably go recliner shopping this weekend so I'll have somewhere to sleep if heartburn hits again at night.

I'm getting excited for Thanksgiving and then Christmas. Time will really start to fly once the holidays are here.

3rd Trimester

I'm now officially in the third trimester. It's hard to believe that we'll have another baby to hold in less than three months. It's going to be so fun to see Mina and Charlotte interact. My three hour glucose test is on Tuesday. Cathy is coming to take care of Mina so at least I won't have to deal with a toddler while possibly feeling ill and getting poked four times. I'm pretty sure I'll pass since only 15% of the people that don't pass the one hour test also fail the three hour.

Mina's sleep has returned to normal. She's been happy to go to bed and has been in no hurry to get out of bed once she wakes up. I had been taking her great sleep for granted and had forgotten how frustrating sleep issues can become. I still need to find my sleep book so I can read up on newborns and different strategies to try. Laugh all you want, but other than the last couple of weeks, Mina has slept like a champ for more than a year.

There really isn't a whole lot we need to do to get ready for Charlotte's arrival. We need to move some furniture around, get a recliner, pull out some newborn stuff, and get everything washed and put in its place. We're pretty well set for diapers and have the awesome double stroller. Most of Mina's stuff can just be reused. Thank goodness for little girls!

Fail

I just got a call that I failed the gestational diabetes test. The cut-off for passing is 140 and my score was 141. I'm just an overachiever. This means I will need to do the three hour GD test sometime in the next week which will involve fasting and spending an entire morning at the hospital. I'm not super pleased.

Mina fell back asleep for 20 minutes and now is up there complaining. Not a good day.

ETA: She fell asleep again and has been sleeping for a couple of hours now. Victory! :)

Boring

I had a boring appointment this morning. My blood pressure was good (117/73), weight was yucky, fundal height was right on, and fhr was 150. I didn't get the H1N1 vaccine because they don't have any right now. Maybe I'll get it once H1N1 is no longer an issue in the area at this rate. Oh well. I also did the gestational diabetes test where you get to drink the super sugary drink. I talked Dr. M into not seeing me for another four weeks so I guess that puts me into December. After that she'll make me come in every two and then every week. Time is flying. I'll be in the third trimester on Saturday.

It sounds like Mina just woke up from a 10 minute nap so I guess I'll cut this short. She hasn't taken a normal nap since Monday and it's getting very, very old. Today she asked for her bed, said night-night, and rubbed her eyes before I put her down for her nap. She cried for half an hour, was quiet for 10 minutes, and then the screaming started again. Ugh.

Regrets

As I sit here listening to Mina cry, I'm really regretting the Toronto trip. Her sleep hasn't been too great ever since. Last night she woke up twice with the most pitiful screaming. We had to console her because she was showing no signs of soothing herself. Today she still hasn't fallen asleep for her nap. I went into her room and laid on the floor by the crib and she was as happy as can be, but she just cries and cries when I'm not with her. I'm almost ready to give up on her taking a nap today. What if this becomes the pattern? The number one thing I was worried about with our trip was that Mina's sleep would get screwed up. I'm so used to her taking at least a two hour nap in the afternoon by herself. I can't lay in bed with her every afternoon in order to get her to sleep. Where did my easy child go? We were away from her too long and now she's scared in her bed. This can't continue but I don't know what to do. For now, I'm heading up to snuggle her. Tonight I'll pull out the old sleep book to help me navigate my way back to good sleeping.

So that's my vent for the day.

Thankful

I'm feeling very thankful for feeling good right now. Heartburn hit on Friday evening and didn't go away until during the night last night. During that time I couldn't lay flat so I didn't get much sleep. It was pretty miserable. I hope that doesn't happen again! I narrowed down the guilty foods to either popcorn or pizza. Too bad those aren't foods I want to avoid. I've definitely rounded out since last week. Oh, and I made a slideshow that has the belly progression. Here's the link.