Appointment Update

No big news here. I'm about 1 or 1.5 cm. My OB said could be tomorrow, could be a few more weeks. In the very short time she was checking Cayetano's heart rate, I had 2 contractions so she said it's very hard to say what could happen as I can go from 1 cm to ready in a very, very short time. I'll be satisfied if this kid is born in the hospital!

37 Weeks - WOOOOHOOOO!!!

At 37 weeks pregnant, Cayetano is as big as a head of romaine lettuce. Baby measures about 19.1 inches. Average baby weight at 37 weeks is 6.3 pounds, and baby is gaining about half an ounce each day. Baby's practicing some cool new skills: inhaling, exhaling, sucking, gripping, and blinking. In less cute news, baby's getting the first sticky poop (called meconium) ready for his first diaper (sounds like a job for Dad).

How far along? 37 weeks

Weight gain/loss: Still 35 pounds. That's two weeks in a row of not gaining weight. Double woohoo over here!

Sleep? It has been super hot lately so sleep is difficult. Plus it is still painful every time I have to get up to pee. Just a bit longer until I can at least sleep on my stomach. Although I don't think the heat issue will get better any time soon. Plus I am remembering the really lovely post-birth night sweating issue. Ick.

Best moment this week?This morning. Waking up 37 weeks pregnant. I wasn't super worried for the last few days about making it to today but it was still a big relief to be officially "term". 37 weeks is now considered "early term" and not "full term" so the general consensus is that it is still too early for baby's debut. That being said, getting to today means no NICU team in the delivery room ($$$$$), no car seat challenge (which means being separated from baby for 3 hours or so plus additional delay getting checked out of the hospital, and - thank god - only one glucose test (assuming good results) instead of tests every 4 hours (each of which requires a foot prick that is painful for baby). We were in the hospital for about 4 days with Joaquin and only 21 hours with Noemi. I am hoping we are in and out quickly again this time. I know lots of moms like the extra time with nurses but I feel the opposite. I don't like sleeping in a hospital bed and I really don't want to pay 20% of the huge bills that come with a longer stay.

Movement:He is still moving and gets the hiccups a lot. But I can tell he's running out of space in there.

Food cravings:Lots of fruit. I love this time of year. Otherwise, my appetite is fairly suppressed these days.

What I miss?My chin.

What I am looking forward to? Meeting Cayetano. I keep reminding myself that it's best to be patient. But at this point I am also so excited to hold this new guy and get started on the next phase.

Milestones: Obviously, getting to 37 weeks is a huge milestone. Otherwise, I think I've also done a really good job of preparing work for my absence as of this week, so that is another nice milestone.

What I'm nervous about:This cut on my foot. It still hurts after a week of antibiotics and I am tired of the nuisance of the pain and the medication. I need to go back to urgent care for them to take a look and it is just a pain in my buns taking all of this time at the doctor. I feel like I spend way too much time with medical professionals lately.

Appointment Update

I went to the OB yesterday for the first of my now weekly checkups. I'm 1/2 cm at this point. She said, "Could be 3-4 days, could be 3 more weeks." So, that's super helpful. Haha. She was not worried about me making it to Friday though, so that's great news.

36 Weeks

At 36 weeks pregnant, Cayetano is as big as a papaya (which I sort of thought was smaller than a pineapple, but whatever). Baby measures about 18.7 inches from crown to heel and weighs around 5.8 pounds. At 36 weeks pregnant, baby's liver and kidneys are in working order. Circulation and immune systems are basically good to go. Now, baby is getting closer and closer to being able to breathe on his own. Plus, his skin is getting smooth and soft, and his gums are rigid.

How far along? 36 weeks

Weight gain/loss: Still 35 pounds. So there's that! I would have thought I would be gaining weight rapidly these days with my inability to move.

Sleep? I have experienced mild bouts of pregnancy insomnia but nothing too horrible. In fact, most people would probably be thrilled to fall asleep as easily as I do now but I usually fall asleep in less than 2 minutes so I am a bit spoiled in this department.

Best moment this week?Although it was a long day, we had a lot of fun on the 4th. We pool hopped and had a bbq with friends. The kids had a blast and it was nice for me to get out of the house. Plus being in a pool feels nice these days. On top of it all, my back pain was decidedly lower that day than it had been in the weeks leading up to it and also in the days since - good timing.

Movement:He's kicking me a lot in painful places lately.

Food cravings:I haven't been as hungry as usual lately. Cherries are in season though!

What I miss?Mobility. I am pretty tired of the pain and particularly tired of not being able to get things done easily. It is quite difficult for me to be okay with not getting chores done.

What I am looking forward to? A week from today. When I can start doing jumping jacks (kidding).

Milestones: Every week is a big milestone at this point. Both because I managed to make it through the pain for another week and because Cayetano keeps getting bigger and stronger and better equipped to make his debut.

What I'm nervous about:Trying to keep my cool for the next couple of weeks. I am fairly tired and cranky lately and it is difficult to handle two little kiddos who know I can't catch them if they don't want them to.

Cayetano Andres

We met way too many Mateos lately. Our minds are now made up. Baby boy is now officially Cayetano Andres. If that's too much of a mouthful for you, you can call him Cay (rhymes with HI).

Blog Name Change

You know, I was looking at my blog title today and it irked me. The whole three men and a "little" lady thing just seems so, ugh, for lack of a better description. With all of the misogyny I have witnessed over the course of my lifetime (and particularly over the last 9 months of this Trump-era (double side note - can't this era end???)) I am just DONE with anything even appearing to belittle the strength and importance of women in this world. Noemi may be physically little still but she is big in every other way and is one of the strongest women I know already. I am so proud to be her mother - I can already see that she is unafraid to advocate for herself, understands when it is and is not appropriate to compromise, and has the utmost confidence in her own abilities.

Single Digits!

Well, until I am 37 weeks at least. Just 9 days to go to get to the safe zone! 30 days until my due date...

I am particularly excited to get to 37 weeks lately due to the chronic pain I've been in for the last 2 weeks and 3 days (see, there I am counting days again). I went to physical therapy on Friday and today and also bought the correct belt (https://www.amazon.com/Serola-Sacroiliac-Hip-Belt-Medium/dp/B000NIFVLW/ref=sr_1_2_s_it?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1499287805&sr=1-2&keywords=SI+belt) and that has been helping tremendously. But I am still less than perfectly comfortable so I am looking forward to being done soon.