Tuesday, June 3, 2014

36 Years & 28 Weeks Along

Usually we celebrate my birthday in a big way, with past trips to Las Vegas, Yosemite, and Napa to name a few. This year, we did almost nothing, and yet it was one of the best birthdays I've ever had. Who is this person who likes NOT being able to drink champagne or go on 10 mile hikes?!

It was definitely special though despite no firework style celebration. I treated myself to a french mani/pedi and did lunch with the hubs at one of our favorite spots. Also got surprised with some pretty flowers and a card that had me laughing and crying simultaneously. Nothing like fresh flowers to brighten a girl's day. :)


So creative, my man made this funny photo montage that he put inside with birthday wishes from the whole family. We have an unfortunate inside joke in our household about the cat in the bottom right corner named Jazzy, but whom we lovingly refer to as Stinkerbell...She has a very unladylike habit of "leaving presents" and opting not to cover them up with litter properly. There is absolutely nothing we can do about it either! Instead, we just accept it as good diaper training and plug our noses for clean up duty. Still makes me laugh every time I look at this...


It's been an extra special week as well, since we are now 28 weeks along and officially in the 3rd trimester. Someone pinch me please!



Part of me wanted to whine a little since my glucose test was this morning (the day after my birthday) and I would have liked to have something naughty, like a slice of birthday cake, last night.  However, I knew I'd be paranoid about passing that test first thing this morning if I ate poorly so soon before, so I opted to eat clean all day yesterday. Besides, when I really thought about it, how could I possibly complain too loudly about "having to eat healthy on my birthday" or "having to take a glucose test?"

Perhaps my experience was different than some, but I thought the glucose test was a breeze. I haven't gotten my results back yet (fingers crossed I'll pass!), but the actual process of downing the drink was not bad at all! It looked and tasted exactly like the Orange Hi C drink you probably had as a kid from MacD's...



I've been blessed with no food aversions though and haven't had heartburn once, so maybe that's why it was easy for me. My OB did not require fasting for the 1 hour test either, so I had a healthy breakfast an hour before drinking the magic potion, which helped I'm sure.

Today's OB apt. went smoothly, and I had an opportunity to ask my OB some long overdue ?'s about the actual delivery process. It's better to do this before you even choose the OB to begin with, but in our case better late than never. We're not taking birthing classes, and I wanted to know exactly where my OB stood on some important aspects of the delivery. I took a page out of Ina May's Guide to Natural Childbirth and highlighted the ?'s I wanted answered.  Here is the list I used if anyone else can use a guide...


I was very content with the responses I got from my OB. Most important to me, he...

-Delivers about 80% of his patients' babies
-Visits patients 4-5 times throughout labor if possible

-Avoids episiotomy unless tearing looks to be occurring in an upwards direction
-Allows light eating and drinking in early labor
-Allows walking around, sitting on balls, changing positions when necessary (before epidural)
-Has 20% cesarean rate (although I'd like this lower, it's not so bad compared to some)
*National C section average is 33% and up to 70% at some hospitals!
-Does not use forceps. Uses vacuum only if baby is in distress and woman can't push any more (roughly 10% of deliveries...most first time moms).
-Waits to cut umbilical cord until after it quits pulsating.


Ina May's book also contains ?'s you can use to interview midwives and doulas. Although I'm not set on a natural childbirth and am trying to keep a go-with-the-flow mentality, I do want the least amount of medical intervention necessary if possible (ie. no induction or C section hopefully).

The rest of the apt. went well. No u/s today, but Preston's heartbeat was strong @153 bpm. My blood pressure was great @104/62. I've gained a total of 20 lbs. thus far (up to 150 lbs. now), which is healthy for 28w4d. No swelling, no heartburn, no cramping, no issues (other than minor stuff like insomnia, pregnancy rhinitis, and peeing my pants a couple times randomly when sneezing...shhhh don't tell!) haha! I'm instructed to just keep on keeping on...light exercise 7 days a week, swimming/sunbathing, and all other normal activities are still fine.

To know that we only have 12 weeks left is mind boggling. It's going to be here before we know it, and while I don't feel 100% prepared yet, we've done a lot to get ready as new parents. Next up...a book the size of a dictionary on the topic of breastfeeding! Oh, how times have changed, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

31 comments:

  1. You are a stunningly beautiful pregnant lady! I need to get to reading something! I've been in a strange state of limbo for far too long. I'm do glad you are in the third and all is well! XOXO. it goes do fast!

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    1. Thank you! I was not into learning or reading anything until the 20 week 1/2 way mark hit, and then I figured I'd better educate myself on a thing or two. That break in the beginning is definitely needed though, so I get where you're coming from with the limbo.

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  2. 12 more weeks - OH MY!!!! I can't wait and so glad I will get to see you before then and that cute bump of yours. Glad you got to relax and be spoiled on your special day! Love you girl!!

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    1. Crazy I know! Can't wait to see you later this month. Yippee!

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  3. Happy birthday!! Funny, we are almost ten years apart and about 10 weeks apart too :)

    I am reading Ina May's book right now as well. My next appt I planned to ask my midwife (birthing center in a hospital) a lot of those questions as well. I feel kind of early doing it but my mind is there so why not.

    You look super cute pregnant! Can't wait for you to get to meet him :) man, this is all so wonderfully crazy!

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    1. Oh my, you are a spring chicken then! I'm glad I read Ina May's book. Although I didn't think it was mindblowing, it was super fast to read and was a good reminder that our bodies were made for this and can do this! So excited for you!

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  4. Wow, you look radiant! 12 weeks will FLY by!

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    1. Thanks sweetie! Have a feeling this last leg is going to go by the fastest of all, esp since there's no exact end date really...just a waiting game in the end.

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  5. How cute is your hubs with that card?! So very thoughtful (and funny!). Also... totally envious of your pregnancy bod/weight gain. You are totally what I aspired to be. You look amazing.

    As someone said above, these next 12 weeks will seriously fly right by. Enjoy every moment. Oh, and the glucose test didn't bother me in the least either. Everyone made it sound so awful and yucky but really it just tasted like orange soda that had gone flat. Not bad! Hope you pass :)

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    1. You are so sweet to say that. You need to be proud of your pregnancy body no matter what size. It's all temporary, and making sure that baby is well nourished is more important than exactly how much weight you might gain.

      Yep, I was like "that's it?" once I drank the orange drink. Nothing to it.

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  6. Happy birthday beautiful lady!! I would so want to look as fabulous as you pregnant! Your husband is so thoughtful!! I hope to be pregnant when I turn 36 next year too :)

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    1. Amie, I think you will be pregnant by your 36th next year! I'll be routing for you every step of the way!

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  7. Well happy, happy, birthday Emily! I'm glad it was a good, if uneventful day!

    You look AMAZING! Congrats on the second trimester! Hope the next 12 weeks are super special!

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    1. Thank you Amanda! Your positive attitude and support always brighten my day. :)

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  8. You look amazing! Love the bump! Glad to hear everything is going smoothly! happy bday! Hope you pass the glucose test!

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    1. Me too! They didn't call yesterday, so supposedly no news is good news. Let's hope no last minute "you failed" calls today!

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  9. You look great! And Happy Birthday - I do hope you ate some cake after your glucose test!

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    1. M&M ice cream sandwich was had post glucose test!

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  10. Gosh, you are stunning! You and Aubrey - something to aspire to lol! Happy birthday, Mama! What a treat it is to celebrate with that baby boy in your belly. xoxo ...

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    1. Awe, well that is sweet. I'm sure you will do great throughout your pregnancy with how active you are out walking the dogs all the time too.

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  11. So glad you had such a wonderful birthday!! You deserve it and finally one where you can really and truly smile! 3rd tri, oh my!! I can't wait to see pictures of little Preston. I am so happy for you Emily!!!

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    1. Yes yes, finally one I enjoyed. Was nice to feel happy on my birthday. Thanks Amber!

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  12. Yay, Emily! You look so happy and healthy. Happy birthday my dear. What an amazing gift to make it this far in your pregnancy and doing so well. Hugs!

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    1. Hugs right back to you Jessah. Thank you for your continual support. You are a truly selfless friend. xo

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  13. Happy Birthday Emily!!! And happy third trimester to Preston!
    I have to say I've had a few surprise pee-sneezes myself (just a normal part of the process I guess).
    Also..our clinic also has about a 20% overall C section rate...but that number included scheduled sections and twins....the real rate for a singleton going into labor at our clinic is more like 15%. So if you go into labor you're 85% of the way there to a vaginal birth (that way of thinking about it soothes my nerves a little).
    Let's hope we can continue this amazing journey out to 40 weeks!

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    1. Oh yes, my OB's rate also included all the scheduled c sections, and he does specialize in twins/triplets, so I assume many are attributed to multiples being born with scheduled c sections. Good point! He also mentioned that if I don't have GD or any other issues, I will be less likely to need induction/c section or any of that stuff. I've been trying to think of the 80% side of the equation as well. 40 weeks or bust!

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  14. Happy Birthday...and congrats on the great glucose test. You look great. Time is really flying!!

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  15. Happy birthday, love, love, love the title of this post. Thank you for sharing! Justine

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  16. Happy Birthday!! You look amazing, mama!!!

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