34 Weeks

Coming to the end... finally on maternity leave! I am actually a little sad about this... I really do love my job. I will miss feeling so productive and feel like I am contributing to our bank account! I am such a "people person" as my mother would say. I love to help people and feel like I am making a difference when I am at the hospital. I know I am doing that at home, but the results aren't as immediate! I also LOVE the feeling of staying active and on my feet, which I don't do as much at home. Though, I know once this baby is here, I will be needing the extra time at home! I also know that my kids are excited that I won't be too tired to play with them :)

So... people have been telling me that the baby has dropped. Must be so, because I no longer have heartburn, I am peeing about once per hour, and there is a lot more pressure down below! I read online that your baby usually drops 2-4 weeks before delivery. So, maybe this baby will decide to make an early appearance. I really have to try and not get my hopes up though, because I get anxious as it is! I must, I must, I must wait this one out without going crazy and taking castor oil or having my membrains stripped 50 times :) Also, Barry is going to California for business soon and though I am okay having the baby alone, he really doesn't want to miss it! He loves babies and is very excited to have a little one that will lay in his arms and hold still :)

A few of my other symptoms -

*Nesting (BIG TIME) - that could be just due to the fact that bleach and other cleaning supplies smell so good to me right now!

*I am also having trouble falling asleep, it's hard to get comfy when you are a stomach sleeper!

*Eating Ice - barry hates when I do this, but I seriously CRAVE it! I would rather have ice right now than anything else. When we went to the movie the other night, it was SO SO SO hard to sit through it without eating ice!

General Baby Stats

Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long.

Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder.

Her skin is also smoother than ever.

Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well.

If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine.

They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.