Week 32 - This belly is out of control!

Bubs is about the size of a squash and weighs probably around 4 pounds. He should be head down by now to get ready for birth, but he still has time to flip.  Since all his parts are developed, most of his time is spent practicing for life outside the womb - breathing, swallowing, and sucking. He has real hair by now, and based on my crippling heartburn it should be plentiful!

Mother's Day - 30 weeks

Speaking of practice, I have been feeling Braxton-Hicks contractions lately. They're not painful or even really uncomfortable but kinda weird. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between Bubs stretching and the contractions. My belly also gets tight if I eat too much or if my bladder is too full. There's not a lot of room to spare in there anymore!

I still feel the kicking pretty strongly, but now I can feel just about any movement that he makes.  He drags a foot or hand across my belly and I feel it all the way across. He is also hiccuping more and sometimes makes my whole belly jiggle.  I think he's not as much a sugar fiend as he was before, but I can still make him jump around if I eat ice.

For Mother's Day, Nick got me a gift certificate for a prenatal massage. I'm having a lot of pain in my back and hips, so I'd say it was worth every penny. My hips felt amazing afterwards, and she even helped with the swelling in my feet and ankles (another new and wonderful pregnancy symptom).  The problem is, the good feelings don't last forever and I'm not sure my back is going to really feel normal until after my little squash is born.

31weeks - no wonder my back hurts so badly!

32 weeks

I haven't had any particular cravings recently, other than sweets.  I am trying to eat more protein but I still have trouble with meats. I also heard that sometimes the extra hormones towards the end of pregnancy can bring back the early pregnancy symptoms (read: barfing). In the meantime, I am enjoying swollen feet and ankles, and occasionally fingers. My wedding and engagement rings still fit, but some days they get a little tight. I am still waiting for my belly button to pop. Nick is very excited to see that and checks several times a day. Still no stretch marks though!   :-)

Shout out of the week: Eclipse Spearmint gum.  This cures my heartburn more consistently than Tums ever could. I keep some in my work bag and my car at all times.

Adorable onesie from Nick's mom. Only a couple months until I get to dress up my little guy in all his new outfits!

Bonus shout out: Spending evenings on the couch with Nick, watching cooking competition shows or Supernatural. Nick keeps his hand on my tummy, and Bubs dances around for him. I will miss that part of being pregnant the most. I know the three of us will spend a lot of quality time together and I can't wait to raise this baby with the most wonderful man in the world!

Sneak peak of next post: Baby shower time!  I didn't get ANY of my own pictures other than this one, but I will get pictures from others. It was a great shower!