How far along: Officially, 28 weeks + 1 day
Gender: Boy
Birth order: #4
Total weight gain: -2 lbs. I weigh less than when I got pregnant, but that’s a result of a low-carb diet and chasing 3 kids, so my doctor is not particularly concerned at this point. I gained 38 lbs with Alina, 11 lbs with Finnlagh, and all told, probably around 3-5 lbs with Reed.
Maternity fashion: Mostly dresses and cardigans or long tunics over leggings, sandals and a cross-body purse.
Maternity beauty: One must always wear makeup and have groomed eyebrows. The only exception would be when you can barely drag your head out of a toilet due to morning sickness, and most of us have been there numerous times. Otherwise, revel in the pregnancy glow and work to look your best!
Stretch marks: You sure don’t end up pregnant with #4 without the battle scars to prove it! I use a lot of moisturizer, but mostly to minimize the dry skin we have living in SoCal. I gave up long ago trying to stave off stretch marks — it’s futile. Grant has bought me many an expensive cream and almond oil, but frankly, I prefer good old-fashioned Palmer’s cocoa butter.
Sleep: Hasn’t been abundant or continuous since we started our family roughly 8 years ago. Reed is 21 months but is also still breastfeeding through the night, so several wake-ups for the pair of us, plus Grant has been fretful and grinding his teeth again. I’ve also started having those vivid pregnancy dreams again that wake me up panicking and in a cold sweat. The big kids do let me doze off on the odd occasion Reed has an afternoon nap, and I am also known to request piping hot cups of tea late in the evening, only to be incapable of staying awake long enough to even sip them.
New this time around: Heartburn. Bad, bad heartburn. The old wives would say that means this baby will be born with a lot of hair…based on the other kids, doubt that will be the case, but you never know!
Movement: Baby definitely has his lapses of deep sleep, but when he’s up, all of us enjoy watching my belly and seeing all the jabs, punches and kicks move like undulating waves across my tummy. What body part is that?! Is that a knee? A bum? An alien trying to cross into another dimension? It’s loads of fun to experience.
Belly button: Out
Wedding rings: On
Preparing for baby: Currently in mega nesting mode, going through everything we already own with a fine tooth comb. We’ve made a little online registry and will be having a Baby – Q (this will be the first time we’ve ever had a baby shower, so that will be great fun).
Should have done sooner: Swimming. I think this is the first pregnancy I’ve actually consented to going into a pool, and I’m sorry I missed out during the previous ones! The water makes me feel buoyant and light, and I bob around in circle on a pool noodle with Reed clinging to me. Grant works on swimming with the big kids and we just have a wonderful time of it. Sadly, getting out of the pool immediately makes me feel like a complete and total lead balloon, but I’m learning to shake that feeling.
Best advice: I haven’t gotten any this time around! With your first pregnancy you hear every story everyone has to share –the good, the bad and the ugly — and it seems every person you encounter has an opinion on parenting, when your belly should start to show, how your belly is carrying (high/low), etc. The good news is that the unsolicited advice starts to slow down a great deal with each subsequent pregnancy.
Cravings I can eat: white fish, avocado
Cravings I must ignore: cheesecake, cannoli
Birth plan: My OB was planning a c/s for me, but shed some new light today on the possibility of switching hospitals and working with midwives on another VBAC. In the midst of doing lots of research…
How the baby’s growing:
In less than 12 weeks we’ll meet our brand new son (and I’ll be re-united with my feet!)
XO,
N&N
// Niko & Nonnie // 