Breeched Baby

We learned during our 32nd week doctor's appointment that Liam is breeched.  The doctor went to listen to his heartbeat and she put the machine where she thought his heartbeat should be.  It was really low.  As soon as she moved the machine to the top of my stomach it was loud and clear at 140 bpm.


I haven't really done a lot of research on a breeched baby, because frankly Google can be really scary. I looked at some Google images of a breeched baby and was horrified at some of the pictures I saw. The doctor said it is nothing I can worry about now.  He still has plently of room to move around and they will check again at 34 weeks.  There is also nothing that I can really do.  I suggested some headstands, but apparently that doesn't work.

At 34 weeks if they think he is still breeched, they will give him 2 more weeks to move on his own. At my 36 week appointment they will do an ultrasound if they think he is still breeched.  At that time, if Liam is still breeched, we will schedule a C-section for my 39th week.

 

I'm not completely upset about this.  Whatever happens, happens.  I'm not one of those women who is 100% against a c-section and if it's better for Liam I'm completely on board.  We will just see how it goes.  He now has 3 weeks to flip. Swim Liam....swim!!!  

 

The doctor said that at 32 weeks 30% of babies are breeched.  By the 36th week that number drops to 6%.  So the numbers are looking good! We will keep you posted.

 



Week 32

Liam is the size of: a squash. These were the same measurements from last week and I'm pretty sure thats a lie.  My stomach is running out of room by the day.

 

At 32 weeks our baby boy:

-is getting ready for birth and is head down (LIE!...I'll get to that later)

-is feeling more and more cramped (TRUE!)

 

 

Sleep: The positive is that I'm sleeping, the negative is that I'm really uncomfortable. I wake up 1-2 times every night to go to the bathroom.  It's very hard getting out of bed.  I often wake up with cramped legs/side and my hands and feet are usually asleep in the morning. I'm trying my best to sleep on my side because it is the most comfortable, but I wake up a lot sleeping on my back.

 

 

Pregnancy Symptoms: I'm so tired this week! I am still in full nesting/organizing mode but it has definitely slowed down this week. I napped a lot during the day and I have to take breaks often.

 

 

Movement: Still going strong. I've felt a few jabs that were actually painful.  Since it is getting more and more cramped you can now feel elbows, knees, and arms moving across my stomach. It's amazing!

 

 

How I'm Feeling: Great! I'm excited and nervous but so pumped to meet Liam!

 

 

Best Moments of the Week:

 

-Celebrated Father's Day. Greg got a few outfits for Liam to help him cheer on his favorite sports teams (Knicks, Mets, and Chiefs)

-Greg painted Liam's bedroom! It took awhile to find the perfect color, but we love it.

-Our rocker/glider is in, we just have to pick it up!!

-Liam's future wife was born, Ava Monroe.

-I got a lot of energy one day and washed a ton of his 3 month clothes, blankets, bedding, burp cloths, etc.  We started putting things away in his closet/room and his bed is made and ready for him!

-Our family in NY put on a virtual shower for us.  They had a party and Greg and I facetimed them and got to join in on the fun.  It was so sweet of them!

-And...we ended the week with HICCUPS! I've been waiting and waiting for hiccups to come.  I was so excited when I felt them. Since then he has had hiccups THREE times.

 

 

Enjoying the virtual shower

 

It's hard to see but we have our top three grays are on the wall between the windows. We picked the middle one.  It's a very soothing gray!

 

Yes, that's a crib full of clothes.  Don't worry it is 0-12 months!



A great way to spend Father's Day! 

Liam's Future Wife

On Thursday, June 20th at 10:04 am Liam's future wife was born. Greg laughs nervously when I say this out loud probably thinking, "be quiet someone is going to hear you and think you are a weirdo!" My friend, Michelle, is 8 weeks ahead of me and we have joked our entire pregnancies that Liam and her unnamed baby girl were going to get married one day.  Now, she finally has a name...Ava Monroe.  It does have a nice ring to it, don't you think?? Ava and Liam sitting in a tree....

On Friday, the day after Ava was born, I went to Charlotte with Greg.  He had a few meetings in Charlotte for work so it worked out perfectly.  I got to spend the whole afternoon at the hospital hanging out with this cutie...

 

 

Here she is, ruling Liam already! Don't worry though...Liam was punching and kicking her!

 

 

I learned a lot while I was there.  Here are a few helpful hints I learned that day...

 

1. There are people constantly knocking on your door.  "Hi Mrs........ are you busy?" Literally, every 5 minutes someone else is invading your space asking you question after question.

 

2. The gift shops are the BOMB and have everything you need.  This is very smart on the hospital's part.

 

3. You go into the hospital being shy and modest and you leave a tough mom who doesn't care about anything but her new baby and their safety!

 

4. Don't put your last name on any decorations outside your door.  Apparently people like to steal babies.  Don't worry the hospital has this covered, every baby has their own alarm system. WHAT?!?!

 

 

 

5. The second night is the worst.  Apparently babies like to be really calm and cute the first day of their life, then they show you who is boss.

 

6. You will love your baby instantly! They will be the most important thing in your life.  (Sorry KC, I guess what they say is true!)

 

7. When you are coming to the hospital you are going to be in a lot of pain and you have no shame in who sees you. 

 

Side story (This has nothing to do with Michelle):

Greg got to visit the hospital the next day, because he didn't have to work.  As we walked into the hospital we saw a woman in a wheel chair gripping as tightly as she could just screaming and moaning in pain.  She was clearly in labor and no one was there to help her.  (No baby daddy, no nurse, no nothing!) Luckily her baby daddy came running in and we had the joy of sharing an elevator to the 8th floor with them.  It was the most awkward elevator ride of our entire lives.  She was screaming and moaning at the top of her lungs looking like she could have a baby at any minute.  Her husband was stone cold, no emotion, no encouraging words...nothing! He was scared out of his mind.

 

As soon as we got to the 8th floor Greg and I awkwardly said good luck and let them run out of the elevator.  As we followed them down the hall no one said anything to them.  People just pointed in the direction for them to go. Hopefully, it all worked out and they have a beautiful baby!

 

Greg said, "So how did that make you feel?" I said, "I'm not having a baby, that looked awful!"

 

8. Holding new borns is fun, and Greg and I are really good at it. We are super excited to meet Liam now...minus the whole labor thing!

 

 

Ava is the cutest baby ever.  She has a head full of dark hair and is just perfect.  I can't wait for Liam and her to meet and be best of friends.  Yes, boys have cooties, but Ava will just have to get over that!

 



 

 

We are now in the home stretch.  There were two people ahead of me at work...Heather and Michelle.  They have both had beautiful and healthy babies.  I wasn't really nervous about labor until now.  It is now my turn, I'm next. Yikes! 



 







Week 31

Technically, this was the first day of my 31st week.  So I get to reuse this picture.

Liam is the size of a: PINEAPPLE! ... Yikes. That seems like a lot of growth since last week's cucumber. I'm almost certain he weighs more than this because 3 weeks ago he was already 3 pounds.

At 31 weeks our baby boy:

-has all 5 senses in working order

-will now react to light. I heard if you shine a light on him he will cover his eyes. We haven't tried this though, sounds mean!

-is going through major brain and nerve development

Sleep: not the best this week. I tried sleeping with the body pillow we have and nothing really seemed to work. Once I'm alseep I'm fine, it's just getting to sleep that is the problem.  Either I'm so uncomfortable and hot, or I have a baby doing gymnastics in my stomach.

Pregnancy Symptoms: swollen ankles went away this week, I think it was just the heat from the beach last weekend. My symptoms this week include nesting, peeing a lot (its insane!!), trouble breathing from squished lungs, and getting tired really easily.

Movement: One of my friends said it best this week, "You have a very active fetus in there!" I think fetus is such a gross word, but the statement sums him up perfectly. I will let the video explain itself. I can't keep telling you how active this little boy is, so I thought I might as well show you.  Oh and PS: all that stomach fuzz is another wonderful symptom of pregnancy. This is the only belly shot ya'll are getting.  Sorry, the video wasn't focusing so it's a little blurry.



How I'm Feeling: I'm feeling happy. I am fortunate enough to have had a pretty easy pregnancy so far. I know the heat is coming and there is nothing I can do about that. I plan on floating in the pool all summer long! This week I ended school so it's officially SUMMER!

Best Moments of the Week:

- Summer officially began!

- Skipped our 3rd birth class to go see the Lumineers with some friends.  This doesn't make us bad parents right? Don't worry we rescheduled the class.  The 3rd class is where you actually watch a video of a birth, so I'm kind of glad I have a few more weeks to prepare for that.

-During a work meeting I had 4+ people staring at my belly.  Liam was moving so much that it was distracting others!







Week 30

Liam is the size of: a cucumber.  This doesn't make any sense to me, but maybe they are just using the length of a cucumber?? I've never seen a cucumber that weighs over 3 pounds!

At 30 weeks our baby boy:
-has smoother skin
-is getting a wrinkly brain
-is now strong enough to hold on to your finger

Sleep: sleeping great still, no problems there! I have a little bit of trouble falling asleep because I have so much running through my mind.  I blame that on the end of year at work and this giant cucumber in my belly.

Pregnancy Symptoms: bring on the cankles! Swollen ankles, feet, and even toes are in full effect. We went to the beach this weekend and the heat just enlarged them like no other! I've also noticed shortness of breath. According to my birth classes this means he is growing and making it really hard to breathe.  I have to sit with excellent posture...otherwise forget it! And last but not least, nesting.  I am pretty sure this is Greg's favorite. (Hopefully you can hear my sarcasm).

Movement: I'm becoming worried for my future.  The kid never stops moving.  There are moments where my stomach literally jumps up and down. I hope he gets all this craziness out of him by August 11th.  I would like a calm, quiet, polite baby! :) I've noticed that if you place your hand on my stomach he will immediately stop moving. I think it has something to do with the heat.  If you rub my belly he will continue to move.

How I'm Feeling: Anxious and Energized. I know I still have a while to go, but I'm trying to get as many things as I can done around the house. The messy, unorganized, unpainted nursery is really stressing me out.  Luckily his room is upstairs and I don't go up there very often.

Best Moments of the Week:
-We traveled to Carolina Beach for a wedding where some family and friends got to meet Liam for the first time.  They all got to feel him kick and punch!
-We decided on a rocker and it has officially been ordered! The color was a huge dilemma so hopefully we love it.  I'm pretty certain we will.
-My students threw me a baby shower at school.  It was so sweet! Liam was spoiled with books and lot of presents!

Carolina Beach

We had a day of sun and a day of clouds.  Although the weather wasn't the best, the company made up for it. It's always nice when we can get together, even if it's just for a short weekend.  



Week 29

**No pictures this week, 1 to come next week**

Liam is the size of:  an acorn squash

 

At 29 weeks our baby boy: 

-is getting a little cramped inside my belly, so I've been noticing some more kicks and jabs

-is growing white fat deposits under his skin, this makes him have a lot of energy

-he may even be hiccuping (I haven't felt these yet)

 

Sleep:  Sleep is still great. It's a little hard to get out of bed in the morning and sometimes I literally have to roll out of it.  I also noticed that I'm waking up with swollen feet...but I'm still sleeping GREAT!

 

Pregnancy Symptoms: swollen feet and ankles have definitely started this week.  I notice them after walking/moving around a lot and occasionally when I wake up. The nesting is still there, but I have been a little more tired this week.

 

Movement: Liam is a very active boy! I can now feel body parts.  I can feel him literally move across my belly.  It's the weirdest and neatest thing in the entire world. My friend, Michelle, felt him this week and she jumped up saying that he punched her. She is also pregnant (8 weeks ahead of me) and it is amazing how different our pregnancies are. I'm loving my active boy. 

 

How I'm Feeling:  For the most part, I'm feeling great.  This weekend I was really tired and very cranky. My only complaint I have right now is: my feet! They hurt!

 

Best Moments of the Week:

-We decided on a rocker for the nursery.  We have been looking for the PERFECT one and I think we found it.  The best part is, we can add it to our living room once we are done using it in the nursery.

-Still haven't fully decided on the paint color for the nursery, but we are getting closer.

-We started our birthing class at the hospital this week.  I'm not sure how much we are going to learn. The nurse told the class that the third trimester starts at 36 weeks. uhhh FALSE!

-And the best thing about this week: just feeling our baby boy moving and grooving! I didn't feel him at all on Tuesday and I had really bad cramping.  Just feeling him kick and wiggle lets us know he is doing alright!