37 Week Update (FULL TERM!?!?!?!)

How far along: 37 weeks 6 days. 6 days past "full term". Holy Moly.  

Size of baby:   Swiss chard or winter melon. Not helpful. Average = ~6.2-9.2 lbs, 18-21" long. 

Our 20 week ultrasound had placed him/her in the 97th percentile for size (!!!!) buuuut our 32 week ultrasound's guesstimate was in the 65-75th percentile range. Yes please!

Physical symptoms: Super nauseous occasionally. Strong gag reflex to smells is back. Exhaustedddd. Doctor said my cerix is still closed but that the baby is still head down and "very low". Sometimes the baby is in an extra low position and it's hard to walk. I waddle. I think I've figured out that my panic attacks happen when I have coffee. Not all caffeine, just specifically coffee. Awesome. 9000 degrees overheated. Braxton Hicks contractions up the wazoo, throughout the day, every day. On Friday in the cab ride home from my doctor I was like doubled over in pain from them. Cute? Hemorrhoids. I pee every 15-20 minutes sometimes and am dying of thirst right after. Allergies are super bad. Nipples leaked again on Saturday I'm still freaked out by it but not as bad as I was a few weeks ago. Groin is generally better except for sometimes in the morning. Cervix gets stabbing pains sometimes. Heartburnnnn. Restless legs are back but easily solved with a hot shower. 

I'm a bundle of joy. But!!! I can generally eat normally and I'm kind of in a generally pleasant mood and I'm happier, physically, than I have been for months. I keep telling people this has physically been the easiest two weeks of the whole pregnancy and I really don't think that's a lie. It's really hard to walk and move but I'm generally not nauseous or puking or unable to sleep for days on end... 

Weight gain/loss: Haven't checked in a few days but then it was 30-31lbs. :( 

Maternity clothes: While I've been home during the week I'm mostly in PJs all day. Just a sports bra and pj pants when I can get away with it, actually. Sexy! Haha. But when I make public appearances, it's the same old story- maternity shirts, a denim maternity skirt, and normal elastic waist skirts still fit. Maternity/nursing bras and like sort of sports bra type things or tank tops with shelf bras. Maternity things are getting tight and short.

Stretch marks: Wah! My two tiny dots on the right side have grown! I think it's bc I mostly sleep on my left side, so my belly is sort of pulled to the left for long periods of time. Big bummer. 

Sleep: On and off but not terrible. Once I'm up, I'm Up for the day. If I miss my sleep window of opportunity then the restless legs start up. 

Best moment since last week: Whew! Busy week! Tuesday evening I got "coffee" with a friend (she got coffee, I got a chocolate frappe- it was pretty gross actually). Wednesday E and I it dinner with his dad at a favorite restaurant. We got mushroom burgers and fish tacos and something else super good but I can't remember. Then E and I got milkshakes on the way home. Then we grabbed my 2 garbage bags full of clothes to donate and walked them over to a friend so she could go through them and donate whatever she doesn't want. She lives pretty far and te restaurant had been about a 20min walk from the subway each way so i was pooped and we took a break on a bench on the way home. Another friend walked by as we were sitting there (near her house) and got excited she'd bumped into us bc she had two brand new pairs of shoes in E's size that she wanted to know of we'd buy off of her bc her husband had ordered them and didn't want them. E wears a size 16-18 depending on the shoe so he jumped at the opportunity and scored a free pair of flip flops and a super discounted pair of steel-toed boots for winter. He's a happy camper! Thursday night I went back to that fried's house for her birthday party. We painted tambourines (a Jewish/chasidic custom)- here's mine with a shofar on it for Rosh Hashana: 

Shabbos was fun, and then Saturday night E had a get together of a bunch of guys from our community before slichos. The Saturday night before Rosh hashana there's a custom to say some specific prayers after midnight, so guys in our community tend to have a "farbrengen", or get-together, beforehand to kind of keep each other awake and psych themselves up for it a little. We had some snacky foods for the guys and I made mint brownies which were a hit. And yesterday I got my hair done. 

 

Movement: S/he still gets the hiccups a lot. And I can usually tell exactly where s/he is in my belly. Been stretching his/her legs out to right by my sternum a few times a day and his/her head pushes even further down than it generally is and sometimes you can like "see" where his/her tush or feet are. So crazy. Totally kills when my ribs get kicked. 

Cravings/aversions: I haven't had super strong ones, but little cravings here and there for eggs & cheese on a bagel, a milkshake, and cookies... Etc. Nothing overriding though.
I ate meat and chicken on Shabbos, but because I felt like I should for the kid's sake. ;) 

Gender: Confirmed!! We're keeping it a secret... But every single person who's shared their prediction has said the same thing. Literally not one person has said the other gender. So crazy. Although I think I unintentionally threw a bunch of people off at the birthday party on Thursday. 

Labor signs: Lotsss of Braxton Hicks contractions... And I guess that stabbing pain in my cervix counts. And the head is super low. And, and, and. Labor can't come soon enough at this point!

Belly button: Still and innie but really pushing it's limits and the skin around it is really sore.

What I miss: Alcoholic beverages. And sleep. Sushi. 

What I am looking forward to: Getting this kid out of me. No, but really. For serious.

Also, Rosh Hashana!

Bump shot (and new hair!!).. I'm more enormous in real life: