28 weeks the week I turned 30

Yes, I've kicked the 20s to the curb. But not necessarily willfully. I quite enjoyed my birthday yesterday, despite the fact that I was not able to obliterate any distress over changing the number in the "tens place" with the help of wine. I chose good food instead (thanks to Gina at lunch and my husband for dinner). And then a bath of paraffin wax on my hands and feet (yay, for Neil listening to what I wanted for my b-day!!)

Speaking of baths, I have learned that I like my bath water at a nice, cool....uh...110 degrees. How would I know this? Well because I did some research to see what the hottest I could make my water, knowing full well that having it a mere 2 degrees warmer than body temp was not going to do anything to calm my muscles or warm me. And 110 is where I wanted it. But I negotiated with my top layer of skin and the inner child growing...and decided to go for a warm 103 degrees for 10 minutes max. My skin didn't turn pink, so I figured it was safe. And I actually warmed up but never broke a sweat...and didn't stay in long enough to get wrinkled. As I lie here typing, (yes, I'm lying down because as you might guess, my back hurts...duh.) he is throwing a small get together inside my belly (featuring pizza and pop, I'm sure) so we're all good. But I miss my 110 degrees. Sigh. Might be one of the first things I do next February. You know, when WE'LL HAVE A FREAKING BABY!!

Yes, still a shock to me. It doesn't ever get old to truly truly truly think about what it is that we're doing. haha

But seeing lil Dub in 3d on Saturday sure did help make it more real.

We originally weren't going to "waste money" on the 3d sonogram. But then as pregnancy progressed...as he began to entertain me and sometimes annoy me and sometimes plain inspire me....as he twists and turns and jabs and flutters inside me....I became more and more curious  as to who this being is. Not just a mystery alien or force that causes my skin to ripple and undulate. And I wanted to help spark a bit more excitement as once again I had hit a wall with some physical things.

So Saturday morning, we showed up to a clinic that is in an house, so it was super cozy. The u/s room was dim and in a very inviting color palette. and the bed was actually comfy. Why oh why can hospitals and doc offices not take a clue from oh I don't know...what people really want...when designing their own offices. Heaven forbid patients actually be comfortable and feel relaxed. So moving on....

We were a bit perturbed that our fetal creation decided to remain in a hunched up "pike" position...looked like this only instead of holding his legs straight with his hands, his hands were in front of his face. Also, he didn't have the odd-looking protuberance of hair jetting out of his head. (He apparently didn't have any hair since the u/s tech didn't mention it...I was a bit bummed...)

I dont' think his toes were that pointed either. But you get the picture.

Or maybe you don't, but I'll show you some so you can see what our blooming child looks like at this stage. He doesn't have a whole lot of fat on him yet (I'm trying!!! I have gained 11 lbs, and expect that to skyrocket soon....so hold on!!) so his nose looks quite pig-like...just like his mama's.

Here is the 2D version of what we were dealing with. See his lil' fists in front of his face. There they stayed for 35 minutes!!!

This is a pic of...duh.... his male parts. Neil got embarrassed when I turned to him and gave him a high five after the tech showed us.

Glad she labeled this one because this just looks like a mess of body parts. He's stil in his balled up position...can you tell what is what?

 

He's starting to budge...and no, he's not missing part of his arm. The u/s was seeing through a layer of his arm so we could get to his face. 

Then he was such a baby threw a fit that we were trying to see his face.

I had to down some OJ an then get up and shimmy and shake, then lie down on my side to get him to move into a different position. I then resorted to actually finding his head and pushing on it gently until he turned it for the tech. Gradually, he re-situated.

Oh! such a teaser. These might be out of order. Sorry. ha

At some point, he had given us the peace sign and at another we saw him open his mouth and swallow amniotic fluid (I think that was his first taste of orange juice!!)....but the tech wasn't taping it!!! She felt so bad; I kinda wanted to hit her...but she was being so patient and we had stopped recording so I could get up and try to get him to move...so I couldn't be mad.

So this pic is of him with the umbilical cord around his neck. But this is not troublesome as this happens lots at this stage as they move so much. He only wore it for a bit.

Awww, his first smile. Demonic maybe. Like something out the Night of theLiving Dead. I know, morbid. But seriously, let's be honest. Still kinda cute though. haha

This reminds me of his dad.

Awww, is lil Dub tired??? haha This was cute with him rubbing his eyes.

There were a more pics, but they all scare me so we'll just keep it to these ones.

Hmmmm...what else to record....some more randomness:
1. I have been getting hungry every 2 hours. Like...ravenous. Guess what right now happens to be? 2 hours from when we ate.
2. I can't eat enough chocolate.
3. I laugh at what I look like without clothes on.
4. All our furniture is in the room...and it's getting painted on SAturday!!! Hooray!!! At that point, I will post some pics...pre decorated. :)
5. We visited the hospital where we have decided to deliver. Shawnee Mission Medical Center. The delivery rooms are fab...the rooms where you go post-delivery aren't that great. BUT, if I've heard one thing over and over as compared to the other hospital we were considering...it's that mothers have LOVED the nurses. Not just that they were great. But that they LOVED them. And I remember my surgery from 16 years ago well enough to know that the nurses make or break your stay. Plus SMMC is known for having more seasoned anesthesiologists when it comes to dealing with challenging cases as my back will be. And they have an OB on staff 24/7, unlike most other hospitals in the area. What this means is that if something keeps my OB or someone on the team from getting to us (I mean, we're delivering in the dead of winter...ice storms, etc...are all possible...) there would be someone there to help. And lastly, even if labor doesn't go as planned and we have to opt for a C-section, a photographer is allowed to be present so long as the doctor is cool with it. (And my doc said she doesn't know anyone in the practice that wouldn't be fine with it as long as something horrible isn't happening...) The other hospital has a flat out "no" policy on c-section photographers. With SMMC, I'm not so fond of the location...it's at a really busy intersection...only 4 minutes farther than the other one, but it FEELS longer due to the high-trafficked areas. I'm sure we'll be fine wherever we go...but we have made the decision, so now we can at least move forward.
6. We registered for three classes that we will be attending in December. One on childbirth preparation, one on newborn care and one on breastfeeding. It will be good to learn more about things we know we'll be going through oh-so-soon.
7. Ok, I'm too hungry to continue. We'll chat later. ;)