WEEK 37!!!

So, I officaially look giant in this picture...27 lbs gained.

New News!

Baby's now the size of a watermelon!Your full-term (yay!) baby is gaining about 1/2 ounce a day and getting his first sticky poop (called meconium) ready. He's also brushing up on skills for the outside world: blinking, sucking, inhaling, exhaling, and gripping (it's getting strong!).

Your baby is now considered "full term," even though your due date is three weeks away. If you go into labor now, his lungs will likely be mature enough to fully adjust to life outside the womb. (Some babies need a bit more time, though. So if you're planning to have a repeat c-section, for example, your practitioner will schedule it for no earlier than 39 weeks unless there's a medical reason to intervene earlier.)

Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.



Measuring up. "Gaining a little weight every day helps me get ready for the big day." It's likely that your baby is more than 19 inches long and weighs between 6 and 6.5 pounds, nearing his final birth weight. These last few weeks are important, though; he's still gaining half an ounce of fat per day. This fat helps his body regulate his temperature and keep an even blood-sugar level. The brain, and the skull that houses it, continue to grow. Ease on down. Is your baby sitting lower these days? You may feel as if he's dropped down into your pelvis—and perhaps he has. This dropping, called lightening or engagement, can occur a few weeks before your baby is born. The new, lower position may take some pressure off your squished lungs and diaphragm, making breathing easier for you.



Your baby has likely hit the six-pound mark by now, and her length is approximately twenty-one inches. The weight on your abdomen probably feels like twice that. Your baby is practicing his breathing, but he has increasingly less space to practice stretching and kicking. Your baby' intestines are also building up meconium, a greenish-black substance made of baby by-products such as dead cells, shed lanugo, and amniotic fluid. It'll become your little darling's first bowel movement, hopefully after he is out of the womb. His body fat has increased to about eight percent. By birth, it'll be about fifteen percent. If your baby is a boy, his testes will have descended into his scrotum. While your baby could be born at any time, the longer he stays in, the more time he has to develop the connections in his brain in the pleasant peace and quiet of your womb. At this point, he can do all the things a newborn can, with the exception of breathing air and pooping in a diaper. Just as you're feeling stretched, your baby is being squeezed on all sides. Some of your antibodies are crossing the placenta, giving your baby's immune system some support for her first days in the world. If you breastfeed, you'll later be giving him immunities in your milk.

So, I went to the Dr. yesterday and nothing new. He still hasn't dropped and I haven't dialated or started to efface yet. I was happy about this though, because I still have so much to get done before he comes! Although I must admit I was a little sad because I am ready for him to be here and I'm ready to meet him, formally anyway. He is definitely gettting big still. And I know this not only because of my weight gain, but because I'm starting to drag big time-and hurt in weird places because I'm carrying so much upfront-and swelling! I'm also finding it harder and harder to get comfortable and turn over at night. Oh the joys of pregnancy! I've had it so easy up until now, thats why I think it's hitting me extra hard! Oh well, not that much longer until my little prince arrives! Not that you can tell in my picture either, but my belly button is almost completely out- although it looks flat and not popped out. That's about all that's going on now- just getting everything in order for his arrival! Thanks for reading!