So far, not a lot of news. Almost two weeks ago I had an ultrasound to see how big Joey is, he was approximately 5 lb. 10 oz.. That’s the 63rd percentile for 34 weeks, which was how far along I was two weeks ago. This means that if he was born right now we wouldn’t have to worry about him gaining weight before coming home, we’d “just” need to concentrate on his ability to breath on his own, keep warm, and to make sure he can eat well, since 5 pounds is a goal birth weight, and 4 pounds is the minimum at most hospitals to bring a baby home.
Babies are supposed to gain roughly a half a pound a week at this point in pregnancy until birth. That means if he was born on Christmas day (though that’s still a week “premature”) he’d possible weigh 6 pounds 10 ounces. If he waited until his due date, January 22nd, he might weigh 8 pounds 10 ounces. A full pound less than Michael’s birth weight, 9 pounds 10.5 ounces, Michael was born about 4 days before his due date. Aiden was born at 37 weeks and a couple days and weighed 7 pounds 9 ounces, about a half pound more than what Joey’s supposed to weigh at that point.
Of course this is all estimations since the ultrasound machine and tech can be off up to a couple pounds in either direction, though I’m pretty confident in their estimates as I’m at wonderful Baylor Clinic, who is at the front of medical technology.
My personal weight gain may have something to do with it. With Michael I gained upwards of 60 pounds. With Aiden I gained roughly 20 pounds. With this pregnancy, with less than a month left I’m currently only one pound heavier than my pre pregnancy weight, I started out heaver, I’ve had a few colds (so not feeling well and no appetite), and have cut down on salt (for water swelling) and milk in preparation for possible milk allergies like Aiden had at birth. I feel that this has had a great deal to do with low weight gain, and the way that I feel is drastically better than it was a month ago when I wasn’t being too careful about salt and milk. All that said, I’m still having some cheesy potato casserole, and some ham with my Christmas dinner. Hehe.
He is SO CUTE! The sweet little guy has a pointy nose, that I’m totally in love with, Daddy’s chin, and not a lot of hair, well, he has hair, just not a lions mane like Aiden had. I wonder if it’ll be dark or light.
I’m feeling rather well. My swelling in my hands and feet is minimal at this point, and my contractions over the last few days have been minimal, which is nice as we had a scare on Wednesday after not being able to keep them under control for a few days.
For those who care about the personal stats (that may be too much information for others, if so, skip the rest of this paragraph), as of Wednesday when I went in with my worries about premature labor, I was two centimeters dilated, 30% effaced, and the baby is sitting low and was in the proper birthing position, though he’s since flipped a few times, including a couple times I’ve noticed him being transverse, or sideways in my belly. I’m not too worried about his position yet, Aiden was all over the place until two days before he was born, so we know I have the room to let him wiggle about.
I’ve had a few contractions today, but they’ve all gone away with rest.
My next OB appointment is December 26th, and I’m sure I’ll have more to say then.
Merry Christmas!!!