Bump Watch: 36 Weeks

Thirty-six weeks -- where on earth has the time gone? This third trimester has really been flying by so far... I hear, though, that the last few weeks of pregnancy tend to drag along, especially if you end up being overdue, so I suppose I have that to look forward to... Right now, though, we're both marveling at the fact that we're less than a month away from our due date!

I'm certainly looking forward to the end of this pregnancy -- primarily because I can't wait to meet our little boy, of course! But also because, um, my maternity clothes are really starting to be too tight... The amazing maternity pants I raved about in the early weeks of my second trimester? Yeah, the elastic panels on pretty much all of them are now cutting into my poor belly. The only pants that really work for me these days are my baggy sweatpants and a pair of black maternity yoga pants. I think the yoga pants will just barely fly in my office, but probably not so much the sweatpants... Good thing I'm on vacation this week!

So here's the 36-week bump watch photo!


And here's what BabyCenter.com has to say about Eggi's development this week --

Your baby is gaining about an ounce a day. He now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. He's shedding most of the downy hair that covered his body, as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that protected his skin during his nine-month amniotic bath. Next week, your baby will be considered full-term. Most likely he's in a head-down position, but if he isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an external cephalic version, where she'll try to turn your baby by manipulating him from the outside of your belly.

Judging from our 36-week appointment yesterday, Eggi is indeed head down -- woohoo! I had my first progress check at this appointment, where the OB does a quick internal pelvic exam to determine various pre-labor criteria. As of yesterday, I'm 1-2 cm dilated and 50% effaced, and the baby's head is at -2 station! You can click on this link for a more technical explanation (if you're cool with reading about cervixes and such), but basically, I need to be 10 cm and 100% effaced in order to start pushing, and the stations indicate the relative position of the baby's head along the birth canal, going from -5 to +5 (which is when the baby's head will start crowning).

The numbers from my progress check yesterday don't really mean anything in terms of when I'll go into labor -- I can walk around for weeks like this, or things could very suddenly start to progress at a much faster rate. But it's still exciting to see that my body is doing what it's supposed to be doing in preparation for labor. The more I learn about pregnancy and childbirth, the more in awe I am of how truly fearfully and wonderfully we are made!

So excited to be nearing the finish line!!

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