Pregnant: Week 34

Well, it's a day early to be posting but I've got a little extra free time on my hands so I figured I would post the weekly blog to update everyone.


Doctor Appt Info
No doctor appointment this week. I think I start the weekly appointments next week? I can't remember! (that is Pregnancy Brain at it's best!!)


Baby Facts
Oliver is now approximately measuring 17.5 inches long and weighing 4.5 pounds... according to the website but we all know by now that he's actually measuring slightly longer and about 2 pounds heavier (...I'm still in shock that he's so big already but I'm still not huge. That's a tight little ball you're in, little big man!!) I'm still taking suggestions as to a nickname for Oliver other than Ollie. If he was a little girl I was dead set on Peanut or something cutesy but you just can't do that with a little guy.. suggestions for a nickname/petname???

Your baby kind of looks like she's coated in a layer of cream cheese these days. The thick, white substance that protects her skin from pruning in the amniotic fluid is called vernix. When she's born you'll probably see some vernix lingering in her "hard-to-reach" places like under his arms, behind his ears, etc.. The soft fur, lanugo, that covered your baby's body for much of her stay in the womb is now almost completely gone. Your baby begins to develop her own immune system, instead of relying solely on antibodies received through the placenta. This will come in handy when some grubby relative manhandles the baby without washing his hands first.


Life Happens
I haven't been sleeping very well lately which is really odd for me because usually I sleep like a baby and hardly even notice when I get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom (TMI, sorry) but luckily last night I finally got to sleep around 10pm after laying in bed trying for an hour and then I woke up this morning at around 6am when my mom was getting ready for work.

After I finally convinced myself to get out of bed I decided to go get groceries. They weren't kidding about the hormones making you irritable!!! The lady checking me out took 20 minutes to check out the people in front of me. I thought it was over exajurating and tried to calm myself down but she really did take that long and the lady ended up with 5 bags of groceries.. seriously?! I wanted to scream "there is a pregnant lady that needs to pee back here!! let's move it along people!!" Some people really don't need to be working at a fast paced job like ....WalMart! (ha)

Anyway so then I get home and get everything unloaded and still had quite a bit of energy so I decided to go ahead and install Oliver's carseat in my car. Well, I'm leaving the carseat base installed but the carseat is staying happily planted beside his crib until we rush off to the hospital sometime in the next few weeks. BUT I had to obviously use the carseat attached to the base so I could move the seat around and make sure it was firmly installed. :) While installing the carseat I realized just how nasty my back seat is from the kids (the ones I'm a nanny for). I'm guessing it's from their sports gear but who knows! Anyway.. here is the picture of his carseat installed with my nasty, dirty backseat. Don't worry, as soon as I post this I'm headed to the carwash to thoroughly clean out the inside!

Why do my seats look purple??? Hmm.. maybe the lighting?? Ugh- I just realized they have been putting their feet on the back of the seat too.. grrr!!!!

Doctor appt news & Oliver's bedding

First and foremost, BIG news at the doctor today.. So on Tuesday at my regular 33 week checkup my doctor measured me with the ruler thingy and said Oliver is a little behind size-wise and had me schedule an appointment for an ultrasound to check his size and the amniotic fluid levels again. So I went in and the doctor was very happy at the end and told me that my fluid levels are back up (YAY!) AND that Oliver is actually measuring  17-18 inches, 6 pounds and 35.5-36 weeks on all of the measurements (except for his head which is measuring 39.2 weeks!!!! OMG) So my thoughts are that they moved my date back but he is actually planning on coming a little bit earlier than December 9th. I'm planning on asking my doctor at the next appointment about possibly inducing me early since he is so big. So we will see about that.. anyway.. On to the bedding!

So I just knew if I waited until next Tuesday to post these pictures of Oliver's bedding I would be in big trouble by a couple of you and I would probably have to make another really long post. Just to warn you- this isn't completely finished but you get the idea of the basics. I'm not sure how much more I want to do for now though. This has completely worn me out so until I get my energy back I'm going to just lay off and kick back and relax. I keep telling myself "Oliver won't sleep anymore just because the room is cuter/prettier" and so far it's working :) So anyway.. 

Ok so here is your reminder of the beginning stage right after we put up his crib..

And the end result from today. Bedding on and letters are hung.

This picture is kind of crappy but you get the idea.. :)

I'm thinking he needs this mobile and maybe a few of the little throw pillows and then I'm done

New lamp, rug and finally got his bedding. Big difference! Alright, that's it for tonight!

Pregnant: Week 33

Well, I thought I would try to make more than 1 blog entry so that this week wouldn't be so long BUT that obviously didn't happen.. SORRY! :(

Doctor Appt Info
Shortest doctor visit EVER! Hallelujah! I was the first patient so they got me in and out in about 45 minutes total with the waiting room and all! :) Seems like the annoying super early morning appointment would be a great idea but I went ahead and made my next appointment for the regular time even if it means hanging out at Mercy for 2 or more hours. With early morning appointments that means I wake up at 6am, get ready, drive the 30 minutes to Mercy and then drive back home and kill time (in today's case I'm doing laundry so it's not a total loss, but annoying either way) and then at 2pm I will have to drive back to the same area for work.. It's just a lot of extra driving that I dont want to do so I will just deal with the extra time in the waiting room from now on.

Anyway-- So Oliver 'sounds' good as far as his heartbeat but he's measuring just a tiny bit small again so she scheduled me for an ultrasound on Thursday before work so they can measure Oliver and the amniotic fluids again and see if the fluids are low or if he is small and then we will go from there.

The big news for today's appointment is that she's completely ignoring the original due date now (which was November 21st) and is just sticking with December 9th and unless he is just huge and measuring for the original date at the next ultrasound then she will let me possibly go as late as December 24th now!!! HOLY COW! I sure hope not for 2 reasons: 1) having a birthday that close to Christmas sucks 2) I dont want to be possibly in the hospital or still in massive recovery mode on Christmas and my birthday (the 26th) and 3) that would be a HUGE baby if she let's him cook that long! Hopefully Oliver decides to make his appearance somewhere between November 28th and December 4th (AKA the week after Thanksgiving) but we will just have to wait and see! Wow, sorry this went much longer than I had anticipated.. on to the baby facts!

Baby Facts
Oliver is now approximately measuring 17.5 inches long and weighing 4.5 pounds.

The big news this week is lung development—baby's respiratory system is almost completely mature. That means if your baby was born this week, odds are he'd be a healthy bouncing baby with a just a little help from his friends (aka, the NICU). Your baby can now detect light and tell the difference between night and day (of course that ability will miraculously disappear once he's born and up all night screaming). His pupils will constrict and dilate in response to light. If you shine a flashlight on your belly, your baby may shy away from the light as if to say, "Cut it out, Ma. You're soooo annoying." The bones in your baby's skull are soft and are not yet fused together. In other words, now is not the time to teach him how to do a headspin while breakdancing. This pliability allows the bones to overlap; making that trip down the tight birth canal possible (and resulting in that surprising cone head look your baby will sport for the first few days post-birth.) Your baby will continue to pack on the pounds gaining around ½ pound a week from here on out.

Life Happens
Thursday Oliver's crib arrived and my mom and I put it together (most my mom!) BUT his bedding won't arrive until later this week or early next week so for now his crib is sitting bare with just gifts on it from the shower (I'm doing laundry later, I promise!)

Friday my boss took the day off work because her stepdaughters were in town and so they spent time with them and I got the day off too. I took advantage of it and got my nails filled and a pedicure and I also got my mom a giftcertificate for the same thing as a thank you for putting the shower on for me and Oliver's crib! And then Kelsey went with me to the mall to get some new bras (yes, they're still growing) and lunch. I had intended on going to a few other stores but I was pooped so I just decided not to.

Saturday my mom and I did a few things around the house to get it picked up for the baby shower the next day and then we drove to Talequah to my cousin's wedding reception. I was the grumpy pregnant woman but I put on a happy face for most of it. At least they had some good food to make me shut up! :)

Sunday I was stupid enough to work my normal 8-12 shift in the church nursery. I thought I would be ok to do it but apparently it wore me out! --and my boss even let me off about an hour early! After I got off work I went to Walmart for a few things we forgot to pick up, came back to the house and just sat in the big comfy chair in the living room for a good solid hour just trying to recuperate. I think staying out past 9pm on Saturday at my cousin's reception was what did me in.. doesnt she know that I go to sleep at 9pm?? Haha! Anyway, then people started showing up at the house for the baby shower. We had a nice small turn out of a few of my mom's friends and coworkers, 2 of the ladies from the church nursery and the Farnet girls- plus Kelsey and Ashley (I would be in trouble if I forgot them!) I got a ton of cute clothes and some diapers and lots of cute things and couldn't be more thankful! After everyone left I managed to get all of the baby gifts to the bedroom, took a shower, and then plopped down- I think I was asleep before the sun went down but I'm not for sure! I was just exhausted..

And then of course today, Tuesday was my doctor's appointment and you already read about that above! Anyway! Here is my picture for the 8 month point.. He's really starting to get big and wear me down throughout the day- especially my back and hips. and my waddle is starting to be more painful- but he's SO worth it!

Update about Jeff- He's still in Washington doing his final 'training' before he leaves.. AKA they aren't doing much other than freezing their booty off but he will be leaving this week for Egypt at some point and then the rest of the unit will follow sometime in the next month. (yes, the Army requires us to be this vague.) Oh sometime today I have to go mail Jeff's goody box to him- it will make him a very happy hubby! Playstation, mattress pad, good pillows, hair gel, and his movies.. all of the things that this man loves and then a few other small surprise things but I don't to post them here because he occasionally reads this and it will take a few weeks to get it there.

And now time for the pictures! :) 

This is the beginning stage of the room. Dont worry, the rug isn't staying! That was the remains of my sister's old safari themed room from high school. And hopefully the decorations will begin shortly!

Oliver's crib is currently holding all of his gifts from the baby shower on Sunday but I'm about to start laundry so it wont be full for long.

The storage I came up with since I'm not going the traditional route of having a dresser and changing table. Plus his cute little Build-A-Bear puppy and diaper bag are filling in the spaces for now.

Pregnant: Week 32

Happy Tuesday! Time for the weekly blog update! I'm still only going to the doctor every other week so next Tuesday I will have news from the doctor. For now all I can tell you is that he is laying different and so now my stomach sticks out a lot more and it also feels like he's head down because he's been kicking or punching my ribs and lungs-- NOT FUN! (but so worth it.) I was told that if he gets in the head down position from now on he will probably stay and not go breech WOOHOO! Anyway, here is the weekly Oliver Facts from the pregnancy website.

Baby Facts
Oliver is now approximately measuring 17 inches long and weighing 4 pounds.

Although your baby will still remain active, his days of trying out for Cirque du Soleil are nearly over. Both you and baby are putting on some serious weight at this point. You'll probably gain about a pound a week for the next few weeks, with half of that poundage bulking up baby. He'll likely double his weight in the next eight weeks. Ever wonder what your baby is doing in there these days? He's busy blinking, looking around, grabbing things, making faces, practicing his breathing, peeing and listening to everything around him—pretty much exactly what he'll be doing for the first three months of his life, sans the adoring audience and the flashing camera.

Life Happens
Not much more going on right now other than just trying to get everything ready for Oliver, working and trying to rest as much as possible. Good news, my rings still fit!! KNOCK ON WOOD!! I thought for sure I was about to have to stop wearing them at 28 weeks but now that the weather has cooled off a little bit it has helped, I guess. OH! And I'm getting my first baby shower this weekend! I will have to post the pictures from that next week with the weekly update-- or maybe I will make 2 separate blogs if I get a ton of pictures.. I will just decide after I see how everything goes! Anyway! Have a good week!

Baby Oliver Wish List

Since people keep asking what else I need for Oliver I have compiled a list of the larger things that I still need. Keep in mind most are fairly expensive and if you do purchase them, it would be wise to split the cost with someone.--And most of these are available at all 3 stores so you might want to compare prices but I included the link to Walmart, as they usually have the lowest prices. Anyway, here is the list of things in no particular order with a link to each of them. At the bottom of this blog entry I'm including links to our registries too- hopefully this makes it easier.

LINK:Lansinoh Affinity Double Electric Breast Pump

LINK: Bright Starts Comfort & Harmony Cradling Baby Bouncer- Biscotti

LINK:Schwinn Turismo Swivel Wheel Jogging Stroller

LINK:Graco Lovin' Hug Plug-In Infant Swing - Hamilton NOTE: BabiesRUS Exclusive Item

For those that have asked 400 times about bottle, diaper, etc preferences... I know from working with the babies in the nursery and childcare in general that every baby is different but I'm hoping to try these out first and hope for the best..

• Bottles- Avent BPA Free (this is just a link to the 9oz bottles, obviously we will use the other sizes too)
• Diapers- Pampers Sensitive Swaddlers

And last but not least, for those that want to know the theme of his nursery.. the color scheme is mostly browns and lighter green and I'm leaning towards the safari animals-- mostly giraffes, of course! Hopefully this answers most of your questions!! Thanks!

Registry Links
Walmart 
Target 
Babies"R"Us/Toys"R"Us 

Pregnant: Week 31

First off, I just realized I have been a week off for the past 4-5 weeks so just FYI I didn't miss a week, I just didnt want to go through and correct everything.

Doctor Appt Info
Oliver is on track weight-wise and heartbeat-wise. They did the fundal measurement (where they measure your stomach from the top of your uterus to the top of the pubic bone) and he is measuring just a little ahead but she thinks it's just because I'm taller than average. One last little tidbit I found funny: When they weighed me (with my shoes on, on accident) I'm still 3 lbs under the recommended weight for being 30 weeks but the nurse said that all of the weight has gone to my butt! haha It definitely hasn't though!!Oh here is the picture for 7 1/2 months.



Baby Facts
Oliver is now approximately measuring 16 inches long and weighing 3.5 pounds.

From this week on, your baby will continue to gain around ½ pound a week until shortly before birth. Due to increasing space constraints, your baby's arms and legs stay drawn up close to the body now, known as the fetal position. Plus, your baby can now process information from all five senses. By now, your baby's lungs are the only system not fully mature.

Life Happens
Well, I had to say bye to Jeff yesterday. He won't leave until Thursday morning but I couldn't stay over in Oklahoma that long. It was by far the hardest thing I have ever had to do but I know we will be just fine and it will only make us stronger. If you want to get a hold of him he will have internet and you can still talk to him on Facebook, email, or Skype (username: jeffmassey76) or if you would like I can give you his mailing address- just ask for it! Mail takes approximately 2-3 weeks to get from point A to point B but I'm sure he would appreciate any packages and letters! :)

Next weekend I have my first baby shower! I can't believe how close it is getting! When they were planned it seemed like they were forever away and now they are just around the corner! I'm just excited to get everyone together for the different showers! I can't wait to see everyone! Ok that's all for now. Until next week..

Pregnant: Week 29

Well, we finally got all moved out of our apartment and into my mom's house. I have received mixed responses about living with my mom but I adore my mom and we get along much better than most people do so it doesn't bother me yet- plus it is only temporary while Jeff is deployed and it is a win-win for both of us since my mom knows more about having babies than I do (and I don't like living alone) and she gets to spend more time with her grandson than she would if I lived on my own.

Moving in was hard on me. Since my amniotic fluid levels have been low and I'm 30 weeks the doctor had told me to stay off my feet as much as possible (since August) and to not lift more than 15 lbs. Let me tell you, that is really hard to do when you're moving!! I managed to pack up the majority of the boxes and get rid of the junk that I didn't want to move but when it came to moving the boxes I was pretty much useless and had to rely on everyone to do pretty much everything that was heavy. Sadly enough just doing the light stuff completely wore me out and has taken it's toll on me and I have been very achey and stiff. It's slowly wearing off with the help of my heating pad but it still sucks. BUT the good news is that it is done.

However, the bad news is that being all moved in means Jeff is packing up and getting deployed this week- YUCK! I'm going to Oklahoma Saturday afternoon and will be back Tuesday morning just in time to make it to my doctor appointment. I'm glad I get to spend time with him before he leaves but I'm sad he's leaving. My mom got her Skype account set up last night and we taught her how to use it so she can talk to Erin and her daughter, Becca. It was so fun to see them! I'm pretty sure that Skype is going to be a major help Jeff and I get through this deployment!! Thank you Skype creator! :)

One last thing.. Oscar loves his girls. I say the word "girls" and he goes nuts!! The girls could be many little girls because Gigi & Renee Farnet are the "girls" too but Oscar knows that when I say the word that he is going to see my mom's dogs. She has 2 westies that are his size and they were all raised together so they play HARD. Oscar was spending his days on the couch sleeping at our apartment and now he's running around chasing them all day long. Luckily they were worn out or taking a break and I managed to get them all together on one of the chairs to take a picture! They are all still fairly young so they play like puppies most of the time. Lexie is the smallest and the old lady of the group, she is 4, Sophie is the biggest and the baby of the group, she is 2, and Oscar is right in between them at 3. They definitely keep us entertained in the morning by waking us up right after my mom goes to work. Ok, no more rambling, here is the picture!


Lexie is on the top of the chair and Sophie is on the bottom next to Oscar.
(sorry for the crappy picture quality, my cell phone didn't like the lighting.)

Oh and in case you were wondering, Oliver is doing well and kicking like crazy! I go on Tuesday to get my checkup on him but here is the normal weekly info.

Baby Facts
Oliver is now approximately measuring 15.5 inches long and weighing 3 pounds.

Big news for baby's brain this week: It's starting to wrinkle and fold and looks like something that grew in the back of your fridge. This is due to the rapid growth of your little genius's brain cells. Fingernails and toenails are finally finished! Plus, the bone marrow is completely in charge of red-blood-cell production now. Baby is starting to shed his lanugo—the downy hair that was covering his skin. Now that he's chubbier and better able to regulate his body temp, he doesn't need to sport a fur coat 24/7. When your baby is awake, his eyes are now wide open and he's whittling away the hours looking around, checking out his rather dark, limited environs.

Alright, enough for this week's update! I may start posting more often but shorter posts just so it is easier but I'm not totally sure.

Pregnant: Week 28

So we woke up early yesterday morning to drive to Tulsa so we could go see our little man on the last 3D ultrasound. Before we left I stopped at Krispy Kreme and got donuts in hopes that I could eat some sugary goodness and he would wake up and be super active at the ultrasound instead of sleeping like he has done in the past. So we get almost to Tulsa and I ate 2 donuts and had 1/2 a gatorade and got a little sugar-buzz and he wasn't very active still!!  The ultrasound turned out 10 times better than the previous times we went but the results weren't as good as some people get. He currently is doubled over with his feet in front of his face. You may be able to make out part of his leg in the picture and definitely can see them in the ultrasound video.

If you want to see the actual ultrasound video you can click this link and download the video.. I think it's a pretty big file but it's pretty cool to see an actual baby with chunky cheeks instead of just a little skeleton like on the regular ultrasound at the doctor's office. LINK: http://www.anticipationbabyview.com/AUSTUL/Baby1009181045.asf

Anyway, here are a few of the pictures.. enjoy!

Pregnant: Week 27

Doctor Appt Info
There is no doctors appointment this week. We go for our final 3D ultrasound this Saturday and hopefully he cooperates- fingers crossed! I will get those pictures up ASAP!

Baby Facts
Oliver is now approximately measuring 15 inches long and weighing 2 pounds.

Baby's lungs and immune system are maturing this week as baby prepares for his grand entrance. If he were born today he would have an 85% chance of surviving as his lungs are capable of breathing air (with medical assistance, of course).

Life Happens
The next 2 weeks are going to be a little crazy but I will try to keep up to date. Jeff and I are going to be packing and moving. I'm moving in with my mom while Jeff is deployed and we have to be out by Sunday the 26th. And then to top things off Jeff leaves the first weekend of October for drill and then he will be gone for the year on his deployment. And then the craziness begins with the baby preparations and baby showers and I double up on doctor appointments! Busy, busy, busy!

It's official.. I have a waddle.

Jeff and I just went for a walk with Oscar to get the mail at the clubhouse and it's obvious now. It's good for a laugh or two.

THE END.