37 Weeks

I'm sorry for not keeping everyone better informed on my pregnancy updates. Here's the latest from this week (beware, long post ahead...).

I am 37 weeks along and have gained 20 pounds total (I lost 1 pound from last week). Ever since I've been off work, I've been feeling MUCH better. My contractions have really slowed down and I haven't had many other symptoms to speak of. Tuesday night, I woke up from a sound sleep having uncomfortable contractions every 3 minutes apart. I thought it might be early labor, but after a couple hours the contractions went away. Figures! I saw my ob/gyn this week and am still sitting at 2 centimeters dilated with no other progress to report. After some discussion, she proposed that we set a date for induction. But first, she wanted to get an update on the baby's growth.

So I went in for my weekly biophysical profile today and they also did a growth scan at the same time. The growth scan just measures the baby's size in various areas to estimate her overall growth and well-being. Her head measured 60th percentile, her abdomen was 30th, and her arms/legs are still measuring very short at below the 5th/2nd percentiles. Overall these measurements average to about 27th percentile, so that means that the baby is maintaining a consistent growth curve and is therefore doing well. Her estimated weight at this point is 6 lbs, 6 oz.

One more comment about today's appointment: I noticed the sonographer was spending a LOT of time looking at the baby's brain and heart. I began to feel very nervous, worrying that she might have detected some issue. I immediately closed my eyes and began to pray. The on-call doctor came in to discuss the findings with me, but thankfully he didn't have anything new to share. He just wanted to talk to me about the baby's short arm/leg measurements and how these might be related to the baby's 2-vessel umbilical cord. I was extremely relieved that no other issues were detected. And of course, Down syndrome is still a possibility but I am so thankful that no DS related medical issues have been discovered despite the numerous ultrasounds we've had throughout this pregnancy (many Down syndrome infants are born with heart or other organ issues).

So now that we know the baby is still doing well, we officially have a date for her delivery! I will be induced on Sunday, June 14th which is just a little over a week away! I have to admit, now that I know the date, I've been feeling much more motivated to get things accomplished before her arrival. And I'm also really taking advantage of these last days on my own while Connor is still in daycare. My priority everyday is to rest because I know I won't have much opportunity for that once the baby is here!