87.5% Cooked

We're getting down to the nitty gritty here and getting super excited about it! We are officially 35 Weeks & 1 Day along.

Last weekend, we made our last trip up to Lake Wales, until after Riley makes her debut. It was a nice weekend and we spent it doing some last minute things in preparation for Ms. Riley. Our room now looks like a crib storage, as we now have 2 cribs and a changing table, among our furniture. We did it this way so that the second room can remain the guest, or bunk room. I meant to take a picture, but forgot to. Imagine that! Other than that, we took our normal rides and David helped friends of ours do some drywall work in their new place. As always, the weekend went by too fast and we were sad to come home.

I saw the Hematologist last week and he is not at all concerned with my Anemia. After reviewing my labs, he said it wasn't bad, so we will remain status quo for now. I am to continue on the iron supplement, in addition to my prenatal. I have a follow up appointment in 2-1/2 weeks where he will do another test to monitor my levels. I am also making a personal sacrifice and eating red meat and other iron-rich foods as much as I possibly can. It's not that I am totally against red meat, I just prefer white meat.

My weekly pregnancy email from TheBump.com reminded me that this is the week that I should pack our hospital bags, so I guess I'll do that. You never know what can happen. With Tyler, I waited until 38 weeks, but since we're scheduled for delivery at 39 Weeks & 2 Days, my timeline is cut a little short this time around. In fact, 4 weeks from tomorrow, Riley will be here!!!!

Mommy and Riley updates this week are general, since my next appointment isn't until next week (Doc is on vacation this week). From then on, until "D Day", they will be weekly visits. Still, I am feeling great and Riley is still as active as ever (but running out of wiggle room!). Last night she gave me a jab to some organ on the left side (kidney, maybe?) that made me jump. It was painful, but only for that second. It kind of made me chuckle a bit since I was the only one in the Living Room and I thought to myself, if that were to happen in public and someone would have seen me jump like I did, they probably would have thought "what the "F" is wrong with that woman?" HA! We're looking forward to a busy next couple of weekends with Stef & Jarrett's Engagement Party, Ember's FIRST Birthday and the 2nd Annual Robinson Retreat! These next 4 weeks are going to fly!!! Also, congrats to the Spencer Family on the birth of their baby boy, Layne, this morning! And so it goes...

Our Little Honeydew

Perhaps it's just me, but this pregnancy seems to have been the fastest on record. (I say that with all 20 extremities crossed, hoping that the last couple of weeks don't drag on and on and on.) As of today, I am 34 weeks, 1 day along and 5 Weeks from tomorrow, Riley will be in our arms. My C-Section has been scheduled with the hospital for August 24th, 2010. Therefore, we will be the proud parents of 2 Virgos. That is, if she doesn't decide that her debut should be sooner than that.

The Braxton Hicks contractions that I've been experiencing have been crazy. With Tyler, I didn't have them until around 38 Weeks (Doc says I did, I just didn't recognize them) so when I started experiencing them around 30 weeks, I was a little taken back by them. I can literally sit and watch my stomach contract, which is crazy, not to mention the fact that they are very painful. When I had them with Tyler, they were very mild and did not stop me in my tracks. These do. So, at my last checkup, I consulted with my Doc about this and he said it is very common and normal for the second pregnancy. Phew!!!! He also warned me that the healing contractions that I will experience while nursing will be much more painful this time around. Oh, joy!!!! As if nursing isn't painful enough in the first month, or so. Again, while nursing Tyler, the healing contractions were mild and not painful at all. On the upside, Doc said that the surgery recovery will be much easier this time around, although, I didn't think it was bad at all with Tyler, so that's surely something to look forward to. So, basically, I'm just supposed to keep an eye on the contractions and make sure they're not too frequent.

On to other topics (and I know I'm going to jinx myself now)...

I'm feeling great. I still have plenty of energy, which I need in order to keep up with Tyler. I still wash my truck and mow the lawn on a weekly basis, which most people call me crazy for. You should see the looks on some of my neighbor's faces when I'm out there in my bikini pushing a mower. Last week was the best. As I was mowing, I got caught in a rainstorm that I thought I could beat. Not so much! I didn't stop and was drenched by the time the lawn was done. Upside, it felt soooooo good! All of the NB clothes, blankets, burp clothes, etc. are washed and loaded in the dresser. The bassinet is set up in our room and the car seat will be in the car this week. Nesting has begun (although, personally, I think I'm a full-time "Nester").

My stats at my last checkup were all great, with one exception....Anemia. Weight gain at 34 weeks was 34 lbs, fundus height was 32cm, Riley's heart rate was 150bpm and my BP was 116/68. I got an A+ in those categories. Riley (per my fundus height) is still in the "average" size range, as the fundus is typically supposed to be consistent with the gestational week. She is about the size of a honeydew at this point. As for the anemia, I am borderline anemic without being pregnant, so pregnancy just makes it worse. 50% of all pregnant women develop anemia during pregnancy due to the additional amount of red blood cells required to distribute oxygen to their body and to baby. Therefore, I am to be on an iron supplement, in addition to my prenatal vitamin, as well as see as Hematologist starting next week, just to monitor it until delivery. I had to do the same when I was pregnant with Tyler. As most know, women lose A LOT of blood during and after childbirth, so it's important to make sure blood counts are good before childbirth, so no postpartum complications develop.

Sleep is still OK. I usually have no problem falling asleep and I only wake once a night for a potty break. It's at that point that I may have an issue getting comfortable again, but it usually doesn't take long before I am back to sleep.

Other than that, all is well and we're busy preparing to our little girl's arrival. I still haven't experienced any swelling in my hands or feet, but I didn't with Tyler either, so maybe that will be consistent with this one.

I'll leave you with 2 departing photos, which show the belly from the 8 week mark and the 34 week Baby Bump. The female body is truly amazing!!!!!!!!