I’m hitting 32 weeks today and the countdown clock says 56 days to go until my due date. Not that it hasn’t felt “real” the whole time but getting inside of the 2 month mark is bringing so many thoughts and feels to the forefront of my mind and heart.

Attending child birth classes has made the fact that I’m actually going to birth this baby…and soon…feel very real and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about it. But what I’m even more nervous about than childbirth is becoming someone’s mom. I have so many questions running through my head around “am I going to be a good mom?” It’s also really making me stop and think about how I show up in the world and things about myself that I’d like to continue working on so that I can model better for him.

I’m also thinking so much about what it’s going to feel like to hold him for the first time, what he’s going to look like and what his little personality will be like. I honestly feel like my mind is pretty consumed with all things baby at this point in pregnancy. Early in pregnancy I wanted to learn as much as I could about pregnancy and now I’m so baby focused. I just can’t imagine what life will be like with him in it…all I can say right now is that I can’t wait to find out.

32 WEEKS PREGNANCY UPDATE

Baby is likely weighing in somewhere around 3-4 pounds and measures 15-17 inches. Once again, I’m not on board with the squash comparison unless it’s one of those super giant summer squashes that overgrow in people’s gardens. Ha.

Here’s baby G’s milestones for the week!

• Lanugo, the soft later of downy hair on his skin, starts to fall off this week and will continue to until birth.
• Baby’s movements might start to become less forceful as he gets more crowded in there (nope, not yet!).
• Baby is likely settled into head down position (check! please stay that way buddy!).
• Digestive system is all ready to go.
• Baby’s bones are still soft but hardening in prep for birth.

HOW I’M FEELING AT 32 WEEKS PREGNANT

In a word, pregnant.

Weight gain/body changes: 18 pounds gained. One noticeable body change is that my nipples have darkened and I read something in The Bump app that it’s so a preemie can see them for breastfeeding. That’s a crazy thought! (Keep cooking baby boy.) I said this last week but you can really see my veins so much more, especially in my breasts and belly. My Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy book says this is due to the increased blood that the body produces in pregnancy combined with the heart pumping it faster to move it all through the body.

Workouts/workout modifications: this mama is slowing down. Here is what I did last week…

Tuesday: rest
Wednesday: hatha yoga practice (very gentle, very slow)
Thursday: this strength workout (this was my “big” workout for the week)
Friday: 50-minute walk
Saturday: hot yoga
Sunday: 40-minute walk
Monday: rest

Oh my goodness y’all…these days a 3-mile walk feels like a 5-mile run!

Symptoms: 

• I’m getting really tired again. Yesterday I took a rest day from working out and spent most of the day sitting and working. Even still, when I got to the couch last night I remarked to Tanner how physically exhausted I was. He reminded me, “you’re growing a human!”
• Night sweats.
• Sometimes I get some pelvic pain when I stand up from a sitting position but it goes away pretty quickly. From what I’ve read, the bones in the pelvis start to spread/relax later in pregnancy and this isn’t uncommon. It’s not anything intense but I can definitely feel it from time-to-time!
• I don’t know that this is a “symptom” but things like rolling over in bed and sitting up from a lying on my back in bed or on the couch are getting challenging. I feel like I have NO core strength. And forget me being able to demo most anything to my yoga students these days. It’s comical to even try! I’ve been using students and other teachers to demo things.
• Slow digestion but increased hunger. Not a fun combo! Definitely doing more snacking these days.

Food aversions/cravings: nothing new to report here. Protein for me is mostly chicken or turkey. Not a lot of interest in seafood or red meat. Still loving salt and vinegar chips, pineapple, smoothies, grilled cheese, pizza, kombucha and granola/cereal. Still doing better with veggies!

Nursery progress: we’ve been working on the nursery! I’m admittedly a terrible decorator so it’s been a little stressful for me but we’re figuring it out. Once again, it’s also hard because we’re in a rental so while we’re making some changes, we’re not making too many. There are things like the carpet that I’d love to change but obviously am not going to!

Here’s what’s left to do for the nursery:

• Hang art (and probably order a few more things or do some shelving).
• Get some sort of piece to go by the glider or under the window for things like white noise machine, salt lamp, drinks, etc. (Guessing I’ll be sitting there a lot…).
• Install ceiling fan (it came in today).
• Repaint trim (my amazing painter is going to do that). We were going to try to live with the existing trim but it’s just bad and looks so yellow against the clean white walls so…
• Keep working on closet organization.
• Order a floor lamp.
• Crib mattress and bedding.

Reading/listening to: I listen to The Birth Hour podcast all the time. I love hearing other women’s birth stories and it’s been SO helpful for me to hear a variety of different stories. I also enjoy The Birthful Podcast and liked this episode on newborn sleep. I’m actually thinking of signing up for a Birthful Course called “Thrive with Your Newborn.”

I ordered Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth and it came in today. From what I’ve heard, it’s one of the best resources for preparing for birth. On the topic of birth, many of you commented on my 31 Week Pregnancy Post that you recommend that I stay open-minded around the topic of hoping for an unmedicated or intervention-free birth. I’ve stated this before but just want to say again that I TOTALLY am staying open-minded. In no way do I want to set myself up to feel like any aspect of my birth experience was a failure nor would I ever risk the health of my baby or myself if medical intervention was recommended or necessary. Or I might just decide that I do want pain relief and that’s okay too!

That said, I do think it’s important to educate yourself around birth options and to have preferences. It’s not a plan, but it’s a preference. I’ve never given birth so again, I am terrified, but I’m also really trying to prepare myself the best that I can for doing this without medication or intervention if that’s in the cards for me. I had a long talk with Tanner about it last night and he is super supportive no matter how I choose to labor and birth, he said it’s my body and he will support me fully and enthusiastically regardless.

Fun shares: 

• I’m having so much fun going through the hand me down baby clothes that we’ve received and this sweet newborn outfit made my heart melt!
• I had a REALLY wild dream a few nights ago that when we brought the baby home from the hospital the first night he slept all night. In my dream I woke up in a panic that I needed to feed him and when Tanner brought him to me I looked down and was nursing a kitten. WHAT!? Definitely not birthing a cat. Haha.
• I wasn’t sure if my family would be able to make it for my smaller family/friends baby shower and I just found out this week that my mom will be here along with my aunt and my cousin. Yay! My mom is staying for a few weeks after and helping me get ready for baby.
• Next week in our child birth class we are going over newborn care. I actually haven’t spent a ton of time around babies or caring for babies. I was never a big baby sitter growing up. I honestly can probably count on one hand the number of diapers I’ve changed in my life. I think Tanner has more experience than I do! Oh and I am certified in infant and child CPR through the annual training I do for group exercise.

QUESTIONS

Your feedback on what to pack in the hospital bag was BEYOND helpful. Thank you. Here are this week’s questions! 🙂

Anyone else not have a ton of “baby” experience before baby? Did you find that it came naturally or how did you learn the ropes? 

How did you feel going into your first childbirth experience and becoming a mom? Were you also scared/anxious? Did anything help? 

Diaper bags. Let me have your recommendations! What do/did you use? Did your partner/husband have one as well? (I’m clueless about these things.) 

Did you find nursing-specific bras/tanks to be helpful or did you just do the pull up and feed technique? I have friends who have done both. Any recommendations here and favorite nursing bra/tanks if you’re a fan?