From the Peanut Gallery- Week 34: The Cantaloupe

So THAT'S why it feels like I'm carrying a bowling ball around on my bladder.  Cantaloupe, bowling ball- who can really tell the difference?

Current Stats:
Weight: -2 lbs
Waist: + 9 inches
Baby Appointments: Only 4 more to go!
Days Until Due Date: 36

Well, friends, I just returned from my most recent ultrasound and baby appointment.  Turns out, this pregnancy is completely perfect and uneventful, after all!

We started with the ultrasound.  I was so excited to get another peek at my little man- and my fingers were crossed that I didn't have to start referring to him as my big boy!  Alas, I DO NOT.  Gabe is currently only in the 31st percentile for weight (who knew they kept track of that kind of stuff for fetuses, right??).  He's weighing in right at 5 lbs now.  So my fear of an extra-large baby was unfounded!  (At least for right now.)

My fluid levels were also perfect.  Turns out, I must just have a big uterus, as I was still measuring two weeks ahead today.  But absolutely no worries.  Gabe looks perfect.  He is head down now, which is also good news!  My fears of a breech baby and an automatic c-section were also eased.

My favorite part?  He has hair.  We could see it on the screen.  I'm not sure why this is so exciting to me, but it is!  J was born with a full head of hair...I was bald until I was three.  So it could have gone either way!  But somehow knowing that he has hair makes him more of a real baby, and less of a fetus.

The doctor said that if I were to go into labor right now, no one would try and stop it.  At his weight, he'd be good to go on the outside.  We'll still hope for at least another couple of weeks, so that we can make it to that magical "full term" number (and ensure that his lungs are fully mature), but I've essentially been given the green light to deliver a healthy, happy, bouncing baby boy!  (Which, by the way, was confirmed one more time today- definitely a boy!)

Here are the few pictures that we got to take away from today's appointments.  It was much more difficult to see much of anything today, as Gabe is so big in there!  But try your best to decipher what you're seeing- even the nurse I saw today needed help to figure out what she was looking at!

A profile shot of Gabe's face.  See his nose and lips sticking up?

He's looking right at us.  You can see a shadow of an eye, his nose, and an open mouth.  LOVE this picture.

In other news, we've been busy preparing little things here and there in anticipation of Gabe's arrival.  We are TRULY ready for him to come anytime now!

Not what I'm used to using my stove top for!  Pacifiers are sterilized and ready to be popped into screaming baby's mouth.

Look what I've got in my back seat!  J has a base installed in his, as well.  We took a field trip to the fire station this weekend to make sure everything was installed safely and correctly.

I don't have a belly shot this week...but I have ultrasound pictures!  That's gotta count for something, right??

Until next week!