Pregnancy Weight Gain (& Loss)

Confession time... I gained 59 lbs while I was pregnant with Henry.

My midwife encouraged me not to worry about it - and to try and remember that it was taking me 9 months to gain that weight, so it was reasonable to assume it will take me 9 months to lose it.

It's been 9 weeks and I'm down 39 lbs. I still have 20 lbs to go before I'm back to my pre-Henry weight. As frustrating as it has been to be stuck in yoga pants the last 9 weeks, I've been amazed at the transformation my body has made so quickly. 9 weeks ago I could barely sit up in bed or walk to the bathroom without help, 6 weeks ago I could barely walk a mile without pain and now I'm back at the gym and able to work out at a good pace! I'm starting to feel comfortable in my own skin and really, that's all I can ask for at this point. I know the weight will continue to come off, and one day my clothes will fit again :)

In the meantime, yoga pants and dresses it is!

Henry's Birth Story, Part 1

Warning: I'm not going to gloss over all of the gross stuff. So read at your own risk.

My due date was June 14th. As soon as I hit the 37 week mark, I started hoping Henry would make his debut. Of course, I knew it was much more likely that he would arrive late - so I wasn't holding my breath. I just knew that I was huge, uncomfortable, and really ready to not be pregnant anymore. I was measuring a tiny bit ahead of schedule, but not by much. Plus, I was anxious to start maternity leave.

So... Last Thursday was a normal work day for me. I felt fine all day, just my usual pregnancy discomforts. I left work early for an appointment with my midwife. There were no indications that I would be having this baby anytime soon.

After my appointment, I ran errands. I stopped by Jiffy Lube, the daycare, and then I went and got a pedicure. When I got home, Jon was out running. That night, Jon and I made BBQ pizza for dinner and went to bed early since I hadn't been sleeping well because of my hips. We ended up sleeping in our guest room. I had hoped the firmer bed would help my hips feel better.

Around 2:00am I woke up to go to the bathroom for the 2nd or 3rd time that night. As I was crawling back into bed, my water broke. I wasn't sure if I had just wet my pants or if it was my water, but since I had just went pee, I figured it was amniotic fluid.

I rushed back into the bathroom to make sure I wasn't crazy. The water just kept coming out and I knew for sure at that point that it was really happening. I checked the water to make sure it was clear, put on a pad, put a towel in bed, and tried to fall back asleep.

Around 3:00am, I still hadn't fallen back to sleep, so I finally woke Jon to tell him what had happened. Once I convinced him that I wasn't about to give birth, seeing as how contractions still hadn't started, he insisted we read up on what happens when the bag of waters break. The books we grabbed all said the same thing... Contractions should start within a couple hours.

At that point, I convinced Jon to go back to bed. I wanted him to get as much sleep as possible, since I had no clue how long my labor would be. I went downstairs to send some emails and eat breakfast.

At 4:00am, my contractions started in full force. Right away the contractions were about 45 seconds long and 3-5 minutes apart. After about an hour of ignoring the contractions, I went and laid down in one of the labor positions Jon and I had practiced. Jon rubbed my back while I relaxed through each contraction. At 6:00am, I had Jon call the midwife. After only 2 hours of labor at home, I knew it was time to head to the birth center.

Baby Henry is Here

Henry Lando Hunt made his debut at 1:37pm on Friday, June 1st. He weighed in at 9lbs, 5.5oz and 21 inches long.

We're all doing well, just resting and recovering at home.

I'll write my birth story soon :) I can't wait to share how everything went.

Week 38

I'm getting less and less sleep these days thanks to excruciating hip pain anytime I lay down.

Last night I spent hours stretching/pacing the house/trying to find a comfortable position to sit or lay in. I ended up sleeping in a recliner - but only for a couple hours before it got too uncomfortable. After the misery of last night, I think a visit to my chiropractor is in order. Hopefully he can work his magic and make it possible to sleep for at least a few hours in a row...

I had a check up with my midwife today and my belly is measuring right at 39 centimeters. Let's hope that means Henry will be coming soon. My poor body can't take much more!

Week 37

Yesterday was 37 weeks - which means I am now considered full term. Henry could be making his grand entrance anytime between now and the end of June.

When I went to the midwife on Tuesday, my belly was measuring at 37.5 centimeters - so either I have a very large baby, Henry is coming sooner rather than later, or both.

24 Days!

Only 24 days until my official due date.
Only 20 days until my unofficial but more accurate due date. 

Week 36

36 Weeks

Jon and I just finished ordering the remaining baby items we need - a few mattress pads, sheets, cloth diapers, etc. I'm really pumped about the diapers. I got one package from Amazon yesterday and hopefully the rest will arrive today or tomorrow. It's exciting to be putting the finishing touches on the nursery and having everything set up and ready to go for the arrival of our son. The last thing we need to do is finish packing our bags for the birth center. We already have Henry's bag packed and the car seats installed :) Although I just remembered I need to add a hat for him!

37 weeks marks full term - so assuming I don't go into early labor, I could be having this baby anytime between next week and the last week of June! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for sooner rather than later, mostly because I'm down to 2 maternity dresses that fit and I'm not sure how much longer I can get away with wearing the same thing to work every day. Also, I'm anxious to meet my baby. Also, I'm REALLY anxious to not be pregnant anymore!

In case you're wondering, I currently have 5 patches of stretch marks. Thankfully none are right on my stomach, but I do have one on each hip, a few boob marks, and a really pretty one on my inner thigh. I know they'll fade, but yuck, they are super ugly right now! 

I'm really looking forward to wrapping up and work and having 6 weeks off to spend with my baby. I know that time is going to fly by! I've been "nesting" at work and organizing my office, preparing for the time away.

One Month Countdown!

Henry dropped over the weekend, so now I have a baby sitting much lower in my belly. While the dropped baby is good for things like breathing, it makes simple tasks like walking up the stairs that much harder.

I'm trying not to complain too much about how my pregnancy is going. At the same time, I feel obligated to write it down so in a few years when I start thinking about babies again, I can remind myself how much I hated being pregnant. It's just crazy how much your body changes and everything feels so out of control. The weight gain, the need to pee, the difficulty walking, the constant pain in my hips/tailbone, and the inability to stay asleep for more than a few hours at a time are just the tip of the iceberg! 

Today is exactly one month from my due date (6-14-12). I am now taking bets on when the baby will actually be born :) My vote is for June 2nd.

Week 35

Only 5 weeks to go!

Week 34

Sorry for the shirtless shot, it's the only one I took this week.

Week 33

Week 32

Wow.

I just keep thinking that it's impossible for me to get any more pregnant. There is no room left in my belly! My stomach is stretched so tightly (and it's HUGE), there's a baby up in my ribcage 90% of the time, and I am becoming more and more immobile. Jon has to put my socks on for me in the morning!

Thankfully, I've escaped the pregnancy heartburn and (for the most part) constipation. However, my feet are super swollen and the insomnia is starting to set in. This morning I woke up at 5:45 and couldn't fall back to sleep, so I actually got out of bed and showered. If only I could get up that easily the rest of the time!

People are starting to ask if I'm ready for the baby to get here. I'm definitely ready to not be pregnant. I'm also ready to meet my son. Am I ready to be a mom for the rest of my life? Nope. I'll be taking that one day at a time. Jon and I finally bought a car seat, so at least we can take our baby home from the birth center. However, we're still missing things like a stroller, pack-n-play, etc. Hopefully we'll get a few more items as gifts and then the last couple weeks we'll buy the rest. 

Only 56 days until my due date.

 

Week 30 & Week 31

Yikes! I missed a week (almost two) of posting. Here are my latest photos.

 Week 30

Week 31

I swear I look smaller this week than I did last week. Well really, two weeks ago. I'll be 32 weeks on Thursday. It's hard to believe that Henry will be here in less than two months! We're only 58 days away from our due date.

In case you're wondering, as of my last weigh-in, I've gained 36 lbs. It's a bummer having a baby right at the beginning of the summer, because the one time of year I usually want to show a lot of skin... well, I'll have a lot of skin to show but I'll be wanting to keep it covered up! 

Also, I got this step stool as a gift from my office last week. Cute, right? 

Week 29

29 Weeks. 

Week 28

Week 28

I just upgraded my maternity shirts from size S to size M. Here's hoping I don't need a size L by the end of this.

Week 27

Week 27

I'm officially in my third trimester, with just under three months left to go! It's crazy how fast time is flying by now.

Week 26

Week 26

(Don't you just love the sunshine streaming in? It was gorgeous outside yesterday!)

Week 25

Week 25 (taken on Saturday)

Pregnancy Crack.

Week 24

Week 24