Week 34

We have made it to week 34! The baby is now just shy of 18 inches long, a foot and a half, or to put it another way, the height of an American Girl doll (let's hope she doesn't ever find out about those things!). She weighs about 5 pounds (the website I get my info from says "5 pounds, about the weight of a 5 pound bag of sugar." I thought that was pretty far from creative, so I didn't include that in the picture portion haha). The lanugo (or baby fur, as I call it) is almost completely gone and she is now starting to coat in a cream cheesey-substance. She is also starting to develop her own immune system this week, which is probably a good thing because obviously mine needs a little boost.

We had our 34 week check up today and got another "all is great" report. I have gained about a pound since our last visit, which brings me to 15 or 16 pounds total I think so far. Her heartbeat was strong at 150 bpm. The best news of all was that we found out she is in the right position she needs to be in for the big day -- chillin' head first. I was thinking she was turning around this weekend, as I was getting a lot of pressure from new places Saturday night. We also found out she is measuring SLIGHTLY bigger than normal, which of course Travis and I hope means she's a couple days ahead of schedule, but he said it could mean we might have to start watching for the possibility of a big baby. He assured us it's still a little too soon to know much on the size for sure.

As we left, Travis made the comment that it very much felt like the beginning of a finale at this appointment, and I had to agree. We scheduled all the rest of our appointments right up until the due date, he said next time we come we're going to talk to Barb about final preparations, and it just now feels like it's really starting to come to a close.

I've never wanted something to speed up and slow down quite like this pregnancy. I'm making a conscious effort to savor the good moments -- the fun times when we see a little foot or poke her in the butt when she sticks it out, the weekend mornings where we can wake up, look at the clock, and sleep for another 2 hours with just the two of us and some sleepy cats at our feet, and Travis's 11 p.m. talks with my belly when he gets home from work. But the excitement is definitely building up more and more strongly on the flip-side: the realization that we are going to get to hold and kiss our little girl in just a few short weeks. That thought alone is simply amazing, and it is the thought that I hold onto at 3 a.m. when I'm up with heart burn or peeing for the 2nd or 3rd time that night.

There are some days where I couldn't feel less prepared. Then moments later I'll feel like I'm finally getting ready to do something I was always meant to do. The only thought that remains constant is that regardless with Travis, our families, and our friends by my side, this is going to be the most amazing journey.