31 weeks

No 31 week comparison photo, we must have slacked off this week last time.

This week I had a busy week of 12 hour clinicals and then jetted off to Denver for a short but very fun visit with Lisa, Will and baby Aldus. My life has been a total whirlwind the last several months and it is all culminating with graduating next week. So the trip to Denver really sneaked up on me and I found myself lying on my bed with my aching feet propped up on pillows while Patrick packed for me (a first!), then I passed out in the same position (I had just worked a 12 hour shift) and didn't move until my alarm went off at 5am the next morning letting me know it was time to hurry to catch my flight to CO. It was a super fun, relaxing trip and although I missed little Piper and Patrick a lot, it was great to just veg and sleep in and sit on the couch and watch someone else take care of a baby. :)

Speaking of babies, this little baby is starting to feel very low. A few times during walks around Lisa's neighborhood I felt like I had to hold on to the lower part of my tummy because I feel like I have a bowling ball rolling around in my pelvis. I'm getting lots of Braxton-Hicks and the flight attendant on my flight home took me aside to ask exactly when I'm due. I definitely don't think I look big enough to be questioned, but I thought it was pretty funny.

Current names on our chalkboard:

Boys:

Rexford, Ryder, Patrick, Oliver, Banyan, River, Sebastian, Jude, Milo

Girls:

Matilda (Tilly), Margot, Margaret, Josephine (Josie), Sadie, Hazel, Olivia, Marley, Viola (Patrick put this one back up), Cecilia, Charlotte

New symptoms are swollen ankles after 12 hours on my feet and when I was walking around Denver with Lisa my hands/fingers were swelling up like little sausages. Also, I can tell a difference in my breathing and it feels like the baby is constricting my lungs a bit, but that doesn't make much sense since I feel like the baby is down low. I guess I'm just outta shape. :)

Just for fun: Here is a pic of Aldus, who should be nicknamed Freakish Baby Who Never Cries and Is Always Happy and Can Be Plopped On The Floor And Ignored for 10+ Minutes and He Is Still Happy and Greets You With a Smile When You Come Back To Get Him. This photo was taken during his first official solid food meal. He reacted to solid foods like a hungry baby bird who hadn't eaten for days.

30 weeks

Wow, this feels like the final countdown is starting. 30 weeks is like, a lot pregnant. Very much pregnant. I could theoretically have this baby during a week that starts with a 3 and ends with a 8 or 9.

At our appointment this week the baby was still in transverse position and the midwife gave us a very nonchalant, no big-deal, no need to worry update that hey, the baby has been hanging out in that position for awhile and why don't we start working on getting him/her to move to a better position. Of course this freaked me out and now I am constantly doing cat cow position or sitting on my birth ball or doing pelvic rocks. We still have PLENTY of time, but it dawned on me just how comfy this little one has been in that position and I need to shake things up a bit to get them all comfy and head down.

I'm currently weighing in at 140 (22 pounds) and I just got my first taste of ankle swelling. I had zero swelling with Piper, but apparently 12 hour shifts + God awful summer heat + pregnancy = swelling. It's nothing bad at all and a few hours after I prop my feet up it is pretty much gone.

Patrick and I ask each other often "Right now, what are you thinking the baby is?" And the past few times I've said I think its a boy. Not for ANY particular reason, I have just been having a boy vibe lately. This is crazy to me because a) I would love for Piper to have a sister, 2) I really can't fathom having a little boy d) Boys are still an anomaly in our family.

p.s.- I really loathe blogger. I will try for 20 minutes to straighten my photos or take out an extra space between paragraphs and it never lets me. So all the times it looks like I just slapped a post on my blog and ignored the fact that photos don't line up or that there is a gigantic gap in the middle of the page - really I cussed and fought it and eventually just gave up and posted the dang thing.