Pregnancy Update - Week 32: Engage Full time nesting mode!

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Welcome to the next instalment in my pregnancy journey. I'm nearing the end of my 9 month journey (this is equal parts terrifying and exciting) and these posts are a way for me to capture these memories and share my experience. 

I hope you enjoy following along!

HOW FAR ALONG:

32 weeks a.k.a 8 months (eeek!)

SIZE/FOOD COMPARISON:

My little girl is on the larger end of the scale, and has been for a little while now. My gynae estimates her weight at about 2.7k's (pretty frightening considering she has about 8 weeks of growing still to do!).

I'm not sure the generic food comparisons are quite right anymore for our 'little' one hehe

WEIGHT GAIN:

I'm not sure what's happened over the last month, but either the scale is lying to me, or need to accept the reality...I've gained a total of 15kg's so far. Seeing as our bundle is on the bigger side too, perhaps my body is wanting to make sure she doesn't feel so out of place when she arrives ;)

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BABY BUMP:

Well no one is going to confuse my belly with anything but a baby bump now. It seems that everybody loves a pregnant lady, and I get all sorts of smiles and happy faces and well wishes from strangers wherever I go.

Those smiles never ceases to leave me feeling happy.

MOVEMENT:

Goodness me has she been kicking up a fuss lately. I actually cried out in the mall the other day after she gave me the biggest kick yet, and then hastily had to reassure the people around me that, no, I wasn't going into labor, and yes, I was okay.

EXERCISE:

Still loving my Pilates, and try to stick to my twice weekly schedule. Although, I have been struggling for the past 2 weeks with her pushing my stomach and lungs around, often leaving me breathless and like I'm going to regurgitate my lunch.

SLEEP:

Sleep for the past few weeks hasn't been great at all. I'm up at least twice a night to go to the bathroom, and I have to sleep with 3 pillows...one for my head, one between my knees and one around my tummy. Poor Farmboy is not very pleased about this, as he often wakes up just in time to catch himself from falling out of bed.

CLOTHING:

I've been living in my H&M maternity leggings and my go-to Cherry Melon vest that goes under all my clothes. Luckily the vest ensures I can still wear my pre-preggy tops because it doesn't matter if they creep.

HOW I’M FEELING:

I have been getting the WORST upper back pain for the past 2 weeks. It's one spot, above my right shoulder that aches and aches and aches if I over exert myself. I'm not sure whether I pulled something at some point, but it's been awful. I think it's my body's way of reminding me to take it easy and not over do myself.

I've been for a wonderful full body massage (in case your wondering how it's possible to have a fully body massage when you can't lie on your tummy...basically you're on your back or your side as the therapist does their thing) and I'm going again tomorrow in the hopes that I can get a bit more relief from the pain. A very helpful lady at Clicks also told me I could use DeepHeat spray, which I did yesterday and which did provide a bit of relief. I have also been told to use a hot water bottle/wheaty bag which is safe for baby too. 

My friends and family also threw me the most amazing baby shower a few weeks ago. I was completely blown away by how beautiful everything was, the attention to detail was out of this world and I was left feeling so totally and utterly loved and spoilt. Will be sharing more photos from the day soon.

CRAVINGS/AVERSIONS:

I haven't really had any of the above, although I have been hankering after sushi for the first time in my entire pregnancy. We've never been huge sushi eaters, but for some reason it's been on my mind (and tummy!) a lot lately. Not too long to go until I can really tuck in to some salmon rolls.

I have still been been drinking A LOT of hot lemon tea (boiling water poured over a few slices of lemon and ginger mixed with honey) which has become my staple drink. It really leaves me feeling refreshed and I try to drink a cup on an empty stomach in the morning to give my body a good start.

WHAT I MISS:

  • Sleeping through the night!
  • Not having back pain
  • Sleeping on my stomach
  • Being fully submerged in the bath! Now my belly just pokes out and gets cold, leaving me unable to really relax and enjoy the bath.

NURSERY:

Thanks to the baby shower, our little girl now has just about everything she needs, and we have been putting all the final touches to her room.

I have also been spending the past few days washing all her blankets, nappies (we are going the cloth nappy route!) and towels. It's made my heart fill with such joy to see all the little baby things hanging on the line. Another huge thank you to my Dad and stepmom for spoiling our little girl with so many practical and thoughtful gifts and baby related items.

The moses basket is a family heirloom, and a very special item in the nursery. I can't wait for our little girl to have her turn to sleep where her family have also slept.

Farmboy has put up my framed photographs above the cot.

There are no words to describe how amazing it is seeing your work displayed in printed form. A very big thank you to my wonderful mom for having them printed and framed for me. 

PURCHASES:

Lots of last minute purchases have been happening, the majority of which have been items for my hospital bag. After having so many people ask me whether my hospital bag was packed (it wasn't until just yesterday!) I realised I better get on it pronto. 

Here's a pic of what's inside it so far (full post to come soon):

I also got hospital authorisation from Momentum & booked our bed in our chosen hospital (we are going to Mediclinic in Pietermaritzburg). We had to pop in and sign some documents which meant we were able to have a quick tour of the maternity ward. It was such a special moment, walking around the ward and hearing the soft cries of other babies and meeting the nurses.

Needless to say I was in tears...the happy kind of course!

HUBBY:

Farmboy is patiently waiting for endless afternoons digging in the garden, showing her the cows, chickens and horses, and taking her for long walks around the farm. Here's a lovely photo of us in the place he loves to spend his free time...the veggie garden. Thank you to Julie for the special photo.

We go for our antenatal class this weekend (I managed to find a one day workshop so we don't have to make the big trip to town every week) and I'm so looking forward to attending this with him. I think it's going to really open both our eyes to what's to come. We will also be chatting with the two ladies who run the workshop, one of which is a doula and the other a midwife. We will be asking one of them to be with us for the birth of our baby. Will keep you posted on that.

CAN’T WAIT FOR:

The full reveal of photographs from the maternity shoot I modelled for a few weeks ago!

I organised a collaboration out here on the farm, amongst the aloes, and had an incredible team of creatives join in.

Here are a few sneak peeks of the day from Julie (of Julia Jane Photography & Design): 

A huge thank you to the following people for bringing my maternity shoot ideas to life:

Thanks for reading and following in this next chapter of my life. Click below to read more updates in my pregnancy series, as well as all my other pregnancy related posts:

Until the next update!

Lots of love

x

Pregnancy Update - Week 28 Hello to the third and final Trimester

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HOW FAR ALONG:

28 weeks a.k.a 7 months (eeek the countdown has begun!)

SIZE/FOOD COMPARISON:

My little girl is the size of a cauliflower apparently (41cm) , and according to the WhatToExpect pregnancy app, she weighs 1.1kg.

But here's the thing.

Three weeks ago I went to the Gynae and he said she weighed about 2kg's at that point and definitely commented on how big she was and even gave me a new expected delivery date of nearly 10 days earlier than previously thought based on her weight and size. Considering she has about 3 more months of growing to do, she could be one rather big baby!

Will have to wait and see what Doc says at my next appointment (which is at the end of this week). I'll keep you updated :)

WEIGHT GAIN:

I am rather chuffed to report that I am about the same weight as my last post 3 weeks ago. I have put on about 12kg's so far, but it seems to be holding steady (for the time being at least!)

BABY BUMP:

I don't really feel any bigger than my last update. I am still carrying very neatly (I have been told girls are much kinder on the bod that boys) and haven't seemed to put on any weight in any other areas apart from my expanding belly. I am definitely not as fit or toned as I was pre-pregnancy (I'm going to also blame this on it being Winter) but for the most part my bump is where I am carrying all the extra weight.

MOVEMENT:

I feel her all bumbling around all day, and find that she is particularly active at night, just before going to sleep. Is this an indication of things to come? I hope not!

Her little butterfly kicks are also not just little taps, and I can feel her moving around, turning and generally kicking up a bit of a fuss. It's so sweet!

EXERCISE:

I have been back to Pilates for the last 3 weeks and I feel great! I really missed it while we were away and I can feel how much happier my body is from all the stretching 

SLEEP:

Sleep for me has been a bit up and down over the last 2 weeks. I have been more tired lately. It's like my body instantly changed from second to third trimester, and I now really need my afternoon naps again.

Also, I've been getting really bad sciatica (or hip pain) which may even be round-ligament pain...all of the pains associated with the pulling and stretching that is going on in my body. Because of this, I now HAVE to sleep with a pillow between my knees or else I wake up with terrible aches in my hip bones. Pilates has definitely been helping, and the pillow seems to do the trick too. 

I had fleeting moments of this same pain while in Italy, but I assumed it was because the beds were all so hard.  I think it had nothing to do with the beds and all to do with my ligaments stretching. I'm not sure if you've ever slept on the floor (i.e on the floor with no mattress) while camping etc? And you wake up and need to almost pound the life back into your hips? We often slept on the floor in South Korea (in case your new around these parts...Farmboy and I taught English and lived in South Korea for 4 years before settling on the family farm last year). And so I assumed the pain was due to my spoiled body being used to soft and cushy mattresses...it seems it's just a pregnancy thing.

CLOTHING:

I've been living in baggy tracksuit pants and long sleeve shirts layered with vests and tank tops underneath. I haven't needed to put on anything nice as I haven't been to town in a while (thank goodness I live on a farm and no one minds me looking like I just crawled out of bed).

What I have been loving is my pretty pink poncho from PicknPay clothing! It's so cosy (and not to mention...pretty!) and it's great to layer over long sleeve tops.

HOW I’M FEELING:

I'm definitely not feeling as fantastic as I did in my second trimester. The hip pain, coupled with a few moments of back pain and tiredness have left me feeling a bit down. But, I can't really complain, I've had it so easy to far so a few weeks of discomfort I can put up with.

It's my birthday next week...I'm hoping Farmboy has taken all my hinting and booked me a spa day! Although, it's not easy finding a place that caters for preggy ladies (I can't lie on my stomach and I can't really get a back massage if I'm lying on my back, can I). 

I have been REALLY getting into my crocheting too! Having so much fun making squares and my goal is a big baby blankie. I even managed to finish my first ever crochet project...a teeny tiny little beanie/turban thingy for my little girl.  It was easy to make and the best part is it only took a few hours...Click here for the full tutorial.

CRAVINGS/AVERSIONS:

Haven't had any funny cravings or aversions really. I've been drinking a little more caffeine lately (nothing nicer than a warm cup of coffee while sitting in the sun on the verandah) but I've been limiting myself to 1/2 cup a day.

I have been drinking A LOT of hot lemon tea (boiling water poured over a few slices of lemon and ginger mixed with honey) which has become my staple drink. It really leaves me feeling refreshed and acts as a bit of a detox from all the carbs of Italy.

WHAT I MISS:

  • Lying on my tummy. I am never going to stop missing this!
  • Being able to bend over and paint my toe nails. I did this last week and my gosh it took me an age! I had to contort myself in all sorts of directions so I could remove the polish, file, cut and re-paint. I'm so glad no one was around to see me ;)

NURSERY:

Farmboy has put up our cot (we bought the Cozi Stijl cot from CoziCot in Joburg while it was on special a few months ago) and it has sat in it's box for a good while. It's finally up and I just love it!

PURCHASES:

I picked up my feeding chair a few weeks ago, and got a bit of a shock at it's size. I'm not sure whether I am just really small, or whether the chair is abnormally big!

Here's a picture so you can see just how roomy it is.

feeding chair south african mommy blogger

I'm definitely not complaining as it's incredible comfortable, and the cushion is real down feathers, so I'm sure I'm going to have plenty of naps in there while feeding. I bought it second hand from a lady in Hillcrest and have needed to get it recovered. I will be picking it up on Friday. I'm hoping the fabric I chose for it won't be too dark for the room (I went with a gorgeous dark grey almost velvet fabric) which will suit our home in the future too, after the chair does it's nursery duties.

I just need to get some big pillows for it, and a ottoman/pouffe thingy for my legs (and to help me launch myself into it haha). 

HUBBY:

I'm not sure what else needs to be said that hasn't been captured in this photo:

CAN’T WAIT FOR:

Like I said last time, I'm actually really trying to savour the next few days/weeks/months. I'm trying to really enjoy the quiet days of being in the house, sorting/cleaning/organising things on my own schedule, and I just know thats ALL going to change soon.

I've been trying to be intentional with a few late morning lie ins, and having the time to crochet for hours on end in front of the fire. I'm excited for our next gynae visit this week though, and to hear from him whether little one is still growing at such a rapid rate as she was at our last visit.

Until the next update!

Lots of love

x