30 Weeks Pregnant (Baby #4)

30 Weeks?! Where has the time gone? It feels surreal to think that I'm 7 weeks away from reaching full term status, and 10 weeks away from our due date! Things are becoming more real each week, as we realise that this baby is going to be coming before we know it.

30 Weeks 6 Days PregnantHow Far Along: Recapping week 30. (Picture taken at 30 weeks 6 days pregnant, with our third son deciding to join me (skinned nose and all)). 

How I'm Feeling This Week: Overall, very good. Had three days in a row where I was getting a little tired in the afternoons, so I would stretch out on the couch and put my feet up. I couldn't sleep of course, with the three boys around. Especially since they love to climb on me once I'm sitting or laying down. Or, they like to lay across my belly and use it as their personal pillow.

Toddler on Mommy's Tummy












Braxton Hicks Contractions:
 I had a few strong contractions this week, but mostly just a normal amount.

Aversions: Nothing this week.

Pregnancy Symptoms: 
•bleeding gums when I brush 
•vivid dreams 
•dark hair on my belly 
•light heartburn
•darkened areola
•linea nigra, my belly's "tiger stripe"
•bigger breasts (not as fun as you'd think!)

And, yay (not really), morning sickness made a brief return this week! Weird. I've never had morning sickness in the third trimester before.

Doctor/Midwife Appointment: We had a visit with our midwife this week! I love these visits. Unfortunately, Nick's neck stiffened up so much that he was miserable for 3 days, and he wasn't able to go to my appointment with me. The baby is doing good, and was very active during our visit. Again, we couldn't get an accurate heartbeat, because it would be around 135 BPM, and then while we were listening, the baby would move and the heartbeat would go up into the 170's. For at least the last 3 visits now, we haven't gotten an accurate reading. 

Also, for some reason, while I was laying down, my midwife had a really hard time reading my fundal height. She finally concluded it was at 30cm, which is right on track, or maybe a little small, for where I'm at in the pregnancy right now. 

Blood Sugar Kit for Gestational DiabetesAt this appointment, my midwife rechecked my blood glucose level. It had been an hour since I'd eaten supper (brown rice, vegetables, and chicken), and the reading should have been under 140, but it was over 180! It was a little alarming, so she decided to send me home with my own blood pricking kit to keep an eye on my blood sugar levels. We aren't sure if I have gestational diabetes, or not, so I'll just keep monitoring my blood sugar for the next week or two.

Also, my belly doesn't feel like a "bowl full of jelly" so my midwife thinks I may have a low amniotic fluid level, and she suggested I start drinking electrolytes each day. My belly definitely looks small, and it is extremely easy to feel baby parts under my skin. It doesn't seem like there is much you can do about low amniotic fluid, so we are just hoping we make it to full term with no problems.

 17P: Had my eleventh 17P shot this week. It doesn't even phase me to get a shot. I can watch the entire time while the nurse sticks me, and it doesn't bother me one bit. These shots are for progesterone, helping my horomones balance better to hopefully carry this baby to full term (37 weeks). I will receive the shots until I am 36 weeks pregnant.

 Weight Gain So Far: Now that I'm in the third trimester, I'll be allowed another 100 calories (added to the 300 calories I was allowed in the second trimester) if I'm hungry. I'm already eating about 2,250 calories each day, and I'm using the My Fitness Pal app. to help me keep track of my eating habits. 

If you'd like to see my diet, you can look me up and I'll add you on my friends list. I'm listed as horseopeaceranch. 
For the third trimester I'm supposed to add 400-500 extra calories to my regular diet each day, which translates to about one peanut butter and jelly sandwich with maybe some carrot sticks on the side.

Starting Weight: 119 lbs. 
Week 29 Weight: 134 lbs.
Week 30 Weight: 136 lbs.
Goal Weight Range For This Pregnancy: High: 154 lbs. Low: 144 lbs.

Chocolate Chip Cookie SandwichFood Cravings: I really wanted some ice cream sandwiches that were specifically made with chocolate chip cookies! So I bought these, and they were just what I wanted. They were incredibly good and flavorful, and took away my craving. I didn't even share any, because I ended up eating all 4 sandwiches from the box in one sitting! And surprisingly, it didn't spike my blood sugar levels.

Regular or Maternity Clothes: As always, some normal shirts and skirts mixed in with my maternity clothes. If it's made with stretchy materials, I can still comfortably wear non-maternity clothes.

Missing anything: Not really this week. Just the same old stuff.

Boy or Girl: Don't know yet, but I will soon! We are on the countdown now with being past the 30 weeks pregnant mark. And Nick, who's known the sex of the baby for a while now, is still holding his secret secure. 

Baby's Chance of Survival this Week: 95%.  The last few weeks there was only a 90% chance of survival, so it's good to know the statistics are going up!

Baby Movement: This baby has set into a pretty regular pattern of movement through each day, and I find myself holding my belly in the spot the baby moves, so I can feel him/her while they are awake. The baby LOVES when Nick puts his hand on my belly, and he/she purposely moves toward his hand.

Size of Baby: While all the internet sites say our baby should be around 3 pounds now, our doctor said this baby is already a few ounces over 3 pounds, when we had our ultrasound two weeks ago! The baby is about 15.75" long, or about the size of a large cabbage.

Dumpster Baby BlanketWhat I Did to Prepare for Baby's Arrival: I wasn't able to do too much for the baby, as I focused on the soap business this week, but I did find this adorable baby blanket and crib bumper in the dumpster at our condo! It was in a clear trash bag, so it was clean (I still washed it anyways!) and it was in perfect condition. I don't know why someone would throw out a perfectly good item, instead of donating it. But, I'm planning on using the baby blanket as a floor mat when our baby needs some tummy time, and even though I won't use the crib bumper (I don't like crib bumpers because I'm afraid of our babies suffocating by sleeping too close to it), I'll hold onto it to donate it as a set when we are done with it.

Pregnancy Thoughts this Week: I thought a few times about all the things I still want to do before I reach full term. I'm probably starting to sound like a broken record playing on this subject! While 10 weeks to our due date would seem like a long amount of time to someone who isn't pregnant, I know those weeks will go by incredibly fast and I'll never accomplish all that I want to. So, I need to focus on the things that absolutely need doing, and just not worry about the rest.