36 Weeks (7 days left)

35 weeks, 6 days

• How far along?: thirty-six weeks; 7 days left
• What's baby up to?: Baby’s senses are continuing to improve -- when light peeks in through your (extremely) stretched belly, those tiny eyelids and irises blink and dilate. And, baby can now recognize and react to simple songs… time to start practicing your lullabies! Growth (at least inside your womb) is starting to slow, and you may notice baby descend into your pelvis at the end of this month.  
• Weight Gain: I have gained 24.5 pounds total, as of my last appointment; I gained six pounds in a week
• Symptoms: baby bump; back pain; insomnia; nerve pain; indigestion and heartburn; ribcage hurts; exhaustion 
• How big is baby?: about the size of a honeydew melon (about 17.2 to 18.7 inches; 4.2 to 5.8 pounds) I, personally, feel like Micah is going to be one big turkey, especially with my recent weight gain
• Sex: boy!?! 
• Maternity clothes?: yes 
• Stretch marks?: yes, on my thighs of all places, as hard as I worked to avoid them 
• Sleep?: not good; I can't get comfortable, and gotta go potty several times during the night and it takes a while for me to get comfortable enough to sleep, especially since Micah feels like he should be comfortable regardless of whether I am comfortable or not (usually not)
• Best moment this week?: celebrating Mikey's first day at a career job
• Movement?: yes, and lots of it 
• Food cravings?: chocolate, gummi bears
• Labor signs?: contractions; dilating; belly "dropped" 
• Belly button in or out?: out; it pokes out enough that you can see it through my shirt 
• What I miss: sleeping comfortably and through the night, walking without pain 
• What I'm looking forward to: holding Micah in my arms