7 Months Pregnant

32 weeks pregnant, 7 months pregnant, fourth baby, big bump

This update was due a few days ago, but following the theme of this pregnancy, I am pretty laid back and disorganised so it is only just making it on to the blog.  There is now less than two months until my due date which means it is about time I started getting sorted!

I am pretty relaxed and by that I mean not ready in the slightest, but I know if the baby was to come now we wouldn't be bringing her straight home anyway so we still have time.  Even if I stay in this state (denial) until later on, newborns really don't need much, I have boobs, we have nappies and a few tiny clothes and I found for those first days my babies were not going to sleep anywhere but on me so we have time to build the Snuzpod crib.

That said, my plan for the next week involves buying a chest of drawers so that I can organise this little girl's clothes rather than having them in random boxes and bags around the house and work out if there is anything we still need.  I need to wash all the material on the Snuzpod as well so that it is ready to be built once we reach full term.  The plan is still to have a homebirth so rather than a hospital bag I am planning a birthing basket - something I will share more about nearer the time.

Symptom wise I feel like my growth has really slowed down now and I don't look quite so different from other people reaching the seven month milestone.  I still get looks of horror when I mention I have 8 weeks left and that I am not due until July but I don't feel as big as I was.  I have the midwife again later this week so we will see how the bump is growing.

The aches and pains seem to be lessening since baby turned head down, although getting up from the sofa in the evening is definitely a challenge and I have to waddle a little while before my pelvis clicks back into place.  This past month has seen lots of outdoor adventures, big days out and long days on my feet which hasn't really been a problem, well until I sit down at the end of the day anyway.

My cravings can generally be summed up as 'food', but if I could live off of Pizza, Coca Cola and chocolate I definitely would.  The bloke isn't always convinced by my choice of toppings but they always taste great to me!

Heartburn is my new symptom and I don't think I have it bad as I haven't had to use medication yet.  I think mine is more down to not eating regularly rather than eating the wrong food as it tends to start up if I go longer than 3-4 hours without food.  Somehow I seem to have more energy at this point in pregnancy than I have all the way through so far but I am not expecting it to last as my due date gets closer. 

Dylan is asking a lot of questions about the baby, Archie is very curious and Finn is still completely oblivious to the fact his days of being the baby of the family are numbered.  In fact, Finn has suddenly become very clingy wanting to be in my arms all the time, I don't know whether he is starting to sense change or it is just a developmental thing.  I have a feeling my lap is going to be as full as my heart once this little one arrives!

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6 Months Pregnant

6 months pregnant, 27 weeks pregnant, pregnancy, baby girl bump diary, 27 week baby bump

I am now 6 months pregnant and the third trimester isn't far off.  Considering how slowly pregnancy is meant to go, this past month has flown by and whilst in my head I still have months and months left, full term is only 10 weeks away which isn't all that long.

I am definitely finding this pregnancy tougher than the other three, physically and mentally.  I am finding if I overdo it (which is very easy with three small children around) then I can barely walk by the end of the day and I have mastered the pregnancy waddle early.  I have a repeat GTT (glucose tolerance test) this week as both baby and myself are still measuring very big, but I am hoping I just make chunky babies and have very relaxed stomach muscles.

This month the little kicks have turned into something stronger that the bloke can really feel and that you can sometimes see.  My anterior placenta means I still don't feel as much movement as I did in Archie's pregnancy but baby seems to be in quite a routine with party time being late evening (10-12 specifically).  

Mentally I am definitely more hormonal this time, I snap easier, cry easier and am much more likely to be drawn into arguments than usual.  I can see the way the hormones affect me but can't seem to do much about it.  I don't know if this is a girl thing, but I will be happy to go back to calm once she arrives. (well as calm as life gets with four under fives!)

This month I have tried to curb the shopping as I have a feeling she is going to be a big baby and not get to wear half her clothes otherwise!  I have given in to a few things though and I love finding girly bits without being pink and frilly.  We haven't started thinking about the big things yet, but we are pretty sorted having had a newborn not that long ago.

This month has started with Dylan asking questions about how the baby will come out and I know I will have to satisfy his curiousity more as I get bigger so I have a couple of books ready.  My tactic is to answer just enough, but not give him too much information and it seems to be working although every now and again he comes back with a new question so I know he must be thinking about it still.

I am seeing the midwife much more often this pregnancy due to bump/baby size which means an appointment every 3 weeks on top of seeing the consultant and April brings two midwife appointments, one consultant one, a GTT, Whopping cough vaccination and a growth scan (unless they want to throw in anything extra over the coming weeks!).

And finally here is Britney bump, measuring a little too big but completely wonderful.

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5 Months Pregnant

22 weeks pregnant, five months pregnant, second trimester, baby girl pregnancy
With 4 months left to go, I am finding that this middle section of pregnancy is going pretty fast.  The third trimester is still quite a way off, I don't feel that heaviness yet but I have enough of a bump that you can't put it down to too much cake anymore.  I feel far from glowing, but I don't feel nearly as bad as I did only a few weeks ago either.

My energy levels are balancing out and when I am sensible, I don't need a nap in the day.  By sensible, I mean not getting addicted to a new series on Netflix and staying up past when is sensible so that I am still tired in the morning.  Finn is really teething at the moment though, so sleep is really not something I am getting enough of and never in a long stretch like I am craving.  He turned one last week which I was hoping may be a magic cure but it is looking more likely that I have two babies up in the night come July.

My bump is growing much slower now, as the bloating decreases and the baby grows.  I had my 20 week scan on Valentines day and our little lady had a rather large tummy, a bit too large really.  I was sent for a GTT (gestational diabetes) test which thankfully came back negative, so I am seeing a consultant to discuss what this means and what happens now.  Other than that she seemed healthy and still no signs of anything between her legs.  I would be very shocked if I was to have a small baby anyway, but hopefully she evens out a bit more as it was just her tummy that was measuring ahead.

This month I have noticed that my boobs have grown, something that happened not until the final weeks in my other pregnancies.  I am also always cold which is a bit of a shock after spending the past few winters with no coat as I was always warm.  I can't get enough layers and blankets on me now and I am starting to regret not buying a maternity coat at the beginning of winter.  I am considering investing in a maternity / babywearing one as it is so close to Spring now.

I used the Babycentre app with my last three bumps but I was getting dejavu every morning so now I am loving the Ovia app for its brilliant comparisons ( Britney is currently the size of a water bottle) and the Tesco weekly maternity calender as weekly is enough now really.  I am counting down to the 24 week viability point as that seems like the next milestone, although I don't want her making an appearance until at least the middle of June.

This month I finally started to feel some movement and I seem to have skipped the flutters and gone straight for little kicks.  I only really feel them when I am lying on my left eating chocolate in the evenings, but hopefully it will all become more regular now.  

My belly button has popped out now so that belly ring is tucked away for post-birth.  With every pregnancy it has been a few weeks earlier as my body remembers what to do! I am in nearly all maternity clothes with the exception of a few oversized jumpers and the long vests.  I always stock up on the Primark 'cami dresses' as they stretch so well they can accomodate even a full term bump and the length means even with a bump they can be worn as a top,  I have bought a few new maternity items and am using some from my previous pregnancies.  

It feels strange that I am already over the halfway mark and I am trying to enjoy pregnancy as much as I can, despite not always feeling great.

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