A Tale of Two Pregnancies

Well, my time is running out.  I am 37 weeks today.  And because my doctor decided she doesn't want surprises (apparently she got called in on a delivery this morning for a vaginal breach birth and it was a high-stress time), she decided to check me and see how things are progressing.  Generally, getting checked is not my most favorite time.  But I sign up for this when I decide to have a baby.  The thrills of motherhood ;).  Anyway, I am full term today and already 1 1/2 centimeters dilated and 60% effaced.  Baby is head-down (this was what the doctor wanted to check the most) and in position.  So it's only a matter of time.  Kinda freaky!  I have the hospital bag mostly packed.  Mostly just lack hygiene items at this point.

On the way out of the exam room, the doctor said, "See you in a week, if not sooner."  So I guess that means this baby really could come sooner than June 9th.  Crazy!  I'm hoping I have at least one week left.  After all, Lynnaea's birthday is Sunday.  And I haven't made the time to make my 10 freezer/jar meals for our adjustment period after the baby is born.  So, seriously kiddo...  Hang out in there a little longer and do some more baking!

So a tale of two pregnancies.  Just for record's sake.

This picture will prove to you the awesome mom I am...  Lynnaea was mesmerized by the tablet.  She doesn't get the tablet often, but I take it with me to the doctor's appointments so she will be entertained while I am on the table.  And then I used it to encourage her to stay awake in the van on the way home.  So I could get lunch into her before a nap.  And so I could nap at the same time.  It worked.  And so I let her finish her Elmo video while I made lunch.  But that's me today at 37 weeks.

Okay, so this pregnancy has  been different from my pregnancy with Lynnaea.  I am sure it is due in part to a few things.  One:  this is a different baby.  Two:  I am older.  (In fact, if we have any other babies, I will fall into the high-risk category simply due to my old age, since I'll be over 35 at that point!).  Three:  I'm chasing after a toddler.

So one major difference has been the physical impact of the pregnancy on my body.  I did not have aches and pains with Lynnaea.  But then, I wasn't lifting a 30 pound toddler back then.  And I could sleep whenever I felt the need.  Or just lay down and read or watch a movie or something if I needed to rest.  Having a 2 year old doesn't really lend itself to those things.  She is very active and energetic.  She loves attention, and wants to be played with and entertained.  These are not bad things, so don't think I'm saying they are.  They are typical toddler things.  And I love my typical toddler ;).  It just means that I cannot do the amount of resting I could do when I was pregnant with her.  It means I have to keep going.  Or put on Elmo so I can lay on the couch and rest ;).  And that happens nearly daily now.  Unless Jeremy is home, because then he takes over so I can lay down.  And you know what?  I've decided I'm okay with that.  If my kiddo gets more than the recommended amount of screen time right now, that's just life.  I need to take care of my body so I can take care of my little girl and the baby growing inside of me.  I definitely feel more tired, but I think that is because I can't rest quite like before.  So before I didn't notice the tiredness as much.  I take a nap pretty much every day, even if I lay down and rest in the morning.  When Lynnaea naps, more often than not, I nap too.  Sometimes for 2 hours...  Which means I accomplish very little, since her nap-time used to be my most productive time.  But it's what my body needs now.  I do remember napping every day at this point when I was pregnant with Lynnaea.  I can remember just laying on the couch and falling asleep.  So that is definitely the same.  Just now, I have to do it on her schedule ;).  Hence the encouragement (or bribe) of the tablet to not fall asleep in the car.  Haha.  Also along the physical lines...  I have pulled my muscles a lot in the last month.  I can recall pulling my muscles with Lynnaea maybe once or twice.  With this pregnancy, it's been more than I can count.  And sometimes it hurts for hours and I cannot relieve it.  Costco shopping trips seem to be a common thread for getting these pulled muscles.  Or grocery stores.  And so I started thinking today (as I was slowly waddling through Costco to avoid more excruciating pain) that maybe it is associated with lifting a 30 pound toddler into the cart.  Maybe I am twisting in some way that is not boding well with my ever-burgeoning belly.  This muscle pulling pain is something I will not miss.  Like at all.  It is the main reason I have actually started to welcome the idea of giving birth (even though I am terrified again!).  With this pregnancy, I now understand the women who are so done with it and ready to have the baby.  I didn't quite understand that feeling with Lynnaea, because the pregnancy was easier.  But now I get it.

Another difference, which could probably fall under the physical aspect, is my experience in the first trimester with this baby.  Every afternoon, I felt like utter garbage.  Food was unappealing in the afternoon.  I wanted to just lay down and sleep.  I was beyond exhausted, but I also just felt nauseated.  I never threw up.  I just felt icky yuck.  That feeling hung around for about 6 or 7 weeks of the first trimester.  I was glad when it was gone.  And I was especially glad it went away before our Alabama trip!  But again, this was different from my first pregnancy.  I had nothing like that with Lynnaea.  I mean, I was tired at the end of every day.  I zonked out at night.  But I was not miserable with yucky feelings.  So this was new to me.

I also had bleeding gums in the second trimester.  I had read that this was a symptom some women have.  I didn't have it the first time around.  But I did this time.

And my ankles are swelling more.  But my blood pressure is awesome, so no concerns about toxemia or any of that.  Oh, and also my eyes are drying out more.  Which makes wearing contacts annoying, because I can't read small print without it being right in front of my face.  But as soon as I put my glasses back on, everything's fine.  

Those all seem to be less desirable differences, I know ;).  But they are some of what I deal with.  Some of the good differences?

Well, this baby has been much more active!  Lynnaea moved, of course, in utero.  But she was mainly a wiggler.  I could watch my belly move with her wiggles.  But it was here and there and nothing super strong.  This baby, though.  Phew!  Some nights I lay there and feel my whole stomach jolt in another direction with a strong kick!  Haha...  And this baby has been that active for a long time.  I can always tell where this baby is laying, and this baby will respond quite quickly to any attempts I make to "make" the baby move (if ever I get concerned about not having felt the baby for a while).

So those are some of the highlights of the differences I've experienced in my two pregnancies which have reached this point.  Nothing earth-shattering.  Just different ;).  I am still guessing this one is a boy.  But yep, we'll know for sure when Baby makes a debut! 

And just to post a couple more pictures...  Saturday, my mom, Lynnaea, and I went to the Armed Forces Day Parade here.  I don't mind doing things like this, but since Lynnaea and I slept until almost 9 on Saturday (due to a terrible night's sleep for her, I ended up in her room with her on an air mattress) and Jeremy had left for work early that morning (like 5:30ish) and wasn't around to wake us up...  Well, we were rushing to get ready!  So that took some of the fun out of it at first.  But we got there and just hung out at the very beginning of the parade, because we went just to see Saria who was playing the marching band for her middle school.  So that was neat and we saw and heard lots of cool things until we left, right after Saria's band went by.  Lynnaea loved the parade, though.  She sat in her stroller quite contentedly for most of the time we were there.

There she is enjoying her snackies during the parade.

Not the most flattering picture of me, but hey...  I'm 9 months pregnant.  I think the fact I get out of bed every day is pretty phenomenal these days ;).  Haha.  And Lynnaea was wearing a monkey backpack someone got her as a gift (really a gift for me, since the monkey tail acts like a leash so I can keep tabs on my toddler while dealing with an infant!).  Lynnaea loves the backpack and wanted to wear it -- in the stroller.

Saria with her trombone, just a few minutes before they started marching!

Here they are marching.  She's the furthest one in the left row.

And this is when they stopped and marched in place for a few minutes right near us.  She's the one with the ponytail.  I'm really glad I got to go see her march.  I try to go to her concerts and such, but haven't been able to go to one since the beginning of the school year.  And being that her end-of-year concert is on my due date...  well...  Not sure I'll make that one either! 

Well, it's after 10, and I turn into a big ol' fat pumpkin soon ;).  So I better get to bed. 

Oh, P.S...  We did some rearranging in our house because we got a recliner on Saturday afternoon!  Woohoo!  Now I have somewhere to sleep on those sleepless nights when I'm up feeding a baby!  It's an awesome recliner.  It's a rocker/swivel/recliner.  Jeremy found it on Craigslist and we got a great deal.  It's big and comfy.  And just plain awesome.