34 Weeks Pregnant
Less than 6 weeks to go, only 2 more pants-on checkups left at my OB office and then we start the Great Contraction Watch of 2010. I was going to say Cervix Watch but that seemed too…graphic. You’re welcome.
(Also, in case you’ve been holding your breath, I’ll put up a “guess the birth date” post right after Thanksgiving and offer some sort of prize for the person who gets it right. Nothing fancy – probably a knitting project, but better than last time when no one got anything. I may do a sub category for birth weight/length but that seems like a lot to keep track of and as far as I know WordPress doesn’t have a plug-in to do it for me yet.)
I went to my appointment today expecting a lecture on my weight and had already planned out my whiny blog post in advance…but instead I got a doctor who looked at my chart, did the math and said “35 pounds! Right on target.”
Which one is the blank-stare-blinky emoticon? I need about two dozen of those.
Honestly, 35 pounds SOUNDS like a lot. I was hoping to keep it closer to 25 this time. It also feels like a lot – just ask my pelvis and my sciatic nerve, which cry a little every time I have to trek down to the basement for yet another half-gallon of milk for the thirstiest toddler on the planet. But despite once again being on the high end of the suggested weight gain scale, I am still having an extremely healthy pregnancy. Excellent blood pressure, no gestational diabetes, no preeclampsia, no warnings about gigantic babies that cannot possibly fit through my tiny delicate lady parts. And for the record, all my pre-pregnancy underwear still fits, as do my pre-pregnancy pants – if I don’t try to zip them. I’m still going to Stroller Strides at least twice a week, I am capable of buying ice cream/candy/cookies and not eating ALL OF IT within seconds, and I haven’t scarfed down more than 1 cheeseburger in a sitting the whole 8 months. MY WILLPOWER, LET ME SHOW YOU IT.
So why have I gained just as many pounds as last time, when I DID eat ice cream and cheeseburgers like they were the last food on the planet and barely moved from the couch after my 4th month? Is this just how much fat my body needs to grow a baby? Is this one going to be bigger? Is this weight going to be just as hard to lose or will it magically burn away with the breastfeeding like so many people claim? That last one would be AWESOME. The potentially larger baby, not so much (my lady parts might be made for birthin’ the babies but I’d like it if they weren’t torn to shreds in the process)(You’re welcome again).
Tell me mamas, am I fooling myself? Is my butt really that much bigger than I’m seeing in my mirror?
Tags: 34 weeks, baby 2, birth, body, pregnancy, pregnant, weight
Hey! I won last time and there was no prize!!!!
You’re having a baby! YAY! I can’t believe it’s 6 weeks already! :) so exciting…
When Mommy was expecting me, she had people put their guesses on this website – http://www.expectnet.com/ – not a WP plug-in, but it’ll help you out!
Baby “weight” is a combination of a lot things not just the extra junk in your budunkadunk. You might have more fluid, a bigger placenta, etc. Concentrate on how you’re feeling not on the scale. You know this, lady!
Yay six weeks! I can’t wait to see pics of the nursery!!
I followed you over here from Miranda @ Not Super…Just Mom, and I’m so glad I did!
Your weight really does sound right on target. And breastfeeding does work wonders. I might be fooling myself, but I *think* it’s made me lose weight quickly with my 3 kids. I’ve gotta say, your willpower is amazing. I ate more than one cheeseburger in one sitting many, many times while pregnant (and sometimes still do….shhhhhhh!!!).
I am just starting up a blog (3 posts so far), and I’d love it if you stop by. middleofmommyhood.blogspot.com.
I think my weight gain was somewhere between 42-45 lbs with my second; Which sounds like a lot, but she was 9 lbs 5 oz at birth, so…yeah, she has a big head. I had gained SO much more with Olivia (Close to 60) b/c I was put on bedrest and when you are in bed, all you do is eat and worry and when I worry, I retain weight. (that’s my theory, anyway).
However, my doctor was AMAZING and he told me that all women are different, and as long as I was healthy and my BP and all the other stuff remained awesome (which they were) he basically didn’t care how much weight I gained.
That said..ugh, the weight has been harder to shed the second time around. I’m still carrying 15 lbs of Sophia weight (on top of the 10 lbs of Olivia weight I hadn’t shed by the first year when I got pregnant with Sophia). BUT. Everyone’s metabolism is different. I PRAY and HOPE that yours falls off and it isn’t a struggle, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
I breastfed for 14.5 months with Liv and 15.5 with Sophia; so while it works for some, it didn’t just “fall off” with me.
But I hold out hope I’m just a genetic freak of nature and all the other good and decent people in the world will not have my issues. ;o)
Wow…that was long. Sorry. ;o)
The weight you’ve “gained” is made up of: increased blood, placenta, amniotic fluids, actual baby, fat stores in case of famine. 35 pounds is not a lot of weight to gain, especially considering you lost weight prior to getting pregnant again (women who’ve lost weight and then gotten pregnant tend to gain more weight while pregnant). It sounds like your weight gain is normal and healthy. Please don’t be afraid of gaining a healthy amount of weight while pregnant. You need to gain weight in order to be healthy and have a healthy baby.
I want to slap people who advocate dangerously low weight gain for pregnant women. It’s incredibly unhealthy and dangerous.
I think I just feel like I spent the whole first pregnancy being all “The weight is for the baby! I can gain as much as I need to! I’m healthy!” and then hated every single second of trying to lose it again. I can’t imagine I’m going to be MORE enthusiastic about it with 2 bebehs.
Although thank you for internet-slapping some reason back into me. I somehow managed to forget about the part of the weight gain that wasn’t just baby and fat.
You are healthy and all of your check ups indicate a healthy Baby Sandy – and you have a GREAT support system ready to help you – just need you to increase your frequency to class by 2 more days a week. (I know, sounds easy reading it – but sure reads daunting when trying to get out of the house with TWO in tow!)
I’ll take everyone else’s word on the pregnancy weight gain but growing a person aside, if you’ve been regularly incorporating exercise (Stroller Strides, lifting a heavy toddler, etc.) you are probably building muscle mass which weighs more than fat. So even if the number is the same, odds are you are much healthier than you were at this point in your 1st pregnancy due to more exercise and lack of cheeseburgers. And if you are putting on lean muscle, the weight will fall off easier – lean muscle just sits around all day and burns calories.