Tiny Dresses

36 Weeks

We had our 36 week (9month!) appointment this week. Smidgey Roo is head down, face down and making her mommy and daddy bear feel calm and comfortable with her progress. Her heartbeat kept darting up into the 160's as she squirmed and played. It is fascinating to listen to heart range while she goes from calm and collected to wound up and wiggly, which she tends to do while we are at the doctor's office. Show off.

We are now less than four weeks from the ESTIMATED due date. All of my worries about a premie baby have subsided and the one's I had been so strongly experiencing seem futile. What do you know? Worrying about something I had almost no control over was worthless! The midwife thinks she is going to be a tiny baby even if she sticks around in there for another four or five weeks. My body thinks this is just fine.

Gram came up for a visit and to volunteer with us at Smidgey's first Family Reading Partnership Kids Book Fest this past weekend. She spoiled the pants off of us, like usual, and got Baby Bisha her first two books autographed by an author. This is something I have been doing for my nieces for many years, but hadn't even considered for our own kid. It was so special to have her spend time reading those books to the baby, too. Gram even bought Smidge a brand new little, bitty, teeny, tiny Christmas dress. It is totally impractical and will be up around her little armpits, but it is going to make stinkin' cute Christmas pictures in front of the Christmas tree. She will only be a brand new Christmas baby one time and daddy will just have to start coping with dresses and bows some time soon.

I am still feeling great and enjoying this process. When Smidgey wakes up at 3:00 a.m. with hiccups I remind myself that soon enough I won't feel her from the inside and I lay awake to enjoy her growth and development. Climbing has officially ended for me, mostly due to the compression of the harness on my belly and the fact that I can no longer see my toes :-). Swimming continues to be an important part of movement, as well walking, rowing and lifting weights. Motion is lotion. Sitting, I have found, is the worst possible thing I can to my body. My 8-5 desk job is quickly getting old. I rotate from a chair to a yoga ball to standing with frequent loops around the building, but it is still an all day office job. 

As a quick side note, the Affordable Care Act allowed us to get my top choice breast pump at a very low expense to us. Although we have private health insurance, this act mandates that insurance companies put $178.50 toward a breast pump to own (not rent). The total cost of this top of the line pump was only $210.00 so we are thrilled at this support from the government!