melted smoosh

dear cecilia, how can it already have been a month since you were born? the days have absolutely flown by. you are possibly the easiest baby ever -- it's like you read the textbook. you nurse like a champ, every 3 hours during the day, and by this point you sleep for 5-7 hours at night before nursing and then sleeping again for another 2 hours. and you're efficient -- it only takes you about ten to fifteen minutes to eat. you make it easy on me, kiddo! you typically take your late afternoon nap in the bouncer on the kitchen counter while we eat dinner, but otherwise you sleep in your swaddle blanket in the cosleeper in our room. you love your pacifier and sometimes suck your fingers too. you rarely fuss -- typically just when you're hungry, or need your diaper changed, or when you're tired, and you're easily soothed. sometimes it does take you a while to fall asleep on your own, but once you're asleep you'll typically sleep for at least 1 1/2 hours.

and... she's here!! our baby girl made a very dramatic entrance on Friday, November 11. and i'm still in disbelief over how it all happened! our little peanut was due on Tuesday, November 8. Mom arrived the night before, with plans to stay for two weeks. Tuesday and Wednesday came and went without much fanfare. i was still working my usual Monday/Wednesday/Friday schedule. on Thursday, i had an appointment at the midwife center, where i learned that my cervix was still closed. i was hoping to have dilated at least a little bit, so at that point i figured we would just be waiting it out until my scheduled induction the following Tuesday. Friday dawned clear and cold, and i headed off to work at Mercy while Mom watched Greta at home. the whole day on Friday i had just a few painless Braxton Hicks contractions. i finished up with work around 4:45 pm and headed to the chiropractor for another adjustment. he did some work on my pelvic muscles and ligaments, and gen

bump watch: little peanut seems pretty happy to just hang out! today is Election Day, and with all the craziness between Trump and Hillary, i'm not surprised she doesn't want to come out just yet. she has dropped down a little bit (i measured 39 cm at my appointment last week, after two weeks in a row of measuring at 40 cm) but not fully engaged. meanwhile, i'm running out of wardrobe options that are up to the task of covering this belly! little peanut: is fully baked! every day from here on out, she's just continuing to grow, although there is a definite end date in sight (more on that below). she's still moving around regularly, but she doesn't have much room at this point! thankfully she's remained head down, although her back is still rotated towards my right side. i've still been seeing the chiropractor, who is helping to keep my pelvis in alignment and loosen up tight muscles and ligaments so she can move exactly where she needs to be!

bump watch:  maybe the teensiest bit lower, although it doesn't appear that way from the angle of this picture! and definitely still growing. every few days i have to retire another piece of maternity clothing that isn't comfortable anymore, or just plain doesn't do the job! little peanut: is officially full term! it's a relief to get to this point and know that she is definitely ready for life on the outside. her brain is continuing to grow and develop (and apparently has grown by 30% in the past month!). image credit from  W hat to Expect When You're Expecting best moment: it's hard to pick from all the great things that happened this week. i'm still savoring the relief of knowing that my delivery at Mercy will be covered by my insurance. my coworkers at our Castle Shannon office threw an adorable sprinkle shower for baby girl -- we are certainly set in the clothing department! and on a non-baby-related note, we threw

b ump watch: we're measuring at 40 weeks again this week! baby thankfully remains head down, and she was right occiput transverse at my appointment yesterday (meaning the back of her head is facing my right side and her arms and legs are pointing towards my left. this position is more favourable for her to turn into the optimal occiput anterior position (back of her head facing out), as opposed to Greta who was occiput posterior (also known as sunny-side-up). little peanut:  is the size of a winter melon ... i'm really quite amazed at how many varieties of melon there apparently are. the midwife estimated that she'd be about eight pounds at delivery, which is exactly what they said about Greta (who was 7 pounds 5 ounces at 41 weeks and 3 days!), so we'll see! her lungs are fully matured, and her vocal cords are ready to start making some noise! image credit from  W hat to Expect When You're Expecting best moment:  by far, the high

bump watch:  i measured 40 weeks at my appointment this morning ... which the midwife assured me is due to the fact that baby girl is still sitting up so high, not that i'm gestating a giant! regardless, the belly is still growing, and i'm starting to bump into things more often (and i keep stumbling over random toys or shoes on the floor because i don't see them by my feet, which is embarrassing. thankfully i'm always able to recover my balance, though not always my dignity!). little peanut: is considered "early term" now, although she won't hit true full term status until 39 weeks according to the updated guidelines. this week, her fingers are developing more dexterity. from an immunological standpoint, my antibodies are transferring to her, which is especially helpful given that flu season is rapidly approaching. image credit from  W hat to Expect When You're Expecting best moment: confirming via ultrasound as well as

b ump watch:  i think the most notable thing this week is the shape of the bump, rather than the size! i've had three chiropractic adjustments over the past week, and as she has more room to move, my belly is shifting around a lot. fun to watch, and although she often settles in an oblique position rather than completely vertical, her head is back down -- wahoo! little peanut: weighs an estimated 6 pounds, the size of a large cantaloupe. from here on out until delivery, her lungs are continuing to develop and mature, and her brain and neurologic function are maturing. image credit from  W hat to Expect When You're Expecting best moment: totally unprompted, Greta started hugging my belly and singing "Mary Had a Little Lamb" to her baby sister. so sweet! she's been practicing her big sister skills this week, as we got to meet two babies -- our neighbor's eight-week-old, and Amelia's gorgeous three-month-old! it's so fan

bump watch: the bump is definitely growing! i measured 36 weeks at my appointment this week, although i was almost surprised it wasn't more. some of my maternity dress shirts are already getting perilously short ... and we have a ways to go! little peanut:  she's continuing to chub up and grow that grey matter! she weighs an estimated 5.5 pounds and has reached her birth length. apparently this corresponds to a canary melon, which Google tells me is a little smaller than a watermelon. and the little stinker decided to flip breech this week, which is not cause for alarm yet, but we do want to coax her back to a vertex presentation by 37 weeks. if she's still breech at 37 weeks, we would try an external cephalic version to turn her, which has a success rate of about 60% but also carries a very small risk of inducing active labor or causing fetal distress that would necessitate emergent delivery (so, that's a far cry from my assumption that i'll go to at least

bump watch: annnnd there's definitely been another growth spurt this week! baby girl is a little lower too, which has made things ... uncomfortable , to put it discreetly. my only hope is that this means she'll be making her grand entrance sooner than her big sister did (at 10 days past due), but i'm not holding my breath! little peanut:  is the size of a pineapple -- weighing in at around 5 lbs and measuring about 19 inches long. her lungs are continuing to develop, and as she grows, there's less amniotic fluid surrounding her, so it's a little easier to distinguish her movements. in particular, i keep feeling (and seeing!) the bottom of her little foot poke out on the left side of my belly. so cute! image credit from  W hat to Expect When You're Expecting best moment:  my thoughtful coworkers threw a sweet shower for me at work this week! it was a complete surprise, and it was so much fun to celebrate this little one. they all pitc

bump watch: baby measured 34 weeks at my appointment this week, and is still head down! and the bump is definitely growing, although it seems to be a slow and steady progression rather than any super growth spurts. little peanut:  at 33 weeks is 4.5 lbs and 1 9 inches long. her brain is continuing to grow, causing her head circumference to expand by half an inch this week -- crazy! and she's settling into more routine sleep/wake cycles, which can freak me out sometimes since she'll go a few hours without moving. invariably, just as soon as i really start to wonder if everything is okay, she'll start kicking and rolling like a maniac -- little stinker! image credit from  Baby Center best moment:  meeting with Amy, our doula, this morning! she was such a fantastic support person for us during Greta's birth, and i'm so excited to work with her again. symptoms:  i have a little cold this week, which would be no big

bump watch: measured exactly 30 weeks at my appointment at 30 weeks and 2 days. my next appointment isn't until 33 weeks so we'll see how baby girl is growing! the size doesn't seem much different to me, but somehow i'm feeling more unwieldy, having a harder time rolling out of bed in the morning or bending down to help Greta get dressed. little peanut:  at 32 weeks is the size of a head of lettuce, 3.9  pounds and 19 inches long. her fingernails have finished growing and now her toenails are starting to develop! she's breathing in amniotic fluid as her lungs continue to develop. image credit from  Baby Center best moment:  finding some new maternity dresses on clearance last week! they'll be perfect for maternity pictures, and for the weekend getaway we're planning to celebrate our anniversary next month. symptoms:  this past weekend i was definitely feeling tired, achy, dizzy, and emotional for no particular re