Feeling Like I'm 28 Weeks

28 weeks feels big to me. As an apprentice, the 28 week appointment meant mom usually had a blood draw and testing for Gestation Diabetes and then her appointments became every 2 weeks, then every week until her baby was born.

I was always excited when a mom reached 28 weeks because I sometimes got to practice my blood draw skills, I always did the finger poke for GD testing, I spun the blood, filled out the lab paperwork and began to feel like I was really starting to know mom and her partner.

And this is where I am! I'm going to have a baby in about 12 weeks!

From here on out it doesn't get easier, rarely stays the same and usually gets more difficult. I'm already finding myself on the more difficult path. My movements feels slower, my breath is heavier and my body is starting to hurt more.

I've had low back tightening throughout pregnancy when I don't go to yoga. Now, because baby has spent most of the pregnancy on my right side, I have a killer knot that begins to the right of my thoracic spine, grows up my neck and down to my lower back. My left hip is also beginning to hurt.

Have started seeing a chiro and will continue on a regular basis. She is someone who I can call day or night to come to my house during the birth if things get stuck. I've seen her get babies in good positions and lift pubic bones when babies are stuck, so I feel fortunate to have her on my call list.

I've been telling people about baby spending lots of time on my right side and as a result of the extra 2.5 ponds I'm carrying around there my right body is hurting. So for New Year's Day baby changed to the left side, my right side knot didn't bother me all day and I felt pretty good.

I really feel baby did this for me and I really appreciate it. Baby does prefer the right though and is back on that side today.

Baby is sooooo strong lately. I think for a time baby was laying transverse (across the uterus) last night because I felt a hard kick on my right side where I've never felt movement before. I jumped and yelped it was so shocking.

Right now I would describe baby as really engaged (not in the medical sense). I feel that baby and I have really bonded this past week and baby is responsive and very very aware of what is going on. I woke up last night laughing because I thought I felt baby's fingers tickling me and then felt this huge sense of calm knowing how aware baby actually is.

New Year's Day might be my favorite holiday and we spent it in the traditional Jarecki way by reviewing our year, talking about the future and doing things around the house to help us get ready for 2011.

Though I think about nothing else besides the baby I feel there is plenty more to do to get ready. I want to have all our current baby supplies cleaned and organized (at least the ones we'll use in the first few weeks) before the Banjo Fiction Baby Shower. That way it won't seem too overwhelming to handle all that other stuff.

Excited excited excited.