30 weeks

I'm officially into the last 10 weeks of pregnancy!  It's amazing how fast time has been going.  At my 30 week appointment on Thursday things were perfectly normal.  Belly measured 30 cm, blood pressure was 100/70, weight gain was on track, and the results from my glucose screening and anemia came back normal.  I'm not exactly sure what the numbers are or what they mean, but glucose was 75 and just needs to be under 95 and the number for anemia was 15 and needs to be above 11.  So I'm good!  Baby's heartbeat was great and the midwife could feel that her head was down with her body curved on the right side of my belly with feet up.  No wonder I've been feeling so much kicking in the upper right quadrant of my belly!  She will most likely still move around a bit though before hopefully settling head down.  I've mostly been able to tell where she is positioned based on the movements and where she bulges out and where the hiccups are, but sometimes I have no idea how she is positioned.

I've been feeling pretty good still.  Neil says people at work ask him how I'm doing and feeling a lot.  It sounds like many people around the 7th month start feeling increasingly uncomfortable.  I am still having this intermittent pain under my right rib and through to under my right shoulder blade, especially when I sit for long periods of time, which my midwife says is gas trapped there.  Since I have to sit for work, driving to Bozeman, etc. I've found getting up and stretching often and using some mild gas medicine has helped somewhat.  It's gone when I'm standing up or lying down and is not always there when sitting, so it's really not too bad.  I've also started having some pain in my left hip when I walk or stand on my left leg only, but not all the time either, which sounds like it could be the baby pressing on different nerves or just that my hips are more flexible and moving in there a bit.

This week I drove up to Whitefish and back for a quick work trip to lead a training with their managers.  The 7 hours each way wasn't as bad as I thought it might be and actually quite enjoyable with the suspenseful murder mystery book on CD I had for the drive!

I'm still sleeping fairly well, just waking up once or twice in the night to go to the bathroom.  For the last month or more I haven't been hungry at night anymore like I was earlier in the second trimester.  I have been napping a bit more and able to go to sleep pretty early.  I don't seem to sleep in as late as I used to though, waking up between 8-9 on weekends.  I am having some heartburn, but not bad, but definitely feel like my stomach is running out of room and that things are squished in there a bit.  A woman in my neighborhood told me how she remembers right after giving birth thinking how much room there was in her abdomen and absolutely demolishing a gigantic platter of pasta.

I'm trying to do more of the yoga video I have, swimming, and walking, but with it getting dark outside at 4:30pm and with snow and ice covering the ground now, it is harder to be motivated after I finish work.  Although this is probably the time that stretching and exercising will feel the best.  I have started going to a friend's prenatal fitness class once a week...group classes are always more motivating for me.

After flying to Denver the other weekend and after my doctor's appointment Thursday and talking with her about it, I have decided to book my ticket and fly to Maine for the CIEE holiday party the first week in December.  It's only about 2 weeks away and I don't think things will be too different than they are now.  I think besides being slightly uncomfortable sitting and tired from the 2 long days of traveling it should be fine.  Plus I'm just so excited to see my whole team (many of whom are new and I haven't met in person yet) and be in the office for the week.  When I asked my girlfriend and new mom if she thinks it's a bad idea, she said it's not a bad idea at all and to enjoy life as Anna right now so I can better enjoy life as a mama in a couple months.  I think it will be good.

Here's me at 30 weeks!  Hopefully between 7 and 10 to go!