Baby # 3 Update: Week 30

Yes, it's true: I am 3/4 of the way there.

I have had an interesting day today, pregnancy-wise. I had an appointment this morning with my OB and everything is fine. The baby's heartrate is gloriously strong and steady at 140 and I am measuring exactly where I should for 30-31 weeks of pregnancy. I told the doctor that was great because I'd prefer to only be pregnant for another 9 weeks instead of ten. I also got the wonderful news that I passed my glucose test and will not have to endure the three hour test that I did with Jenna (okay, so ENDURE is a tad strong... you drink the sugary orange drink, wait a while and get your blood drawn at certain intervals. It's mostly just boring and anxiety-producing, thinking that you may have to go the rest of the pregnancy with less sugar and carbs. I mean, you can't drink, smoke, do recreational drugs... chocolate is really the only vice one has available.)

So then my OB sits down and tells me he has "a curveball" to throw at me and I start wondering what the heck he's talking about. It turns out he has some kind of "medical issue" going on that he just found out about and can't deliver babies for awhile, so he has to transfer me to another practice for the last 10 weeks and delivery.

What a bummer.

I am trying to sort out how I feel about all of this, and mostly I just hope that he's okay because he is a fantastic human being. Then I start to feel all disappointed that he won't be part of this baby's care and delivery. Then I feel anxious that the new 6 doctor practice he is referring me to isn't quite as warm and fuzzy as my OB's practice (he's a one man show). Then part of me says to suck it up and move on- the important thing is that the baby is healthy and delivered safely, which I am sure will happen by the new practice.

But you know, I am a LITTLE hormonal and wigged out by the whole thing. I should have my first appointment with the new practice in two weeks, so stay tuned for updates.

One of the BEST parts of having your third baby is that people generally refrain from saying incredibly stupid things to you that spike your anxiety when you are pregnant with your first baby. Lots of times you can see women salivating when they see you, ready to pounce with some comment like "JUST YOU WAIT!!" or "Aren't you scared about having the baby with the nursing shortage?" or "Let me tell you MY labor HORROR story..." and this time, you can stare them down and say confidently, firmly, and calmly, "It's my THIRD baby." and they instantly back off. You are no longer fresh meat for their fodder and they go, "Oh, how nice..." and skulk off, moving on to their next target.

It's very primal.

However, I did have an interesting interaction with a woman last week. The girls and I were in Joanne Fabric Store checking out what fabric was on sale. A quite normal, 70-ish looking woman was sitting on a bench near the fabric cutting table and I see her eyeing us walking towards her. Just as we are passing her, she blurts out with a certain level of brusque-ness: "Whaddaya got in there?" and nods towards my belly.

Whadda I got in here???? My precious new baby, ready for me to love and raise and cherish for the next 60 years, that's what I got. I was kind of taken aback by her manner, so I answered, "A watermelon."

"HA!" she snorted. So I said, "It's a boy."

"Hurrumph. Two girls and a boy. That's a rich man's family."

"I certainly hope so..." I answered, not ever hearing that expression before and wanting to move on from this convo. Geesh.

But overall, I am feeling great, just more tired at night and slower to move. The enormous growth I was experiencing a few weeks ago has slowed so I feel a little more in proportion size-wize to where I should be. My blood pressure is good, my weight (for the first time since puberty) is fantastic and my appetite is decreasing since my stomach is getting crowded out by uterus and such. The only real issue I am having is the hip pain I talked about in my last post. So far, my back is holding up okay, the weather has been cool so I'm not all swollen and puffy and I am still trying to get as much done project-wise as I can. I cut the fabric for my first two baby blankets and sewed my first pillow for the nursery. Jenna is mostly all moved into Michaela's room (only her shoes and stuffed animals are left) and then I have to rearrange the playroom shelves to be better uses of space.

We have still made no progress in the name department but Dan has agreed that he is being a tad inflexible and has agreed to have me make a list of names and he will pick one from the list. I ordered some more baby name books online and will be pouring through them when they arrive.

Well, I and my RICH MAN'S FAMILY are off to my parents' house to go swimming. Enjoy the day!