Week 34

PK has been getting squirmier and squirmier with each passing week. Usually I don't mind that, except when she pounds on my bladder. These days, it feels like I'm peeing every two seconds. It doesn't help that my water intake has significantly increased because I'm always thirsty these days. Nowadays, I plan my walking routes such that I know that I have a washroom along the way should I need one. Salvation! Apart from that, I don't normally get any rib jabs, except when I'm slouching in bed. I've been a bit disappointed with my posture throughout this pregnancy. I really haven't been sitting up straight on my chair or even when I stand up. Fortunately, I seem to have been spared chronic lower-back pain. *knock on wood*

Speaking of ailments, the foot-swelling still continues, though I think it's more or less at bay now. The only weird that that I've noticed is that my feet have been extra-sweaty these days. I normally don't have sweaty hands and feet. In fact, my hands and feet are always COLD, no matter what season! Okay, maybe not so much in the summertime. These days, however, my feet are always warm. To the point where I have trouble wearing shoes with socks for very long because I just feel so damned uncomfortable. Another thing I've noticed is that my hands have tended to swell a bit, especially when the weather is warm. Today we went for a nice long walk to the lake, and by the end of it, my hands were swollen to the point that it felt like I'd just finished a nice long climbing session. There was no way that I'd be able to yank my rings off my fingers without some soapy water. I think it was a combination of the heat and the fact that I was walking, having my hands down by my sides most of the time. I don't normally get swollen hands when I'm at the office, since I'm always typing. I hope that this swelling isn't a sign of pre-eclampsia. I'm guessing it's not, since my urine tests, blood pressure readings, and weight gain haven't been cause for alarm, so it's probably just one of those things. At any rate, I'll ask my doctor at my next visit just in case.

Since PK's arrival is not too far away, we decided this past weekend that we should get our act together and take care of getting some PK-related odds and ends. Given that nobody got us any big-ticket items from our baby registry, we just went ahead and bought those ourselves. Here's a list of our weekend spoils:

• A bathtub - With stand!
• A diaper bag - We decided to go with a backpack, since I find those shoulder bags rather uncomfortable. Besides, I wanted something that the hubby wouldn't be embarrassed about carrying around if he were alone with PK. :D
• A moulded change pad - It's made of a soft foamy-ish material kind of like what those wretched Crocs are made of
• A baby carrier - We got the Baby Trekker, since we've heard pretty good reviews about it and crappy reviews about the Baby Bjorn carrier.
• Bedding - We got this super-cute neutral-colored teddy bear-themed bedding. It cost us a bit too much though, since it was made of organic fibers.
• Burp pads
• A bottle sterilizer - We got the Born Free (BPA-free!) sterilizer to match our lovely set of Born Free glass bottles.
  

When we got home, we decided to wash the bulk of the baby clothes that we'd acquired to date, along with some bedding. We washed mostly onesies, toques, booties, burp pads, blankets, bedding, towels, and facecloths, and we still ended up doing two loads of laundry. I didn't bother with the larger clothes that we have for PK, since she won't be needing them quite so soon (they're for 6-months and onwards).

We also decided to clean up PK's room a bit. Ever since our baby shower, we've had boxes of things sitting off in the corner of the room. It was high time that we actually got around to setting things up. Major items of note: we have most of the bedding in place, and the hubby put together the bunny mobile that my mom had gotten us. It looks soooooooooo cute! :D

My next doctor's visit is next week, and since we're rapidly-approaching L-Day, the hubby and I have to get off our butts and come up with a birthplan...or at least tell our doctor that we want to have the baby au naturel. I really really hopes that he reacts in a supportive manner.

Speaking of L-Day, we finally booked a hospital tour, AND we found a pediatrician for PK. She's not located right downtown, but we can at least get to her by subway in about 15 minutes or so. She was referred to me by someone I met at a wedding who had a cute little four-month-old boy. It's nice to have someone's seal of approval like that. I was actually impressed by the fact that when the hubby called to see if she was taking new patients, she actually wanted to meet with us before PK was born to get to know us. I think that's so nice and so rare to see. We see her in a couple of weeks, so I'll likely write something up about that appointment.

Still on the to-do list is cord blood banking. It's a bit pricey, but better safe than sorry. We've done some reading on it, and it seems to be a worthwhile thing to do. My sister-in-law had it done, and we're most likely going with the same place that she went with her her little one. They charge about $1000 up-front, and then it's something like $100/yr to store the cord blood. Anything for a bit of peace of mind.

BTW, I'm still in denial about that pesky perineal massage. Okay...I'll start it at 35 weeks...I swear!


Bathtub


Crib with bunny mobile