37 Weeks & Feeling It
I don't know how Mommy Bloggers do it. Especially the ones that are homeschooling large families.
Because I just can't seem to keep up.
But I can do this past week, right?
So here we go....week 37 in my 6th pregnancy!
This week has been...trying. Very, very trying. I told my friend, Anna, who is due a couple of days after me, that if this past week didn't put me into full blown labor, then I am definitely making it to 40 weeks.
First off, I began losing my plug a couple of weeks ago while we were a couple of hours from home at an outlet mall. I was losing it little by little over the next few days...then suddenly stopped. This is totally normal, though, as the mucus plug is able to regenerate itself over after coming out. Neato, right?
I began getting nervous because my midwife was leaving for Florida for a few days to enjoy the holiday. And her main backup midwife put up an announcement that she was "off call" for the remainder of the year. And all I could think was that I was utterly and completely screwed should Mistletoe decide to come earth side this week.
Then there was Thanksgiving, in which mine was divided into 3 phases: the one in which I sat in my rocking chair most of the day, in my pajamas, just being generally sad and unmotivated. Antonio took the kids out to play for a few hours and then the big kids helped me get dinner in the oven. Then I graduated to just going to bed, crying, and purchasing season 3 of Mama's Family off of YouTube...which actually cheered me up considerably. I then got dressed, came out of the bedroom for dinner and we all watched Going In Style and loved it!
Friday was a full moon...which actually went pretty smoothly and my contractions weren't regular or too strong. So that was a relief.
Saturday brought its own set of drama. But the highlight was when Antonio and Christian went outside to work on Antonio's truck. I decided that it was definitely time to tackle getting my bedroom cleaned up, especially since a home birth is taking place here very soon. Mahri needed to help me, as I couldn't lift the heavier boxes on and am having trouble bending over to pick up things off the floor. So while we were cleaning, we asked Austin & Levi to watch Isabel and to play with her. That's where things went haywire. In the middle of cleaning, we heard a loud crash. Then Isabel shrieking. We took off running down the hallway. There was Isabel with a pair of Christian's shorts over her head and Levi behind her, clearly trying to find a scapegoat. Long story short: Isabel loves to wear everyone else's clothes. But she wears pretty much everything as a shirt. So her getting his shorts stuck on her head was explainable. But, unfortunately, she tripped (while her head was covered) and smacked her head on the corner of a plastic storage bin. It was purple and swollen and scared the shit out of me. So I started screaming and crying. As one does. Antonio saved the day (and her poor little head) by implementing one of our tried and true home remedies. You can check out that post on my natural wellness IG page @amor_botanica
That evening, I began feeling a lot of pressure in my pelvic and rectum region. Lots of cramping and pain. But no regular contractions, so I just kept on keeping on. All night I was awoken by some really intense contractions. Possibly the strongest ones to date for this pregnancy. After a few, I decided that I should probably start timing them...but then I'd fall back asleep. So apparently they weren't as serious as I had begun to think.
And that's how my week was, basically. As for symptoms, here's what's been going on with those:
Heartburn has been plaguing me, mainly at night.
My asthma has been horrid. What's happening is that I get these coughing spells and just can't stop coughing. Which causes my asthma to flare up. I'm beginning to suspect that the heartburn is to blame...tickling my throat and making me cough.
Which leads me to my next problem: incontinence. Ah, what a lovely thing to experience multiple times a day. My go-to product for this issue are Always Discreet pads, especially for incontinence. They aren't too thick, the adhesive is pretty good (no bunching and wadding up) and they come in a variety of absorbencies. I just need the panty liner type.
I am getting up anywhere from 2-6 times at night to pee. That's fun. Because, combined with the insomnia, who really needs sleep anyways, right?
I've felt a shift within myself over the past week. More emotional. More tired. Less patience. More stressed. I've been wanting to lie down more and more.
On Saturday I put the waterproof mattress pad cover on my mattress. Washed the washcloths that I bought for my labor. Earlier in the week, some things I bought from Amazon got delivered....like my nightgown I bought for after delivery. So I washed it and hung it up to dry. I hung up my new robe. I still need to wash the new nursing bralette that came last week. Mistletoe's carseat also came. I think we're waiting until Mistletoe is born to install it. Because our Suburban is already jammed packed with people...the carseat isn't going to make that any better.
On Sunday we went and bought some plastic bins for storing the home birth and after birth supplies in. I still need to pack them. We also bought a plain white shower curtain liner to put on the mattress to help protect my sheets during the labor/delivery/recovery if I should find myself in bed. But I'm planning on a water birth. Speaking of which...my birth pool liner was delivered, as was Mistletoe's oral vitamin k.
Christine (midwife) will be here on Monday morning for our 38 week visit. So we'll see what she says. I'm also hoping to get to the chiropractor next week. My hips could definitely use an adjustment.
And that's about it!
It's basically just a waiting game at this point....
Any guesses on what day you think Mistletoe will be born? Will Mistletoe be a girl or a boy? How much do you think s/he will weigh? How tall?
So much anticipation!!!
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