35 weeks!

How far along?  35 weeks!  Tuesday should have been the highly coveted 35/ 35 date (35 weeks down, 35 days to go), but Little Erbse is going to be making his appearance before then, since I am having a c-section.  I'll explain more in a little but, but Erbse will be a December baby!

Total weight gain:  about 10 kilos, or 22 lbs.

How big is baby? Our Little Pea is the size of a honeydew melon.
Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that he's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, he isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times he kicks should remain about the same. His kidneys are fully developed now, and his liver can process some waste products. Most of his basic physical development is now complete — he'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.
from www.babycenter.com

Maternity clothes:  I've now graduated to a lot of Joern's big, comfy sweatshirts and sweaters.  But my maternity shirts still fit well too, but the tanks are starting to expose belly again.


Sleep?  Okayish.  I now get up 2-3 times a night to go to the bathroom, and the leg cramps have returned again.  But, it is so helpful to be on maternity leave- I can sleep past 6 am, which is so helpful!

Best moment this week?  Last week, we FINALLY purchased Erbse's carseat!  We also bought a bassinet for the bedroom.  I wanted a co-sleeper, but Joern was really afraid that the baby would somehow end up on the floor with the co-sleeper.  But, no worries, I already made him promise to help me in and out of bed with the Erbse for the first few weeks while my incision heals.
Another amazing moment this week was when we went to the Frauenklinik in Stuttgart.  We had an appointment last Thursday.  The hospital is really nice, and well organized.  The doctor took us in pretty quickly to speak with us.  She said that given my back and neck problems, there is a 50/ 50 chance of me having no problems or I could have major problems with a natural birth, and then she said, but if something goes wrong, we will all have huge regrets.  So, she explained how the c-section will work. Joern will be allowed to be in the room with me when they do the surgery, and we'll get to hold Erbse soon after he is born.  She said that I should be in the hospital around 4 days or so, and that we should be able to get a hospital room converted into a family room, so that Joern and Erbse can stay in the room with me.  Amazingly though, we also scheduled the c-section!  Unless Erbse decides that he has had enough and wants to come out, he'll be here on Dec. 23rd! Yes, we truly will have the best Christmas present EVER this year!

Movement?  Erbse has settled into a pretty strong pattern of two very active days, one very sleepy day, one semi-active day, and back to the two very active days.  I think he's getting hiccups too, because my stomach   kind-of is reacting like when I have the hiccups, but I don't have them, its like a rythmic stomach movement. Very sweet to know that Erbse is practicing breathing!

Food cravings:  Salads and pumpkin pie :)

What I'm looking forward to:  Well, the topper on the list is meeting our little guy!  I'm also looking forward to the arrival of Erbse's furniture and fingers crossed, making it to the next doctor's appointment.

Labor signs:  I am crampy sometimes, especially if I stand too long.  But according to the doctor, there are lots of labor signs!  I am having regular Braxton Hicks contractions, but of course, still not feeling those.  The doctor said that Erbse is head down, and that my cervix is short and soft. She isn't so confident that we'll make it to the 23rd of December!

Other Erbse related news:
I'm still waiting for pictures from the baby shower to do my baby shower post.  But rest assured, Erbse has tons of gifts waiting for me to sort through!  I also received in the mail today Erbse's coming home outfit.  I also ordered a few "my first Christmas" outfits from the Children's Place, a store which conveniently now delivers internationally. Hopefully, the order will make it here before Erbse, because I ordered the most perfect hat for him to come home!