34 weeks today!

I am 34 weeks along today which means I only have 6 weeks left, if she is on time.  We had a dr. appointment yesterday and the doctor is very happy with how things are progressing.  I have been experiencing some light cramping over the past few days.  She said those are small contractions and most likely my body preparing itself.  She said as long as there aren't more than 4 in 1 hour then I shouldn't worry...so I'm not worrying :) I can't believe it is almost here!

I've been getting a few new symptoms as things progress.  Up to this point, I've been lucky enough to have escaped the evil grasp of heartburn but it has now entered my life and is making up for lost time.  I was up for about 4 hours on Monday night, trying to sleep propped up which proved to be very difficult.  I've also gone through the pregnancy with very little swelling in my hands and feet, however I'm now experiencing some minor swelling in the morning but it usually tends to get better throughout the day.

Stella is still moving like crazy but her moves have switched from twitches and kicks to rolls and pushes.  I'm assuming it is just because her space is getting smaller and smaller so she has less room to move.  It is so strange to watch my belly roll and move with her movements.  She still seems to be shy in front of her daddy though because every time I tell Matt to watch, she stops immediately and refuses to move.

Lastly, we took a class last night called "Sensational Beginnings" which went over a child's first year of development, what to expect and how to encourage them.  The instructor was great! She was funny and animated and gave thorough explanations throughout the class.  Here is a little tid bit that I bet you didn't know...drooling is a sign of baby development! Many people assume that drooling is a sign of teething, however you will usually see increased drooling around 4 months, 9 months and 12 months because those are the time frames when they are learning how to control other muscles.  Around 4 months they will be working on their larger core muscles for sitting and when they are concentrating on controlling their larger muscles, they tend to forget to control their smaller muscles (ie - mouth) and they drool.  At 9 months, they will begin working on their larger leg muscles to get ready to walk and again, will forget to control their mouth muscles and then at 12 months, they will begin to work on fine tuning their smaller movements like pinching with their finger and thumb, rather than grabbing with a whole hand.  It makes total sense but isn't common knowledge!! Also, if you are just meeting a new baby, give it time to take you in because they go into sensory overload very easily.  If they are overwhelmed, they will look away, sneeze, fidget and/or cry of course.  Anyway - now you are a little bit smarter in the ways of the mysterious baby :)

I hope all is well in your neck of the woods!