The Third Trimester

Wow!! So I hit the third trimester this week! I can't even believe how fast it's going. Kaylee will be here before we know it! We have just 12 short weeks before her estimated date of arrival! AHHH!!!

So Chris and I went to the Labor and Delivery tour last Wednesday night. It went well... got a lot of good information. I was thrilled to hear that UCSD offers ANY woman laboring at the Hillcrest a Doula... free of charge! I was seriously contemplating seeing how much a Doula would cost us. I have heard wonderful things about them and apparently it's proven that women who labor with a Doula are more likely to have a shorter labor, and less likely to need medical interventions. So that's news I was happy to hear. Anyway, being at the tour and seeing where Kaylee will be coming into this world... made it all so much more real.

One not-so-fun thing happened though. We were going through the tour, looking at one of the rooms and all of a sudden I felt really weak and dizzy. Great, just what I need. A scene in front of all these other people. It turned out it wasn't too bad. I just needed to sit down for a few moments and drink some ice water. Also, turns out I was coming down with a really bad cold so that didn't help. The cold is almost gone now. Let me just tell you though, being sick, while it's hot and you're pregnant... not being able to take much of anything... is not fun. Luckily I am slowly getting better and it hasn't seemed to affect Kaylee at all.

I also had a regularly scheduled prenatal appointment last week. I had the glucose tolerance test scheduled then, but since I wasn't feeling well I will be getting that done at my 28 week appointment instead. Everything looked good with Kaylee and myself. The doctor says Kaylee is head down, so that's good news too! I start going to the appointments every two weeks now. Yikes!

Anyway... sorry to bore you all with those details... on to Kaylee's update -

She is getting bigger as always! Now weighing around 2.3 to 2.5 pounds (1100 G) and 14.5 inches long! Her size is comparable to... a Sock Monkey! hehe

If she were to come into this world now, Kaylee would have an 85% chance of surviving!

Thumb-sucking is calming to the baby and strengthens her cheek and jaw muscles. And get this... she is already practicing for her entrance into the world and is able to cry already! She can also feel pain and respond to it in the same way as a full term baby can!

The neurons in her brain are making new connections every day, and her brain will be like a sponge in the next few years, absorbing more and more information. The more she is exposed to, the more her brain will grow and thirst for more knowledge. Exposure to different shapes, colors, and textures during the first few months of infant-hood will really sharpen her senses.