28 weeks! 3D ultrasound!

Confession: I am wearing pajama jeans here.

 

How many weeks today:  28 1/2...a few days late on my weekly update.
Baby is the size of: a Chinese cabbage, roughly 14.8 inches (average) and about 2.25 pounds. Gettin' there!
Total weight gain/loss: I have not gained anything since my last doctor appointment, but on Tuesday when I stepped on our scale, I was about 12 pounds over my starting weight.
Maternity clothes: I would be lost without them. I have made a mental note to not buy anymore maternity clothes with a DEMI panel over the belly... no way. My gut is just too big and hangs over! FULL panel pants only for all future pregnancies.
Cravings: This week, I kept smelling ramen at work, throughout the entire floor.... I wanted it so badly! So I am having some chicken flavored ramen tonight om nom nom nom. I also had chili today, and have been eyeing some soup. Hmmmm.....
Aversions: Brushing my teeth, but yes, I still do it.
Mood: Ohhhhh my mood! Where to begin.... I am OVERJOYED! I am thankful, happy, excited, relieved, anxious, nervous, scared, but did I mention EXCITED?! Always always always excited about how far we have come and how close we are to being "Mommy" and "Daddy" to our son! (Okay, yes, technically we already are.)
Physical symptoms: Last weekend, I had a little scare overnight. We had a busy Saturday morning, and then I napped most of the day after that, and I didn't realize that I had failed to keep up with my regular water-chugging that Friday and Saturday, and I was feeling achy during the day. That night, I kept waking up to strange pains... "strange" as in, they hurt like HELL! My uterus kept tightening up and I was having some contractions that were pretty painful, although I am sure they were mild compared to what's to come for the real event! I slept very little that night, self-diagnosed myself as being dehydrated, and I spent Sunday drinking sooooo much water, elevating my feet, and resting as much as I could. It worked! Sunday night was not only comfortable and healthier, but I slept through the night. I SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT. As in, didn't even wake up to have to go to the bathroom once. I woke up feeling awesome on Monday, well-rested and ready for a full day of work. So.... note to self... don't underestimate the power of water, rest, and taking care of myself! Aside from the weekend scary pains, I have been feeling pretty great still. Every once in awhile, I get a very mild case of heartburn. My uterus-belly-Gigantor feels incredibly heavy and low still, and as I worded it to my doctor, "It feels like he is going to fall out of my butt at any moment." He informed me that the pressure is very normal. ;-) I also started something new and annoying in the last two days.... my legs (especially my ankles and feet and calves) get really sore and achy and I constantly have the feeling that I need to stretch my calves.... I spend my workdays with my feet propped up on trash cans under my desk, pointing my toes straight, then pointing them up, pointing them straight, then up... and I find every excuse in the world to get up: bathroom break, fill my water bottle, walk to the printer, and I take actual breaks (spent walking/wandering around the parking lot or walking to our on-campus park and walking trail). I feel like my appetite has decreased a tiny bit in the last few days as well... maybe Corbin's rising location is affecting my heartburn and hunger now. *shrug* 
Miss anything: Yeah! Being able to comfortably bend over.
Showing yet:  Oh yes.
Labor signs:  Pressure, cramping... nothing alarming yet. All pretty normal.
Baby movement: Conner and I get such a kick out of laying in bed watching my belly move now. :-) Corbin is sort of head down, at an angle, with his head towards my right side and his butt on the left, legs bent with his feet curled up. Knowing this (from ultrasound), I feel his hands moving quite a bit, some elbow jabs (that we can see), and barely feel his feet (I think).
Wedding rings on or off: On! And today they have been spinning. Still no swelling in my ankles, feet, or hands.
Items purchased for baby this week: Nothing this week. Sorry, Corbin.
How is Daddy doing: We had a very excited email chain going back and forth today while we both worked... always talking about how excited we are for his arrival, how cute his new ultrasound photos look, how amazing it is that our family is growing! Daddy was SLIGHTLY disappointed to see Corbin looking more like me and less like him (although we agree, it means nothing at this point because he will change so much and be some of both of us, of course), but he falls more in love with Corbin every day. Even if Corbin looks like Mommy.
Favorite moment this week: Our ultrasound on Tuesday night! I apologize for anyone who did not get the link to work. I don't know what the issue was, but it was hit and miss, as some people informed me they were able to see it just fine, while others saw a page requesting a password..? But either way, we had our ultrasound, and it was..yet again..amaaaaazing seeing him move around! Seeing his face with more fat on it, his chubby little elbow bent as he is still trying to hide behind his cuddled hands on his face. We love him so much.
Looking forward to: Mmmmm turkey day. Washington! Our last ultrasound with my doctor on December 3rd. Switching appointments in December to start coming in twice a month, and then the first week in January I will be in there once a week, and then oh wowwwwww February is almost here!


Here are a few photos from Corbin's 3D ultrasound on Tuesday night. We will hopefully have some better ones on Saturday when we do our re-scan. (Our tech on Tuesday was not happy with the photos because Corbin was "shy", so she offered us a free re-scan.) Enjoy!!!

P.S. If you click on the photos (and any photos in any of my blog entries), the photo will open full size.

152 beats per minute! Still up there :)

 

The "braid" is the umbilical cord... not around his neck, just in front of his face.

"Please just let me sleep, guys!" Left hand on his forehead, right hand near his ear (elbow bent).

That left hand is still resting on his forehead (on the right in this photo), umbilical cord still in front of his face.

 

I could have cried when I saw this. I have been wanting a profile view of his face (in 2D like this) for so long! He never cooperates though, and then we saw this. I absolutely love that view of babies in utero. And Corbin's profile is so stinkin' cute! By the way, that is not a bubble..it's a single-layer side view of the umbilical cord that is in front of his face.

 

That is a foot... in his eye.

 

Umbilical cord, you really do linger.

I thought I saw a hint of a smile. I definitely see my nose and cheeks and lips though! This photo is currently my background on my phone, my profile photo on Facebook, part of a collage of Corbin photos on my work computer, and the printed version is hanging in my cubicle. Hahaha I love this guy!