I’m so glad to be in Austin and settled for at least a little bit. This past weekend was the first time our little family was here all together in over a month. It was so nice! I’m also looking forward to celebrating Christmas here and having family visit instead of having to travel again.
I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned our birth plans here or not. We are planning on having a home birth with a wonderful, experienced midwife and her assistant. This was our plan with my previous pregnancy that we lost and I still felt strongly that this is what I wanted this time around as well. Our experience in the hospital with Enzo wasn’t really great. You can read about it here. It didn’t turn out how I wanted and I ended up with a lot more interventions than I would have liked though I didn’t have a C-section. Home births are definitely not for everyone and I completely understand why moms want to give birth at the hospital whether it’s a medical necessity or not, but it’s just not for us this time. And luckily Joe is completely on board.
We did look into birth centers as an option but with my past history of having a MRSA staph infection, it was going to be more stressful. They would’ve had to continually test my skin for MRSA throughout my pregnancy and if it came back positive (it can be negative sometimes and positive others), they wouldn’t let me give birth there. I didn’t want to risk that and have to worry about it. I’m thankful to know a handful of women in Austin who have had home births and can share their stories with me. I am nervous about no pain medications since I ended up with an epidural with Enzo, but I know many women have done it before me and many will after me!
Onto this week’s updates.
How far along: 28 weeks
Size of baby: Eggplant
Gender: we’ll know so soon!
Movement: I cannot figure out what position this little booger is in. I feel movements in all parts of my belly, though he/she prefers the right side. Hoping baby will be head down soon!
Sleep: I’m sleeping like a rock. We decided to turn off Enzo’s baby monitor overnight (I like using it to know when he’s up in the morning and for naps). With our doors open, if he’s up screaming we’ll definitely hear him. I didn’t realize how much that monitor was affecting my sleep because I’ve been sleeping much longer stretches without waking up now. I’m also managing to go some nights without any bathroom trips! Not sure how much longer that will last.
Workouts: I finally got to go to an in-person prenatal yoga class this weekend after over a month. I’m hoping to go once a week as many times as I can before baby comes. I haven’t gotten to go nearly as much as I did with Enzo and I’m missing it!
Maternity clothes: No doubt about that.
Symptoms: Over my stomach bug which is awesome. Otherwise feeling pretty good. Getting winded much more easily which I expected. Lifting Enzo, especially into the crib, is getting much harder too. Also, my belly button finally decided to become an outie. It’s been on the fence for a while. 🙂
Cravings/aversions: Being pregnant during Christmas is just unfair. I like to think my willpower is pretty good, but while pregnant it’s so hard for me to turn down foods I might not normally eat. I did really want s’mores this week so I went to Whole Foods to try and get the “healthiest” ingredients I could find to make them. I also just made some grain-free salmon cakes that were super yummy with pesto on the side. I cannot wait to make these peppermint chocolate cookies this week! Also really craving a huge pile of spaghetti and meatballs. I really need to get food off my brain…
Missing anything: I am going to miss Joe and my annual Christmas Eve tradition of drinking buttery nipples (Baileys and Butterscotch Schnapps). I tried finding a non-alcoholic version but I don’t think it exists. Don’t ask me why we started that tradition because I honestly don’t know. I did end up making a non-alcoholic Baileys and some butterscotch syrup so I can pretend it’s the real deal.
Best part of the week: Being in Austin together!
Can’t wait for: Christmas of course and my family visits.