Weighting For You At 32 Weeks! 💖

  

This little bun is almost done! :)

   Less than 8 weeks left til' my due date, 23rd of November! Wow, how time flies! :) But since I'll be having another caesarian delivery, God willing will give birth at an earlier date just like my previous twos.  This gives me a bonus of seeing my baby more sooner! 😊

Weighting for you... 💖

Blessed and thankful! 😍

   Every day that passes is another day closer to meeting her.  I am so excited! From the very beginning of this pregnancy, I already had this special bond with my baby. She is so precious to me! 💖

My gift from Up Above!

Can't wait to hold my precious little girl in my arms... 👩💖👶

   I'll be having another prenatal check up this week and an ultrasound next week, always happy and excited in here to hear my baby's heartbeat and see her once again! :)

  

  For now, let's take a peek on what's happening this week:

Inside the Womb at 32 Weeks

 Photo courtesy of Babycenter

Photo courtesy of The Bump

Photo courtesy of Parents

Photo courtesy of Your Baby Library

Child length: measures 16.7 inches (about the size of a large jicama)

Child weight: 3.8 pounds

At this stage: At 32 weeks pregnant, your baby's taste buds are developed, she may acquire a preference for the foods you eat, which she samples when she swallows amniotic fluid.

Your baby will gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

Once again, your baby's bones go through yet another hardening phase around now, helping your baby with posture and strength and, of course, acting as a vital method of protection outside of the uterus. Your baby's skull will remain soft which helps it squeeze through the birth canal without doing too much damage to either of you. Known informally as the "soft spot", this part of the body doesn't actually firm up until early adulthood!

Your baby's brain is hugely advanced already, and by now your voice, and other voices around your baby will be very familiar and recognizable to him or her. The brain is also busy taking in everything there is to see, as your baby's eyes are open constantly during the waking hours now. Granted, there's not much to see in there, but it's all preparation for life outside of the womb.

Your baby is definitely big enough by now to survive outside the womb. Her lungs are maturing, and her heart rate is starting to slow down a bit. However, research shows that the fetal heart rate speeds up if the mother is stressed, so stay as relaxed as you can to help your baby stay peaceful.

She has definite sleep-and-wake cycles, but she probably sleeps about 70 percent of the time. Ultrasounds reveal that sometime between 32 weeks and 36 weeks babies develop the ability to dream. They have definite periods of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep and non-REM sleep. Your baby also has periods of quiet alertness in which she listens to the exciting sounds beyond her dark room.

Between 32 and 38 weeks, your baby will also probably settle into the head-down, bottoms-up position in your pelvis in preparation for birth. That's because the fetus' head fits better at the bottom of your inverted, pear-shaped uterus, plus it’s easier during childbirth if your baby comes out head first. Fewer than five percent of babies prefer the bottom-down (or breech) position by full-term so don't worry if your little bean hasn't assumed the head-down position yet. There's still a good chance she'll flip before birth, even in the tight confines of your uterus.

In these past few weeks, it's all about practice, practice, practice as she hones the skills she'll need to thrive outside the womb from swallowing and breathing to kicking and sucking. In anticipation of that momentous transition to mouth feeding, your baby's digestive system is all set and ready to go. And though you're weeks away from D-day, your baby's looking more and more like a newborn: As fat accumulates under her skin, it's no longer transparent and is now opaque.

Your Body

To accommodate your and your baby's growing needs, your blood volume has increased 40 to 50 percent since you got pregnant. And with your uterus pushing up near your diaphragm and crowding your stomach, the consequences may be shortness of breath and heartburn. To help relieve your discomfort, try sleeping propped up with pillows and eating smaller meals more often.

A 32 weeks pregnant belly should measure about 30 to 34 centimeters from the top of the uterus to the pelvic bone. Sometime between now and around week 34, baby will “drop” from up near your ribs to down near your pelvis, where he or she will hang out in the head-down position until delivery. When this happens you may notice you suddenly go from “carrying high” to “carrying low.” This isn’t a guarantee though; some babies don’t drop until mom’s actually in labor.

Pregnancy symptoms that you might experience during this stage:

Intensity is building in the symptoms department, since heartburn and contractions tend to get more noticeable around week 32 of pregnancy. But we’re guessing you’re so excited about baby’s impending arrival, these 32 weeks pregnant symptoms aren’t slowing you down at least not too much.

More Braxton Hicks contractions. Those “practice contractions” are likely getting more frequent and stronger. (This might be confused with 32 weeks pregnant cramping.) There’s one big difference between Braxton Hicks contractions and the real deal: These guys go away. Real contractions just keep coming. Women who are 32 weeks pregnant with twins are at higher risk for preterm labor, so definitely watch for contractions that don’t let up.

Darker nipples. Whoa! Suddenly those areolas look darker. No one knows exactly why, but one theory is they darken so that baby can see them better for breastfeeding. Your body’s pretty amazing, huh?

Shortness of breath. Don't worry: baby is getting plenty of air. You’re not though, so don’t push yourself too hard.

Heartburn. Go ahead and pop an antacid. They’re safe for most moms-to-be to take during pregnancy.

Leaky boobs. Your breasts are probably noticeably bigger and they may even have begun producing colostrum, which is the thick yellow fluid that baby will eat in the first few days of life. Don’t be surprised to see a little bit leaking at this point. Yikes!

Vaginal discharge. Might seem a little gross, but the increased discharge is your body’s way of preparing for delivery; it prevents infection down there. Keep your eye out for the mucus plug—this thick, gooey (sometimes bloody) substance covers the cervix until a few days (or just hours) before labor, when your body expels it. Another thing to keep an eye on: discharge that seems more like a watery liquid. If you’re having a constant flow that’s more like water than discharge, your water might have broken, causing a slow leak. If that’s the case, call the OB and get to the hospital stat.

With the above pregnancy discomforts, I've been feeling some shortness of breath lately at times when I lay in bed. Thankful that I don't have any heartburn yet. Major pregnancy discomforts are still lower back pains (left tailbone) which I'd been experiencing as early as my pregnancy started, which also goes to my right sometimes. 

Darker nipples yes as well as vaginal discharge which are just normal that I've been having for weeks. Some Braxton Hicks contractions here and there at times, too.

Frequent urination, lucky that I don't have to wake up in the evening from time to time, it's only when I woke up in the morning. Maybe because  I don't drink that much anymore before going to bed. Overall, feeling good at this stage despite these common pregnancy discomforts. Thanks be to God!

Days left to birth: 53 days left (81% of your pregnancy is completed)

Due date: 23 November 2017

Data Sources: Babycenter, The Bump, What To Expect, Parents.com, Due Date Calculator (YourDueDate.com)