Baby Kiel is now the length of a leek! He or she is almost 17″ long from head to heel and is weighing in at about 3.75 lbs. Our baby’s digestive system is ready to go, but his/her lungs are still developing. Apparently, Baby is sleeping 90-95% of the day, but I don’t know if I believe that, haha! Our little one is still quite active in there.
We had our 32-week appointment on Tuesday, and everything is looking good! My uterus is measuring right on target, and Baby Kiel’s heartbeat was between 138 and 141. We had a tour of Labor & Delivery, which was nice, although I’ve been in L&D 3 times in the past 6 months, I think (everyone is having babies!). The rooms are really nice and spacious, and I’ve heard really great things about the doctors and nurses there. We also had our little baby shower — we received some diapers and really cute little sea-themed board books. Each of us also received a lovely knit baby sweater that a lady donated.
How far along: 32 weeks
Gender: Still a mystery! 🙂 You can go vote here if you’d like! Looks like the votes are getting closer to 50/50…
Weight gain: 15 lbs from my lowest point
Symptoms: The day I hit 32 weeks was kind of a rough day. I woke up without an appetite, went to a baby shower tea party where I still wasn’t feeling great, then came home and ended up resting on the couch feeling nauseous. I did get hungry for dinner, but then had indigestion and heartburn (and a lot of burping) after that. Thankfully it was just one day! My back pain has been much better as long as I change positions when needed. Headaches have been much less frequent too! I’ve had a few random nosebleeds (very unusual for me), but I read that they’re common in pregnancy due to hormones (of course). I think I’ve been a little more emotional lately too. I get teary-eyed about things I normally am not phased by, and I’ve been more upset about things that don’t usually bother me much.
Maternity clothes: Definitely! Some are even too small now.
Stretch marks: Not yet
Belly button in or out: Still in!
Sleep: Not too bad. I still am sleeping more than I’d like to, but I figure if my body wants it, I must need it.
Best moment(s) this week: I had a couple “best moments” this week! On Tuesday I received a package from my mom. I expected a few baby items, but on top of everything was an invitation:
So my first gift was from my mom, and apparently more are coming! I think it’s such a sweet and creative way to have a baby shower with the people I won’t be able to celebrate with before Baby Kiel’s arrival. Yes, this is one of the things I got emotional about this week. 🙂
My other best moment was getting our maternity photos done. I can’t wait to see how they turned out and to share them with everyone!
Miss anything: Having a normal digestive system: I never know how food is going to affect me anymore.
Movement: All the time! One day I felt like the baby was literally trying to push out of my stomach.
Cravings: Still craving lemonade… it really hits the spot! Sometimes I still want ice cream before bed, although I’ve been trying to cut back on that.
Looking forward to: Our BBQ baby shower next weekend! The weather has been so mild, I hope we have a nice afternoon to spend outside with our friends.
Baby Kiel at 32 weeks (and 2 days):
I can’t believe it’s officially autumn! We found out we were pregnant at the end of winter, rolled through spring and summer, and here we are in the season our baby will be arriving. In some ways it seems like I’ve been pregnant forever, and then sometimes I feel like it all went so fast.
While the guys hung out and drank beer, us ladies decorated onesies. Diane had iron-on fabric and fabric paints for us to use. Once I got started, I just kept going — I think I made 3 of them!
My friend Robyn won the onesie decorating contest! She made a guitar and wrote “FRET-fully cute” — I thought it was so clever. 🙂 And guess what else. We have the same due date! How crazy is that?
We all ate in the conservatory, because, unfortunately, we had a very wet and chilly day!
But while we were eating, the sun started peeking through, so Andrew built a fire and the guys smoked cigars outside.
Meanwhile, we ladies headed inside for gift-opening! 
We got some useful items for Baby Kiel, as well as cute stuff like books and toys. I’m really thankful for our friends and their generosity. Andrew and I had a great time spending time with friends, eating good food, and celebrating our little baby… who will be joining us soon!
On An Even Kiel 