33 weeks

I am 33 weeks yesterday!  We had a very eventful week this past week.  There will be two posts.

Here are the fruit comparisons:

Eli

• weighs a little over 4 lbs (~ the weight of a pineapple or an adult duck (I wonder if he's a witch))
• is ~ 17in long (ladies, think of the length of your favorite collarbone length necklace)
• has hardening bones and he is gaining more fat and looking less wrinkly 
• has an almost mature respiratory system
• can tell the difference between light and dark/night and day (I'm sure he'll forget this knowledge as soon as he arrives and sleep all day and fuss all night)
• kicks and punches with more force now.  

Mom: 

• has to pee all the time.  Frequently rushes to go and then the bladder only releases about 3 drops.  It is obnoxious.  
• has started waddling a bit.  My hips and pelvic bones are sore, especially going from laying/sitting to standing.  
• has been reading a ton about labor and delivery, so I'm starting to feel much less nervous about it.  I'm trying to go into it with an open mind about what I want since things will happen how they happen and I will just adjust accordingly.  Although an epidural scares the bejeezus out of me.  
• Heartburn...yay
• My fingers have been swelling a bit.  I wear my wedding rings on a chain as a necklace.  
• I'm tired.  Naps are frequent and frequently unintended!  

Dad: 

• is doing well in school and has been looking into an alternative to the UMD fire protection degree.  This other option is Capitol College and is a degree in Astronautical Engineering.  Either one would be pretty awesome.  
• has been taking over a bunch of chores for me (vacuuming the stairs, taking the dog out, carrying the laundry up and down the stairs, etc)
• has been procrastinating on learning about labor :)  I think he thinks 7 weeks max is a long way away.

Mika: 

• pees, poops, eats, and demands attention.  What good practice!  
• got many many treats this week

So I started washing baby clothes and prepping the hospital bag this weekend.  I have all the 0-3 month clothes washed and sorted.  I might do the 3-6 months in a week or two.  We are also going to give the cloth diaper thing a try and we have a good starter stash built and prepped.  We have pockets (bumgenius and fuzzibunz) and prefolds with covers (thirsties, flips and 1 econobum).  I got almost all of them used and almost all of them will last through potty training, so if we keep up with it and don't switch back to disposables, we'll be spending a max of around $300 for diapers.  If we don't, they have a great resale value, so I'll just sell them for about what I paid for them.  Not much risk there.  We plan on using up the disposables we have received first while we get settled with Mr. E and find a general routine.  

I had an appointment on Friday and everything was great.  Heartbeat was 143.  Fundal height (my belly) measured right at 32 weeks and the doc told me to keep up the walking and my eating habits.  My pelvic bone hurting is normal.  That was really it.  I go back the first week of December (36 weeks), then again two weeks later (38 weeks), and then every week (39, 40 weeks...they won't let me go past 41 weeks).

We took an infant care class and learned a bit about diapering, bathing, things that happen at the hospital, skin care, sleeping, swaddling, dressing, nails, etc.  

People have been asking us what we need so I'll list it here.  This isn't a request for items, I just can't think of things on the spot when asked because we really are good to go for the first few weeks.  I've been trying to think about it, but we really do have the basics to get us going.  We could probably use a few more bottles for when I start pumping.  We have a few Avent bottles and some babies r us brand drop ins (like the Playtex nursers), but a few more probably wouldn't hurt.  I know many people swear by the Dr. Browns, but we would prefer not to have bottles with a ton of parts to clean and worry about.  (I've heard the Dr. Browns leak if they aren't put together just right).  We could also use a bottle drying rack and dishwasher container.  We don't have many socks or mitten things.  We could probably use more crib sheets.  

Things we have a ton of: heavy blankets, 0-3 and 3-6 months clothes, bath time stuff (shampoo, soap, lotion, towels), teether toys.  

Larger items we have: car seat, play pen, swing, bouncer seat, boppy pillow, bumpo seat, crib, dresser, stroller, bassinet, diaper caddy, backpack (diaper bag)

Here is our registry again in case anyone wants to look.  Again, this isn't a request for items.  People just keep asking.   http://www.amazon.com/registry/baby/3C6NTSMZVLTNU