33 Weeks and HOT HOT HOT!!!

Some drastic changes have occurred in our North Carolina weather over the course of this 33rd week of pregnancy. As you'll notice by my clothing in the picture, the beginning of Week 33 was cloudy, rainy, and somewhat chilly for NC standards in June. But that didn't last long. By the end of the week, we were in the mid 90's, hazy and humid. I'm seriously considering purchasing a kiddie wading pool and just living in it for the next 6 weeks or so. It would be good psychological practice for the water birth we're planning at the birth center :-)

The heat, in conjunction with my blossoming belly and crazy hormones, has turned me into one hot mama and forced some compromises on the part of my ever-patient husband. He has learned not to argue when he finds the AC once again lowered by a degree (or two), which goes against the grain of his frugal "Fruehism". He's also been forced to pull out a few extra quilts to wrap up when we sleep because I blast the ceiling fan over our bed and sleep with no covers. What a trooper!

Now that I’m mostly done with school-related responsibilities, it’s been much easier to put all the finishing touches on the nursery, including hanging her “Molly” letters above her crib. I’m extremely happy with how the whole room turned out! We’re both so glad we chose to go with the orange paint for the room. It was really a leap of faith when we first did it, but I think the wall color really “makes” the room. Sometimes I just go in there to sit or read or daydream. I look at the crib and wonder, “What will she look like? Will she be short, dark and curly-haired? Or tall, blonde and straight-haired? Or some combination in-between? What will her personality be? Shy? Outgoing? Tom-boy? Girly? Book-worm? Athlete?” Now that the nursery is done and we’ve made all of our final purchases (diapers, wipes, carseat), it feels like we’re just waiting for Molly to arrive. But all of our timely planning and preparations have left us with 6 weeks to wait for the Big Arrival. My challenge now is to wait with joy and patience at a time when complaining and impatience could easily take over.

The next 6 weeks are important; Molly’s not done growing yet! At the end of 33 weeks, she weighs over 4.5 pounds and will gain about ½ pound each week between now and D-Day (Delivery Day). She is over 17 inches long and is running out of room to maneuver in my uterus. At this point, my amniotic fluid levels have maxed out, but she will continue to grow. This means she won’t have the freedom to do many acrobatic moves anymore…mostly just kicks, jabs, and nudges (which I’m definitely feeling in full force!). Fortunately, she’s been settled in the head-down position for months now, so there’s no need to worry about her needing to flip over. The only down-side to this upside down situation is the constant presence of little feet in my stomach and ribcage. I’ll be glad when those little feet are on the outside where I can kiss and squeeze them rather than have them kicking my ribs :-) One major task that’s being accomplished in these last few weeks is the development of Molly’s immune system. My body is hard at work passing on antibodies from my bloodstream to hers that will protect her against viruses and bacteria that are currently in our environment or that I may have encountered in the past. These immunities will continue to be passed into her bloodstream through the umbilical cord until it is cut, at which point my breastmilk will take over as her major source of immunity until her immune system is mature enough to handle these threats on its own. Pretty cool, huh? I’m continually amazed at how God has worked out this whole system so perfectly!