28 Weeks!

Today marks 28 weeks of pregnancy!  I feel like I'm back in the first trimester all over again, and it seemingly happened overnight!  I have been absolutely exhausted this week and have been falling asleep on the couch or calling it a night around 8pm or so the last few evenings.  In the first trimester I was the same way, and as soon as I was finished eating dinner, I would doze on the couch for most of the evening.  Apparently third trimester fatigue is very common, but I'm really hoping that a few days of lots of extra sleep will help me feel more energized!

Here is my 28 week picture:

And just for fun, I wore the same outfit that I was wearing in my 18 week picture!  Here is a side-by-side comparison of what a difference 10 weeks makes:

I thought I was huge at 18 weeks!  Ha!  This week Abby is either the size of an eggplant, or a Chinese cabbage, depending on the source.  Here's a picture of both!

At 28 weeks, Abby is around 14 inches long and 2 and a quarter pounds.  She can blink her eyes and see light that filters into the womb.  Her lungs are now mature enough that if she were (God forbid!) to be born now she would most likely survive!  She is also adding more body fat to prepare for life outside the womb...although nothing can really prepare her for cold Michigan winters!

28 week survey:

How far along: 28 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: Minus 8 pounds. But I feel ENORMOUS lately!
Maternity clothes: Yep, everything.  
Stretch marks: Nothing new this week as far as I can tell.
Best moment this week: Dave was able to feel Abby kick really hard the other day :)  He had very cold hands and that worked great to get her moving!

Movement: Lots!  I've been able to feel her kicking higher up too, which is a lot of fun.  In fact, our friend Jessica got to feel her kick at the Halloween party last weekend.  She's the first person besides Dave and I to feel her kick :)

Food cravings: Since it was Halloween this week, I'll just say CANDY!!!  Oh my word, I have eaten WAY too much candy this week.
Gender: Still a little girl!
Labor Signs: None.
Belly Button in or out: Still in for now. 
What I miss: The usual things...sleeping on my stomach, a glass of wine after a crappy day at work, not having to pee every two minutes.  

What I am looking forward to: A very quiet weekend at home.  Seriously, other than dinner out tonight with Dave, my plan is to not leave the house for anything all weekend long!  I'm even taking a break from tailgating this weekend.  I just need some recharging time.
Milestones: Glucose test this week!  I am really praying that I passed!  I felt totally fine after drinking the fruit punch drink and having my blood drawn.  I didn't do very well abstaining from sugar the day before the test though, so I'm hoping that doesn't have a negative impact on my results.  If worse comes to worst and I end up having gestational diabetes, I will of course do everything I need to do to make sure that Abby is healthy...but man would it be hard to give up sugar!  I have no idea when I will get the results, so fingers are crossed until then.

After writing my post about how hard it will be to leave my job, I had a couple rough days in a row (go figure). My sister recommended that I get a countdown app so that I can see just how few days I really have left.  After counting up all the actual work days that I have left, I found out that as of today I only have 30 days left!!  That number seems so much more doable than seven weeks :)  I still need to give my bosses my official last day, which I've determined will be December 20.  Hopefully time really will fly by until then!  I'm ready for some nesting time before Abigail makes her big debut.

Speaking of Abby's debut, I've been reading lots and lots of birth stories online lately.  They've been both beneficial and terrifying!  Women who go through natural childbirth have my utmost respect...but that is NOT something I want to experience!  In my ideal world, I would have one of those "A Baby Story" births where the mom comes in, gets her epidural, dilates to 10cm while smiling and chatting with her husband, and then pushes out the baby no problem.  Now, I KNOW that most likely will not be my birth experience, but a girl can dream!!  Dave and I start our child birth classes in a few weeks, so I'm hoping that will help prepare us both for what lies ahead without scaring me too badly.  I'm really, really terrified to give birth, but I just have to keep in mind that it's a natural process and women have been doing it since the beginning of time!