37 Weeks - "Full Term!"

Today marks 37 full weeks of pregnancy complete!  37 weeks is also considered to be "full term", meaning that if Abigail were to be born now, she would hopefully not have any issues :)  Of course, since I am showing pretty much ZERO signs of labor (TMI alert: other than losing some of my plug), I think she's got some baking time left.  Here is my 37 week picture:

This week Abby is about the size of a winter melon:

I really have no idea what that is but it looks pretty big!  I had another growth ultrasound yesterday and Abby is estimated to weigh around 6 pounds 3 ounces right now, putting her around the 48th percentile.  Of course, growth ultrasounds are not always accurate, so it truly is just an estimate based on a number of different measurements.  My doctor said that Abby is measuring right on for her head size and stomach size, but the length of her arm and leg bones are a few weeks behind.  In other words, baby girl is short!  Wow, shocking ;)  Not really, of course.  Considering that I'm really short and Dave is of average height, we're obviously not expecting our children to be very tall!  I'd love for her to be at least 5'3" as an adult though, just so that she doesn't have quite as much trouble finding pants that fit as I do.  A mom can dream!  

I had another non-stress test yesterday and it didn't go well again.  Abby just seems to either hate being monitored, or be on a very regular nap schedule.  At any rate, this week they decided not to bother keeping me hooked up for as long as they have in the past.  After about 30 minutes the nurse declared, "You have a difficult child!" (gee, thanks??) and sent me straight to an ultrasound.  Thankfully, once again Abby got an 8/8 on her biophysical profile.  The whole process is so nerve wracking!  I don't know what to do to make the NST's go better either.  I've tried eating all different foods at different times throughout the morning, I've had coffee, juice, etc.  She just really likes to sleep around 8:30am.  Hopefully it's just a sign of a good napper to come :)  Anyway, I'll be glad when she's here and I don't have to worry about all those tests anymore.  Of course, then I will have a whole new set of worries!  

37 Week Survey

How far along: 37 weeks
Total weight gain/loss: I lost a few pounds again this week.  It just seems to go up and down by the same two pounds over and over again.  Net loss of 5 pounds at this point.
Maternity clothes: All!
Stretch marks: Yes, lots.
Sleep: Sleep hasn't been too bad this week!  There is one spot on my left side where she digs her feet into my ribs, and that can be really uncomfortable when I'm in certain positions.  Once I can get comfy though I've been able to fall asleep fine.  I've also been watching tv up in bed around 8:30pm most nights and start dozing around that time, so I am definitely getting a lot of rest.
Best moment this week: It was great to get another growth ultrasound.
Movement: Yep, but she's really running out of room so it's mostly just stretching and readjusting her bum!

Food cravings: Nothing really specific this week.
Gender: Still a girl!
Labor Signs: None.
Belly Button in or out: Still in.  I think it's going to stay that way!
What I miss: New Year's Eve was tough for me!  I missed being out partying with our friends :(  I felt really down that day.  I know it's all for a good cause though!
What I am looking forward to: Of course I can't wait to meet our baby girl, but I'm really excited to get my hair cut this morning!  Nothing drastic, just time for a major trim.
Milestones: Reached full term!  I also packed hospital bags for me and the baby (with as much as I can excluding toiletries, etc) and installed the car seat.  I'm going to look at breast pumps today too.  We are READY!
This entire pregnancy, my doctor has said that she'll never let me go past my due date and will induce beforehand because of my preexisting hypertension.  Yesterday, however, was a different story!  My blood pressure has been really great (for me, anyway) and yesterday was no exception at 110/66.  I asked the doctor at what point we'll start talking about induction, and she said that because my blood pressure has been so great they would let me go a week past my due date (as long as my bp continues to stay low)!  Honestly, this was not what I wanted to hear!  I haven't been too horribly uncomfortable, but I don't think I can imagine being pregnant (and waiting for baby) for another MONTH!  Late yesterday afternoon, though, I got an email from my OB's office saying that my test for group B strep came back positive.  I'll be discussing this with my doctor next week because that may change things a little.  Group B strep is a bacteria that approximately 10-30% of all pregnant women carry.  It's generally harmless in healthy adults, but can be passed to infants at birth and can cause very serious illness and infection.  Women who test positive for GBS should be treated with IV antibiotics at least four hours prior to giving birth in order to give baby the greatest protection against the bacteria.  I'm trying as hard as I can to stay away from Google and its scary statistics and information and just focus on the fact that lots and lots of pregnant women are GBS + and have perfectly healthy babies.  Anyway, I will get more info from my doctor next week on how this will change my delivery and possible induction.  Until then, we're just letting baby fatten up and waiting for her arrival!