27 Weeks

27 Weeks are in the books! Only 13 more weeks to go, and you know what that means?  It means we have finally reached the 3rd trimester!!!!!  I am so excited to be in the home stretch!

Little Michael knows it's the 3rd trimester as well.  He's making sure we hit all the "normal" 3rd trimester activities such as:

• Sitting on my bladder to make sure that I go to the bathroom every half hour to 45 minutes.
• Falling asleep on the couch at 8:00 again (Wait a second, did we ever get out of that phase? I don't think so.)
• The "waddle" that's becoming my normal walking gait.
• The slowing of my walking pace (As for running? Not even in the vocabulary anymore.)
• The thought that my car has moved significantly further down the parking lot than where I left it at 6:20 in the morning.

Yesterday, Michael and I had a doctor's appointment.  Although I schedule our appointments to be at 3:30 so that Aaron can come, he had to work late yesterday and wasn't able to make it.  My dad was able to come with me instead, which is such a relief because yesterday was my gestational diabetes test!  I was pretty nervous about it and even had dreams last weekend about what would happen if I messed up the test. 

At my last appointment I was given a bottle of red juice labeled "Fruit Punch" and was told to drink it within a 5 minute period one hour before my appointment time.  So yesterday I brought my Tervis tumbler that says "Mom" (my Mother's Day gift from Claudia and Randy) with me to work, along with a straw.  I filled that whole glass up with ice and poured the juice over it because the label said that it tastes best cold over ice.  I set my cell phone Stopwatch so that I could make sure that I downed the drink within 5 minutes.  The juice actually wasn't that bad!  Toward the end, though, it started to taste medicinal, so I was happy to be nearly done with it at that point.

At my appointment, the nurse pricked my finger and in a few seconds she could tell that I passed! No gestational diabetes for me!!!  When the doctor came in, he was very pleased and said that I was the first one to pass the test that day out of two or three others who had gone before me. Whew! What a relief!

The doctor is pleased with the weight that I've gained and said it's "perfect" (but the exact amount that I've gained will be my own secret. Sorry to all the inquiring minds.) :) He listened to Michael's heartbeat with the doppler, and the first heartbeat we heard was my own (it was slow), and then we heard Michael's faster heartrate. He promised me that the first heartbeat was mine and that I don't have twins in there! :) He said Michael is a little under 2 pounds, and that he expects him to triple in size over the next 13 weeks. So, in other words, he's expecting Michael to be around 6 pounds at birth. I'm ok with that. :) I'm more ok with 6 pounds than with 10 pounds. :)

I had to have blood drawn again to measure my thyroid levels, so I'm really happy that Dad was there with me-- getting blood drawn is never fun, even though I should be used to it by now.

Michael has been busy this week, and I don't just mean as evidenced by his rigorous kicking and twisting.

This Week:
-His lungs and immune system are maturing this week.  If he were born today, he would have an 85% chance of survival, and although a B+ is a good grade in school, we are gonna be overachievers in this household and strive for 100%-- So, in order to do that, Michael will have to stay inside his warm home until the end of August! :)
-Michael's length has more than doubled in the past 15 weeks!  What a busy boy!
-His brain tissue and neurons are developing at a rapid pace.  In fact, his brainwaves are firing away like that of a newborn baby.
-Michael's little boy parts are completely descended now.
-Michael is about 14 and a half inches long and a little under 2 pounds (according to the doctor).  So that makes Little Michael roughly the size of a pot roast:

(Photo credit: reynoldsovenbags.com)

My Cravings:

-Michelina's shrimp fried rice.  This is something I got to have while growing up.  I considered it a treat. I actually haven't given into this craving (mainly because I haven't been to the grocery store in a while).

-A plain, old, turkey sandwich.  I made one for Aaron this week for his lunch and it looked so good!  I am excited to be able to eat one again after Michael is born.

-A cold cut combo from Subway.  I have craved this before, and it's probably because it's my all time favorite Subway sandwich.  Although I can't enjoy one right now, I have my plan in place for when I'm in the post-partum room after delivering Michael.  One of my best friends, (I'll call her Flam) is going to bring me this sandwich.  I will be a very happy girl (as if I won't be the happiest girl ever anyways). :)

-Lemonade!  Anybody want to take a road trip to Toomer's Corner?  I think I feel a Limeade craving coming on, too!

-Fall.  Now I know this is a funny craving, and it's not totally about the food.  I'm craving the cooler weather (yes, we here in Alabama have started our summer a little early).  I'm craving the smells like apple cider. I'm craving SEC football games (meaning, Auburn). :) Maybe I'm craving fall because Michael will be here by then.

With each day that passes, we are that much closer to meeting Michael.  I LOVE being pregnant, but I know I'll love motherhood more!  Thank-you for all of your prayers.  They are evident through the blessing of a healthy growing boy whose kicks tells me he's here and happy to be growing safely inside my tummy.  Til next week, eat a turkey sandwich for me! Love, Reba