37 Weeks: FULL TERM

How far along:
37 Weeks. Officially full term! (Which means you can come on out whenever you're ready, Ryker. We're all waiting to meet you!)

How big is the baby:
Baby is the size of a stalk of swiss chard.
-image via Babycenter


Weight gain/Maternity clothes:
Gained this week: +2.3
Total Gain: +20.4
I have officially hit 20 lbs, which is the max I really wanted to gain. At least the scales are showing +20 at 37 weeks instead of at 20 weeks, amirite.
Also, some of my maternity clothes are getting a little tight/short. But since I only have to deal with 2.5 more weeks of work (YAYYYYY!!!!) I'm just going to make it work.

Movement?
Yep. Still have a lot of movement. Which is nice.

Food cravings/aversions?
Milk, chocolate milk, ice, water is nice, fruit is also good (especially watermelon), chicken fingers. Salads still gross me out. Meh. It is what it is.

Gender?
BOY!

Symptoms?
fatigue, sensitivity to smells, nausea, vomiting, vivid dreams, big belly, elevated temperature & lots of sweating, swelling, heartburn, hip pain, drooling, gas, increased thirst, difficulty breathing (only because all of my insides are squished from the giant baby), pressure on my cervix/bladder, irritability.

What do I miss?
A lot. But I'm looking forward to meeting Ryker more than I miss anything.

Labor Signs: This is the state of my cervix. And it will be gross. Skip it if you want. This whole blog is mostly for my documentation anyways. You've been warned..............  
All last week I was feeling slightly crampy, but nothing to worry about. Also, there's been some mucus. At my appointment yesterday I was dilated 1 cm, 40% effaced, and Ryker was in the -4 position. BAM. Progress. Especially if you compare that to the nothing that was going on at the appointment before. The doctor said he could barely feel Ryker's head. WHAT!?! He can feel my baby's head! Also, the doc said that this progress makes him think that Ryker will probably come on his own (instead of having to induce after the due date which is what I've thought all along). And since my appointment yesterday I'm either spotting from the cervical check or slowly losing my mucus plug. I'm thinking most likely it's spotting, but hey, a girl can dream right?
Needless to say, yesterday's appointment has lit a fire under my butt. I'm all of a sudden trying to finish preparing everything for Ryker's arrival. (Like finding a crib skirt! I cannot find one I like... so I'm thinking about making one. That's not entirely crazy, right?)


This Week:
Ryker is now considered full term. If he decides to make an entrance now, his lungs are likely mature enough to fully adjust to life on the outside. He weighs about 6.3 lbs (probably more since he's such a big boy) and measures about 19 inches head to heel. If he's not a baldy, he already has hair 1/2 - 1 1/2 inches long!
-From Babycenter.com

Bump Shot: