Where we are now

My hubby isn't going on that almost month long business trip - thank goodness! I feel much better now :) I know lots of women have it far worse - especially those married to military men, who can be deployed for a year. I just totally freaked that he would be 1800 miles away, with no way to get home quickly if need be, and I'd be here and all alone. I was terrified I'd get put on bed rest and have nobody to help, or the baby would arrive early and my hubby wouldn't be here. 

Pregnancy:
Gestation: 31 weeks 5 days
Weight gained: 12.4 pounds*
Belly button: Still in (yay!)
Symptoms: Just tired mostly
Days to go until due date: 58 (whoa!)
Appointments: Every 2 weeks. Had one today, everything is good! Baby's heartbeat is nice and strong. One more appointment in 2 weeks and then my appointments will be weekly.
Movement: Lots of big movements these days. Think baby may be head down now.
Blood pressure: Normal at home, high at the OB's office. White coat syndrome! OB is happy because I've been keeping a log of my BP, and checking it at least twice a day. She keeps reminding me of the symptoms I need to watch out for, but so far so good.

* My weight has actually dropped by 1.4 pounds since my last appointment (2 weeks ago). Pretty sure it's because we were eating out a lot when my mom and stepdad were here, and things are back to normal now. My OB is happy with my gain so there are no concerns there. :)

Here's a belly photo from 31 weeks 1 day:

Update on OB appointment

My appointment this afternoon went pretty well for the most part. I found out I gained a whopping 5 pounds since my last appointment (more than I thought - I figured maybe 3 pounds). That puts my total pregnancy weight gain at 8 pounds so far, at almost 18 weeks. I don't think that's too bad really. My OB didn't say anything about it, so it must be OK.

It took quite a while to find the heartbeat with the doppler; it felt like forever, honestly. I was starting to get worried when suddenly there it was, loud and clear. Thank goodness! Hubby recorded it on my phone and it was about 156 bpm. It sounded great! :)

Now for the potentially bad news: they found white blood cells in my urine sample. I have absolutely no symptoms whatsoever of a UTI, so I was pretty surprised by that. My OB said she'll get it cultured and let me know if I need to be treated. She said it could be nothing to worry about, it could be that some discharge got in there and that's why there are white blood cells there. Gross, I know, and probably way TMI, but there you have it. Hopefully it's nothing to worry about, and if it is a UTI then at least it's been picked up and I'll get treated.

My blood pressure was on the high side again today, which is honestly no surprise to me. I'm sure that it rises when I go for an appointment! It's something I have no control over but knowing that they're going to take my BP makes me irrationally anxious. I try to relax but it doesn't help much. The first reading was 140/70, and they checked it again at the end of my appointment (after telling me about my potential UTI) and it was 140/82. I know that's high, but I'm pretty sure it's not like that when I'm going about my normal business. They'll continue to monitor me since I'm not having any red flag symptoms - terrible headache, blurred vision, lights in front of my eyes etc.

Last piece of news - our anatomy ultrasound is scheduled for January 2nd! I'll be 20 weeks 6 days along by then, so the tech should be able to get a good look at everything they need to see. I was hoping to get the ultrasound a week earlier, but there wasn't anything available. Waiting an extra week won't kill me, though! So 3 weeks tomorrow we'll see our baby again. So exciting! :)