29 Weeks Pregnant – Size of an English Cucumber

29 Weeks Pregnant!
Feeling pretty good this week and baby is the size of something that is over 15″ long. Ya gotta get creative with the fruit sizes, and she can literally be compared to anything around that size, so this week, we ran into a perfectly sized (15 inches) English Cucumber, so here it is! I was curious as to why this varietal is called “English”, because surely it is not Brittish, but I found that the English cucumber is long, straight and narrow thanks to English plant breeders
who elongated the cucumber trying to make it seedless, so this type of cucumber is “taller”, and so is our baby, presumably.

Is this real life? A little over 2 months and you’ll be here!

It just dawned on me this week that she will only grow a few more inches before fully cooked, and will quickly put on weight in the next 10 weeks or so. On average, babies are born anywhere between 17-21 inches, so technically we’re almost there! That’s sooooo crazy to me, as it feels like it’s all happening so quickly! She is supposedly just a bit over 2.5 lbs and again, babies are usually born around 7-8 lbs on average so most of what will be happening in the next 2 1/2 months or so is her fattening up!

“Orange” glow provided by the sun-setting! haha

Wouldn’t surprise me if at this point she wouldn’t be longer than 15″!

Mama feels heavier everyday but nothing negative! I do actually feel like I’m carrying this extra weight pretty well and am thankful for little to no ankle swelling, although I know this can all change in the blink of an eye. I am quite “veiny” so…let’s see how those varicose veins will end up.
Baby Sandee is very healthy interactive and feels quite healthy given the amount she moves! She responds to our voices, or so it seems and is getting stronger everyday, moving around and kicking back in response to a hand or covers. I also noticed she responds to light by decreasing or increasing activity. I noticed she moves more in the dark, and when I shine the light on my belly she is quieter. It’s really so funny to see.

Daddy’s touch…

Sometimes I wonder if she will be patient enough to wait her “designated” 40 weeks, because by the way she constantly moves, it makes me think she is a hot inpatient like myself. Judging by the latest ultrasound, I feel she will look a lot like her daddy winecoach but maybe have my temperament? We shall see, It’s fun to wonder!
Closing out 29 weeks with my baby shower in New Jersey, with my family and friends which was absolutely wonderful. For those of you who didn’t know, I’m a Jersey girl, and that’s where I call home since it’s always wonderful to be back and visit with my closest friends and family members.

Our Jersey shower!

I also had my maternity photo shoot in New York City, specifically Central Park which ended up an absolute adventure since hurricane Matthew came all the way up the East coast with residual rain that literally “rained on our parade” this Columbus Day weekend. Thankfully we were unaffected and not physically harmed in any way for which I am very thankful, and our photographer was creative enough to find another location where between lots of traffic and delays ended up successful on the grounds of The Metropolitan (The Cloisters) which is an absolutely breathtaking museum. By the way, we were not allowed to shoot inside the useful itself but it is build on a castle-like property with incredible trees. I’m so thankful we ended up there despite all tribulations and aggravations I won’t bore you with, definitely worth it! Pictures are coming and I can’t wait to share it with you guys!

Cravings: Jersey for me = Little Brazil, and o got to indulge in those pleasures: Patel de queijo, misto quente, pudim, brigadeiro, caldo de cana, you name it and if I could get my hands on it this weekend, I did! FYI, these are all the things a Brazilian pregnant lady will crave when she can’t have them because she loves away from everything Brazilian! I had a field day at the local bakery and at my baby shower where my mom made sure those things were available! LOVE!

“Caldo de cana”, aka sugar cane juice! I crave this pregnant or not.

Frozen Yogurt! Man it hit me hard how I wanted a froyo earlier this week. And it was the best I’ve ever had, obviously because I was craving it so hard!

Aversions: I’m definitely a lover, not a fighter this week. Happy to feel that food aversions seem to be a thing of the past for now, but of course I still have nearly 3 months to go, so let’s not celebrate early!

Mood: Earlier in the week I was recovering from some melancholic feelings, but my mood picked up by the end of the week. I feel like positive affirmations really help, such as: “You are loved, you are cared for, you are taken care of by the important people in your life” are just great when feeling down. Perhaps I will do more of these because hormones really “mess” with our pregnant brains sometimes. I need to get stronger and try not to allow it, although of course it is impossible. I cried watching sappy videos on facebook….oh hormones.

Ultrasound and Baby’s Sex: Still in love with last week’s ultrasound, so much so I wanted to share more of it with you! Here is a quick little clip of my little angel’s face, precisely when she decided to turn and freak her momma out!

Movement and Positioning: My little boxer is head/face down and “ready to go” (the tech’s words, not mine), but I think it’s a little early for that. Still, her positioning is apparently perfect, so I do hope she stays that way in the next couple of months!
Weight gain: 29 weeks, 26 lbs gained in total. This oscillates depending on time of day in which I weigh myself, so I usually go with first weight of the day. My belly feels so tight, like it’s about to pop! I don’t have stretch marks (yet) but I can see how they are made. Geez! Lube. It. Up!

Loving this line for moisturizing and stretch mark prevention…

Nursery and registry: Thank you to my friends and family, the items for the nursery are coming along! I will soon share the reason I don’t have a nursery yet, but it is still too early. I hear from credible sources (experienced momma bears) that all babies need in order to come home is a car seat and a bassinet. I will just make sure I have those 2 before she comes ok!? Meanwhile I will look to my registries on Babies R Us and Buy Buy with the consolidated lists are also on The Bump for guidance on what is still needed after baby showers are done and over with!

Names: Winecoach and I decided not to share the baby’s name for now. It’s a personal choice, aka, Dutch tradition and I am on board with it.

Midwife or OB: Midwife, midwife, midwife! I’m happy, why change!? If needed, I will have an OB to help me out, but we are hoping to continue progressing as “normally” as possible. My plan right now includes a birthing hospital.

Aches and pains: I’ve felt some paraspinal pain ranging from my thoracic to lumbar spine (fancy name for achy back muscles right along the spine itself) which usually gets some relief with a nice rub from the hubby. I’ve also been experiencing more and more Braxton-hicks (practice) contractions lately which gives me a chance to practice my Bradley Method relaxation techniques. We are managing!

Sleep: Has been better this week than during previous weeks despite an increase in movement, or at least of my feeling baby’s movements more intensely. I think it helps that I’ve had some pretty intense days which leaves me so tried I can only sleep about it, no matter how much my little alien moves on there!

walking around the upper east side after maternity shoot!

Hello maternity dresses! This week I got to “sport” my new maternity dresses from SewTrendy.com! These are very long and super flowy dresses that are just BEAUTIFUL! Debuted one at the baby shower and 2 during my maternity photoshoot. More to come on that, otherwise, still doing well with my regular clothes that stretch enough to get by like my dresses and shirts paired with the maternity leggings and “jeggings” or maternity jeans. Love those!

Spending time with the family watching Baby Sandee move!

Traveling – super quick trip to New Jersey/New York City for my Jersey baby shower and NY photoshoot! 3 quick days with lots of fun and love packed into them! More on that coming at ya in the next blog post, and I’m happy to announce I can still comfortably fly as I close out the “20-something weeks” chapter. I also don’t have too much planned going forward as far as flying, as I was told no more traveling after 34 weeks, but in my book, I still have another month till I’m technically “grounded”, so yea; We shall see!
Thank you for following my journey! Please leave me comments below with any tips for the upcoming weeks as baby is really growing now and I’m deep into the 3rd trimester; I LOVE to hear about your own experiences with pregnancy, with labor and how you prepared for it, especially if you have any tips on how to achieve a natural birth. I will also start taking tips on the first weeks home with the baby and the things I NEED to know before bringing baby home. Any tips will be much appreciated loves!

I want to thank my friends, family and even some of you beautiful followers, for all the help with the registry and gifts you’ve sent to Baby Sandee! I’m stitll taking suggestions on the best products and “gear” needed to kee a newborn alive and well, so please leave me your comments on anything else that is crucially necessary for baby’s arrival because I AM still clueless. Don’t forget to follow @ColorfulPregnancy on Instagram for my nutrition tips during pregnancy!

Xo, Ana

Count Colors, NOT Calories!
Color your Plate, Color your Life.
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