38 weeks...September has arrived!!

Tuesday, marked the 38 week point of my pregnancy.  It was also the last day of classes, now that my midwife is on vacation in September, and was the date of my last appointment with her.  So, from now on, I don't have to go anywhere else until my due date of September 14th, if the baby doesn't decided to come earlier.
I'm actually happy to not have anymore appointments anywhere.  I was getting sick of always being at either the hospital, the private clinic or lately, the public medical center.
I'm happy, in a way, to have September arrive.  I don't really want summer to end, but with September, comes Mauri's month off for the fishing biological stop.  So, despite having some work to do still on the boat, he will be closer from now on, and will be able to more easily accompany me to the hospital if needed.  Even if the baby were to come late, at the very latest, they would induce me at 42 weeks, which would be the 28th of September.  So, Mauri would still be home.  Of course, I'd prefer the baby to come sooner so that Mauri can be with me for the first couple of weeks, if possible.
Overall during the last week things are going pretty much the same as they had been over the last few weeks. I'm still dealing with the swollen hands and feet, and if anything that's all getting a bit worse.  The knuckles in my hands are pretty sore in the morning, and lately my left knee has also been pretty sore.  I think it's because of the combination of being swollen (yes, even my knees now are), and having to support the extra weight.  My midwife says that our joints are also affected quite a bit by the hormone relaxin that is in a high level now that we are nearing labor.  It reduces the amount of collagen to help the pelvis expand during delivery, but  also affects our other joints.
Once again, though, although I can be uncomfortable at times, I'm still feeling pretty good too.  There are times when I feel like I'd be happy with the pregnancy being over at any time... but there are times that I feel like I'll miss it too.  I won't miss the swollen hands and feet, of course, but I think I will miss the little kicks and movements.
This past weekend, I started to have a lot of contractions one night, too.  They were stronger than the usual Braxton-Hicks contractions, and they were really close together and lasted for quite awhile.  I was getting a little bit nervous, and I was thinking that I hadn't packed my hospital bag yet, and that I didn't know whether or not to wake Mauri up.  He doesn't get a lot of sleep during the week, so I didn't want to affect his weekend catch-up sleep.  The contractions were pretty irregular, and eventually stopped.  So, I was able to get some sleep.
The next day I was pretty tired, so when I started to have contractions again at night, I was able to sleep right through them.  Mauri and I joked that if things kept up like that, that I would wake up to the baby crying below me.
I've been trying to do some last minute things to prepare for the baby's arrival, too, but have also been trying to take it easy.  I get very tired very quickly lately, so I do a little bit and then I rest, and then try to do a little more.  we're still working on fixing up the new shed and basement, and have bought the tiles for the bathroom that we plan on setting up in the basement.
I've also worked on a few more baby projects.  I finally decided to set up the baby's swing.  I hadn't wanted to do it too early because I didn't want it just accumulating dust.  On the other hand, I wanted to figure it out before the baby arrives.  It was probably a good idea because Sheena didn't seem to like the swing much, and started to bark at it.  The first day or so, she avoided it, especially if I put it in action, but since then she has grown accustomed to it. I was going to make a video of the swing in motion, but I figured that would be more interesting when Eric is actually in the swing.

I also sewed a ring (maya style) sling for the baby, after ordering some sling rings online.  Here it is very difficult to find fabric, and when you do, it tends to be pretty expensive.  So, it was cheaper and easier to find a cute fabric by buying a tablecloth, and cutting it in half.  As you can see, I also sewed in a pocket with velcro closure on the sling to be able to carry small objects easily with the baby.  If I order another set of rings, I'll be able to make another sling now too.  That would help for times the sling is in the wash.
On Saturday night, my mother in law decided that she wanted to host a dinner for Mauri and his brother and all of their cousins.  Before heading to the dinner, my friend Maite came over with a few surprises for me (well, really for baby), and she started to hassle Mauri again about the name of the baby, asking what it was going to be.
He finally caved, and said that he would be called Eric.
So, when we went to the dinner, and people started to ask about the name, Mauri told the family that our baby would be called Eric.  So, we don't have it decided whether or not he will have a middle name, but I guess it is now official that my baby will be Eric.  It's hard to get used to calling him that, as I'm so used to calling him "baby" by now, but hopefully by the time he reaches "high school" (or its equivalent here),  I won't be calling him that anymore.  Mauri got a bit uset at the dinner because one person in particular made a big deal about how Eric was "Enrique" in Spanish.  Mauri said his name isn't Enrique, it's Eric... but it IS Enrique in Spanish...No, it's not, if it were, we'd call him Enrique and not Eric.  Why is it that the Spanish are so obsessed with translating names?!?!?  I was trying to remember the logic that Mauri's friend Eric (from here) used here to explain to us why Eric is not Enrique in Spanish. (I guess he's had to deal with this over the years himself). They supposedly had different origins, but I don't remember what they were.  I guess if we're sticking with the name, we'll have to ask for the repetition of the explanation or to look it up for ourselves.
(hmm, while writing the blog, this is what I've found so far... Eric has a nordic origin, from the name Eiríkr.  Enrique has a germanic origin from the name Henry. So there!!!)   
Continuing on, last night I went with Mauri to the last class with the midwife.  She talked to our significant others about the things they can do to support us during labor.  Once again the class was full, and for the first time it was pretty hot in the room.  Of course, on the one day we had so many people in class, they didn't put the air conditioner on.  Mauri felt a bit uncomfortable with the exercises, and I thought it was funny.  We repeated the whole pushing process, and once again, I was the only one allowed to do it the right way, and she used me as an example for the rest of the class.
With that, the last class was finished, and I went to remind her about our unofficial apointment after class.  She didn't weigh me for once, and I was actually happy about that because I'm so overly swollen, and I was afraid I'd weigh a ton.  She felt for and listened to the baby's heartbeat with the doppler, and told me I felt hot, and that I should take my temperature when I got home.  She showed Mauri how to feel the different areas of the baby on my belly too.
We took my blood pressure, and it was pretty high compared to what it usually is for me.  She told me that it wasn't that high, but that it was borderline...

I told her that I had felt a bit sluggish lately, and when I once again mentioned that I was so swollen, she seemed to dismiss it until Mauri confirmed that I really was swollen.  (You can't even see the bones in my ankles anymore).  So, she had me pee into a cup to look for urine proteins, to dismiss preeclampsia.

Luckily, they didn't show up, and she retested my bp, and it was a lot closer to 120/80 the second time around.

Our appointment was pretty much finished, and the midwife wished me luck with everything.  Then, I asked her about after the baby was born, and if I'd be seeing her again.  (I'd heard that we were supposed to see the midwife after birth to make sure all was OK and back to normal.)  She told me that normally, we were supposed to see her a week after the birth, but that since she was gone, and they hadn't put anyone to take over for her while gone(!), that she couldn't give me an appointment until October 21st.  If I were to have problems before that, I was supposed to look up the nurse coordinator to see if she would take a look. (hmmm.  Back to my usual skepticism about the cheap running of the public clinic.)  Also, I'm supposed to make an apoointment for the baby (Eric) when he reaches 5-7 days old on the main floor.  I guess I'll have to figure that all out when the time comes.

With that, we were wishing her a good vacation, and were on our way. 

Not much more to tell, so I'll leave you with this week's email:

How your baby's growing:

Your baby has really plumped up. She weighs about 6.8 pounds and she's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). She has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold her hand for the first time! Her organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Wondering what color your baby's eyes will be? You may not be able to tell right away. If she's born with brown eyes, they'll likely stay brown. If she's born with steel gray or dark blue eyes, they may stay gray or blue or turn green, hazel, or brown by the time she's 9 months old. That's because a child's irises (the colored part of the eye) may gain more pigment in the months after she's born, but they usually won't get "lighter" or more blue. (Green, hazel, and brown eyes have more pigment than gray or blue eyes.)

How your life's changing:

For many women, the next couple of weeks are a waiting game. Use this time to prepare your baby's nursery or to take care of necessary tasks you may not get around to for a while after your baby's born. Take naps, catch up on your reading, and spend uninterrupted time with your partner while you can.

Some swelling in your feet and ankles is normal during these last weeks, but call your practitioner without delay if you notice excessive or sudden swelling of your feet or ankles, more than slight swelling of your hands, any swelling in your face or puffiness around your eyes, or have a sudden weight gain. Also let her know immediately if have severe or persistent headaches; visual changes (such as double or blurred vision, seeing spots or flashing lights, light sensitivity, or a temporary loss of vision), intense upper abdominal pain or tenderness, or nausea and vomiting. These are symptoms of a serious condition called preeclampsia.