Doctor visit

I had my regularly scheduled doctor's appointment today. All still appears to be healthy and well with the baby. My midwife did finally bring up the dreaded subject of weight... I guess I have to stop eating ice cream directly out of the carton. ;)

My sister accompanied me to this appointment, so we had some good time together on the drive. As usual at the appointment, we got to hear the baby's heartbeat (about 133 bpm). I also found out I'm measuring about 32 centimeters, which is EXACTLY where my "Pregnancy Week by Week" book says I ought to be on average by this time. So far, this looks to be a very predictable and average-sized baby, and we're hoping that this trend continues!

Since I've asked Amanda to serve as my doula for labor, we also appreciated the opportunity to learn a little more about what Kaiser allows for her to do in that role. We asked the midwife questions about laboring positions, options for mobility during labor, thoughts on an epidural, and other things.

Since I've also been experiencing some significant swelling in my feet the past week, it was nice to be reassured that everything is normal and my blood pressure is doing fine (swelling is sometimes related to pre-ecclampsia, a blood pressure problem). I started slacking off on my fluid intake recently, but have gotten back on the wagon again this week in reaction to the swelling. Ironically, you're supposed to drink MORE fluids when you have swelling. I'm happy to say my feet are close to their normal size again this evening.

Since I'm now at 7 months, I'm no longer doing once a month visits, but will have my next visit in just two weeks. Things are progressing quickly!