Week 35

Week 35: Your baby doesn't have much room to maneuver now that she's over 18 inches long and tips the scales at 5 1/4 pounds (pick up a honeydew melon). Because it's so snug in your womb, she isn't likely to be doing somersaults anymore, but the number of times she kicks should remain about the same. Her kidneys are fully developed now, and her liver can process some waste products. Most of her basic physical development is now complete — she'll spend the next few weeks putting on weight.

Dear Isabelle,

The countdown begins...the end is near and the start of a new beginning is just around the corner! Mommy and Daddy are frantically getting things together before your arrival. Grandma and Grandpa have booked their flights to LA and your 爺爺 and 奶奶 are applying for their visitors visa for their visit.

We also had our bi-weekly baby doctor's appointment yesterday. Everything measured well. Our fundal height is 35 cm which corresponds to our age in weeks, blood pressure is in the normal range and your heartbeat is around 140+ beats/min. However, we lost 1 lb—back down to 129 lbs. How come? I don't know but our diet hasn't really changed at all! The doctor is not too concerned right now and just encourages us to eat more...hmmm...how much more can Mommy eat? We are already eating every hour!

On the bright side, she told us to schedule a 36 week ultrasound. We made it for Thursday, Feb. 5 and are excited! Mommy and Daddy can't wait to see you again...yippee!

Daddy also suggested we hire a doula to help us out. Since you are our first, we want this experience to be a great one. So Mommy is looking into a few referrals. We would preferably get someone who matches both Mommy and Daddy's personality and birth vision.

Love, Mom

Jazziewear Baby Bonnet

Hi Isabelle,

We are fast approaching your arrival date and your mom asked me to get you this pretty baby bonnet for your homecoming! I think it might be too big for your little new born head, but it's super cute though! =) I ordered it from www.batababy.com. It's made from Alpaca Wool imported from Peru. It's so soft! You'll love it! Here are some pictures =)


xoxo
Auntie D

Hospital Tour

Hello Isabelle,

We had our hospital tour with our pre-natal class last night and got to go inside the labor and delivery area of the hospital. We will be delivering at Cedars Sinai Medical Center. We went to look at the Early Labor room, the Active Labor room and the Recovery room. One good thing about all these rooms are that they are all private...so we get our privacy!

We didn't really like the Early Labor room, it was small and cramped. Our teacher said that we should stay home as long as possible until we get to active labor before going to the hospital because once we are there, we will be hooked up to all sorts of machines and be uncomfortable, which might slow labor down.

The Active Labor room was more pleasant. It had a flat screen TV, 5-disc CD player, light dimmers, full size showers (some of them even have jacuzzi tubs!) and flexible birthing beds. Mommy's going to bring in her spa CDs to help in our relaxation...hope all goes well in there!

As for the Recovery room, it's OK. They encourage Dads to stay over so they have an extra cot for Dads to sleep in. Our teacher said that they also encourage us to have you in the room as much as possible. Daddy is in full agreement of that, he doesn't want you to spend too much time in the nursery.

We also saw a Deluxe room! Those are catered to the celebrities that give birth at Cedars. It looked more like a mini apartment with 2 bedrooms adjoining the labor room and connecting bathrooms. Every Deluxe room includes an in-room refrigerator, stocked with chilled juices and bottled water, stereo/CD player, as well as a television and VCR. They also provide new mothers with a hair dryer to use during their stay and a "Suite Experience" hotel-style robe. Almost like a Four Seasons!


After doing the tour, everything seems sooo much more real! Mommy's next project is to pack our hospital bags!

Love, Mom

Your Organic Diet

Hi Belle,

So your Daddy is always taking care of our meals and he always makes sure to feed us healthy, seasonal and organic ingredients. Whenever he has Sundays off, he will go to the Farmer's Market to buy our produce. Sometimes when Mommy is not too tired, we will go with him because he always wants to go super early in the morning to pick out the best stuff.

Daddy cannot wait to take you to the market. He wants to show you all the different ingredients that they sell like Harry's Berries, the chinese ladies who sell everything for $1 a bunch and the chinese dudes who grow the best asian pears and oranges! I think the both of you will have sooo much fun there!

You are already so spoiled, eating the best food!

Love, Mom

Starting our shopping

Picking out produce

All done! Look at how much you have grown, Belle!

Zoë loves the bump!

Hi Belle,

Your fur sister, Zoë, absolutely LOVES the bump! Well, she loves MAKING USE of the bump actually. She uses it to prop herself up to look out the window when we go for car rides. Another 5 more weeks (+/- 2 weeks) and she will no longer have her "car seat"! What a smart puppy right? And oh, she loves to sleep cuddled close to the bump...I think she can't wait to meet you!

Love, Mom

Using the bump

Just cruisin'...

Having breakfast at Kings Road Cafe

Week 34

Week 34: Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about preterm labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

Dear Isabelle,

WAAAAHHH...Mommy is getting HUGE, Daddy called her "ripe" and your Godpa Dan constantly refers to you as the watermelon. How much bigger are we going to get? Not too much I hope, because we can hardly get in and out of our SUV already!

Do you have long legs, Belle? Mommy feels you stretching your legs and pressing them up against our ribs...ouch. But at least you don't kick me in the ribs, which I appreciate! Maybe you'll be a ballerina or a gymnast. We can't wait to meet you, little one!

Love,
Mom

Week 33

Week 33: This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. She's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and her skeleton is hardening. The bones in her skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for her to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as her brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

Dear Isabelle,

Oh...your weight is finally making Mommy feel quite uncomfortable. For the last week now, Mommy can feel her pelvis stretching out, making room for your grand entrance to the world. Her hips, butt cheeks and pubic bone are starting to ache and it is making Mommy waddle like a duck! Oh and sleeping has been such a hard thing to do now. Not only we have to wake up every 4 hours to use the bathroom, sometimes we wake up in the middle of the night because Mommy has rolled onto her back and your weight feels like it is crushing her lungs and we have to wake up to catch a breath!

Our baby doctor visit went well on Jan. 13. The doctor says we are progressing perfectly and are right on target! We gained another 2 lbs and are up to 130 lbs now. We will see our doctor again in 2 weeks and after that, it will be once a week...YIKES! Time is creeping up on us...

Love, Mom

Week 32

Week 32: By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

Dear Izzyboo,

We are in our 32nd week now...another 8 more weeks till we meet each other! Mommy and Daddy are frantically getting your corner nursery together. We got and put together your crib, now we have to start putting together your changing table (courtesy of your 爺爺 and 奶奶 again). Mommy bought some cute letterings that spell your name. I can't wait to paint it and put it up on the wall.


Love, Mom

P/S: You have been hiccupping more than ever! Mommy will try to drink LOTS of water, OK? It's just hard to fill my stomach up with water now since there is almost no more room in there!

Prepared Childbirth Series

Dear Belle,

Our first class starts today! All of our classmates are first-time parents so they were all clueless like us. We learned some relaxation and breathing techniques and Mommy is supposed to practice daily so that it will be an automatic response for our body. We got a few spa/relaxation CDs and will be trying them out! Hope you enjoy them too because the RN says, "A relaxed baby is a happy baby!" Another 4 more classes, for the next few Mondays and we'll be done!

Love, Mom

A Brand New Year

Happy New Year Belle!

We got to do our countdown with Daddy this year! Usually we are in Vancouver celebrating with Mommy's side of the family but this year, Daddy invited us to his kitchen at the hotel after everything has calmed down. He made us a foie gras dish (again, it is one of Mommy's FAVORITE!) and chocolate tart...it was HEAVEN! Then we counted down to 2009!

2009 is a special year as it will be your birth year. Another 63 days till your estimated due date. Are you coming early or late? If you are anything like your Daddy, you will be on time...we'll see!

Anyway, we started off the new year by attending a meeting with the La Leche League. It was a very informative meeting and Mommy learned a whole lot! Hopefully we will be able to apply all that we have learned in theory when you arrive!

Love, Mom