Week 34

The baby now weighs about 4.75 pounds and is almost 18 inches long. Baby's fat layers — which will help regulate body temperature after birth — are filling him/her out, making baby rounder. Baby's skin is also smoother than ever. The central nervous system is maturing and baby's lungs are continuing to mature as well.

I've had no signs of preterm, but 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.

Other general updates include that we've met and selected a pediatrician who we both liked and felt comfortable with and whose office is close to home (less than 2 miles!). Dr. Sue was recommended extremely highly by a couple of my coworkers who are recent mothers. I'm grateful we didn't have to interview multiple doctors. We'll also be submitting our hospital admission paperwork at the OB's office this Friday (ok, that's tomorrow...yikes!) along with paperwork so the baby can be added to our health insurance immediately.

Aside from some mild discomfort sleeping, I still don't have any real complaints. This has been wonderful and as much as I'm anxious about the fact that we've only got about 6 weeks to go, I'm excited to finally meet the little person who has been growing inside me.