34.5 Week Checkup; Baby Shower

Yesterday we had a checkup and an ultrasound to "check for growth."

Murky is certainly growing -- the ultrasound tech estimated his weight at around 5 lbs, 10 oz, although who knows how accurate that is; I've heard that estimates can vary by as much as 2 lbs each way!

Weight gain so far: 28 lbs.

The only slightly concerning thing is that the doctor determined that we're only in the 5th percentile of normal for amniotic fluid levels. What that means is that I have to go in for fetal nonstress tests twice a week for the rest of the pregnancy. Once a week, I'll get an ultrasound. The doctor didn't seem too worried, since the baby is growing just fine (one side effect of too little amniotic fluid can be poor growth). It is a little scary if you do some googling (always a bad idea for pregnant women, by the way) and type in "low amniotic fluid." Apparently if your fluid gets too low, it can cause compression of the cord, which can cut off blood flow and nutrients to the baby, especially during labor. So if my fluid gets too low over the next few weeks, they may induce me or do a c-section. Which is why I'm currently OD'ing on water and cranberry juice -- maybe hydration will help.

Today was my baby shower, thrown by MDad's sister K and my college friend J. A splendid time was had by all -- we played Baby Jeopardy, hand-painted a bunch of onesies, ate vast quantities of food (and there were vast quantities left over -- anyone want some quiche?), chatted, and of course I was inundated with wonderful gifts and good wishes. I'll post pictures as soon as I've got them all. Thank you, everyone! I have such wonderful friends.