Pregnancy calendar - week #35

Pregnant mothers - week #35

The home stretch!

You're getting so close you can almost feel your little one in your arms, right?

It's a good time to start planning for a post-pregnancy fitness plan. Post-delivery activity and exercise will do your body wonders, especially if you've maintained exercise throughout your pregnancy. If you have the resources and time, check out the options for working with a trainer. There are specialized women's health and fitness trainers. These trainers focus on problem spots--like tummy, hips, and thighs--with a combination of strength training, cardio, and core muscle exercises. With a specialized plan, your fantasy body (read: pre-pregnancy body!) will be within reach.

Before you delve into any exercise plan, you must check with your doctor. Many doctors will recommend waiting until your six week examination before starting. There are also a number of fitness books and videos geared toward new mothers. Check out Amazon.com.

As you get closer to your due date, you may want to start doing pelvic tilts. Pelvic tilts are great for stretching out the lower back, especially now when the body tends to tense up. Simply kneel on all fours, keep hands and knees apart and look down. Next, round the back up into a rainbow position. Tuck tailbone in and exhale. Slowly resume original position, moving in time with your slow breathing. Repeat 10 times.

Stretching is also a great way to relax and prep your body for labor and delivery. Although now's not the time to start contorting like a gymnast, simple stretching can make you feel great.

If you haven't already, pack your baby birthday bag! You don't know when labor will come, so it's best to be prepared. Yeahbaby.com's handy packing for the hospital checklist will get you off to a great start!

If you haven't already decided on some important delivery preferences, now's the time. Some things to consider:

• What types of pain relief do I want administered?
• Do I want an epidural?
• Do I want to avoid the use of forceps?
• Do I want to avoid a cesarean birth unless absolutely necessary?
• What birthing position preferences do I have?
• Do I want electronic fetal heart monitoring adminstered?
• Do I want any labor induction?
• Do I want the umbilical cord blood banked?
• Will I allow visitors after baby arrives?

These are things you should talk about with your partner and your health care provider, as soon as possible. These preferences should also be indicated on your birth plan.

Baby and fetal development - week #35

Have you put on some weight?

As baby nears his birthday, he's weighing about 5 pounds, and measures 17 inches long. Most of the current weight gain is due to the accumulation of fat. You'll soon be looking at a plump, bouncing baby. He'll also keep on this weight gaining track for the next few weeks, gaining between 8 and 12 ounces a week.

Baby is also getting stronger and stronger, preparing for life outside the womb. When baby arrives, it's important to be mindful of his neck, as these muscles are fairly weak for the first month or so.

Pregnant dads - week #35

Fade in: A dark, rainy night...

There's no shortage of movies depicting fathers rushing at 100 mph to the delivery room, at the slightest whim of the expecting mother. As Hollywood wouldn't have you believe, labors are rarely so dramatic and rushed. Here are some of our favorite climactic, tense, and oh-so dramatic labor and delivery scenerios ever:

• Delivering baby in a taxi. This is a classic example of the 'We waited too long, we didn't have a car, we couldn't find the hospital bag, we hit all the red lights, it's the peak of rush hour, and 'uh-oh', here she comes!' scenerio.
• Delivering baby in an elevator. This situation might include everyone other than the father. The expectant mother has to do some last minute business, gets in an elevator, the elevator suddenly gets stuck between floors 56 and 57, other people in elevator get involved (typical characters include: man in business suit, old woman who can't hear, electrician, and teenage kid) labor goes really, really fast, baby arrives before elevator gets fixed, everyone has a good laugh, fade to black.
• Clueless hospital staff. Laboring woman and husband arrive at hospital. Hospital staff is running around, couple feels invisible, woman starts to deliver in hospital hallway, hospital staff finally catches on.
• Intense labor pains, mother screaming obscenities at father, father feels responsible for everything. Oh wait, that might actually happen!

Take a deep breath--your delivery will likely go smooth, especially if you've planned ahead. Now's the time to relax, get some sleep, and prepare for the new baby. Leave your worries at home!