The second trimester is rapidly coming to a close, although it seems like the "big day" will never get here! Our little Max has grown a lot in last few months, and if he decides to go full term he will continue growing for another 13 weeks. I wanted to take a few shots to post up here for you to see. Now that he is bigger it's real hard to get any decent shots of him. Everything is body fragments because he doesn't fit into the picture anymore. I love the old pictures where you could see all of him in one picture. He is moving around a lot. Some days he moves more than others. He tends to keep his back facing my front and his head down in the bottom of the uterus, which is ideal for birth position. In the pictures you will see him in different positions, for I caught him in an active moment. My belly is huge, in my opinion, and my feet have grown half a size, which they say does happen to some expecting mothers. I have noticed swelling in my hands and feet, and my wedding band doesn't fit anymore. I weighed in at 172 at the doctor last Wednesday... I used to weigh 140. But once the baby is born I am sure things will change, so I'm not too worried, it's for a good cause.
Trevor and I started our "birthing classes" with the fantastic midwife/doula Carmen. There are four other couples in the class. She teaches a class about the different birthing options with a strong emphasis on the natural process of childbirth being better for mom and baby than the medical interventions that are so common in this country today. Though I haven't experienced childbirth, and am in no position to judge how I will react when I go into labor, I have a strong desire to try the natural approach. However, nature will lead the way... maybe I can do it naturally, but I am not promising anything, except I will try my very best to resist any temptation that will interupt the natural process of childbirth with medical interventions. We are learning relaxation and breathing techniques that differ from traditional lamaze, which is shallow, quick breaths. And when the body is tense when in labor, it actually slows the labor down and creates more pain. I am planning on trying to labor in a bath tub as long as I can. That has always been so relaxing for me. The funny thing is, I had a completely different mindset about all this before I was pregnant. When I started to do the reading and research my opinions and desires changed. Max's shower is this weekend and I hope to have plenty of pictures to post up for those that can't attend. I wish you all to be well and happy. And to my pregnant people that are following the blog... bless you and your little bambino. Give him or her a little rub and thank God for the miracle inside.
The first photo of Max shows his spine as he is curled up, his head is on the left side. The second is a straight on face shot with his hand to above it, or from his perspective, to the left of his face.The third is his long leg stretched out and his toes curled up.
