Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy
Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy

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Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy

I just love being pregnant. It's honestly one of the coolest feelings in the world knowing you're carrying your sweet little one into this world and bonding together all along the way. Every kick, every hiccup, every heartbeat is just the coolest thing. I've been lucky to have a pretty smooth-sailing pregnancy. Don't get me wrong, there have been hiccups along the way (sharp lower abdominal pains at 12 weeks, heading to the ER after being elbowed in the tummy and not feeling the baby kick for a few hours after at 24 weeks, heading back to the ER for the stomach flu at 25 weeks) and now another hospital stint at 29 weeks. But honestly, I wouldn't trade it for anything. To catch you all up (since the last pregnancy update I did was at 24 weeks), I thought I might share with you all my 29 week pregnancy bumpdate today.

Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy
Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy
Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy

29 Week Pregnancy Update

How Big She Is

Right now, baby L is roughly the size of a butternut squash. And, according to our latest ultrasound, weighs approximately three-pounds! Eek! She is growing so fast. Only a few more weeks until we finally get to meet her! We seriously can't wait!

What We're Working On

Ben and I want to bank our daughter's cord blood, so we've been working to coordinate those details with our doctor and pick a facility. If you're not familiar with this process, it's where they collect the blood remaining in the umbilical cord and placenta and store it for future medical use. It's a rich source of stem cells, which could be potentially lifesaving for her (or even her siblings) one day (it can be used to treat some cancers, immune deficiencies, blood disorders and more).

We've also been busy taking classes at our hospital to prepare for her arrival - from infant CPR to general newborn care and breastfeeding - it's been super helpful just to reinforce the information we've heard and read.

How We've Been Nesting

Oh man, since I got back from my summer in Utah, we have been going absolutely crazy! I love it. 🙂 We first started by clearing out my old "closet room" so we could either use it for the nursery or a playroom, and it makes me so happy walking by our two extra bedrooms and seeing baby stuff galore! It also felt so nice to finally purge my closet and whittle it down to necessities and favorites.

Ben started nesting by clearing out our cabinets, organizing our medical supplies (including baby's own newly created medicine basket) and putting together her gear. We've also been busy doing her laundry and getting things washed and folded and ready for her arrival. It's been such a fun time.

Next up? Her nursery! Ahhhh! I can't wait to get started and see it all come together (and share it with all of you)!

How much weight I've gained

I swear, as soon as you hit your third trimester the weight starts packing on more steadily. So far, I have gained 15.6 pounds (yikes)! I am on track with where I should be, but hopefully, I can keep that number on the lower end in the long-run. I've been trying to eat lots of calcium, protein, and vegetables throughout the day (and keep my sugar intake as low as I can, but I am a certifiable sugar-fiend, so it can be hard sometimes haha - those candy corn might be the death of me).

To keep in shape and prepare for the birth I have been doing my kegels (hell yeah haha), and walking with Ben every morning somewhere between 2-3 miles. It's not much, I know, but it's hard to get motivated to work out in this heat haha.

Cravings

None lately. I am over my nachos and Mexican food obsession, but I think that's because I got the stomach flu and now I want nothing to do with them at the moment haha.

Symptoms

Swelling
I think my ankles and feet are starting to swell a bit more because my shoes are definitely starting to feel tighter.
Vivid Dreams
I swear pregnancy dreams are crazy. And most of them are about baby L. Sometimes nightmares of losing her to another miscarriage (my biggest fear) and sometimes silly things like forgetting diapers haha.
Frequent Urination
Yup, this one has been constant throughout my entire pregnancy, but I feel like it's been picking up again recently.

Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy
Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy

My favorite moment this week

Whenever Ben talks to Baby L, she kicks. It's the cutest thing! He places his hands on my tummy and starts talking to her, telling her how much he loves her and how he can't wait to meet her... and she kicks almost immediately in response. Like, 'Hi, Daddy.' It just puts the biggest smile on my face.

We were also watching Marley and Me last night and the part where Jenn and Luke go in for their first ultrasound and they can't find the baby's heartbeat hit really close to home for me, reminding me of our two miscarriages, and I just started sobbing. Ben turned off TV, scooted closer and held me tight and kissed my forehead, reminding me that our little baby girl is almost here. And her sweet soul is one of our lost twins from our miscarriages... and that someday, we'll have that other sweet soul here with us on earth. He is just my rock, and I am so grateful to be starting our family together... finally.

My least favorite moment this week

Ugh. As a lot of you know, I spent three days in the hospital this past week after experiencing some severe upper abdominal pain Wednesday morning after breakfast. I woke up feeling like I was having some acid reflux or something, but then as soon as I ate breakfast it hit me HARD! I knew it was something more serious when I started getting lightheaded, dizzy, hot and then cold flashes and experiencing some serious nausea. I called my doctor and immediately drove to his office (which was actually kind of scary since I was feeling so awful). He examined me, performed an FFN (fetal fibronectin test) and told me to go straight to the hospital and he would meet me there.

I checked into labor and delivery triage and immediately started throwing up. They took my blood and my white blood-cell count was curiously high. They gave me Percocet, which unfortunately did nothing for the pain. They then gave me a shot of Dilaudid through my IV (an opioid pain med that they said is 4-6 times stronger than morphine) and again, nothing. So they had to start giving me double doses of Dilaudid. Yikes, not what I wanted Baby to experience. 🙁

But once we had the pain under control, they took me to do an abdominal ultrasound, as they suspected I was having a gallbladder stones attack. Unfortunately, they weren't able to see any stones on the monitor, but they said that it's common, since they can 'pass' rather quickly. Although gall stones are what they suspected was happening, they were unable to confirm this because usually further testing is needed - but you cannot do the necessary test while pregnant. And even if they could, it wouldn't help because no treatment can be done while you're pregnant. Ugh. So their best plan of attack was simply through pain management.

However, because my white-blood-cell count was so high, they also suspected HELLP or appendicitis. But further testing was needed for those as well, so I had to remain overnight. They closely monitored Baby's heart-rate overnight and checked to see if I was having any contractions. Thankfully, my contractions were minor (Braxton Hicks-type) and her heart-rate was normal for the most part (a little slow due to my pain meds), but they said she was looking great (THANK GOODNESS)! What a relief!

The next day, they had me do an OB ultrasound to just make sure everything was ok with Baby, and, THANK GOD, she was still doing great! Her heart-rate normalized after they switched me from Dilaudid to Tramadol and they couldn't see any additional fluid or placental separation. Phew.

Because my white blood-cell count was high, they also needed to rule out infection, so they made me do an abdominal x-ray (without protecting Baby) and it just utterly broke my heart. To be completely honest, I was a mess in the x-ray room. But, they reassured me that the doctor wouldn't have ordered it if it would hurt Baby and wasn't entirely necessary. I had a bit of a crying melt down after that. That was really hard for me because I will honestly do anything to protect this baby girl of ours.

We needed to stay yet another night to await the results of the x-rays and check my white blood-cell count to see if it would go down. Thankfully, it did. Phew. The x-rays showed no infection that they could see, and because my pain had subsided, they felt comfortable discharging me. Thank goodness, I was ready to get out of there.

The only lasting pain I have no is a distended, bloated belly, which makes moving around, twisting, lying, breathing etc. uncomfortable and a little difficult. But hopefully that will all subside soon and I will get back to feeling like normal. Unfortunately, we left without answers - but they told me to stay away from greasy foods (which can cause another gallbladder stones attack). Hopefully, we can keep those at bay the remainder of this pregnancy because I tell ya, that was NOT fun, you guys! I am just thankful Baby is ok and I am back home and on the mend.

Thank you so incredibly much for all your love and support, my friends. It has meant the world to us and we greatly appreciate all your messages, prayers and words of encouragement. I am so grateful for each and every one of you.

Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy

We just can't wait to meet this sweet little girl of ours. And I pray the remainder of our pregnancy is hospital-free (until delivery, that is). We already love her more than words could ever express and are just so excited to embark on this next chapter, the best chapter, in our lives.

Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy
Caitlin Lindquist of the blog Dash of Darling shares her 29 week pregnancy update on her first pregnancy

Images thanks to Joey Kennedy Photography

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