Week 30

By this week, your baby's senses are developed to the point where he can taste, touch, see, and hear what's going on around him. He'll also react to stimuli--for instance, if you poke your belly, he may kick or hit back at the spot you've touched. It's exciting to interact with your baby even before he's born. Try rubbing your belly and talking gently to her when he kicks--you may find that you're already able to calm him down.

Week 29

For the past six weeks or so, your baby has been listening to your voice (along with the voices of your partner, older children, and anyone else who's been talking to your belly). Speaking to your baby is not only a key part of prenatal bonding, but may also form the basis of language development. Babies who have been spoken to in utero recognize and turn to familiar voices immediately after birth. There may also be links between prenatal stimulation and the development of speech and IQ.

New City, New Doctor

So I have seen 2 doctors since my arrival last week in Jacksonville. The first doctor I was not so fond of. Actually, I didn't even get to meet the doctor at my first visit- but Ben and I decided after sitting in the waiting room for an hour that we did not think this was the doctor for us.
My next doctor's appointment was the complete opposite. Thanks to our friend Rebekah, who is also an OB/GYN, we were referred to a wonderful practice that lived up to all of our expectations. It is a practice of 5 female doctors, all in their early 30s. I even had a better feeling about them from just my call to make an appointment- they offered to mail me all of the paperwork beforehand so that I wouldn't have to fill it out at the office. And if you have ever had a baby before, you know there is TONS of paperwork.
So my new doctor's office is at Baptist Medical Center, which is the same hospital that Ben was born. As you can imagine, Ben thinks it is very cool that he and Noah will have that in common. When we arrived, we were greeted by a very nice receptionist who took all of my medical records and asked us to take a seat. And then a crazy thing happened, I was called back to be seen RIGHT ON TIME! All of the examination rooms are named after the doc's kids and/or dogs. I was in the "Mabel" room- a very cute pug that belongs to one of the doctors. The room was decorated with professional photographs of her. The nurse did mess up Ben's name whenever she called him back to join me- she called him Stan- but we forgave her.
We spent some time with the doctor, who was absolutely wonderful. She's pregnant as well and we both really liked her. She had quickly reviewed all of my records and sat and talked with us for a little while. I am very happy with our new doctor and am looking forward to the next 12 weeks until Noah gets here!

Week 28

At the end of this week, you'll enter the third trimester--a busy time for your little one. His movements will increase from now until around week 32, when he'll start running out of room to roam. (He'll keep moving after that, but it will feel more like wiggling compared to the sharp kicks you may be experiencing now.) He's also growing strong--and long! He measures about 14 inches from head to toe, and weighs roughly 3 pounds. Your doctor will keep track of his growth by placing her hands on your belly to measure the size of your uterus, also known as fundal height.

Big Baby Belly

This is what I looked like at my first baby shower, 2 weeks ago. As you can see, Noah is taking up quite a bit of space!

Week 27

Your frisky fetus is on another growth spurt, shooting up half an inch this week to measure about 14 inches from head to toe. He weighs roughly 2 1/2 pounds, and will gain approximately half a pound each week for the next 10 weeks. The average full-term baby weighs about 7 1/2 pounds and measures from 18 to 20 1/2 inches, but many normal, healthy babies fall outside this range. Unless your practitioner has told you of a potential problem, it's safe to assume that your little one is right on track. Only 13 weeks to go!