My 27 week pregnancy update with Baby #3!

For some people, a 27 week pregnancy update might seem like a random week to choose but the 27 week mark has always been a momentous milestone for me.

I don’t want to be morbid here but the survival rate for babies born at 27 weeks suddenly increases (I think it’s due to lung development). And while we obviously want baby to stay put for another 12-13 weeks, it’s a reassurance that if anything did happen now or I suddenly went into labour, there’s a high chance the baby would be OK. Pregnancy is all wonderful and exciting, but it’s also a really worrying time because you’re constantly hoping everything is going to be OK. So it’s at 27 weeks that I’m starting to relax and really start planning for our future with a baby girl! Whoop whoop!

 

Update: I’m actually publishing this at almost 30 weeks because it’s taken me 3 weeks to get more than 30 seconds at my computer! I also didn’t have any nice photos to include but then I realised that if I wait until I have the perfect opportunity to take some photos then we’ll be at 37 weeks before we know it!

 

 

How am I feeling at 27 weeks pregnant?

 

I’m well aware that this is a really nice phase of pregnancy so I’m really trying to enjoy it and soak it all up. My bump is big enough that everyone notices it (and everyone is extra nice to me!) but it’s not so big that I’m uncomfortable.

I also have plenty of energy and I’m really enjoying being out of that constantly tired phase. I felt really tired right up until about 15-16 weeks and it was starting to get me down. I was starting to forget what it was like to NOT feel tired and I thought that’s just what life was like – hard and tiring and like bedtime couldn’t come soon enough. But for the last 10 weeks or so I’ve been back to normal when it comes to day-to-day energy. Physically, I’m not as fit or able to run or move like I used to, so I can’t be physically active but on a normal day-to-day level I’m just like I was pre-pregnancy.

Actually, I think I have extra energy. I’ve definitely hit the nesting phase and I’m feeling an unusual level of motivation and energy to clean and organise! I still think it’s incredible that pregnant women feel extra energy to clean!

It’s probably worth noting that most of things I do are done at the pace of a two year old. This isn’t through choice but mostly because Joseph hurries for no one, so we all just accept we have to do things 15 times slower than we normally would! But this is cool for me at the minute because I am more than happy with our slow walks and frequent stops to look at flowers, bees, sticks, litter, bird poo etc. I’ve learned to pack snacks and a flask of tea for almost any occasion (even walking George to school which is less than 10 mins away!) because everything takes us so long!

 

Pregnancy check-ups

Joseph was a small baby, weighing 6lb2 when he was born, and that was 10 days past his due date, so I’m going to be very closely monitored for this pregnancy in case I have another small baby.

If I’m honest, I find this all a bit frustrating. George and Joseph were both small babies but they were also healthy and strong and I didn’t ever feel any reason to be concerned about them. I kind of just want to be left alone and to grow my baby in peace without these frequent trips to the hospital which massively stress me out, send my blood pressure through the roof (I suffer with White Coat Syndrome!) and take up half my day, only to be reminded by 3-4 doctors that I have small babies. Yes, thank you for the update but I already knew this. 

But I do know I’m very lucky to have so many health professionals around me who are keeping such a close eye on the growth of the baby. I know there are increased risks when babies are small and they’re more vulnerable due to their size.

I pretty much have a 2-3 weekly check-ups and appointments scheduled for the next month and after that I’m hoping they’ll be less frequent. I also have extra appointments because this will be my 3rd c-section and I have an injection soon because I’m rhesus negative blood type. So lots of hospital visits over the next few weeks!

 

Things I’ve bought

I still haven’t bought a lot for the baby. We’re knee deep in extension work and the house is upside down as it is so I’ll put off my spending spree until the last minute! 

We have one little outfit which we bought before we knew it was a girl (and actually thought it would be a boy) It’s white and grey and has giraffes on it and now seems a bit boyish.

I really want to go out and buy all our lovely new baby things so to compensate for this I’ve just written a massive blog post about my newborn must-haves which I’ll be publishing soon! My online shopping baskets are also all full! I’ve got lots of things saved on H&M and loads on Amazon so when I’m ready to buy them I can quickly do that and probably get everything delivered within a few days. Ahh, you’ve got to love the internet. 

I am currently loving my maternity leggings from Love Leggins. I mentioned them in a previous post but didn’t rave about them because they didn’t fit me properly at the time. But now my bump has grown they fit perfectly and I can see I’ll be wearing these a lot over the next few months. 

 

Names? 

We have decided on a baby name but we’re not telling until she arrives! It’s nice having a name decided though as it’s one less thing to be thinking about and it makes her feel like a real person.

 

George and Joseph

The boys are SO excited about their baby sister. I really wasn’t expecting them to be so excited and so sweet. Every night before bed they give me a hug and a kiss and then give the baby a gentle hug and kiss and Joseph whispers, ‘I miss you!’ I don’t think he really knows what this means but obviously intends it to be something like, ‘I can’t wait to see you!’ It makes me well up every evening!

George is always asking me questions about the baby; Where will she sleep? What will she eat? Will she like watching Power Rangers with me? Can I push her pushchair? What will she do when mummy works?

I feel like George is really thinking about the logistics of having a baby!

George is also super cute about buying things for the baby. His favourite activity at the minute is to use the H&M app on my phone to look for baby clothes! This is his special treat when he’s been good – he can use my phone to put together little outfits. It’s so cute and he’s actually really good at it. He selects matching outfits with all the accessories and saves them to his favourites on the app.

 

Cravings?

I’m not having any cravings. I didn’t while I was pregnant with the boys either. I am enjoying Coco Pops but….well any excuse for Coco Pops!

 

The excitement!

I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am for this baby. There is something really very special about a third baby because it’s all excitement without so much anxiety and worry.

When I was pregnant with George I was so nervous. I was nervous about giving birth but also nervous about caring for a baby. I had no idea what to do with a real-life baby!

Then Joseph arrived 18 months later and I was so busy caring for a toddler that I barely had 2 seconds to just sit down and enjoy my pregnancy. I knew I was going to have my hands full once he arrived and a part of me wanted to delay his arrival for as long as possible!

But this time it feels very different.

I’m not nervous about the delivery because it’ll be my third c-section and I know exactly what to expect. I know all the risks and I know it’s a big operation so there’s a little bit of worry there but I’m mostly pretty chilled about it.

I also know what I’m doing when it comes to caring for a newborn so I think I’ll just enjoy the newborn phase so much more.

When the baby arrives George will be 4.5 so will be in school full time. Joseph will be 3 and he’s very independent so I’ll have plenty of time to dedicate to our baby girl.

I know it’s going to be hard work but it’s also going to be really enjoyable.

 

How am I prepping for baby?

I haven’t really bought a lot yet but I have starting prepping for the baby coming.

I’ve started batch cooking soups to go in the freezer so I’ve got plenty of healthy lunch time meals. I’ll start doing evening meals soon too but I am planning to stock up on Cook.net meals for the freezer. These are actually nice freezer meals and not too expensive for what you get so I’m probably just going to order loads of these for when the baby arrives. I’m going to order a load of the kid’s meals too so I don’t need to worry about cooking for George and Joseph in the first few weeks. 

I’m not too worried/stressed about having 3 children but I do know that dinnertime and the boy’s bedtime are often the most stressful, chaotic and noisy times in our house so I just want to do everything I can to make it a little easier – and if that means pre-prepared meals then so be it!

I’ve re-read a couple of baby books I read with the boys. I’ve really just skim read them this time and it’s more to reassure myself that I know it all. 

 

Working?

You may have noticed I’ve been travelling and working pretty much as normal, only all my recent trips have been in the UK. I still feel fine to be taking these little 2-3 day trips and I really enjoy a little jaunt away so I’ll carry on doing this for as long as I can.

I’ve got a few more trips booked in over the summer holidays with the boys but I’m not booking anything too far in advance. I’m well aware that I could feel very different in 2-3 weeks to how I feel now so I don’t want to book something and let anyone down.

 

And that’s it for my 27 week pregnancy update! If you guys are interested I’ll do another one in a few weeks. It’s crazy to think I’ll probably only write 2-3 more pregnancy updates before the baby arrives!