33 weeks

Yesterday was 33 weeks for Mr. Eli and I guess I could say sleeping and getting comfortable is a little more difficult. I'm not complaining, as I know things are going so well. My inner thigh pain seems to be returning and is most noticeable when I turn over while sleeping and when I am standing for too long. I also think I'm going to wear my maternity belt more often to help with supporting the weight of our little guy. But, feeling good otherwise!

Here is what babycenter has to say:
"How your baby's growing: This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

How your life's changing: As your baby fills out even more of your belly, lots of things might start to change: Whereas before you were sashaying, you may find yourself waddling. Finding an easy position to sit in — let alone sleep — is becoming more of a challenge. And bumping into chairs and counters is par for the course.

You may be feeling some achiness and even numbness in your fingers, wrists, and hands. Like many other tissues in your body, those in your wrist can retain fluid, which can increase pressure in the carpal tunnel, a bony canal in your wrist. Nerves that run through this "tunnel" may end up pinched, creating numbness; tingling, shooting or burning pain; or a dull ache. Try wearing a splint to stabilize your wrist or propping your arm up with a pillow when you sleep. If your work requires repetitive hand movements (at a keyboard or on an assembly line, for instance), remember to stretch your hands when you take breaks — which should be frequently."

Baby pic:

We went to our "Baby Basics" class on Tuesday night. We were one of about 15 or so couples, all first time parents. It was taught by nurses and it was pretty good. We have a nice reference book to keep which is good to have. Has some great checklists and step-by-step directions. We also got some great advice about what types of shampoos, body wash, detergent, diapers, etc. Pretty much we were told, like everything else, the really expensive brands aren't all they are cracked up to be and just to use hypo-allergenic, fragrance free, at least for the first few months. The next class is a breastfeeding class (July 21st) and we start our childbirth classes that same week for 4 weeks.

Even though we have a lot of the major needed items, there is still a lot to do such as wash everything, safety proof the house, put together items (play yard, stroller, car seat in car, etc.), and buy items we'll need off our registry we don't have yet (I have one more shower at work, so we'll wait to see what materializes from that ;). We also need to do some other things: finish the basement bathroom, stain the deck, get the cats into the vet, etc. It's funny because little Elijah's arrival seems so close, yet so far away!! We are so excited!!