34.5 weeks and all is well!
I have a whole post coming onto BERF in two days about this week, but thankfully my doctor’s appointment went well as can be. I’m measuring 34 weeks, weight and BP were “excellent.” We go back in 2 weeks – when the first of the internal checks start! Ahhhh!
Dad enjoyed the visit too – and noted his own weight on the scale.
Before and after our appointment, I spent the day photographing and writing (Mondays are my days to try to get as much of BERF done as possible). While I worked, Matt made the dinner tonight because he was home early!
Seared wild salmon over roasted fennel, beets and carrots – all veg from the market!
The fennel was roasted at 375* for about 45 minutes and tossed in olive oil, salt and thyme leaves.
The carrots had a brown rice syrup, cinnamon, and cumin dusting (Matt’s creation!) and the beets were just olive oil and salt. Both were also roasted for 45 minutes at 375*.
Everything was perfectly cooked! Props to the chef!
All seemed well – until we realized we forgot the bread in the oven!
Thank goodness it was just nice and crispy and not burned : )
I had a little bit of a hard time eating this dinner – my palate was just not on tonight! I was stuffed when I finished about 2/3 of my plate, but I can tell I’m going to need a bedtime snack. I needed one last night as well. Hmmm: increased tiredness, off feeling, bedtime snacks = baby growth spurt!? This seems to happen in about once a month intervals : )
Is it too early for goodnight!?
{ 62 comments… read them below or add one }
Gorgeous colors. You’re missing some goat cheese with those beets! Is that a new GH loaf? I don’t recognize the sesame seed topping.
It’s a multigrain sourdough – a recipe the boss is developing
I had wild sockeye salmon for dinner tonight too! Delicious! Grilled up and served with some roasted potatoes! Nothing beats buttery salmon
Ah, the internal checks. For me, that meant the anxiety. “Am I ready yet? Please say he’ll be here soon. Oh, no progress? Okay, good! That means he’s still cookin’. But wait, I want to meet him!” haha hopefully you’ll be more mellow.
You’re looking great! Mind if I ask why you will have internal checks starting at 36 weeks? I know everyone has their own thoughts on this, but getting internal checks can increase the risk for infection. I was never checked with either of my girls until I was in labor. Just seems really early to start checking.
It’s standard practice at my doctor’s office, and not something that I am going to refuse because I am too curious. I trust their decision.
I think internal checks starting at 36 weeks are pretty standard. Internal checks shouldn’t increase any risk of infection unless your water has broken. My understanding is that is the only time they need to be limited.
the main reason people refuse them is because they are basically meaningless. the information they provide won’t change how anyone would do anything. my office didn’t do them routinely and even was hesitant to do them if women asked because they can be quite uncomfortable. don’t be alarmed if you have some cramping and bleeding afterwards!
I notice sometimes that you don’t have traditional carbs like pasta, rice or potatoes. besides the bread, do any of the veggies tonight suffice for the carbs? I am trying to not only ween myself off the sugar but also the amount of starch I eat at each meal.
I know I say it all the time, but thank you for being available for us all.
That’s because we’re lazy
And we have lots of bread available – from when Matt used to make it weekly to owning a bakery. I realized the bread was missing when I realized we didn’t have anything but veg + fish on the plate. Portion size is key!
Thanks. I do measure everything now. I even put my steak on the scale to measure out 4 ounces. It was so good, but I refrained from eating the rest. Saved it for tomorrow’s salad
WOW – beautiful color on the fish!
Glad to hear all is going well! Love the coloring on the salmon, looks perfect.
Love salmon and roasted veggies…looks awesome!
It’s never too early with a baby growth spurt! You look amazing and I’m so glad things are moving along! Dinner looks amazing! Love the beets and carrots together. Absolutely beautiful! Sleep well Kath!
that’s great that your pregnancy is going so well! And serious compliments to the chef, that dinner looks so good, I love salmon and roasted root vegetables!
You look great Kath! Wow, that just looks amazing! You are really good at photographing
I really like your artistic eye!
Standard practice at my doctor’s clinic too, but they do ask me if I want it done. I went with it at 36 weeks, and it hurt like HE double hockey sticks during and for like 3 hrs after! The next two times, they asked & I said I would rather not but it was ok if the doctor wanted to. Last week, she said she wanted to next time, so today I was checked. Way better this time. I am 39 weeks 2 days. 2 cm dilated, 50% effaced, and he’s dropped to a -2. Woot woot! I’m not sure if it was better b/c I was more dilated, effaced, and he had dropped more or b/c I had my doc & she used a different technique. Either way, at my office, it’s a common thing for people to not want done, might be for yours too. Too bad he’ll still come when he comes and people can walk around like 4 cm dilated with no signs of imminent labor. Send positive thoughts though! I’m hoping he’ll be born on my birthday 7/26. That would be awesome! But today works for me too..
I would love to be cool and turn it down – but I am just too curious to know what’s going on! Good for you to be on the track! And any birthday on the 26th rocks : )
Oh I’m totally with you. I love to have information. I turned it down after my first b/c it hurt so bad & I knew I still had weeks til my due date. Then yesterday it didn’t really hurt. I hope it doesn’t hurt for you!
I was curious, too! But I wish that someone had told me beforehand how much it hurts! It was only for a second, but it was such a shock.
I’ll be prepared – makes me nervous!
looks yummy but i would be careful with brown rice syrup. it often contains very high amounts of arsenic, which freely crosses the placenta (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19575603). just a heads up!
Dang, your dinner looks like it came straight out of a restaurant kitchen. Seriously! Nicely done
Not long to go now!!
I say if you’re tired, it’s never too early for “good night” – ha!
both the salmon and you look great!
you’re the best looking 8-mo pregnant lady in july/aug I think I’ve ever seen
Funny Matt weighed himself- has he had any issues w couvade’s syndrome?
Haha no. he likes vegetables and despite eating my leftovers, has lost a few pounds frolicking in the summer. quite the opposite of me!
That salmon looks amazing and perfectly cooked, go Matt!
Love roasted veggies!! Kudos for turning on the oven this summer
its never too early for bed when your pregnant! Enjoy the sleep!
I am overly tired tonight! I need to get to bed sooner than I usually do! However, I feel really stuffed tonight, so I hope I can get a decent night’s sleep.
http://faithfulsolutions.blogspot.com/
I’ll never understand the obsession OBs and some midwives have with doing internal exams at the end of pregnancy. Not only can it introduce infection (yes, even with a gloved hand) but it really doesn’t tell you much about anything. I was 5 cm at 40 weeks and still went to 41 weeks and 1 day and recently I’ve had two moms in my childbirth class who’s cervixes were not even 1 cm and not really effaced (thinned out) and they both had there babies later that day and both had very fast labors (one of the babies was born literally 20 min after getting to the birth center the same evening as her exam that morning where the midwife said it’d probably be another week or so).
My homebirth midwife did ONE vaginal exam on me my entire pregnancy and it was because I was pushing but felt a burning sensation (I was ten cm but had a small lip of cervix left that I needed to get rid of before full-on pushing).
I just take the same approach to vaginal exams that I take to pregnancy and labor in general—the less you mess around with stuff, the better
I agree with “the less you mess around with stuff the better” and I thought you believed that too. I am surprised that you want them (especially so early) because you have said you want a natural birth without interventions. So why do the internal checks? It’s just a little contradictory. I understand you are curious but the numbers don’t really mean much, it comes with risks, and also can be super discouraging if you aren’t making progress or you are dilated/effaced and then nothing happens for a while.
I really don’t see this as an intervention – except maybe mentally. If I thought at ALL it was going to lead me down an unnatural path, I would feel differently about it. I really don’t believe it increases infection if the water hasn’t broken either – unless someone has some research to share on that? I mean, sex is allowed and male parts aren’t sanitized before!
well, your husband’s male parts aren’t in a hospital exam room. they’re likely contaminated with germs from your house, which you’re already exposed to.
Most women just feel that learning that they’re a little dilated but don’t go into labor, or not dilated at all, can be really frustrating and discouraging. It can be mentally tough in those later days and knowing more about the state of your cervix can often be more pain than help. As long as you go into it knowing that, it’s not that big of a deal.
Yeah, it sounds like your doctor’s practice is pretty conservative, between the early internal checks and inductions at 41 weeks! Have you researched their c-section rate and percentage of natural births (for the practice, not just your doctor, since your doctor may not be the one on call that night)? I ask because one of my friends wasn’t too happy with her doctor and switched to my midwife practice at 37 weeks, and had a natural birth with the midwives that she may not have had with the doctor (her water had been broken a little longer than the usual amount of time, and her old doctor may have pushed for interventions while the midwife didn’t).
Yes, they are actually very low. I’ve been happy with the practice overall. I live in a really small town and the only CNM here was booked when I called – the day after my positive test.
Those roasted veggies look yummy! I have been obsessed with roasted beets for the past couple of weeks (first time I ever had them)! I roasted mine on the grill last night with carrots in them (olive oil and salt) and they were amazing! Ate the rest of them on top of a salad today. I am all out of them now and that makes me
I’m a dummy … I never thought to put roasted veg on a salad the next day. This sounds lovely to me!
That salmon looks perfectly cooked!
I really need to do more roasted veggies…they always look SO good!
Dinner looks amazing as usual. I can’t wait to see that sweet baby boy! Soon enough!
That dinner looks wonderful! It’s totally something I would order at a restaurant!
Hello Kath,
Loved your amazing recipes, and the mouth watering photographs. Am going to try and make this salmon this weekend.
I’m a huge fan of oatmeal too, and loved your oatmeal feature. Following you now!.
Please do visit my health, food & lifestyle blog, and if you like it, please do follow! Am constantly on the lookout for new friends in my quest for good health & fitness.
Thank you! Looking forward to your visit!
Looks great- I love the way all the colors pop!
Hi Kath!
Just wanted to say that you look gorgeous — love your skirt! I’m 21 weeks, and, now that I’m finally showing (I have a 17 month old and thought I’d pop right away with #2, but no…), I’m in need of some shorts/skirts! Apparently most stores stop stocking them at this point… even though it will still be hot for two more months!
Anyway… just wanted to tell you that you handle all of the scrutiny and criticism about your prenatal decisions with such grace. What you decide to do with BERF is completely your decision, and it’s infuriating to me that every little thing seems to invite criticism. A routine, internal checkup? Brown rice syrup? Not having carbs at one meal? Come on. You are doing a great job and shouldn’t have to answer to any of that. But I suppose that’s why you have a blog and not me:)
Thanks so much Sarah : )
Agreed
I don’t think people were trying to be mean or criticize. When you Google “brown rice syrup”, the first thing that comes up is “brown rice syrup arsenic”. It’s something that I was interested in learn more about and I wouldn’t have known about it if someone hadn’t commented. And I think the person asking about carbs was just asking a simple question too. What’s the point of having a comments section if people aren’t free to comment, ask questions, and offer their own opinions? I agree that personally attacking someone is never cool, but it does’t seem like that’s what these commenters were doing.
agreed
I was wondering what kind of discussion there would about the internal checks. There are very strong opinions out there about it, or anything for that matter. You being a blogger I’m sure you are quite aware of that fact. I also was way too curious with my first to refuse the internal checks too. I do feel that it doesn’t necessarily tell you anything and in my case I was barely 1 until 42 weeks! Yup, I went almost 2 weeks past eta. Getting checked, for me, ended up being more discouraging than anything so with my second I declined until I was in labor. I totally get the curiosity thing though. I’m kinda curious to see where you are at! Haha! Good luck!
Your dinner looked delicious. I would have finished it for you! Haha.
You just inspired me to roast some carrots tonight!! With some fresh dill to even out the sweetness roasting seems to impart. MMM!
Wow! Beautiful meal!
I agree with the checks; they don’t really seem to matter and really only seem to mess with your head!
I thought you started BERF as a way to record your pregnancy for personal use but it seems like you turn it into “work” which seems like an awful thing to do with your pregnancy. It’s enough work as it is!
It has gotten away from me a bit….but I feel like I’ve kept the format the same throughout pregnancy so I’ll continue. When he’s born though, no more work : )
Like of the previous posts, the idea of an internal exam had me sweating. I am 2 days shy of 36 weeks and had my first internal last week, wasn’t that bad. Think getting a Pap is more painful.
Learning I was 1 cm dialated and 70% effaced had me pretty excited. Thinking, ok, the body is doing it’s thing…woohoo! Even if I had not learned of any progression, it would encourage me to continue walking and simply keep moving as much as I can. Good luck!
That salmon looks so perfect! I normally roast mine but it’s just not the same as getting a good sear. Making salmon tacos tomorrow night…going to try Matt’s technique!
We love your salmon with vegetables. That looks so yummy- you are a great chef! : )