Prenatal Visit - 33 Weeks

I had another prenatal visit today, and I learned a new term: Biophysical Profile (BPP). It's a test that uses a fetal ultrasound and a nonstress test to measure the overall health of the baby. Ultrasound is used to keep track of movement, muscle tone, breathing rate, and the amount of amniotic fluid surrounding the baby; the nonstress test monitors increases in heart rate with movement. If these five areas are within a normal range, the baby is considered to be in good health.
So last week was my first BPP, but I didn't pick up on the name of the test because the ultrasound last week was also a growth ultrasound. Today's ultrasound was not a growth ultrasound, so we didn't get a new estimate of his weight. However, he's still pretty cute, and I got to watch him practice breathing by watching his abdomen move. That was something that hadn't been pointed out to me before, so it was really fun for me to see. Dylan was a sleepyhead this morning, so we had to watch him for quite awhile to see enough movement. Then the nonstress test was next, and he was still not moving a whole lot so they used a noisy little device that sounds like hair clippers to wake him up. They had to do that last week too, and I suspect it will be necessary during all of my upcoming visits as well - he's just not very active in the morning, it's nighttime when he starts moving all over the place. Everything they were looking for in the BPP was normal.
My doctors' office moved to another suite over the weekend, so today was their first day in the new office. It's very open and roomy, with beautiful neutral decor. So far my favorite part of the new office is the chairs in the nonstress testing area. Last week in the old office the test was done on a regular old exam table; this week I was sitting in a big comfy reclining chair for thirty minutes! It was great.
Then I had my actual checkup with Dr. Holland, where I learned that I had gained 2 pounds in the last week (Seriously? You mean I ate too much cake at the baby showers this weekend?! I'm shocked!). And then Laura took my blood pressure with an automatic blood pressure cuff. And it was outrageously high compared to what it's been running (140-something over 106!!!). So she did it again, and it was 140-something over 100. And then she went to find the real blood pressure cuffs that hadn't been put in the new exam rooms yet so she could do it manually. And thank the Lord, that crazy automatic blood pressure cuff was wrong -- my blood pressure was really 134/87. Still considerably higher than my typical readings, but by that time it probably really was elevated from the stress of thinking I might have diastolic numbers in the low 100s. So all is well, but I was given a thorough review from Dr. Holland about all the symptoms of preeclampsia and a stern reminder to call them immediately if any of them develop. I've since taken my blood pressure at home, and it's back to normal - 115/76. Phew!
I go back next week for another BPP, but I won't see the docs again until the week after that. Oh! And by the way - my c-section is only FOUR WEEKS FROM TODAY! Does that seem really, really close to anyone else, or is it just me!?