Kick Counts - Do you do them?

Feeling Christian move has been my favorite part of pregnancy! Well, honestly, its been the only part of pregnancy that I have not hated. 

I felt my first "flutters" probably around 15 weeks and hubby started to feel baby move sometime between 17 and 19 weeks. It probably wasn't until late 2nd trimester that I started feeling baby move regularly and every day. 

Around this time, my nurse consultant suggested I start doing "kick counts." This meant counting how many times I would feel baby move during his most active time of the day. The goal is to get 10 kicks by the end of a two hour period. 

At first, it was something exciting and something for me to do, so I did it! I could usually get 10 movements within at least 10-20 minutes.  My little guy is pretty active! 

There are plenty of free 'kick counters' out there that you can get right on your smart phone! My two favorites are: 

BabyBump

My Pregnancy Today (through Baby Center)

Both of the above apps are free and have a ton of other valuable information for expecting moms. 

There is supposed to be a lot of benefit to counting your baby's kicks. Knowing that your baby is moving regularly helps you (and your doctor) to know that baby is healthy. If baby is moving less, this could be a sign of treatable problems and telling your doctor about the decreased movement could save your baby. 

While these benefits are great, I have actually stopped with kick counts. 

I'm "with" my baby 24/7 and I know his patterns. I know how often he usually moves every day and what is normal for him. Of course, on days that I don't just feel him moving throughout the day, especially if he is moving less than usual, then I will break out my phone and track some kicks. But in general, sitting and "waiting" for kicks to track makes me nervous! 

I know my baby and I know when he moves and when is enough. And I know when I need to start counting because something seems not right. It probably also helps that my baby is a mover :) 

If you have a sleeper, you may need to work harder to get your little one moving each day to be sure things are going well. Drink some cold water or orange juice, lay down and wait for those sweet little jabs! 

So do you do kick counts? Or is your baby a mover and you have you developed a sense of normal and rely on that? 

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