Something weird happened this week. I actually started to LOOK pregnant. Granted, it's still fairly easy to cover up if I'm creative so not many people can tell yet and I still don't think I "officially" have a bump but about mid week when Justin said "Wow, you are really starting to look pregnant," I agreed. Here's the pictures for proof:
15 weeks and a *bit* of a bump.
14 weeks for comparison.
How I'm feeling?
I'm still feeling pretty decent. Pretty good energy wise and no major egg induced sickness this week either. Part of that is due to the fact that I AVOIDED eggs like it was the last battle I was ever going to fight in this world. My boobs really hurt again this week (PLEASE not another boob growth spurt!!) and I have had a resurgence of those damn blasted pregnancy hormones that have hit midday now versus in the evenings. This is really inconvenient for the whole working world. As in: when I can't figure out why something doesn't tie, I instead want to throw a temper tantrum or cry. These hormones are much better served when it's 7pm and I can actually act like a crazy pregnant lady with just my husband as my unfortunate witness versus trying to hold it in and maintain professionalism (and of course, I maintained professionalism... it's just, well, HARD to be victorious over these stupid hormones and makes me want to take a nap for 4 hours when I eventually succeed).
I have also started to experience some of the common but not so pleasant (seriously, are there any PLEASANT?) pregnancy symptoms such as:
-itchy skin. Itchy to the point where I look like I have serious issues and am getting looks from people. And then my legs/arms/whatever look as if I got into a cat fight. Luckily some of the lotion I just ordered and have been trying out specifically for pregnancy has helped that a lot (more on that in a future post).
-pregnancy brain. I swear, I was not a believer AT ALL in this. I thought it was just women's excuse to get out of doing things or something (sorry friends, I truly did not believe in this). I do now. I can't even tell you how many times I go to ask Justin a question and then just blank out. Or what about the time this week when I walked downstairs without pants on completely forgetting that I might just need to wear pants to work.
-Pooping, or lack of: maybe TMI but hopefully those of you who are reading this are finding it somewhat useful and/or can relate. Not pooping (ie: constipation) is one of the most common pregnancy symptoms and I am not immune. A lot of it is due to excess iron in your system, and to your changing body (IE: intestines are shifting around and/or digestion is slowed to give as many nutrients to the baby as possible). Whatever the reasons for it, it's one of the most common symptoms. I miss it, that is all.
-Muscle aches and pains. Definitely experiencing these to a degree and it's not very comfortable. I'm trying not to be a baby about it though as I cannot even IMAGINE how many aches there are when you can't see your toes.
How I'm changing?
I totally started to pop out this week. At our monthly midwife appointment they were still impressed that I was not rocking a full on baby belly yet at almost 4 months. They said my abs are really strong which is why it hasn't totally popped yet (and also: did you know that your abs rip apart to make room for your expanding belly? I almost barfed in my mouth when I heard that...abs rip? Seriously, nasty visual!) Pants that fit last week definitely do NOT fit this week. I have a feeling I am going to be visiting some maternity clothing stores sooner rather than later. I was a little crampy this week with some pain around my hips, and at one point a pinched nerve in my foot (also: annoying)... apparently this is totally normal in the beginning of the 2nd trimester as your body continues to expand/widen to make room for the growing baby.
What I'm eating?
Still not eggs. Although I did have some this morning at brunch, they mostly still repulse me. I'm also still totally disgusted by raw vegetables. No salads for me. A new thing this week that I decided I'm grossed out by is tomatoes. I even tried to make cooked tomatoes thinking it was the raw thing again but nope, that was nasty too. Oh well. My acupuncturist confirmed that eating things slightly cooked is much better than raw so maybe the whole raw aversion is just my body being in tune to what's best for it. Who knows?! I'm also still definitely craving carbs.
Also, since the beginning of this whole journey, my cravings have been very centered on foods that I loved in my childhood: macaroni and cheese, chicken nuggets, fish sticks, even the random craving for an egg mcmuffin and beef (and also: lately I've been craving my mom's pot roast which I haven't had in YEARS). I'm not really sure what that's all about and those of you that know me or have known me throughout the past 5-10 years and my totally pretty health conscious/vegan lifestyle are probably cracking up at all of this. BUT, I've been going with them and making due with healthier alternatives (IE: healthy chicken nuggets made with all organic ingredients, "healthier" mac and cheese, etc). Well, this week as I was buying my clients donuts to wrap up work at their office, I eyed an apple fritter and HAD to have it. My dad used to love these and we used to go to Winchell's donut shop specifically for these. It was our treat as kids and I have such fond memories of those days and eating those apple fritters. So I bought one, ate it, and it was amazing (side note: I literally probably have not had anything even RESEMBLING a donut since high school. Again, pregnancy is weird).
Weight I'm gaining?
I weighed myself earlier in the week since I forgot last week and I was 123.8, the time before (a week and a half before I was around 121). At the doctor, I was 126 but I think their scales are always heavier. Now, I'm probably around 125. I've been consistently gaining about 2 pounds a week which I'm told is about normal since I was "underweight" by most accounts at the beginning of all of this. It's so funny though to have gained 8-10 pounds and to not really be totally popped out when I have some friends who have barely gained any weight and have a full on baby belly at this same point in their pregnancy. It just goes to show that pregnancy is different for everyone.
I'm still working out- trying to run one day a week where I'll do about 5-6 miles of a run/walk (about 3.5 miles of total running), three days a week, I'll run 1-2 miles then lift weights and I'll try to walk and do yoga once or twice a week. I'm staying active without overdoing it which is the goal right now. I've definitely had to scale back a bit on the work out front.
How I'm sleeping?
Pretty good although I had one night last week when I had the pinched nerve in my foot where I only slept a grand total of about 2 hours. I thought my foot might fall off from pulsating. Luckily THAT stopped but not in time for me to get any decent sleep. I'm still peeing every 2.5 seconds and am pretty sure that I could set a record for most times peed in a day. Literally, I go, then right away I have to go again. It's like I don't have a functioning bladder.
What's the baby doing?
-The baby is about 4 inches long or about the size of an orange (the midwife said a little bigger than the size of your palm right now. WOAH, bigger than I thought it would be!)
-The hair on the baby's head is starting to grow in and there's still fine hair around its body to protect it from amniotic fluid (he/she moves amniotic fluid through the nose and upper respiratory tract which helps the lungs begin to develop)
-The baby's legs are growing longer than his/her arms now (meaning it looks less like an alien baby!)
-Some babies being to suck their thumb and the baby can sense light
-Taste buds are beginning to form
-All babies at this stage are moving around
-At this stage, generally you can easily see on an ultrasound if it's a boy or girl (though most sex determining ultrasounds don't happen until around 20 weeks).
What we are doing to prepare for the baby?
We decided on a birthing class and are also probably going to be taking a class for pain management, too, since the whole natural birthing thing might require some sort of knowledge of how to work through labor pains since I ideally will have no medicine (unless something goes wrong and I have to be transported to a hospital). Oh, have I not mentioned I'm having a midwife birth in a birthing center? More on that in another post. So, we'll be starting the pain management class fairly soon and the birthing class this summer.
I'm also going to start taking a prenatal yoga class once a week at least. I've been doing yoga at home but I don't feel like it's the same as in a class. I miss hot yoga so much but since that's out for now, I might as well take the class that's going to help me out in 6 months from now! I also started to revist my acupuncturist. Acupuncture is supposed to be very beneficial during pregnancy so we'll see how it goes.
We also sucked it up and went for the Hawaii trip as a "babymoon" of sorts as well as a 30th birthday hurrah. We'll be on Maui in April (YAY)!
We also booked a trip back to Kansas City one more time pre-baby. That will happen in June.
We are currently trying to decide if a doula is worth it or not. We met one that we like but I'm just not sure if it's worth it or not. That's to be decided once we do some more research on it.
Random thoughts on pregnancy (pregnancy brain?)
We heard the heartbeat a couple of times this week again and it was pretty cool. One of the times was at our midwife appointment and in conjunction with the heartbeat were massive SWOOSHES. I thought it was my stomach growling since I was STARVING but the midwife laughed and said, no, that's the baby moving. It was totally surreal that not only is its little heart ticking, but it was rocking and rolling in there. I told the midwife it was probably doing its darndest to try to kick me to get me to feed it since I was so hungry. Also: another random thought that corresponds to what I've already said: pregnancy brain is TOTALLY real. I got up in the middle of writing this post to do something only to remember I couldn't remember what I was going to do (and thus I enforced my need to keep a million lists right now). At least I still remember my husband's name, even if I don't remember half of the things I was intending to say to him.
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