Monday, July 16, 2012

Weeks 31 & 32

I think we've established that coffee, chicken, and fast food are products of the devil.  And that I tend to crave tons of fresh fruits and carby deliciousness.  So how about we mix up the weekly update categories a bit, eh? 

Week 31
7/2/2012 - 7/8/2012
Milestones: 9 weeks left.  Single digits, baby!  This feels somewhat similar to hitting mile 17 of the Ironman marathon - still a ways to go, but sooo close after all that I've been through.
Size of Meatball: About 16-18 inches long and just over 3 pounds.  At my last midwife appointment my fundal height was only measuring ahead by 2.5 weeks (instead of 3.5....or 5), so this might actually be somewhat close to accurate.  One of my biggest curiosities is how chunkalicious baby girl will be when she's born.
Symptoms: I actually felt pretty fantastic this week.  There was of course the usual heartburn, swelling, bird bladder, etc.  But all-in-all, this might be the best I've felt the entire pregnancy.  I guess that "2nd trimester" goodness just arrived a little late for me.
Exercise: I did better this week!  1 swim, 1 bike, 2 runs/walks, and 2 strength sessions.  Plus a whole bunch of weeding, organizing/cleaning, and getting things done.
Weight gain: I'm up a total of 21 pounds now.  I was hoping to limit overall gain to 25 pounds, but unfortunately with 9 weeks left that isn't very realistic.
Bloating/Swelling: My toes and fingers get a bit pudgy by the end of the day.  But my ankles are putting up a good fight.  I also like to think that I haven't developed jowls yet.
Sleeping: Well... My hips scream if I don't wake up about every 60-90 minutes to flip over.  And when I get just about settled I'm awake enough to realize that I have to pee.  Then by the time I get back to bed I forget which side I was supposed to be sleeping on.  And then I'm wide awake so I just play on the iPad for about 45 minutes until I fall asleep.  And then wake up about a half hour later to do it all over again.  So yeah, sleep.  I'm not getting much.  And if anyone is tempted to say "it's training for when the baby comes", don't.  That's a bunch of bullshit.  You can't train your body to need less sleep.  It's just a glorious side effect of pregnancy.
Other random crap:
- You know how when you're wearing pants that are too tight, and you get home from work and the first thing you do is tear them off and put on your jammies?  If not, just play along please.  Yeah, so that happens to me all the time.  But when I take off my pants...everything is still tight.  But I still don't like to wear pants.
- We've dubbed baby's early evening activity as "The Belly Show".  We sit and stare at my belly and watch it move and jiggle and shape shift.  The other night a foot poked out about an inch and slid across my entire stomach.  It was so shocking that I actually screamed out loud.  It was JUST like Alien.
- Happy 4th of July!  This is as festive as I got this year.  We went to the local farmers market, produce stand, and then came back home.  I was in my jammies by 6pm.  Lame, I know.

Week 32
7/9/2012 - 7/15/2012
What a fun week!  Mom was in town for 5 days.  Two of my best girlfriends threw me a phenomenal baby shower (thanks Angie & Jessica!!!).  I got to see my Auntie Anne and Grandma.  We did a baby shopping spree and crossed almost everything off the list.  Diaper prepping is almost complete.  Now we just need a baby.
Milestones: Nothing monumental this week, although some women view 32 weeks as some sort of exciting milestone.  But I think making it another 7 days each week is pretty great.
Size of Meatball: Closer to 18 inches and just under 4 pounds.  She is fully formed now and is just packing on the fat for her body and brain.
Symptoms: Shortness of breath.  Despite trying to stay active I am getting horribly winded just climbing a short flight of stairs.  Is this how smokers feel?  Yuck!
Exercise: A few walks and strength sessions.  Mom was in town through the weekend, so we did a lot of house stuff, running errands, working outside, etc.  So I didn't get much structured exercise in, but damn, I worked hard!
Weight gain: 1.4 pounds for the week.  I'm up 22.4 pounds total now.
Bloating/Swelling: My rings don't fit very comfortably anymore and cellulite is popping up in places that no woman should have to deal with.  But I still have ankles!
Sleeping: I'm convinced that we need a new mattress, but I know it's crazy pregnancy logic and that our mattress is just fine.  But I can't help but wonder if one of those sleep number beds are as fabulous as they look on the commercial.
Other random crap:
- I had someone stick their finger in my belly button to see if it had popped yet.  Seriously.  That's taking "touching the belly" to a whole new level.
- Have you ever prepped prefold diapers?  It takes FOREVER!  You need to wash/dry them 10 times.  Or boil for 10 minutes and then wash/dry 4-6 times.  I'm still convinced cloth is the way to go, but I can totally see how the laundry thing is a major pain.