Time has screeched to a standstill right when I need it to speed up! The last couple weeks pregnancy finally started taking hold of me in all the ways I was dreading. Just the basic task of walking is so painful I get discouraged thinking that I’ll need to be doing it all day, every day for the next 9 weeks! My second trimester was pretty great, it just didn’t last long enough! Now each day I wake up, try to stand up out of bed and (a full 5 seconds later) I wonder how I’m going to be able to function that day and then keep doing it every day. Yikes!
It really isn’t all bad. I still believe it isn’t as miserable as the first time and I cling to that. Here are some differences I’m grateful for:
- It seems I’m carrying this baby a little higher than I did with Miles, this means I don’t feel a heavy weight pulling everything downward, so I don’t feel like I need a support band to hold up my growing belly (yet).
- I am more swollen this week than I have been this whole pregnancy, but I seem to feel it more in my hands than my feet. I don’t like that it makes my grasp clumsy, but I do like that my feet aren’t throbbing when I walk. The flipflops I wore that summer were terrifying things by the time Miles was born.
- With my first, there was a lot more preparation needed before I could actually feel “ready” for baby. This time I still need some things (more than I originally thought) but I feel that if baby came today I could actually manage pretty well. I’m thankful to not feel that level of stress!
I think that’s about it. How about I just fill you in on my week… take a break from whining for a moment.
Laundry, laundry, laundry!
We assembled the new dresser we purchased at Ikea and put it in the boys’ closet over the weekend. I then spent the next couple days washing all the newborn – 3 month clothes that I pulled out of storage. I also went to the Just Between Friends consignment sale last week (It’s a biannual tradition for me at this point and where I buy almost all of Miles clothes for each coming season) and I came away with new clothes for Miles that needed to be washed. Gives me a glimpse into how our laundry will be when baby arrives. Meaning a LOT of laundry. I have piles still sitting in baskets because I haven’t had the courage to stand at my “folding spot” and take care of it all.
Seeing all of the newborn clothes brought me back to those days when Miles was so tiny and I can barely believe it’s the same kid! It almost feels like that baby was a completely different individual. It’s bizarre. It also made me realize I want to make just a few new things for the baby, the way I did for Miles when I was pregnant with him. I want to sew a new boppy cover, make more burp rags and pacifier straps and buy a special outfit for him to come home in that is just his and not a hand-me-down.
I had a dream this week of new baby, too! He was so perfect! It really doesn’t make it any easier that these days are passing so slowly. I find myself anxious to hold him and see him and have his new life filling up our house even more.
Baby’s Size| Coconut.
How far along | 31 weeks
Sleep | There are good and bad nights as usual. I had a loooonggg nap the other day, and it was glorious! I hate the pain that I feel when I have to stand up from bed to pee or get up in the morning. But laying back down to sleep is one of the highlights of my life. Pillows everywhere, and I get to choose a new side to lay on that isn’t stiff and I get to flip my pillow over to the cold side.
Clothes | I peeked in at the selection available at Motherhood Maternity and found myself pretty depressed. I was hoping I could find a hoodie made for pregnancy, large but fitted, very long and kind of sporty. Having a vivid imagination can be a curse because I soon learned this kind of thing does not exist, at least not at Motherhood Maternity. Sigh. Instead I was shown $40 sweaters that looked like a huge sack draped over me. And they still weren’t long enough to be any better than the $1 sweatshirts I bought at Walmart the other week. Anyway. I still want to find a new nursing bra and perhaps I will go to Google for the hoodie of my dreams.
Cravings | Cinnamon Crunch bagels from Panera with plain cream cheese. Miles loves them, too, so we’ve been living off them the past 2 weeks. I also scream in delight every time I see the Girl Scouts out selling cookies. But then I NEVER have cash on me when that happens. Thankfully I have a husband who loves me too much, because he drove me back home for my wallet the other day so I have a small stash of caramel delites downstairs. I might have to go get one now.
Food Aversions | Since I’m writing this after taking a break and getting those cookies… I can’t think of disgusting food. It’s just not happening while I have this deliciousness on my taste buds.
Symptoms | Exhaustion, Braxton Hicks, round ligament pains, back/hip pain, starvation, nesting, something that I’m guessing is either heartburn or breathlessness or allergies. The end.
Doctor’s Appointment | I have another basic appointment coming up next Monday.
Movement | Incredible! Moving a bunch still and I just get the feeling that he’s really spunky. His movements are so great and about the best thing about this stage of my pregnancy. I find myself constantly wondering how he’s positioned in there! I feel what I think is a foot, then I figure it must be a knee, but maybe a butt, or then I’ll think I feel another foot opposite of the first and get completely confused. No matter what little appendage may be poking out at any give time, I love it still.
Belly Button | It is a large, pokey, pregnant thing.
Gender | Male specimen
Best moment of the week | Assembling the dresser and washing all the newborn clothes and putting them in the drawer. We also watched the movie “Kingsman: Secret Service” and I truly enjoyed it so much. Great little excursion.
What I miss | Every vacation and potential adventure on the face of the planet.