Worth a Thousand Words

I try to take a picture of my belly each week.  Watching my belly expand is like watching a puppy grow- when you see it more often, you aren't shocked by how much it's grown.  This week, though, I messed up.  I didn't take a picture Monday and when I woke up Tuesday, I swear, I had grown significantly overnight!  I wish I had taken a picture Monday just so that I could compare it to Tuesday.  The change was unreal.  I have felt recently like I'm getting bigger quickly, which makes sense as the baby is reaching a stage in which she'll be putting on weight rapidly, more than doubling her weight in the next couple weeks.  Having a tummy is such a strange feeling.  It feels in some ways like an extra appendage that just showed up one day but keeps growing, now keeping me further away from the kitchen sink and preventing me from leaning over the bathroom counter to apply mascara each morning.  Sometimes, it barely feels like it's my body, as if it's a prosthetic, even when I touch it- but then baby girl will kick and it's clear that the bump is connected to me.  I think those pictures are as much for my own benefit as for everyone else.  If I see pictures of myself, perhaps I won't be as startled when I see my reflection in the mirror a few days later and a little bit bigger.

On a separate note,  I learned tonight how to send blog updates from my phone using text messages and email!  That means I can send pictures from my phone right away and update more frequently with shorter updates.  We'll see how it works.  There might be an adjustment period while I get used to the blog access.  I guess this really means there's no excuse for a lack of pictures, huh?

22 Weeks!

126 days until my due date!  I'm still feeling generally great and enjoying this break between morning sickness and the discomfort of being huge.  I have, though, had calf cramps for the first time in my life, despite the banana in my daily protein smoothie.  I was planning on researching leg cramps in pregnancy to see what I might be able to do to prevent them, but then in my inbox this morning was my weekly pregnancy update from babycenter.com that included this: 

Surprisingly, those excruciating leg cramps that have you waking up in the middle of the night clutching your calves may be caused by your back and aggravated by changes in the circulation in your legs as your uterus enlarges. To compensate for supporting the increasing load in the front, the curvature of the spine changes during pregnancy so that the lower portion of the back is pushed forward. This posture frequently pinches the motor nerve which runs from the spine down the leg — and that pinching is what causes leg cramps, according to Mark Taslimi, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Lucille Packard Children's Hospital in Palo Alto, California. Prenatal yoga or any gentle stretching of the back and hips may help ease the pain.

This would explain why the bananas aren't working- it's not a lack of potassium!  Even if I don't have a pinched motor nerve, simply the change in posture explains why I might have tighter calves than normal.  I think it's really interesting to learn about how and why my body is changing.  When the changes have meaning, it's easier to appreciate them instead of just dealing with them.  The leg cramps are a perfect example- they aren't anything horrible and I was dealing with them (and considering myself blessed to not be dealing with worse!), but now that I understand why they're happening, I can really appreciate that they a part of a much bigger picture.  

Hmmm...  I just got back from a walk down the block to the vegan fast food restaurant to get a non-dairy milkshake- mint oreo cookie.  Yum!  (I added some brown rice protein powder when I got home to up the nutritional ante.)  I also stopped by Walgreens to pick up classroom supplies and 7-11 to use the ATM.  And now that I'm home again, I realized that apparently my belly caught a bite of my dinner that didn't make it to my mouth.  It's all down the front of my shirt.  Note to self: do a quick self-check before leaving the house from now on...

For Mico, life as he knows it will never be the same.  The poor guy was neutered today.  Just look at how sad he looks!  

The veterinarian's assistant stood on her tip toes to look over the counter at my belly and smiled, and then asked me when I'm due.  I think I'm finally on my way out of the "fat or pregnant?" stage!  Of course, now that I said that, I'll have something happen tomorrow that will make me question that thought.  That's alright... soon enough, there will be no question whatsoever.  When I'm walking Mico, there will be even more people saying, "My, you're both getting to be so big!" 

A different type of marathon training

I just finished my first time through The Perfect Pregnancy Workout DVD.  I like it!  If I can look half as good as the chick on the cover when I'm that far along, I'll be happy. I also recently purchased a prenatal yoga DVD and a prenatal Pilates DVD, so I'll have some variety to keep me motivated.  I've also been spending time at the gym on the eliptical machine whenever I can- I got in a great session last night that was even more fun because Tyler left his iPod at home this week and I got to listen to his mixes for a change.  My goal is to prepare for childbirth in much the same way I did for the marathon- lots of physical and mental preparation for an event that I know won't be easy, but will be worth all the effort.  

I'm even planning a little bit of a taper off towards the end of my pregnancy- I officially notified my supervisor at work that my last day will be Friday, October 23, giving me 3 weeks before my due date.  I'm resigning from my teaching position now so that the search for a new teacher can begin over the summer.  I decided to resign because I know that I won't be able to handle commuting every day knowing that I could be spending that time with my daughter, especially since daycare would cost almost as much as I make teaching.  After the holidays, I'll look for something I can do part time from home, though I haven't a clue yet what that will be...  I am just hoping now that my body will be physically capable of working that long into the pregnancy.  My job is a physically demanding one, even without the physically aggressive students.  

While there are benefits to working up until labor (one of my friends, Susannah, just told me that if she had taken off early, she'd only be sitting around thinking about how miserable she was the whole time), some studies show that women have an easier labor after taking time off before the birth.  That made me think instantly of the marathon training method of tapering before the race- running less the month prior so that the body can rest and recover before the big event.  Not surprisingly, a well-rested body performs better in labor, too.  Since I have the option of leaving a bit early, I'm taking it.  For now, I'll keep preparing physically for my big event.  If I could just figure out how to keep Mico off of my yoga mat...

Rock on, baby girl!

Don't worry... our little girl will have plenty of pretty clothes with ruffles and bows and lace.  That collection has already started (thanks, Annette and Tiana!).  But I couldn't resist these pink rock'n'roll outfits for our little girl, especially the "Dad" heart onesie, which Tyler loves, too.  There's something so perfectly ironic about a tough newborn girl that the clothes come off as being that much sweeter.

Adorable! 

Week 21 Begins! (Pop!)

Sorry I've been MIA...  Last week was a busy one!  Wednesday evening, Tyler flew home early and we drove down to Bloomington for the 4th of July weekend, including the annual Nevius 4th of July party.  Pictures from the weekend:

Today I'm 21 weeks!  133 days to go.  I have to say, when I saw 133 days, my heart nervously skipped a beat.  That seems like a much smaller number than the numbers I was looking at last week!  The baby is growing now and starting to put on weight... and that makes two of us!  Here are pictures of me today at 21 weeks.  You get a belly shot and the same view everyone else gets- me in a maternity top that really makes me look huge!

I walked into the classroom today after the teaching assistants arrived and one of the TAs looked at me, then did a double take and said, "Whoa!  You got so much bigger over the weekend!"  One of the speech therapists who was in the room at the time, who is also a mom, laughed and said, "They call it 'popping' when you grow that fast... And you popped!"  I am over 5 months pregnant... I guess it's time to start showing!

Oooh, we're half way there... (Bon Jovi, anyone?)

Today marks 20 weeks, the official halfway point on the journey to my due date! I phrase it that way because the first two weeks of the 40 were prior to conception and because we really have no idea when the pregnancy will end in labor- hopefully very close to the due date, but it could be earlier or later. 140 days until the due date! To celebrate such a huge milestone, I scheduled myself a prenatal massage for this afternoon to take care of my lower back. What a great way to welcome the second half of the journey!