My adventures in pregnancy, motherhood and beyond

Please enjoy the musings and updates and leave me a comment if you'd like!

Monday, June 18, 2012

21 Weeks

I'm always surprised at how quickly time has passed. The days and weeks seem to crawl by, but the months and even the years seem to just fly right by. This week was one of those really, really long weeks. A lot has been going on. Despite all the pregnancy stuff (or maybe because of it), we finally got a bit of a kick to get started on finishing unpacking and getting organized. Someone came by to pick up the mattress and box spring that were in the second bedroom, so we can actually get started on cleaning up the disaster zone in there to turn it into a real nursery! We also finally unpacked the final three boxes of kitchen stuff that have been sitting in the corner since we moved in. We had to pack up some other stuff to be stored in the garage, but we're finally making some progress. We also reorganized the kitchen counters, are figuring out if we can get a new microwave that goes above the oven/stove, deep cleaned the counters, and installed new hanging spice racks on the outside of the pantry, which frees up a lot of room!  We also made a few trips to Home Depot and are making shelves to display my shot glass collection on! James stained the wood yesterday and attached the brackets, so all that's left is one more coat of stain and to hang them. Then I can put up all my shot glasses, including my new ones from our trip! There's still more to do: the cupboard with our tupperware is a mess and the pantry needs to be reorganized really badly too.

We also bought a tent! We found a decent sized 4 person tent at Costco and have a friend from England who has agreed to help us procure a ReadyBed (a sleeping bag with an inflatable pad built in). We could only find it in a store in the UK, and they won't ship to us. But, we're planning to go camping in the near future! I'm so excited!! Now, here's some background on this, because this is truly an astounding suggestion from me. I NEVER went camping as a child. My father abhors camping in any form that doesn't involve returning to at least a motel at night. Apparently, he had some bad experiences camping in college, but it ended up with us never going camping. I didn't even go to a camp until sleep-away camp in 5th grade, and that was for school and didn't really count. So my first experience camping was AWE (Athenian Wilderness Experience) which was a 26 day backpacking trip required to graduate from high school. I'll skip anything more in depth about that, but suffice it to say that it was a good, but difficult, experience and I'm glad I did it, but I wasn't really interested in sleeping outdoors ever again. However, I've started to consider that I'd really like to go camping and have those experiences, especially with my son. So we decided to invest in a tent and some sleeping bags and are trying to figure when and where to go. We're hoping to go somewhere for a weekend before July. Any suggestions on campgrounds nearby would be greatly appreciated. I'm looking forward to s'mores and stars!

I had my monthly OB visit. It was moved up by a day because I was having really, really bad back pain. It started last Tuesday and would not get better. It was excruciating, getting worse each day, exacerbated by sitting (I have a desk job) and standing and walking, so I ended up being useless this weekend since all I could do was lie on the couch. Apparently, everything is fine, but with my center of gravity shifting and the added weight, it's easier to pull your back out of alignment. I ended up going to a chiropractor, but not until Monday. So it was almost a week of pain before getting some relief. There's still some discomfort, but I'm going back on Wednesday to get my back adjusted again and I think a few visits should do it to get my back back in working order again. I didn't see the doctor, but the nurse practitioner assured me that everything was ok and normal, and addressed everything on my monstrously long list of questions and concerns. My lack of sleep was a big issue, since it meant I had been so exhausted that even an hour or two out of the house left me needing a nap and I was more exhausted than in the first trimester. She told me I could take Unisom, so I've been taking it on and off and the difference it's made is absolutely amazing: I stay asleep at night and have been having dreams again. I wake up refreshed instead of exhausted and actually have enough energy to get through my day, whether I'm running errands or working or just going out to lunch. I also got to see Wallaby and hear his heart again, so that was nice and reassuring. And since I hadn't been feeling the kicks for a while, I was grateful to hear that when they're still this small and turn towards your back, you might not feel anything. He started up kicking again last night during dinner with friends and it was just as shocking as the first time. But I LOVE it; it's so reassuring to know that he's ok and moving around in there.

We're planning on trying to recreate the Arabic meal we learned to cook in Jordan tonight: lamb kofta and moutabbal, so I'll let you know how that goes. We're also going down to San Diego this week to celebrate our two year anniversary (next Tuesday). It's crazy that we've been married that long...in some ways it feels like it was yesterday and in some ways (good ways) it feels like it's been forever. I can't even remember what life was like without James and I'm so grateful to wake up next to him every morning. Cheesy as this sounds, the pilgrimage really made me realize how truly blessed I am: I have a wonderful, loving husband, two pups who are pretty affectionate, two loving families on two coasts and a little baby on the way. And that's not even mentioning the wonderful friends and supportive coworkers we have! I'm just feeling so lucky to be living this life, even when it's challenging.

Anyways, enough of my sappy moment, here's the weekly rundown:
How far along: 21 weeks
Total weight gain: So far, 3 lbs
Maternity clothes?: I should just take this one off. Yes, and I love them lol
Stretch marks?: Yep
Sleep?: Well, since I got approval from the doc to take Unisom to help me sleep, I've been doing so much better and not getting as exhausted
Best moment this week: Seeing friends twice this week. I missed them on the trip and I love getting out and doing stuff (and getting my hair done!)
Miss anything?: Ahi tuna. Margaritas. (Virgin margaritas just don't taste the same)
Movement?: It slowed down for a bit, but it's picking up again (I'm not allowed to do any kick counts til 28 weeks according to the nurse)
Cravings?: Yes, but nothing I've indulged in
Queasy?: Nope
Baby's Sex: Male
Symptoms: My breasts are so sore, and I'm starting to breathe less easily (apparently, your lungs have less room as the baby grows). The other basic ones too, but the sleeping pills have helped with the exhaustion at least
Wedding ring on or off?: On
Belly button in or out?: The top half is pretty much all the way out now
Happy or moody?: Happy, with some moodiness the the pain exacerbated
Looking forward to?: A relaxing weekend with my husband, a massage and the beach
Pregnancy brain?: Just silly things, like not recognizing my own car when I walked out of the store and forgetting things quickly


21 Weeks: Wallaby is the size of a banana
And yes, I'm aware that doing my own bangs doesn't work

21 weeks: belly has surpassed my boobs

21 week belly

2 comments:

  1. Camping with a baby or toddler? Haha good luck! I would forget about that for a couple of years ;). Over here: moving chaos completed ;). Kids going nuts every now and then.
    Love from Bremen, Miriam

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    1. Haha, well eventually we'll all go camping, but we're hoping to go before I get too big as well. It depends on when the sleeping bag we ordered gets here, but I'm hoping to go in July for a weekend, and maybe once more before he arrives.
      Glad you're all moved in! It looks like a lovely place from the photos!

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