12 days 'til Christmas

We went to the bank on Saturday to sign our papers for the application for the loan, and the mortgage lady was a no show. I was kinda upset about that. We've been trying for 2 years to get a house and just when we think we have it, its delayed just that much longer.
Hubby took me out to pick my Christmas present. He wanted to get me a gun, but he wanted me to pick one out that I like and feel comfortable with. I picked out a .380, all black. I'm not a big fan of the grip, though. Its a bit rough on my hands, but its the one I liked the most. He still has to wrap it up. Even though I know what it is, I still want to unwrap it.
Got all of Lilly presents from Santa wrapped up and hidden away. They are hidden in plain sight, but she'll never see them. I put them in 2 big black trash bags and just placed them in our closet. She is so use to seeing bags and stuff in there, she won't pay any attention. I'm making her doll house be from us. I want that to be the very last thing she opens. Ok...no... open the doll house and then the rooms. I still haven't gotten my hands on the nursery for the babies the house comes with. I have the living room, dining room, family room, big sister's room, and the laundry room. I almost had the kitchen, but it was broken.
Christmas dinner at the fire station went ok. Food was great, but some people are just so stupid. Santa was there for the kids and so was the Grinch in a santa outfit. That was pretty cool. We heard jingle bells and its usually Santa, so all the kids were getting excited and standing in their seats, eagerly looking at the door. Some green fuzzy fingers came around the door frame and over half of the kids started freaking out. When the Grinch came through the door, the kids were hiding and crying. They eventually got over it and got pictures with him. Santa came in shortly after. The picture is hubby's mom, sister and his youngest nephew with the Grinch. See the death-grip he has on his mom? I just really wanted to show you how awesome the costume looked.
Sunday we went to one of hubby's nephew's birthday party and Santa was there too. Hubby's sister made me sit in Santa's lap. Kinda awkward.
School are closed today cuz we got a really good snow storm last night. I'm surprised I came to work. I didn't sleep at all last night, ok maybe 3 hours. I just couldn't get comfy, I couldn't breathe, I was paranoid that hubby wasn't going to wake up in time, and I could hear our neighbor out there plowing our side road every half an hour. I slept from 11-12:30, 2-3, 4-5. I'm exhausted. So hubby had to get up early to plow snow at his work, and then I finally get out of bed. (Oh, not to forget the phone calls and text messages at 4 am to tell me that school is on a 2-hour delay and then closed) I look outside and the main road just looks so bad. Usually I would call my boss right there and tell her I'm not coming in and then crawl back into bed. I don't know if it was my lack of sleep so I wasn't thinking straight or if I had convinced myself that it wasn't that bad cuz the snow was powdery, but I came to work. I went out there, cleaned my car off and ventured on. The roads were slick as all get out. I'm such a coward when it comes to bad roads. I've been in 2 really bad wrecks where I totaled my cars, so I get paranoid when it comes to certain things. But I made it to work and that's all that matters right now. Lilly made it to the Y just fine and I get her back today.
Been having contractions more often. I can't really feel any pain when it happens, but my stomach is tightening up and that's what the doc said to watch for.
Yesterday I had to listen to 4 other women talk about giving birth and how the hospital handled it. They were telling me like I didn't know, like I've never done this before. It was kinda making me mad. I know how my hospital handles things, that why I picked that one and not the one closer to home. No, I don't want people back there during delivery, I want it to just be me and hubby. (My mom wasn't happy about that decision) I know all about the drugs they give out and who is allowed back after delivery. I know all of it, but OMG, they had to tell me like I didn't. I don't really like talking about stuff like that. I don't really like talking about my pregnancy anymore. I don't want to talk about how everyone else's delivery went. I don't want to talk about anything anymore. I am so wore out on talking about those things. Its the same questions with the same people. When's your due date? You have a name picked out yet? Who's gonna be in the delivery room with you? (oh and I hope hubby's mom realizes that she's not invited in either) How much weight did you gain? Who is your doctor? (they ask that like they know every OB-GYN in the state) Have you been craving anything? Is he moving a lot? Can I feel him? My first pregnancy, I hated it when people touched my tummy... especially without even asking, but this time it doesn't bother me as much for some reason. People still don't ask, they just do it. I don't mind putting my thoughts and what not on here, cuz I'm sorta documenting what is going on. I don't mind telling people the answers to their questions, but I just don't want to do it every time I see them when they ask the same questions and make the same comments. That's one of the reasons I don't really like seeing my family anymore, cuz that's all they will talk about. Yes, I'm pregnant... can we all just move on now? My mom is the worse. I try to tell her stuff and confide in her, but she's like, "Yep. You just wait." She treats me like I'm stupid sometimes. Its gotten to the point where I hate talking to her over the phone. I was trying to tell her the other day when I am planning on coming down to celebrate Christmas and she was acting like I wasn't going to come cuz of the snow. When I try to talk to her about Lilly, she just makes these little comments that I could really do without. I don't know what happened to her. I use to be able to talk to her about just about anything... not anymore.

Week 34

Your Pregnancy: Week 34~The nursery is almost done. You've stocked up on diapers. You're ready. And you're waiting. And waiting. And hopefully, if all goes well, you'll be waiting for another six weeks. So don't drive yourself crazy, use this time to enjoy being alone, with friends and with your partner. Because soon it'll be all about baby for a couple of weeks (months, years, whatever), and you'll wish you had this downtime back.

Your Body~You are exhausted from hauling your bod around all day, so why can't you sleep at night? Is it because your bladder keeps crying out to be emptied every 30 minutes? Is it because you haven't been able to find a comfortable sleeping position since week 27? Is it because your mind can't stop making lists of things to do or replaying that shocking video you saw in your birthing classes? Yes, yes, and yes. It might comfort you to know you're not alone. Seventy-five percent of women in their third trimester have trouble sleeping.

Certain sleep positions will help you to be more comfortable and sleep better when you're pregnant. If lying on your back is making you dizzy or lightheaded try sleeping on your side. If you feel like bugs are crawling all over your legs in the middle of the night, get your partner to change the sheets. Just kidding. You might have restless leg syndrome, which commonly affects pregnant women. But it's still a good idea to have your mate do some laundry.

Your Baby~Your baby kind of looks like she's coated in a layer of cream cheese these days. The thick, white substance that protects her skin from pruning in the amniotic fluid is called vernix. When she's born you'll probably see some vernix lingering in her "hard-to-reach" places like under her arms, behind her ears and around her va-jay-jay, if she's a she.. Other news from the womb this week:The soft fur, lanugo, that covered your baby's body for much of her stay in the womb is now almost completely gone. Your baby begins to develop her own immune system, instead of relying solely on antibodies received through the placenta. This will come in handy when some grubby relative manhandles the baby without washing his hands first.This week, your baby measures about 17¾ inches, as almost as long as an American Girl Doll (!) and weighs almost 5 pounds, as heavy as a bag of sugar, minus the cup you put in your decaf this morning.

Brrrrrrr, its cold outside

Hubby was successful at locating all the Christmas decorations from my storage building. We will put the tree up today and decorate it tomorrow. He called me yesterday, "So, I found the red tote with all the decorations in it, but where's the tree?" Yeah, like I can sit here in my office and tell you exactly where it is. That 10x10 storage building is packed from floor to ceiling and wall to wall. If its not right there by the door, I have no idea. He found it, but I forgot to ask him where it was.
So I realized yesterday that I don't really know what a real contraction feels like. Weird, right? I've been through the fake ones and those are kinda painful, but not unbearable. See, with Lilly I was induced a week early. The nurses gave me the drugs and as long as I kept an empty bladder, I couldn't feel a thing. The nurse would say, "Oh, that was a big one! You must have felt that one." Nope, I didn't. I was hooked up to this machine that measured the intensity of my contractions and how much pain I SHOULD have been in. But I didn't feel anything. I didn't really feel any pain until it was time to push and I only felt the horrible stretchy feeling pain on part of my left side cuz no matter how many times I pushed that button to release the drugs into me, it never reached my left side completely. That's what happens when you let an intern put it in. So, if I didn't feel any contractions with Lilly, what if I don't feel any with this one? How will I know when its time to go to the hospital since your suppose to time them? What if I don't know I'm in labor cuz my water didn't break? With Lilly, since I was induced, the doctor had to break my water. Being mostly numb all I felt was....warm....kinda like I peed the bed or something.
I am a little worried about hubby. I would like for it to be just us in the delivery room, but I've been thinking that he might need a little support. He doesn't have a very strong stomach, for one. For two, he worries a little too much about certain things. I don't need him asking me if I'm ok every 5 seconds. I don't really want my mom in there this time. She wasn't much help last time and kind of annoyed me. I love my mom to death, but I don't want her in there this time. The only other problem is, I don't think I would feel comfortable with anyone else in there. I would like it if my bff would be in there, but there's just no way she will be able to come in from Virginia in time. That and I don't know how well she would handle it all either. I don't know what to do. I still need to talk to hubby about it. And I don't know how to tell my mom that I don't want her in there without hurting her feelings. I know she would be real hurt if hubby's sister went back and she didn't. There's still a lot to think about.
School is on a 2 hour delay today. I don't really know why unless it due to the cold temperatures. The roads weren't bad at all. If I will drive on them, they aren't bad. I'm glad I don't really have to worry about things like that cuz Lilly goes to before and after school care. No matter if school is on a delay or closed or whatever, I still take her there every morning at the same time. My bff hasn't seen any snow yet, but she's not really THAT far away. She's only like 6 hours east of me. I took some pictures the other day and sent them to her.
The baby is getting very active at night time. His elbows are hitting me in all the wrong places. It feels like he is seriously trying to crawl his way out. His feet don't bother me. Yeah, he kicks and moves and whatnot and knocks my ribs around, but its his hands and elbows and shoulders that are causing me all this extra pain.
Oh, and its Pearl Harbor Day. Today marks the day that Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941. I'm sure the Pearl Harbor movie will be on tv sometime today.

Where has the week gone?

Is it just me or is this week flying by?
Oh, the weird pains I'm feeling now!! Lets start off with this one~ I can no longer do much with my feet other than walk. Ok, I understand that doesn't really explain anything. I never noticed how much I push things with my feet or stuff like that....push drawers closed, push things across the floor, even pushing a door open. I can no longer do any of these things because there is this weird pain that feels like the baby is, well, coming out. I don't know how else to explain it. I can't even put my pants on standing up, ya know, one leg at a time standing on one foot. Yeah. I can't do that without this pain either. Its just a lot of pressure and then pain like I'm pulling a muscle that shouldn't be pulled.
He's starting to make those movements again where it feels like he is shivering or something. I have a doc appt tomorrow and I really need to ask about this. I just wonder if he is having a seizure or something like that. Can unborn babies have seizures? That's not something you really hear about, so I don't know.
Last night, I have no idea what the baby was doing, but he was laying very weird. I couldn't lay on my side, either side, all night. He was balled up or stretched out or something where he was making it impossible for me to find any comfortable position and I couldn't do anything but lay on my back. Every time I tried to roll over, I was basically laying on the baby. Not only did it cause me some odd pain, I didn't know if I was hurting the baby or not. I just assume that I was. I am a side sleeper, so I got no rest last night. Whenever I did finally get comfy enough to fall asleep, I had to get up to go pee. Then I had to go through it all over again with trying to get comfy. I have to go to the bathroom now about every hour. Sometimes I don't even have to pee, but the baby is just putting so much pressure in all the wrong places, that it does feel like I have to. I've heard from everyone that carrying a boy is way different than carrying a girl. I didn't believe them. I mean...how is that even possible. Its a baby. That's it, just a baby...but now....now I believe. Everything is different. Everything feels different.
Aw man...I should have taken a picture of Lilly's nails after I painted them and decorated them. They are so cute. She's got purple nails now with animal stickers on them~ bunnies, pigs, owls, monkeys, dog prints, penguins, cats...so cute. She loved them. The first thing she did when I dropped her off at before school care was show her teacher her nails.
I went all day yesterday without any heartburn at all. Its doubling up today.
Hubby is back to working some horrible overtime. He didn't get home last night until Lilly was already asleep and that's probably how its going to be today and tomorrow. He said that they are working late so they don't have to work this weekend, but its not like it really matters. He said if he was off on Saturday he was going out hunting and we wouldn't see him anyway. Me and Lilly have breakfast with Santa on Saturday. Then, we are heading toward our storage building some 30 miles away (yeah, I could have gotten one close where I live now, but his storage building was close to where I use to live and it was cheaper than any other place) and mom is suppose to meet me there with one or more of my little brothers so they can get my Christmas decorations and the tree out in and in my car for me. Then, all of us are just going to hang out. I gotta go get Lilly a Christmas-y outfit or dress for her performance at school. Me, Lilly and hubby should be able to spend Sunday together. We do have a birthday party to go to.
Hubby's family is planning a baby shower for me on January 2. Oh, what fun that's going to be. I would like it much better if it was just me, hubby's mom, sister, aunts and cousins and a few of his friends wives and girlfriends...but they invited EVERYONE they know. I only know like 10 people that was on the list.
Just went with hubby to pick up our concealed weapon permits. Maybe that's what I can tell hubby I want for Christmas. A .25 revolver.....

Week 33

Your Pregnancy: Week 33~You're large, but you most definitely don't feel in charge, since the baby seems to be completely taking over your body. Up several times a night to go to the bathroom? It's all just practice for getting up in the wee hours for feedings, changings and general fussiness. The one difference: Cuddling that babe in your arms for a feeding is way better than heaving yourself to the bathroom for the sixth time—in the dark

Your Body~At about this point you have probably begun to obsess over labor and delivery. You may have a vision of how you'd like the whole event to go: contractions are brief and painless and in one push out pops your baby to the background music of "Chariots of Fire." That fantasy is all well and good but it's important to be flexible and brace yourself for little surprises that may occur. Also, keep an open mind as far as medication and labor support go once you're in the thick of things.

Research your pain relief options. There are countless natural options in addition to medicinal options for managing labor pain. Now would be a good time to decide who you want in the labor and delivery room with you. We advise against inviting someone you may be embarrassed to see what's going on "down there."

You also might want to start thinking about what you are going to pack in your hospital bag. Don't forget your lip-gloss! When everyone wants to take a picture of you and the new babe, you'll thank us.

Your Baby~The big news this week is lung development—baby's respiratory system is almost completely mature. That means if your baby was born this week, odds are he'd be a healthy bouncing baby with a just a little help from his friends (aka, the NICU). Some of the specifics are:

Your baby can now detect light and tell the difference between night and day (of course that ability will miraculously disappear once he's born and up all night screaming). His pupils will constrict and dilate in response to light. If you shine a flashlight on your belly, your baby may shy away from the light as if to say, "Cut it out, Ma. You're soooo annoying."

The bones in your baby's skull are soft and are not yet fused together. In other words, now is not the time to teach him how to do a headspin while breakdancing. This pliability allows the bones to overlap; making that trip down the tight birth canal possible (and resulting in that surprising cone head look your baby will sport for the first few days post-birth. Don't worry, it's totally normal and that's what hats are for.)

Your baby will continue to pack on the pounds gaining around ½ pound a week from here on out.

Your baby weighs about 4½ pounds, as much as a grownup duck, and is approximately 17.5 inches long, about the same as a collarbone-length pearl necklace. (Did somebody say push present?)

A lot going on

Finally found Lilly the dollhouse that I think she will love. She's never really had a dollhouse yet. I did get her a Barbie townhouse one year for Christmas, but it ended up in the storage building due to lack of space. I never had a dollhouse growing up and I always wanted one. I think she is old enough now to care for all those small parts. I'm actually super excited over this one. Its big, its fully furnished and it comes with the entire family. A mom, dad, big sister and baby twins. So cute. Its only $160. For all that and to see her expression, I would pay way more. So, come next pay day, I'm out to get that for her and hubby's thing for his 4-wheeler. I would do it all today, but (1) I'm out of space to hide things until I can start wrapping and putting under the tree (we aren't putting up the tree just yet, we have to see if we can get the house before Christmas first) and (2) I have to use what money I have left out of this pay check to pay off the rest of my medical bill. I do feel kinda bad. I don't know if I can explain it right, but I will try. I am super excited over Christmas and so is Lilly. It is our favorite holiday. I just really love the FEEL of it all and seeing everyone's face when they open up the present that I spent forever trying to find and make perfect. I love the smell of Christmas. Its just all so wonderful. Ok...back on track. I don't want to NOT decorate and get ready for Christmas, but at the same time I don't want to. I would like to wait to see if we can move before Christmas, but I don't want it to be the week before when we decorate, either. I don't see the point in decorating and putting up the tree and wrapping presents when we'll have to pick everything up, pack and move it. But I don't want to not decorate just because we are waiting on an answer for the house. I think it would feel like we aren't celebrating or something. Lilly keeps asking when we are going to put up our lights and tree and I don't really know what to tell her. I don't want to tell her we are waiting 'til we see if we get a house cuz then she will get excited about that and we might not get it. Does any of that make any sense?? Maybe we could put up just a few lights and one of our little trees until we know what's going on. That way we wouldn't have much to take down if we do get to move. And just not wrap until it gets closer to Christmas or we have an answer or whatever. I don't know. I need to talk it over with hubby. I think he will want to wait, but I don't think I can. Its our last year with Lilly as the only child and I want to make it extra special for her. Don't get me wrong....a house for a Christmas present...what could be any better than that?
The cravings are starting to kick in. I'm craving coffee and milk, not at the same time though. Late at night I will want some milk and in the morning and sometimes evenings I will want coffee. With Lilly I craved hot sauce, Ranch dressing and ketchup....again...not together. I did and still do put hot sauce and Ranch dressing together. I like em in a salad like that.
I'm not feeling particularly well today. I'm having aches in weird places. Not only am I aching on the inside, my hips, lower back, knees, and head aches. I can't breathe anymore either. I read that my sinus cavities will swell up. They've been swollen for a long time and my nose has been stuff, but I guess where the air is getting dry, its making it worse. I've been having nose bleeds too. The baby is also pushing on all the wrong things making breathing even harder. He even kicks and plays with my hip bones and ribs. I swear I can feel him tickling my bladder just to make me mad. I use to feel his hiccups near my right hip and nowhere else, but now its kinda moves and I can feel it in my back and right above my belly button.
I had a sugar crash or whatever its called yesterday. My blood sugar got too low and I got sick, shaky and dizzy. I brought a Gatorade today just in case it happens again. I think I'm going to invest in a pack of it to bring from now on. Heartburn has calmed down a bit. Yeah, when I go buy 6 rolls of Tums, it basically goes away. Nice. Its very exciting though cuz tonight we are having tacos and I don't have to worry about breathing fire later. I also feel that if I stand up straight, I will topple over. I've noticed that I do stand/walk with a little arch now. I do have an almost constant dull headache right in the front around my forehead. My teeth also hurt. My gums have been swollen for weeks, which the doc said is normal. Ok, I understand that a lot of these aches and pains and discomforts are 'normal' but they still really suck and I think there needs to be ways to relieve or cure some of them. There really aren't. Doc says, drink more water, prop your feet up, take it easy, brush twice a day, stretch, go on small walks, take some Tums, eat more often but with smaller meals....I already do all of that. What else can I do? Grint my teeth and bear it remembering that I only have......what am I down to now....8 weeks?.......left and then I will have this little baby to hold in my arms and spit up on me. I can't wait! ^_^

Short week

Weekend was pretty good. It was the first weekend in a long time that I got to hang out with Lilly. We cleaned the house...man, did we clean. Its been a long time since I've seen the family room or the bathroom that clean. She is a really good helper. She also helped me lose some weight with our hour long walks straight uphill. I was gaining weight a little too fast there for about a week.
I put my cell phone on my tummy last night to watch the baby kick it. I had hubby watch and his reaction, "That's kinda weird." Then I said..."Doesn't it look kinda gross." "Yeah...it really does." The baby wasn't just kicking, he was rolling over. It wasn't little bumps, you could seriously see him. My stomach was rising and falling like....well.....like there was a baby rolling over in there.
I've also been using Lilly to kinda help me 'train' for Black Friday. This is going to be the first year that I go where I'm all pudgy and waddling and in pain like this. I've been using our long walks and our days together to get ready. If I stand for too long, my hips hurt. If I walk for too long, I feel pressure like he's going to plop out. And almost all day, every day, I have the stretchy feeling and my back is hurting. Well...I'm seriously trying to get my body ready for the fun torture that is Black Friday. She also helped out by not letting me sleep in. I've got to get my body ready for little to no rest on top of all the walking, standing, and rushing around. I've also got a maternity shirt ready and picked out that I'm going to wear that clearly says in big black letters, "BABY" so hopefully I won't get pushed around and elbowed in the belly and maybe, just maybe someone will feel a bit sorry for me and let me jump them in line. Oh, big hopes.
On our walk yesterday I let Lilly pick 20 minutes into it if she wanted to head back to the house, or go down this one side road. She wanted to keep going, so we went down the side road. About another 20 minutes we turned around to head home, and that's when she started to complain. She likes to go and go until she can't go anymore, but then she can't go home. It was kinda funny. I told her I can't carry her home this time. (One time I gave her a half an hour piggy back ride all the way back home, up hills, down hills.) She said, "Yeah, but you didn't even carry me ALL the way back home that time. You had to keep putting me down and resting for a little while." And then when we were about 15 minutes from the house she wanted to stop and rest. We did and I said, "You are young and able, mommy is pregnant and in pain. You can do it!" Trying to put a little encouragement in her, but she came back with this, "Yeah, mommy...I AM young, but I'm not able." I asked why not and she said, "Cuz my name is Lilly not Able!!" I guess she got me there.

TGIF

Got Lilly a calendar so she can know when she will be with me and when she will be with her father. I had her color the days she'll be with me red, and the days with him orange. She liked it. I think it will be of good use and she won't get so upset when the time comes for her to go. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
Her Thanksgiving lunch thing was ok. Very unorganized. All the kids were dressed up at either Indians or Pilgrims. So cute.
I finally got a response from the collection agency regarding my past due medical bill...... I'm not getting any kind of settlement. [sad face] It took them a month to tell me NO. Ooooh I was so mad. I went ahead and paid $1500 of it. If I didn't order stuff from online I could have paid $1700, but I had to do some Christmas shopping. I'm gonna use the child support I've been saving up to buy Lilly's presents on Black Friday. If I didn't need that money for Christmas, I could go ahead and pay off the rest of the bill, but...to me, Christmas is just a little more important. Hubby said he would take care of the remainder of the bill for me. I don't think he knows about the saved up child support. He hasn't asked how I'm going to go shopping yet. I won't tell unless he asks. :-)
I've only got 9 weeks left until the little one is here! So excited. I am less planned out this time. I know how much time I have left, but I just keep telling myself that I have more time. We don't even have a car seat yet, or a stroller. We have a crib, but its still in my storage building. We don't have any room to set up a crib. If we are still stuck in that little apartment, we're gonna have to get a bassinet or something. I told hubby that one is the perfect size to fit on my side of the bed. But hopefully in the next few weeks, there will be a house. I think that's what I'm mainly waiting for. If we don't have a house by the first week of January, I'm just going to have to start planning on living in that itty bitty apartment and get it baby ready.

Let's see here.....my stomach still feels 'stretchy.' I've been told that's my uterus growing and that's why lotion is doing nothing. I just didn't feel all this last time. Its cuz its a boy isn't it? lol... I've been super tired lately, like I just can't get enough rest, but at the same time I have all this extra energy..but I'm too tired to do anything with it. Also been having some pre-labor contractions. Its up to about one a day. Braxton Hicks, I think is what they are called. Sometimes I think I feel one coming on, but it turns out that the baby is just pushing down and giving me some extra pressure. My back has been sore, too. Sitting has become a bit difficult. I can no longer get in the floor and play with Lilly without having some kind of pain or breathing problems. I've also been really hungry lately. My appetite has been really low, until this week. I feel like I haven't eaten in days. Since last week, I've gained 5 pounds!! There is a limit that I swear I will not let myself get to, I will not weight more than this limit....but I'm coming awfully close and I still have 9 weeks left and I'm expected to gain 1 pound a week. I'm going to end up going over unless I can get this under control. I think I've done excellent with my weight gain. Since last week I had only gained 10 pounds, but now when you tack on that extra 5......I'm getting close.

STRRRRRRETCH

Other than the horrible stretching sensation I have all day every day on my stomach.....I'm doing great! Lotion does nothing to ease the pain....lemme try to describe it. You know that feeling when you were younger and someone would do the "Indian rug burn" on your arm.....yeah......that's what it feels like on my stomach. Its usually concentrated in one spot, not all over my belly. Monday it was on the right side of my bellybutton. Yesterday is was just above and to the left of my bellybutton. I've tried the cocoa butter cream and the cocoa butter lotion. I've tried regular lotion and Vaseline. It does only hurt when I'm standing...so I'm going to try not to do that so much today. I never hurt like this the first time.
He hasn't moved too much this week. Maybe he finally realized he doesn't have that much room, but when he moves....oh he moves! He hasn't gotten the hiccups this week either. Sunday he had them for like 5 seconds, just long enough for Lilly to feel 2 bumps.
Lilly is doing great in school. She can read! I made some flash cards that we go over about once a week. I'm always adding new words to it. The teacher sends home a letter every Monday explaining what they will be doing for the week and the words and sounds they will be working on. I try to put words on the flash cards that they will be working on, before they work on them....and some harder words too. She's getting it. I'm so proud. The only sounds she's really having problems is the "gh." We haven't worked on the "ph" sound yet. I don't even know if they go over those sounds in Kindergarten. Once she can get all the words on the flash cards without any of my help, we will move onto math. She knows the basics, but I'd like to work on it with her before they start doing it in class. So far all they've done in math is introduce the numbers and learn how to write them-which she already knew- and now they are working on patterns and symmetry. We've worked a little on addition and she understands it, but we need to work on it.
She's been doing excellent in school. She hasn't been getting into trouble too much. She did get yellow last Monday for talking though. (behavior is put into 3 colors. Green if they are really good, yellow if they got in trouble and red if they were really bad. This is a daily thing and a report goes home every Monday about the week before.) That's really her only real problem and we keep having discussions about it, but it does no good. I guess I could use bribery....lol!! Anyway here's a pic of what she picked out of the treasure box for being so good........
HA!!!!!! I love it!
Lilly even made dinner last night. I bought some of that pizza dough that comes in a can like biscuits do, she unrolled the dough. I helped flatten it and spread it out, but she did the sauce and toppings by herself. 'Twas really good. Told hubby that since I made dinner on Monday and Lilly made dinner last night...he gets to make dinner tonight. We'll probably end up with McDonalds or something. lol
Off work tomorrow for Veteran's Day and we are going to see mom. Tomorrow also marks my 10 weeks left before the baby is due. Wow...I can't believe I'm already down to 10 weeks!

Ankles are bigger round than my legs!

Went to a wedding on Saturday....it was so beautiful. And they make such a great couple too. Mr. and Mrs. Kessler...I wish you all the happiness in the world. I wish I would have taken at least one picture with my phone so I could post it on here. Even if it was just the decorations....every was done so well.
Sunday I helped out at the fire fighter competition...that was very unorganized. I mostly took pics, but only got 2 on my phone. It was cold and I was on my feet all day. There was a jupiter jump, big inflatable slide, clown and the smoke house for kids. They also did "donate a dollar and you can hit this car with a sledge hammer" for the kids. The competition went ok. Hubby was a judge, he didn't compete, but guys from the fire station did. There was a ladder climb-fastest time going up a 90 foot ladder and back down, hose roll-they rolled up a small hose, putting on gear-fast guy to get dressed in full bunker gear, the dummy pull-speaks for itself, pulling a charged hose-pull a hose full of water down the track and then spray an object to knock it down, the hammer hit-hit this metal bar between your feet with a hammer until it moves past the line, and I have no idea what the other one could be called-climb a ladder attached to scaffolding, pull a rope up that has hose attached to the end and then climb back down. All the money raised went to the fire station that burned down last month. I apologize for not having more or better pics.

Heartburn is becoming more frequent......and I'm out of Tums today. The day has been going by fast, though. Its almost noon and I have no idea how that happened. It seems like the baby has rotated and is head down now. I feel more pressure and pain, especially when I'm standing or walking. My belly where his feet are is all pushed out and hurting. When I'm sitting, there's always a foot in my ribs. When he moves his arms, it feels like he's poking my hip bone....feels so weird. He's also been getting the hiccups a lot more these days. I haven't found a pattern to it, yet, to see if its something I'm doing. My mom said that whenever she was pregnant with the my brother above me, anytime she ate bread he would get the hiccups. I'm at the point where I'm waddling now, but that's not cuz I'm big, its just hard to maneuver this body now. There's a lot of pressure on my hips and such, so I can't really walk normal. My back is always aching now and my ankles stay swollen.
Ok...this is going to gross some people out so I'm just warning ya that you may want to skip this paragraph. Friday night I went to bed at 10 and woke up at 11 cuz I was sick. I woke up cuz I was in mid swallow of my own vomit. EW! I raced out of bed to do nothing but stand in the bathroom and wait to see if I would throw up again. Nothing happened, but I felt like I needed to throw up. I felt so bad the rest of the night. I'm about at that point where I got sick in my last pregnancy. About 7 months along, I was trying to get out the door so I could make it to class, but I got sick. I tried to make it to the bathroom, but didn't, and ended up throwing up in my bedroom floor. Being pregnant and kinda sick, I couldn't clean it up without throwing up again, so I laid a towel over it and left. (ps...it was fruit loops) I got back home after school and work and attempted to clean it up the best I could. I know its all gross, but there's just some things I couldn't do.

This time change is messing with me. My body is telling me that its really 1:00, not noon, but either way...I'm tired and ready for a nap. But I stay tired these days. This weekend is the first weekend of our new custody agreement. He gets her Thursday and takes her to school on Monday, but then I get her for 10 days. I explained it to her the best I could. "Daddy gets you on music days and takes you to school and picks you up on gym day. You stay there 2 more days for the weekend to play and then daddy takes you to school on library day and mommy picks you up. Then you stay with me for 10 days. That's library day to library day all the way to music day." She was so excited. When I was putting her to bed last night she said, "Will you play hide-and-seek with me tomorrow?" I told her of course I will. Then she said, "And chalk, and blow bubbles, and jump rope, and make cookies, and play Uno, and Barbies, and treasure hunt, and read to me, and Battleship, and My Little Pony, and cars, and firetrucks, and paint, and roll the ball, and play with my velcro ball, and let me brush your hair, and play the Wii, and watch a movie, and play Candyland, and Go Fish, and Dominoes....wait...what are Dominoes....., and balloons, and checkers, and Memory, and...and...and...and......" I laughed and asked her if she liked playing with me. She said, "Yeah, I really do, you play so good. Daddy won't play with me. So can we play tomorrow?" I told her we would play what we could and what we didn't get done, we can do the next day. She was fine with that answer. Bless her little heart.

Week 29

Felt so sick when I was about to leave work yesterday. All I wanted to do was go home and lay down, but Lilly had other ideas. I played as best I could without getting her upset. I did feel bad cuz it was our last day together cuz she goes to her fathers house today. I tried my best. I think we did an ok job playing without really doing too much. She was happy with the outcome.
I had a headache, every inch of my body hurt, my stomach was doing flip flops and it was on fire. I'm better now, but not a whole lot. I still hurt everywhere and I am just so tired. I got a good nights sleep, but I feel like I could drop right now. My hips are killing me. I can't sit or stand or walk without them being in pain.
Anyway....here's what's up with the baby this week.

Your Pregnancy: Week 29~Among the many perks of becoming a new mother is having someone other than yourself to shop for (a big plus when the jeans you like are $100, but a cute onesie can be had for a mere $6.99). So if you're feeling out of sorts about your ever-changing body but have a shopping itch you need to scratch, indulge in something mini and adorable for your new babe.

Your Body~Let's get right to the point: You're a bloated, water-retaining mess. Chances are good you can't get your sneakers on or your wedding ring off, so get comfy in your slippers. Your pants don't fit. Your shirts don't fit. And now, thanks to the swelling in your feet, your shoes don't fit. You can thank a wonderful thing called edema for that. Go edema! Extreme swelling (as in "Oh my god, what happened to my hands?!") might be a sign of preeclampsia, so make sure to see your doctor. For mild edema, your doctor may recommend support hose—with plenty of room for your belly—and drinking plenty of water. Also, a low-salt diet may not be any fun (No potato chips! No soy sauce!), but it may help to minimize edema and water retention. On the bright side, edema is a great excuse for sitting down, propping your feet up, and asking your partner to bring you a cool drink and this week's US Weekly.

Your Baby~Having a baby prematurely is frightening, no doubt. But here's a reason to relax: Due to the impressive advancements of medical technology, if your baby is born this week, she'd have a 9 out of 10 chance of survival, which is seriously great news. Other awesome developments: Baby's brain can now control her breathing and body temperature. She can also cough, and her sucking abilities have been perfected. Your Mini's skin is looking less wrinkled as she packs on the pounds. She's starting to look more like a Pampers model and less like a Depends model. She's now beefing up on the energizing and insulating white fat she'll be born with (unfortunately, white fat is not energizing and insulating for adults!). And speaking of energy, your little Energizer Bunny is on fire these days. You're sure to feel your share of kicks, punches and elbows, especially when you're lying down. You might want to start keeping a kick chart to monitor your baby's movements, and also to later show your 13-year-old child what you endured for him or her. Ask your doctor how to count kicks and how often you should do it. This week your baby is a little over 15 inches long—about the length of a loaf of bread—and weighs about 3 pounds, as much as a Macbook Air laptop.

Week 28

Your Pregnancy: Week 28~You may have given a passing thought to what the new member of the household will be like (and by "passing thought" we mean obsessive rumination). Will she be a good sleeper? Will he draw on the furniture with a Sharpie? Get an inside scoop by pumping your own parents for information on how you and your partner were as kids: how much you weighed at birth, your first words the first time you cut off all of Barbie's hair. ... Your parents will get misty at the memories and you may, too. Maybe out of hope for the future, maybe out of fear for your leather sofa.

Your Body~Woohoo! You have hit the third trimester mark, so add another notch to your belt (both figuratively and literally). If your early blood workup showed that you are Rh negative, you'll need to get a shot of RhoGAM, or Rh immunoglobulin, this week. The shot prevents potential complications in a future baby you may carry if that baby is Rh positive. Your Rh status doesn't matter when it comes to this baby, but you'll want to get the shot in case you're planning on having more bambinos. If your baby is born with Rh-positive blood (because Papa chipped in an Rh-positive gene), you'll be given another dose of RhoGAM after you deliver to make sure everything will be good to go for any future pregnancies. If your glucose screening test came back positive, your doc will probably want to give you a glucose tolerance test some time soon. The test—for gestational diabetes—involves some dietary changes in the days leading up to it (more carbs!) and a longer visit to the doc on the day of the test (it's a three-hour test instead of the one-hour one you took the first time). And it's another chance to load up on that yummy glucose cocktail—shaken, not stirred! If you do end up testing positive for gestational diabetes, your doctor will probably put you on a super-healthy diet for the remainder of your pregnancy.

Your Baby~As the Big Day nears, your baby is getting ready to go towards the light at the end of the tunnel (the tunnel being the birth canal, the light being the one the doctor is shining directly into it so she can see what the heck she's doing). Other highlights this week:Your baby's eyes are partially open now and can blink. Truly superior babies can actually wink. (OK, there is no way to prove that, but it's fun to imagine, no?) Your baby can also now become a shiny, happy person as she has begun having rapid eye movement (Get it? REM? Shiny, happy person?? We'll be here all week.)Her eyes have color now, too. It may not be the color she ultimately ends up with, especially if they're light gray or blue. The eyes typically don't settle on a final hue until nine months after baby is born. So when your mother-in-law says that the baby has her eyes, you can politely inform her that they'll most likely change soon. Sorry.Your babe is downright chubby compared to a few weeks ago. She is about 15 inches long, about the length of an amusement park cinnamon-sugar-coated churro (yum!), and weighs 2 to 3 pounds.

Week 27

Your Pregnancy: Week 27~The light at the end of the tunnel is growing brighter for both you and your baby. With only 13 weeks left (give or take a couple of days), it's time to enjoy the ride because it's getting shorter. (This is the point on the roller coaster where you throw your arms in the air and wail like there's no tomorrow. Wee!)

Your Body~As anxious as you are to evict your tenant so you can snuggle with the little bugger, he or she still needs a few more months in the protection of your womb. Pay careful attention to your body and watch for the symptoms of labor. Premature babies have a much higher risk of illness and even death due to low birth weight and underdevelopment, so if you see signs, contact your doctor. If you think you might be in premature labor, try drinking several glasses of water and lying down on your left side. While doing this, feel your stomach for contractions, which will make your uterus hard like your forehead. Doing simple things like cutting out caffeine and eating right can prevent premature labor.

Your Baby~Baby's lungs and immune system are maturing this week as baby prepares for his grand entrance. If he were born today he would have an 85 percent chance of surviving as his lungs are capable of breathing air (with medical assistance, of course). Other exciting developments: Baby's done a lot of growing over the past few months. His length has more than doubled in the past 15 weeks! And that's not the only thing growing—baby's brain tissue and neurons are all developing at a rapid pace. His brain waves are now firing away just like those of a newborn baby. If baby is a he, his testes will have completely descended at this point. Your baby now weighs in at approximately 14½ inches and just over 2 pounds, or about the size of that roast you made last time your in-laws were in town. (OK, the baby is the size of that roast you meant to cook before you decided that ordering Chinese was a much better idea.)

Week 26

Your Pregnancy: Week 26~ If it feels like time is speeding by while simultaneously dragging on, you're not crazy, you're just pregnant. One minute you feel totally unprepared for the changes having a baby will bring, the next minute the anticipation of meeting the Mini that's been swinging from your ribs makes you cry. Such is the roller coaster of pregnancy (and strangely enough, of being a parent, too).

Your Body~There are a multitude of icky things that happen during pregnancy (skin eruptions, gas you can't possibly control, etc.) but increased vaginal discharge might top the list. Other fun stuff going on:If you find yourself leaking a small amount of urine when you cough, laugh or sneeze, don't worry. Temporary incontinence is common in pregnancy. That's just great, you think. You knew you had to get diapers, but you thought they'd be for the baby, not for you. To head off that problem at the pass, try working out your hoo-hoo by doing Kegels.If your discharge is thick or itchy, you might have a yeast infection. Even if you've had a hundred of them, this isn't a time for over-the-counter treatments without consulting your doctor first, so get on the phone
If you're finding yourself having to urinate much more frequently than normal (that would be urinating like every 10 minutes instead of every 15 thanks to a certain someone sitting on your bladder), you might have a urinary tract infection. Again, see your doctor. Usually a simple "pee in this cup" can tell you for sure.

Your Baby~Deep breath! Air sacks are developing in your baby's lungs, which means it just might be possible for your baby to take a breath at the end of this week. The air sacks (technically called alveoli) will continue to grow for the next nine years. The membrane that keeps the alveoli separate from the blood vessels is now thin enough to allow for that oxygen–carbon dioxide exchange we call breathing. Other highlights this week:The retina completes the development of its normal layers this week—all the better to see you with. Well not you, per se, because her eyes are still sealed shut and it's really dark in there, but your baby's eyes are now fully developed. Brainwaves for the auditory and visual systems are detectable in baby's noggin this week. That means baby's brain is registering things like sound and light. She can't understand what any of it means yet, but she's on track to comprehend an entire episode of Blue's Clues in no time!As hearing continues to develop, your baby will start to recognize your voice. One hint that your karaoke rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody" is not the best would be when the baby starts banging on your gut. Your bambino will also start to recognize your partner's voice. He may feel silly talking to your stomach, but assure him that somebody other than you is definitely listening. Research has shown that newborns actually recognize familiar sounds after birth. Proof that your baby has been paying attention all along.Break out the sparkling apple juice—baby has now completed two-thirds of her stay in Hotel Womb. Your baby is about 1 2/3 pounds and is 14 inches long head-to-heel, or about the length of a burp cloth (otherwise known as your primary wardrobe accessory for the next several months).

Week 25

SECOND POST OF THE DAY
I'm dreading the sugar test I have to do soon. Last time I did it, it made me sick. Turned out I was ok and didn't have the gestational diabetes, but I still got sick. I don't want to go alone this time, but everyone is busy. Hubby's working and can't leave, bff is 7 hours away.... I'm gonna have to ask mom to come with me.
And the thing about the leg cramps....YES!!! I have been getting them like crazy and usually only in my sleep. I thought if I ate more bananas I'd be ok, but it wasn't working.

Your Pregnancy: Week 25~At this point you're pretty much swollen all over. What started as just a "boob thing" seems to have spread from there, down your torso and out your limbs. This is definitely contagious. But even if sausage fingers and toes aren't your idea of womanly, remember that you are indeed a reproductive goddess. (You could try asking your friends to bow before you as you enter the room, but you'll probably have to settle for peeling your own grapes.)

Your Body~Pregnancy leg cramps are not your ordinary run-of-the-mill leg cramps. Nope, a pregnancy leg cramp will often have you leaping out of bed screaming at the top of your lungs. Leg cramps can be caused by a calcium deficiency, so be sure to get enough calcium. Even if you're lactose intolerant or have dairy allergies, there are still ways to get enough calcium in your diet that don't involve eating a 2-gallon drum of ice cream (although that does sound fun). Believe it or not, there's calcium in almonds, fish, broccoli and tofu. While they come with the territory of pregnancy, there are ways to avoid leg cramps, like warm soaks and massages. Sometime between Weeks 24 and 28, you'll get your glucose screening test to check for gestational diabetes. You'll have to drink this really syrupy, sugary soda drink, wait an hour, and then have your blood sugar levels tested to see how your body handles the sugar rush. If you get to do it at home, put the drink in the fridge to get it nice and cold. It's much easier to stomach when it's chilled. Some OBs may even let you skip the sugary soda in lieu of something just as sweet, like pancakes smothered in syrup. Hey, it's worth asking!

Your Baby~Get ready for pat-a-cake! Baby's hands are now fully developed and he spends most of his awake time groping around in the darkness of your uterus. Brain and nerve endings are developed enough now so that your baby can feel the sensation of touch. That doesn't mean he can feel it when his father pokes your stomach, however, so tell him to knock it off. Other highlights include: Your baby's arms and legs have grown to almost the proportions they will be at birth, which is still sort of short. So don't be alarmed when your newborn's arms barely clear his waist. Baby's nostrils, which have been plugged up until now, clear out (like he's taken a super-dose of Sudafed) and he can practice breathing through the nose. The structures of your baby's spine are now made up of 150 joints, 33 rings and some 1,000 ligaments. Can you believe you're growing something that complicated inside of you? The capillaries, the teeniest blood vessels, are now forming in your baby's body, giving his formerly translucent skin a pink glow. The blood vessels in the lungs also develop this week. You'll see how well that worked out when your baby gives those lungs a workout while you're on line at the bank in a few months. Your baby weighs about a pound and a half and is about 13½ inches long—roughly the length of one of those recorders you played in elementary school music class. Who's up for a round of "Hot Cross Buns?"

Its only Tuesday....

I can feel the difference now from when I take my prenatal vitamins and when I don't. I forgot to take 'em last night and now I am so tired and barely functioning. I'm always tired, but there comes a point in my tiredness that I just can't go on anymore and I'm almost at that breaking point right now.

Heartburn has gotten worse too. I've come to the terms that yes, I do need to take Tums. I hate Tums. I did find a flavor that I can tolerate. Still not a big fan of it. Although I'd rather gag on Tums then deal with the burning sensation in my throat all day. I do have this one spot on my chest, right underneath my collar bone, that if I push it the heartburn stops. Its nice, I don't have to take any Tums or feel the burn, but I now have a bruise there.

I have this strong urge to go to the mall. I could walk there right now, but its raining. I don't have any money to really buy anything unless its specifically for Christmas (I'll use my Christmas account money), but I just wanna go and look around. They were suppose to put in a Toys-R-Us in the mall and I wanna check that out and see if any other stores are having a good sale, but I know if I go, I will buy something. I am going to take Lilly shopping tomorrow for some jeans. She has some, but not enough. She has grown a bit since last year. She can still fit into a few pair of old jeans and she does have some that I bought a couple weeks ago, but she needs more. She tends to get holes in the knees of blue jeans very easily. It seemed like every time I got her back last year from her father's house, she had holes in her jeans. I'm half tempted to just send her to his house in jeans that already have holes so I don't have to worry about it.

This is the week that hubby is working much over time. Yesterday he got off at 7:30, worked 12 hours, but then he didn't get home 'til 9. There was a house fire in the area at 5:00. As soon as me and Lilly got home, the siren went off. We live right beside the fire station, so its really hard not to hear it. Anyway, turned out it was an ex fire fighter of hubby's station. He set his own house on fire, while he was still inside and then shot himself in the head. He was drinking heavily and was very depressed. I don't think they will tell the whole story on the news. They did imply that he set his own house on fire, but that was it. I didn't know him, at least I don't recognize the name.

I kinda hate to say it, but it seems like me and Lilly get along better when its just us two. We don't even turn the tv on. Yesterday we came home, did her homework, fixed and ate dinner, she practiced her letters and sang songs to me, we made cookies, we played the wii, she took a shower, we played Uno and then she went to bed. No fusses, no fighting... just fun and giggles. Ok...so there was one fight, but nothing big. She was wanting candy for a bedtime snack after I had already set some peaches in front of her. I told her this is her last night with a bedtime snack, she is no longer a baby. If she is hungry before bed, she can have more dinner. I told her that she can eat her peaches, she finally did. She was asleep before I got out of the shower. I guess I wore her out. Good thing too, cuz I have more things planned for today when we get home. We would go shopping today for her some jeans, but we are having lasagna for dinner and that will take a while to make....so we will go tomorrow. I have no idea what we are having for dinner tomorrow. Depends on how late hubby works I guess. At least tonight, dinner might still be warm when he gets home since it takes forever to cook.

I was trying to keep my texts that Lilly's father and me send back and forth, so I can bring some stuff up in court if needed, but..... my phone deleted all my outbox texts that are more than 2 weeks old. I still have all my inbox texts, but I don't think those are gonna do any good without the responses. Stupid phone.

I found a job online yesterday that made me cry when I saw it. It pays so good, its only part-time and its something I know I would love to do.....but after further investigation today, the pay that was on the site wasn't the base beginning pay. Its what you could potentially make later on and its counting commissions. I can't have a job that's solely based on commissions. I need a good base pay, so I know what I can or cannot afford. So anyway...the job search is still on. I might still look further into that, full time, for a different company. I still think it is the job meant for me. We'll see

Week 24

Look at this pic..... sorry....but the baby does look a little creepy in this picture.

Your Pregnancy: Week 24~At about this time the reality of having a baby is definitely setting in (maybe it's the fact that you can't see your toes). Be sure to talk about how you're feeling with your significant other, girlfriends, siblings, parents, doctor, hairdresser, the person sitting next to you on the bus ... whomever! It's totally natural to be freaking out. Voicing your concerns about mommyhood will help you actually get used to the idea.

Your Body~Hair growth during pregnancy is another one of those wacky symptoms you didn't expect. And though you may be wondering who's slipping Rogaine into your shampoo bottle, if you're among the lucky ones, you're relishing your new, flowing locks. It's the hair everywhere else that's a little troublesome.

You can thank your pregnancy hormones for your suddenly thick crowning glory. During pregnancy your hair's natural grow-shed cycle slows, leaving you with more hairs on your head at any given time. Now might be a good time to try out for one of those orgasm-in-the-shower shampoo commercials.

Unfortunately, all that hair growth isn't limited to your head. You may start to notice a random hair (or 47) anywhere from your cheeks, back, and belly to your upper lip and chin. If anyone dares to call you Black Beard, they'll totally deserve whatever's coming to them.

The good news is, tweezing, waxing and electrolysis are all generally accepted as safe during pregnancy. The bad news? All of them can hurt like, um ... like waxing. So feel free to skip the Brazilian right now. We promise, your OB isn't going to judge you.

Your Baby~Your baby isn't just sitting around (on your bladder) doing nothing, he's working hard preparing for life outside the womb—perfecting his lungs and packing on the pounds. He'll gain ½ pound this week alone. Other highlights this week:

Things are starting to get a little crowded inside the old womb as baby grows bigger and bigger. Your ribs are probably pining away for the good old days when they didn't have a foot permanently lodged between them. Hate to break it to you, but it's going to get worse before it gets better.

Your baby's ears are fully functional now. And since they are, you may notice that loud noises and sudden movements can startle the little bugger. He's getting used to the everyday sounds inside the womb: the sound of your heart beating, your lungs inhaling and exhaling air, the growling of your stomach because your partner promised he'd be right back with that double cheeseburger and he's taking forever! He'll even be able to hear your voice when your partner finally arrives and you ask him where the bleep he's been! So talk nice!

Baby's got a fully developed inner ear now. This means his sense of balance is working and he can tell whether he's hanging upside down or right side up. He can also feel you moving, so go ahead, pop in your favorite tunes and boogie.

Your little Wiener schnitzel is about the length of a foot-long Chicago hot dog and weighs about 1 1/3 pounds.

My worries

SECOND POST OF THE DAY

Ok, so yeah... I've been freaking out lately about having the baby. Granted its not my first, but still. And I know how to raise little boys, but that part isn't what I'm freaking out about. I'm not even all that worried about getting a bigger place..... its the delivery part that's bugging me. I have been putting a lot of thought into doing all this as naturally as possible, but of course, yes, I'm taking the pain meds. I mean, not setting up a date to be induced, just letting it happen. My mom has a phone now, so I know I will be able to get a hold of her. Yes, there are more problems other than that... like trying to get a hold of hubby, my bff is hours away, my dad travels for work, I don't know what to do with Lilly...but... I've been thinking about it. The more I think, the more I worry. And I don't even know if I will be able to deliver 'naturally.' I might have to have a C-section. As it stands now, I'm going to need one. Unless my placenta moves where its suppose to be, that's my only option. I don't know how I feel about a C-section. I haven't told hubby about that yet. I was going to wait until my next doctor's appointment when they check everything again to see if my placenta has moved. If it hasn't and its confirmed that this is my only option, I will tell hubby then. I don't want him worrying too. Not yet. Not until he has to.
I am officially 6 months pregnant this week and I'm still not showing that much. Someone at work said, "Did you say you were pregnant a couple months ago?" I said, "Yeah...?" She then asked how far along I was and she didn't believe me. I was like this last time. You couldn't tell I was pregnant until about 7 months... then it was like a swallowed a beach ball. All of a sudden, BAM, I had this huge stomach. I'm glad it took that long or I wouldn't have gotten my first job. I started working and then like 2 weeks later, I was big. The boss told me that her boss wouldn't have hired me if he knew I was pregnant..... um isn't that discrimination or something? So, the way I figured this one would go is around Thanksgiving I am going to pop out real good. Close to 8 months, I'm finally going to look the part I've been playing this whole time.
I like this rate I'm going. I haven't had that many problems with clothes. But I know how I'm going to basically grow over night and that's why I was so worried about clothes so early on. I've already told my boss to be prepared for me to call off work due to no clothes fitting. Today, I can still fit into my regular clothes. Tomorrow I'll be 3 sizes bigger. I don't know if its the way the babies lay or what. Maybe they lay across my stomach and then when they get so big, they turn around like they are suppose to be. I dunno. I think I've only gained like 5 pounds so far. Last time I gained all my weight in the last month. I'm going to try not to do that. I do have a goal, after I have this baby I want to be 10 pounds lighter than I was before I got pregnant, before I go back to work. And then from there I want to work on getting back to my high school weight. It wasn't that long ago, so I'm hoping it won't be a problem.
I have been having odd pains these past couple of days. Its kinda like pressure or something. Its usually whenever I stand up. I'm definitely going to ask my doctor about that. It may be due to my low laying placenta. I'm hoping its not a sign that something horrible is wrong.

Week 23

Your Pregnancy: Week 23~You've got this pregnancy thing down pat now: You feel good, you look great, you're eating well and drinking enough water. Everything is fabulous. It's like your birthday every day the way people fawn all over you, giving up their place in the bathroom line and so on. OK, so maybe that doesn't happen every day, but being pregnant makes you feel pretty special, even if that jerk on the bus didn't give up his seat for you.

Your Body~Fact: You are carrying around several extra pounds of weight located not only in your belly but in your bra as well. Who's baring the brunt of all this poundage? Mr. Shoulders and Mr. Back. Don't suffer in silence. Get sweet relief:

Even in early pregnancy, back pain can be a real bother, and when you get to the halfway point, forget about it! Try lying on a cool ice pack to relieve some of the strain. Some alternative approaches like acupuncture and massage can ease the pain. And if not, having someone rub you for an hour still feels pretty darn good.

If you're noticing severe pain, numbing or tingling in your lower back and hips, you might have sciatica. Check in with your doctor.

Your Baby~Your baby's got a while to go before her lungs will be ready for air and is practicing her "breathing" on the amniotic fluid—sucking it in and out of her lungs. Other highlights this week:

Fat production is in overdrive at this point (for the baby, not you! Well, OK, maybe for the baby and you). Your baby will basically double in weight over the next four weeks! You'll be happy to know the same won't apply to you.

Your Mini is starting to look more like a newborn as her skin becomes less see-through. Her body is looking more proportional now, although her head is still kinda big compared to her cute little body.

Your baby is about 11½ inches long and weighs 1 pound, or about the length and weight of a Harry Potter book.

Week 22

I'm in a weird mood today. Woke up feeling rushed, traffic was thick today, it took me 3 tries to park my car, I didn't sleep well, I'm hungry, and I'm kinda dreading this weekend. Anyways.... here's the weekly update on my still unnamed baby. When I looked at the growth I started freaking out. "He grew 4 inches in just a week?!!!" No, not really. They lie. The measurements they were using before was from head to butt, but now they are measuring head to foot. The legs kinda add a few more inches....

Your Pregnancy: Week 22~If your list of baby things to do seems to be getting longer the bigger you get, don't stress out. Make a pact with your partner that one day or evening a week, you'll do something that has nothing to do with the baby. How about the latest Anne Hathaway flick and dinner?

Your Body~Sadly enough, eating for two doesn't mean loading up on milkshakes and hamburgers and doubling your caloric intake. Instead, an average pregnant woman needs about 300 extra calories each day, which can be as little as a handful of trail mix or a small smoothie. If you're craving a little ice cream, go ahead and indulge, but if you need it for breakfast, lunch and dinner, try to find a healthy substitute like sugar-free soft serve or fro yo.

Sometimes it's easier on pregnant stomachs to eat five or six small meals each day than three large meals. Make sure to keep a stockpile of pregnancy-friendly snacks like crackers and cheese, pudding or a breakfast bar, so that you'll have something to gnaw on throughout the day. Don't let your hungry coworkers (or your partner) know where you keep your stash

Your Baby~Your Mini's hands have grown bigger and stronger and the nerve endings in her fingers have developed her sense of touch. She's in there testing out her newfound abilities by touching her face and grabbing the umbilical cord. Other cool developments:

You're already raising a little Einstein. Your baby's brain is developing at a clip this week and will continue to do so until she's five years old (so load up on the Omega 3)!

Baby's hair is now a short, bright white crop (Billy Idol, eat your heart out!). No matter what color it will end up—red, blonde, black—all babies' hair lacks pigment at this point.

Your baby has started growing taste buds and may be able to detect strong flavors in the amniotic fluid. If you could see inside, you might catch her sticking out her tongue for a taste and then grimacing, a sign that perhaps you should chill on the chili powder.

Your baby now weighs almost a pound and measures almost 11 inches from her head to her heel, which is how the Stretch Armstrong in your uterus will be measured from here on out. Up 'til now your baby's legs were curled tight up against her torso, so she was measured from her head to her bottom (or crown to rump) and not head to toe. This week your mini is about as long as a package of Oreos and as heavy as a large bag of tortilla chips. Who's hungry?