What a week! I've felt like the last several have flown by and suddenly I find myself past the half way point of pregnancy. There's no mistaking the bump I'm carrying around as a baby, we've got our hospital tour scheduled, and the reality of having a third family member joining us soon is REAL.
I've been feeling her move strongly about every other day now, and when she wants to dance, boy does she. Wednesday morning, before our 20 week doctor's appointment, I had a big bowl of Frosted Mini Wheats and a cup of coffee. She was so powerful that I laid a hand on my stomach and was immediately delivered a kick to the palm! I ran upstairs to wake Daniel, caught my breath for a minute (the lungs are getting squished, okay?), and then made him put his hand in the same spot. Within 10 seconds, he got a kick, too. I was so glad he got to feel her finally! Now that she is interacting and moving with such force that I can occasionally share her with others, I feel a lot more connected with her. I finally have that "I cannot WAIT to meet you!" feeling.
Our 20 week appointment went extremely well and Frankie barely had a moment to sit still for the ultrasound technician. She sat with her hands back behind her head, kicking the crud out of me the whole time. She even threw up a few peace signs/live long and prospers/WESTSIDE! hand gestures for us as we watched her flail her little self all over. The technician told us she was "one sassy b", showing off her lady bits without a care in the world and kicking the wand every opportunity she got. Everything with me is measuring perfectly, and the doctor had no concerns about my upcoming trips or about how she is developing. I'm sad that this could potentially be my last ultrasound with the doctor, but I'm considering scheduling a private 3D ultrasound in November or December so that I can see those cheeks, now that she's plumping up.
How far along? 20 weeks
Maternity clothes? I'm not fitting in anything else any time soon.
Stretch Marks? No
Bladder Watch: Even when I think maybe I don't need to pee, I do.
Sleep? Still having weird dreams, but most of them surround food these days. One particularly good dream involved me putting butter on a warm cornbread muffin. I woke up before I could eat it.
Best moment(s) this week: Seeing Frankie again. Hard to believe the next time I see her may be when she's earthside.
Miss Anything? Sleeping on my stomach, sneezing without it hurting.
Movement: Much stronger some days! There is such a strong difference from last week to this week, I actually enjoy her moving much more now.
Food Cravings: I keep saying Mexican food, but can we be honest? Its the salsa and sour cream. The rest is all just vessels for the salsa and sour cream.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Not so much
Gender: Confirmed girl
Labor Signs: No
Pregnancy Symptoms: My uterus/ligament pain is still at it, and I did experience some night time heartburn this week.
Belly Button in or out? Still in
Rings on or off? On, with the exception of the Jags game Sunday. The heat and the salted pretzel I ate meant those suckers had to come off.
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy! I made it my goal to go out and enjoy things more this week, rather than sulk over pregnancy changes, and I think it worked. I'm feeling much better than I have been the last few weeks. I also took the step to reach out to a professional counselor and we're going to start chatting once a week, just to make sure things continue to improve and I don't find myself in a darker place. Depression during pregnancy and postpartum is NOTHING to toy with.
Looking forward to: OCTOBER! My favorite month of the year is finally upon us. Between a trip to Chicago, my birthday, and Halloween, October will be a blast. I've been waiting pretty much my entire life to be pregnant on Halloween, so I'm SO EXCITED!
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| WESTSIDE! |
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| Here she is, kicking herself in the face. |
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| The 2.5 seconds her feet were still |
