Bumpdate - 23 Weeks

Oh boy, here we are, 23 weeks, just 1 more week until viability.

Sorry I've been a bit absent on the blogging front, I honestly just don't have much to blog about these days.  Pregnancy is progressing smoothly, life is decidedly boring (in a good way) and I've got nothing I want to talk about or bitch about lately!

As birth draws near I imagine I'll want to start talking about THAT, but for now...I've got nothing.

But bumpdate, let's get to it!

How far along: 23 weeks

Weight Gain: Up another pound, that's 15 lbs. total.

Movement:  I had the pleasure of officially getting kicked in the bladder this past week.  Luckily I was in Lowe's the first time and close enough to a bathroom, but OMG, I thought I was going to pee my pants.  Then it happened another time while walking and nowhere near a bathroom and just so you all know, the sensation goes away if you can breathe through the initial sensation of PEE NOW and you won't necessarily pee your pants (although some of you will, LOL!).

What's Up with My Body:  I have a lot to say about my body this week, we'll use bullet points

• Heartburn, my disappearing, reappearing symptom was around every afternoon for the first half of the week and then just as suddenly as it appeared, it has disappeared again.

• Constipation, still just once a week, but once a week is enough to make me want to cry once a week.

• Peeing/sleep.  I did a little experiment with water and my nighttime routine.  You see a bunch of you write that you're up ONCE a night to pee and I'm up 3 times a night to pee...minimum.  And I was jealous.  My problem is that I get EXTREMELY thirsty just before bedtime.  Doesn't matter how much I drank during the day and how much I try to hydrate so that I'm not thirsty close to bedtime, I'm still thirsty at bedtime, hence all the nighttime peeing.  But I hate all the nighttime peeing.  So, to experiment I quit drinking at 8pm and VOILA! I was only up once a night to pee that night.  BUT, I woke up with aching joints, you know DEHYDRATED aching joints, my hip and my knee and my elbow were KILLING me and forced me out of bed at 6am, at which point I chucked 3 glasses of water and started to feel better.  Experiment tells me, don't quit drinking water just because you don't want to get up in the middle of the night to pee, you'll regret it in the morning.  And besides, I'm figuring it's better preparing me for being up all the time with a newborn, no?

• Size.  My bump has made me crowd wary.  I no longer trust myself to be able to squeeze through throngs of people in a crowd or on a train.  Not only is my girth different but I'm losing my balance, so dodging and weaving through tiny spaces is no longer something I trust that I am able to do.  I also don't like people bumping into my belly, so when I'm in a crowded space I now step back away from the people and wrap my arms protectively around my belly.  WHY DO I DO THIS?  I have no idea.  It's instinctual honestly, I don't realize I'm doing it until I find myself on the sidelines with my arms wrapped protectively around myself.

• Speaking of balance, there was a funny incident involving me almost falling off during sex.  I'll leave it at that.

• Braxton Hicks have arrived.  Even though my midwife told me to not worry if I started to feel these...I still managed to convince myself I was in preterm labor again the other day, for no reason mind you other than two Braxton Hicks contractions in the same day HOURS apart...at least in another week I can be assured that baby has a chance to survive even if my worst nightmares come true and i DO go into preterm labor.  What is my irrational fear with preterm labor?  I'm low risk, have had an easy pregnancy and just generally have absolutely no reason to suspect preterm labor.  CRAZY CRAZY PREGNANT LADY!

• And to round of what's up with my body.  I woke from a nap 2 days ago with a full on milk stain on my shirt.  Not just a little spot, a full on stain the size of my nipple.  One of the oddest moments for me to date.  OMG THEY WORK.

Gender: Oh my goodness.  I had no idea not finding out the gender would be this confusing.  I thought for sure I would "know" and that would be that.  The boy dream and the fact that I always reference the baby as a 'he' speaks highly of my subconscious knowing it's a boy BUT we keep focusing on girl names...without meaning to and without really thinking about it, we just keep throwing around girl names, I don't remember the last time we talked boy names.

Emotions:  I had my first real moment of I Want To Meet You Now Baby!  I realize I have 17 more weeks to go and generally I'm enjoying pregnancy, so it wasn't a desire to just be done with pregnancy already, but I've officially been pregnant for 9 months now...and I am ready to meet baby!

Best Moment of the Week:  Best and worst kind of combined.  We decided WAY back at the beginning of this pregnancy that at 24 weeks, viability week, Dom would discuss paternity leave with work and we would sell our Olympics tickets.  REMEMBER WE WERE SUPPOSED TO GO TO THE OLYMPICS!  Well, 24 weeks is just a week away and the Olympics are just 100 days away.  TIME TO GET MOVING.  Best moment because it's like OMG we're there, we made it!  And worst moment because it's like SHIT, more stuff to do...as though there isn't already too much to do to plan for a new baby.

Bumpdate:  Husband gone again! You have to settle for craptastic iPhone self portraits.  PS. This is a non-maternity dress from Old Navy that fits SO MUCH BETTER than their crap maternity dresses.