How are we already at 22 1/2 weeks?! This is cuh-razy!!
So many big important things have happened in the last couple of months. Here are some highlights!
Pure Barre/Exercise.
Um, wowie. So, yeah. This has been quite an adjustment.
I work at Pure Barre Asheville as an instructor and have for almost a whole year at this point. I absolutely love my job and get to help encourage and motivate the amazing clients there to be their best selves and own their fabulous bodies. This job has been great for me for so many reasons, and one of the biggies is the sweet community of female friends that I've formed there. It is such a joy to have so many women (lots of whom are moms themselves!) keep up with this pregnancy, ask about how I'm feeling, give me tips, and even knit me a baby blanket. I mean, are you kidding?? The best.
Working at Pure Barre has also helped me feel like my body was strong. Prior to getting pregnant, I was taking 3-4 55 minute classes as week. Pure Barre targets your arms, thighs, seat, and (probably most important for me) core - so I feel like I had a bit of a home court advantage going into the pregnancy game because it's literally my job to work out.
And THEN, my body fell apart.
Not really. But it has been incredible to see just how quickly my muscles started to fatigue once I hit about 3 months. The Pure Barre studio is also literally surrounded by mirrors, so whether I'm teaching class or taking class, I have a 360 degree view of my changing body. Helllloooooo, self-consciousness!
It was really easy to be tough on myself at first about how I thought I should be a little stronger, or a little thinner, as I went along. But I hit a point where I decided that whatever weight I gain just is what it is, and that I'll lose it afterwards! I think actually having a belly that showed really made a difference in how I was perceiving my body and my fitness level. I'm really learning to love my body in all its various shapes during this period of time, because, just like Christmas, there's a "reason for the season." This weight isn't from nowhere, it's because there's a human being in there who needs support!
All that to say, Pure Barre has been incredible. It's so low-impact and is still keeping me as fit as I can possibly be (for ME - everyone's body is different, some people barely look pregnant at all! I'm not one of those). I'm really grateful to have a safe, healthy workout option that is good for me and good for this little corn on the cob.
Maternity Clothes.
I want to live the rest of my life in maternity clothes. Holy cow. They are THE BEST.
I resisted buying them for a long time, thinking that somehow if I was still in my pre-pregnancy clothes, that meant I wasn't gaining too much weight.
Oh, Mary Catherine, you big ol' dummy.
Pregnancy clothes are a DREAM, people. Jeans with a belly panel that holds all your tummy junk in. Maxi dresses. Shirts that tie off right under your boobs and are otherwise floaty and delicious. This is a good world we live in, y'all. And because celebrities have made being pregnant trendy, gone are the days of our mothers' maternity clothes that made them look like giant walking confections. No way. Target and GAP have the cutest options and they're so very affordable. I even went to Forever 21 and bought out a bunch of their size L tops so that I would have something cute (and cheap) to wear and then donate or store!
Check Up.
We had our "big" ultrasound last month and it was divine. The second trimester ultrasound is typically the one where you get to really see the baby for the first time (not looking like a thumbprint/random dot). And boy, did we ever. This sweet little baby's profile, feet, hands - it was really putting on a show for us! That appointment was the first time that I broke down in tears and truly realized that there is a brand new little life that is going to COME OUT AND BE AN ACTUAL PERSON I REALLY CAN.NOT. The technician did such a great job protecting us from the sex of the baby by turning the monitor around each time she got close to what we dubbed the "danger zone," so we're delightfully still in the dark about what we're having!
We got a hilarious piece of news from our doctor, which was that this baby is in the 93rd percentile of weight for its gestational age. In short, that means it is a monster. Which is unsurprising, because I was 9 lbs 14 ounces at birth, while my brother basically walked out of the womb at 10 lbs, 9 ounces, and 22 inches long.
My poor mother.
So it's possible that this little guinea pig will level out and quit growing like a maniac, but it's also possible that this baby will be born smoking a cigarette and speaking in complete sentences. Who even knows?? I'm weirdly proud of how big it is because of the precedent that my own mom set - someone pointed out that this is the first thing I'm bragging on my child about. So cute and SO true. Come on, Biggie!! Do yo' thang!
Some random questions:
How far along? 22 weeks, 23 on Friday. So 5 1/2 months.
Total weight gain/loss: Oh, ya know, a casual 16 pounds. Maybe more at this point since that weight was recorded at my last doctor's appointment.
Stretch marks? Newp. But according to my doc, those are mostly genetic, so it's not terribly contingent on how big you are/what you do to prevent.
Maternity clothes? Helllllllllll YESSSSSSS.
Sleep: Ugh. This is probably the only true tough part of pregnancy so far. I LOVE to sleep, and sleeping is starting to get pretty uncomfortable. I bought a body pillow that I love so much, but I also run hot while I sleep, so I get down to a Sophie's Choice between sweating at night and having back pain without the pillow. Poor Jordan is gonna turn into an ice cube by the time this is all over with. #sorryboutit
Best moment this trimester: Oh man - best moment, hands-down, was seeing the baby open and close its hands on the ultrasound. I have never felt or seen anything like that in my life. Surreal, magical, and just that little movement gave me a tiny clue of how much I'm going to love this angel.
Movement: Only ALL OF THE TIME. *thunk* *thunk* that is exactly what it feels like. I stopped mid-sentence sitting in our church pew yesterday because I couldn't believe how intense the movement was. It felt like the baby had cannonballed into my bladder.
Food cravings: Mostly just garbage-y food. Shouldn't shock anyone. Anything with an intense flavor profile has really been delicious to me - things that are very tart, very salty, very sweet - love Popsicles, berries, orange juice, chips, cookies...yeah. So, just "food" probably should've been my answer.
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope. Bring it all.
Have you started to show yet: YEAH! Gosh I wanted it to come for so long and now it is finally HERE. Jordan has really started to see that this is a real thing that's happening, and it's been really fun to see it through his eyes. I, of course, have been feeling totally different for months, but for him, it's all starting to gel.
Leakage: Um, no? And also this is the first time I’ve considered that this is a thing and now I want to die.
Gender prediction: I am firmly convinced that this baby is a boy. I've thought that since we found out, and all the wives' tales (ring on a string test, cravings, clear skin, lack of morning sickness) point to a big ol' boy. But who the hell knows? Could be either and I will be THRILLED either way. The "boy" feeling isn't a preference at all - just my guess, for whatever reason.
Labor signs: Nope!
Belly button in or out? In.
Wedding rings on or off? On.
Happy or moody most of the time: Happy, but I'll tell ya what, the tolerance for BS in my life is at a dangerous low. I have a finite amount of patience these days and it is very particularly distributed. I don't feel mean at all, I just feel like...hyper-efficient. I suffer no fools. COME AT ME! (Just kidding, it's really not that intense, I basically just like for things to get done and get done right.)
Weekly wisdom: Get up when you wake up. Trying to "sleep in" after tossing and turning from 5-7 AM doesn't make sense. You can always nap, girl.
Milestones: Cleaning out the nursery and buying our crib and changing table; circling in on a few names that make me grin like an idiot (but we're keeping them all a secret!); seeing my baby shower invitation mock-up; Tom Hanks being extra cuddly because he knows a new member of The Snack Pack is quickly arriving (we've dubbed Tom Hanks as the pack leader of the small people, so his pack is now named "The Snack Pack); my parents visiting; celebrating our third anniversary with a baby on board; being at the lake with my best friends, one of whom is also pregnant; this little thang movin' and groovin' all over town!
YEEHAW!!