Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Holy pregnant - almost 25 weeks!

I have completely lost my blogging mojo and I'm missing sharing all the good stuff.

Funnily enough, I've gone back to work for few weeks and being busy during the day seems to make me able to achieve so much more outside of my work hours too. So while I'm on this roll with work, I'm going to TRY to get back to blogging about all the good stuff going on.

I think I am a really a very lucky pregnant person. I have felt well for all but one week of the 25 weeks so far. That one week in the first trimester I had a little nausea and a disgusting taste in my mouth, but then it stopped. Hooray! I've had no cravings and I haven't been off any foods either. I can still cook and eat anything I used to. I almost feel like I'm gloating, having heard so many other horror stories.

In the past couple weeks, corresponding with going back to work, I did have a bit of water retention, resulting in puffy feet and fingers, but this week that seems to have stopped. I hope it stays that way! I did start to think this must be the beginning of the bad stuff that comes with the pregnancy progressing.

Oh, and while I remember, I've also had sore hips a little bit. I noticed I can't sleep on one side for too long. Standing and walking around for long periods also plays with my hips. But then again, my husband also complained of having a sore back and hips after doing the pregnancy and baby expo, so maybe it isn't just a pregnancy problem!

About five weeks ago I started being able to feel our baby moving. How amazing is that! Over the past three weeks those movements have become quite strong and more spread out across my tummy, not just down low where I could initially feel them. The movements were finally strong enough I could feel them gently when I pressed against my tummy in the right spot, but I had the advantage of also being able to feel them on the inside.

About a week or so ago I commenced the process of trying to get my husband to be feeling at the right time. I think it was a little annoying and disappointing for him because he couldn't feel it. He is also worried about pressing too hard and hurting the baby. A few nights ago the baby was very, very busy and doing big turns. I had my arms crossed my tummy and felt it give me a shove. So I got husband's hand in the spot just above my belly button and it all came together at the right time and our baby gave two big kicks exactly where my husband's hand was. Again, it was just amazing! I was so thrilled that at last my husband could feel the baby.

We have our next obstetrician's appointment tomorrow. We are still only going every four weeks at this stage. I think this appointment will be about measuring the baby. Between 24 and 28 weeks is when they test for gestational diabetes and the measurements taken at the 24 weeks appointment are then compared with the 28 weeks appointment to make sure baby isn't growing too quickly. In between these two obstetrics appointments I will also be sent to undertake a glucose tolerance test. For those of you that haven't had the pleasure of doing one of these tests, they take blood after fasting, and then again each hour for two hours after I've consumed a measured amount of fizzy drink.

Being a heavier person to start with I have been quite careful about trying not to gain too much weight during the pregnancy. To date I've gained three kilograms and I'm hoping to keep my overall weight gain to under eight kilograms - this is within the recommended guidelines for someone with a higher body mass index at the start of pregnancy.

Early on I was worried that people would just think I was fatter, and not pregnant. I still think people who didn't know me would wonder "is that lady pregnant, or just fat?" I can really tell the difference as all my clothes don't fit around the waist! Personally I think I'm really beginning to look pregnant which is pretty fun. I've had to buy maternity wear in the past couple of weeks, and as it turns it, nothing makes you look more pregnant than wearing maternity wear.

One last awesome pregnancy thing, how good is my hair and my skin! My hair suddenly grew at light speed and looks beautiful. My face feels so smooth and soft - seriously people are commenting on how good I look.

Happy, happy pregnancy days right now. Here's to a continued healthy, trouble free pregnancy.