Top 5 Things I Couldn't Live Without During 1st & 2nd Trimesters

Well, hot diggity folks!  I am 27 weeks pregnant today, which is nary but one week away from the big Third Trimester!  I noticed that my tone has become whiny and negative of late, so I thought I would write a positive post this time around.  You see, contrary to popular belief, I DO love being pregnant!  I love feeling all of baby's kicks, jabs and hiccups (muffled, thanks to my anterior placenta) and I even love my big, burgeoning belly.  While it sometimes gets in the way of things, it makes me feel feminine and womanly and, well, like a mom already.  :)

I thought I would share with you a list of my favorite pregnancy things so far.  These are just a few items that I consider critical to my wellbeing while being knocked up.  So without firther ado...

5)  V-8 Fusion Juice.  Let's face it, there are just some days I don't feel very salad-y (sorry, baby!).  V-8 fusion is the Cliffs Notes of nutrition.  It contains a full serving of fruit AS WELL AS a full serving of veggies in one measly 8 ounce glass.  It's tasty and nutritious without having to force down a boring salad and an apple down your throat.  Genius!

4)  Snoogle.  Not to be confused with the wildly popular "Snuggie", the Snoogle is a large (OK, ginormous) C-shaped body pillow manufactured by Leachco and marketed toward pregnant women.  Why only pregnant women, however, is beyond me.  Leachco could mass-market this thing a la Sunggie and make fortunes, I tell you.  I myself plan to use the Snoogle well after baby is born and into my golden years.  The pillow itself is pure delicious comfort and I honestly don't know how I slept without one before I got pregnant.  A keeper!

3)  Sports Bra.  Pregnancy has brought out the best in me.  Quite literally.  My freakin' nipples have been standing at attention since I was 6 weeks pregnant.  Additionally, they are sore and heavy and generally feel very yucky.  Yes, they are metamorphosing into udders, but can a girl get SOME comfort during a generally uncomforatble time?  Enter the sports bra.  Not only do they pop those incorrigible nips back into place, they support my girls without the invasiveness of an underwire.  Can I get an amen?!

2)  Doritos' "Last Call Jalapeno Popper" Chips.  On the days I don't feel particularly salad-y (see #5), I am most certainly feeling junk-foody, and there is no guiltier a pleasure than these chips, folks!  If you haven't already tried them, give them a whirl.  Of course, they don't necessarily do wonders to a pregnant woman's gastrointestinal tract.  But that is a small price to pay for the spicy, creamy blend of deliciousness that is the Jalapeno Popper chip.  If you are a college student, pothead, or pregnant person, I guarantee you will find no better chip on God's green Earth.  And that's the truth. 

1)  Bella Band.  Before I was able to properly wear maternity clothes, I longed to wear them.  Yet now that I am able to wear them, I despise them.  Particularly, maternity pants.  Uglier than granny panties, these hideous articles of clothing were clearly designed by a blind heterosexual male.  The Bella Band, however, allows one to avoid having to wear these fashion travesties and wear her pre-pregnancy jeans for as long as that Lycra sleeve will stretch.  I think I will shed a few tears the day my Bella Band just won't cut the mustard anymore, but until then, I've gotten more than my $26 worth out of this miraculous piece of fabric.

Insomnia...seriously!?!?!

Once upon a time, during my sophomore year in college, there was a fire in my dorm.  It was 4 A.M. and it was a big to-do.  There were about 4 Hartford Fire Dept. trucks, 3 ambulances and 4 patrol cars with their wailing sirens and lights right outside my window, while firemen ran around the hallways searching for stragglers.  Not to mention the canned P.A. system announcing in shrill tones, over and over again, "This is NOT a fire drill!  Please evacuate!"  Nevertheless, where was I?  In my bed, sound asleep.  That's right.  I had slept through the entire thing.  In fact, I hadn't known about the entire episode until a friend told me at breakfast that next morning.

I mention this story because it highlights what a sound sleeper I once was.  I say "once" and "was" because I no longer "am" and "now".  Now, the slightest fart (mine or Mike's) will send me off to insomnia-ville for a good hour or two.  And if neither of us has had a particularly gassy dinner, my bladder will surely wake me up - as if on cue - every 2 to 3 hours.  Finally, even IF bladder and bowels cooperate with me, there's Junior, practicing tai chi in my abdomen - also as if on cue - between 2-3 AM and 6-7 AM.  As you can imagine, I have had very little beauty sleep lately.  Coupled with the fact that caffeine is off-limits for the preggers, one can only imagine what a joy and pleasure I must be these days.

Yeah, I know this is Mother Nature's way of preparing the sound sleepers of the world to become vigilant moms, but can I please have a couple more weeks of uninterrupted sleep?  Sleep is my only livelihood, and I am fully aware of the fact that I won't get any come July 3, but for now, I'd like my old sleep schedule back: 10 delicious hours of deep, REM sleep.  One mean-hearted "friend" of mine told me I won't get that for at LEAST another 18 years.  *Sigh*

Sad Post - Do NOT read if you're pregnant!

I went to lunch today with a friend and she told me the most devastating, heart breaking story: her sister-in-law recently suffered a (3rd trimester) stillbirth.  It was her first child.  It would have been a baby girl.

I didn't press my friend for details because I'm already a worrier and don't need MORE to worry about, but my heart just aches for her and her family.

I didn't know her personally so I am not sure why this affected me so much.  I just know that, after today, I will no longer complain about my baby's kicks to the cervix, groin and bladder.  I won't stress about the costs of setting up a nursery, life insurance, college tuition and other costs of raising a child.  I will no longer fear stretch marks, labor pains, breastfeeding or sleep deprivation.  While my miscarriage is not a distant memory, I did find myself starting to take this pregnancy for granted.  I started feeling "entitled" to this beautiful child; that this child is/was "mine".  

Sometimes, however, God has other plans.  Babies are not "ours" for the having, they are blessings from Him and can be taken by Him at any time for reasons unclear.  I honestly don't know what I would do/how I would react if I were in my friend's sister-in-law's shoes, but I certainly do hope that she finds some peace and light during what must be very dark days.  I hope you will pray with me for her, and for all the mothers in the world who are grieving the deaths of their babies and children.  It's devastatingly unfair, but I pray that they will find the strength to overcome it, learn from it, and perhaps even blossom after some time has healed their wounds.

6 months!

Oh boy, I know I have a lot of 'splainin' to do.  Long story short, I've been busy.  Yes, too busy even for you, my favorite little cyber-stalkers.  :)  Busy with what, you might ask?  Work, life, marriage and the increasingly frightening prospect that Mike and I are actually, really, truly going to be "parents" soon.  How soon, you ask?  17 weeks soon!  Indeed, today I am 23 weeks - or technically 6 months - pregnant.  

That's right - I've been harboring a fetus in my uterus for half a year!  That's roughly 180 days of no smokin', boozin', caffeinin', soft cheesin', deli meatin', big fish eatin' etc, etc.  While I'd like to attribute my teetotaling on my Christ-like willpower, it's really only because Junior beats the crap out of me every time I so much as THINK about eating an Italian sub and washing it all down with a chocolate martini.

So what have you missed?  Really, not all that much.  I do sport an impressive little bump now, or so I've been told.  And, about 4 weeks ago, we found out Junior's sex (no, we're not sharing!).  We got a couple more ultrasounds, yadda yadda yadda and now I'm 6 months!  I know it's utterly cliche, but it really IS going by SO fast.  But I wouldn't have it any other way, because I honestly CANNOT WAIT until McBaby arrives.  I'll update you all more later, but for now, I'll leave you with my 22 week belly shot (front) 

 

and side:

Keep your Shamu jokes to yourself, thanks!  :)

LOLfetus part trois

I f%cking need to stop with the cursing

By now, I've read "What to Expect" and "Your Pregnancy Week by Week" cover to cover about 3 times each. However, I may have (selectively) failed to notice that, right there in black and white, What to Expect says:

Listen up: Tiny bones in your fetus's ears are in place this week, making it likely that the baby can hear your voice when you're speaking (or singing in the shower)at 16 weeks pregnant. In fact, studies have found that babies who are sung to while they're in the womb recognize the same tune when it's sung to them after they are born (so choose your baby Muzak with that in mind…).

Because Cletus the Fetus got left back at 15 weeks and I am now repeating it, I still have a couple of days to clean up my potty mouth. For those of you who know me "in real life", I have quite the, um, spirited vocabulary. I know pretty much every vile 4 letter word in the English language and use them at every opportune (or inopportune) moment. I do realize that while baby may be able to hear me swear the living daylights out of my husband, dog, or anyone who crosses this hormonal/borderline crazy lady, he/she will not understand it. However, I desperately need to begin curbing my sailor-ish ways well before baby arrives. I would hate for my child to be "that child" that starts swearing at the see-saw and makes his/her teachers blush. Any pointers? Can a gal who cusses like a sailor be transformed into an Amish housewife in less than 25 weeks?

Week 15.....AGAIN

So, I recently had to switch OB's because we Americans are so damn litigious and my old OB couldn't make a buck anymore due to skyrocketing insurance premiums. Well, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise (sort of!) because I ended up getting a "freebie" ultrasound with this new lady. I never grow tired of hearing and seeing my little one, so I jumped at the chance. That is, until they told me....

"Ma'am, you are 15 weeks along with a due date of 7/10/09."

Um, hello? My last OB told me I was 16 weeks along with a due date of 7/3/09. What this means is that I've basically gained back a week. Which, in pregnancy-world, is no fun. One more week of drop-dead fatigue, backaches, round ligament pains (that's a real hoot, let me tell you), gas, insomnia, weepiness, pregnesia and what my girlfriend calls "pregnancy rage". Awesome. But I think what saddened me the most is that it also means one MORE week of waiting until I get to hold the little one in my arms. That just plain sucks. :(

Oh well. As a consolation prize, baby is due (again!) on my late father's birthday AND I got these really cute ultrasound pics to boot. LOLFetus pics to follow shortly....

Itchy Boobs

Today, I want to talk about something serious (since my last post wasn't serious enough, haha). Today, I want to call to mind a pregnancy symptom so mortifying that only a few pregnancy books even dare mention it - if at all - and when it is mentioned, it is only in passing and in hushed tones. That symptom is....drum roll please...itchy boobs. There, I've said it.

Since Week 11, I've noticed that my girls have been less sore (though do not be fooled, they are *still* quite sore!) and more, well, itchy. It started out like a nagging itch, the kind of mosquito bite that is better off left unscratched. Well, by Week 13, it graduated into a full-on eczema-ish itch. You scratch, but the itch is never satiated. Never! I'd sneak into many a restrooms to fulfill my scratching needs. Now, at Week 15 (almost 16!), I have come to a low point. Rock bottom. I am shamelessly scratching my itchy boobs in public. It feels like I have the pox up there, for chrissakes!

Yes, the itchiness is a direct result of (a) dry winter heat and (b) (VERY slowly) growing boobies, but I plead of Mother Nature, is there not a more graceful way to go through this rite of passage?!? And I think some perv might have gotten off of my scratching at the gas station the other day. Ick. Anyway, here's to hoping all of you have an itchy-boob-free pregnancy!

Has science gone too far?

I came across this interesting article today:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gIjpMzWBAID8A0ZVKekX1sWvzlNg

My own father passed away 2 1/2 years ago after a long and arduous battle with prostate cancer. To date, scientists have not yet been able to isolate the "prostate cancer gene" - if one exists - but if they had, I wonder, would I get the test done? And if my child did test positive for the "prostate cancer gene", what exactly would I do with this information?

I watched my dad die a very slow and painful death due to this disease and his last month on Earth was especially not pretty. I do not wish it upon anyone, and I most certainly could not bear to see my own child go through it. On the other hand, how much of a role does genetics versus environment play when it comes to cancer? Certainly there are some (perhaps many!) women who carry the BRCA 1 gene but go on to live cancer-free lives because they have excellent diets, stay active and are diligent with self-exams? Furthermore, if my child had the gene, could she/he not be subjected to discrimination because of it? I can aready see the already exceedingly insurance industry hesitant to insure such individual(s).

Then again, before I start getting all self-righteous, I must address the fact that I *did* just have the Nuchal Translucency screening (not to mention the Cystic Fibrosis carrier testing), so how is testing my child for another potentially lethal illness any different? Where does one draw the proverbial ethical line in medicine? Is it prudent to make such a test (and its results) available for mass consumption? Or is it just another form of eugenics? Thoughts?

2nd trimester

First off, apologies for being so damn MIA lately. If you must know, there was The Christmas Family Drama, then The Holiday Party Craziness, followed by The Terrible Toilet Flooding Incident and finally, The Hiring of Contractors Due to Toilet Flooding Incident. So, my sincerest apologies to the whopping 5 of you (bless your little hearts!) for not posting anything remotely recently...

Second, I have now reached a new milestone in my pregnancy: the second trimester! For those of you not in the know, it marks the period of time after the 12th/13th week but before the 26th/27th week. Because miscarriage rates sharply decline, and because morning/noon/night sickness usually goes away by this point, most pregnant womenfolk rejoice and dance around in glee. This is also the period of time when a "baby bump" first becomes noticeable and when that infamous "pregnancy glow" kicks in.

So, why then, has neither happened to little ol' me yet?!? Even after 14+ weeks, I have no real baby bump to speak of (unless you count my "food baby") and, instead of a pregnancy "glow", I've got a perma-scowl, thanks to those pregnancy hormones. To add insult to injury, I even had a little morning sickness the other day! Don't get me wrong, I'm very thankful to The Big Guy Upstairs for blessing me with this little monkey, but c'mon, throw me a bone here! I'm impatient and need some outward sign that this pregnancy is NOT all in my head and that there REALLY is a little baby in there. It's also starting to get really awkward rubbing and talking to my non-existent belly every night!!! :P