Twenty-One & Twenty-Two.

 Twenty-one (ish) weeks.

[I’ve decided to do updates every other week now that I’m halfway there – there are less big milestones and more “my belly continues to grow and I continue to eat nachos” business. Get excited. I know I am.]

How far along? 22 weeks, 1 day.

How big is baby? Eleven inches. And somewhere just over a pound. The size of an eleven-inch ruler.

Total weight gain: + TEN lbs. (I now weigh 114 lbs. Which is approximately how much I weighed when I worked at Cold Stone for two months. I’m really hoping to keep my weight gain donut-eating in check to avoid stretch marks!) 

Maternity Clothes? Most of my shirts (especially my form-fitting t-shirts) are no longer wearable – they are too short to cover my belly and the top of my maternity pants. Sadness. I am already getting tired of my three pairs of maternity pants. I wear my two pairs of khakis nearly all week long to work. Four more months of khakis?

Stretch marks? Not yet- though my skin is feeling pretty taut. Eeep! Let’s hope my skin is elastic enough to make it work.

Sleep: There were a few really rough day of sleep – my lower back was in incredible pain – but I made a few adjustments (no more high heels and lots more yoga), and am happy to say I am again in love with sleeping! It’s amazing how much of a difference sleep can make – and I’m so lucky to be sleeping (mostly) through the night. (For now. I am very aware things may change.)

Movement: Lots of it – and I still love it. My new hobby could be lying on the couch with my hand on my belly, feeling the baby kick and squirm. I just get an overwhelming desire to hold him and comfort him. That will be the awesomest, you know? I’m also starting to notice he’s developing a sleeping schedule. Just as I lay down to take a nap last week, he woke up – kicking and wriggling so much  I couldn’t sleep. After about fifteen minutes of ninja action, he quieted down and I got to sleep.

Food cravings: A maple frosted, cream filled donut. Amazingly glorious. Nom. And only eighty-five cents from the cute bakery on my way to school. Maple cream sticks used to be my favorite treat as a child. My dad knew this and would be sure to get me one when he’d surprise us all with a box of donuts on a weekend morning. Mmm, donuts… (Mike told me pregnancy has turned me into Homer Simpson. I’d prefer to be Lisa –my cartoon soul mate.) (Now I want another donut.)

What I miss: Not wearing khakis. Have I mentioned I have three pairs of work pants? TWO OF WHICH ARE KHAKI PANTS. I also miss not being an emotional roller coaster. One minute, I’ll be content and happy, the next anxious and wracked with worry. I actually cried one night this week because I was afraid to get into bed after my back hurt so badly the night before. It’s really not a fun roller coaster. Though, I don’t imagine mothering a newborn will be any less roller coaster-y.

What I am looking forward to: Again, I’m pretty content. I mean, it will be nice to wear cute, belted dresses and go for a run again, but I am not disillusioned – life with a baby won’t be all cute clothes and time for running.

Milestones: My belly feels big and sort of stretched out or swollen this week – I haven’t felt like my belly has really gotten in the way until recently. (It probably has something to do with my favorite t-shirt not covering the top of my jeans. I may or may not have worn it anyway.) I also got to see the baby moving during the last ultrasound – which led to some tearing up on my part.

Oh, and THIS: There are some positive side effects of pregnancy you hear about – longer nails! Thicker hair! Bigger boobs! Well, I am happy to say that I have enjoyed that last one, but have yet to see any evidence of those first two (not that I want thicker hair – mine has enough volume for three girls). I am happiest of all to tell you that I have had NOT ONE BLEMISH on my skin during the past few months. I’ve never had terrible skin, but I’m loving the lack of even the occasional pimple. (Though there were the two GIANT cold sores when I first got pregnant – thanks, hormones.) Not mention the whole feeling-a-person-grow-inside-of-you part – that is pretty awesome, too.

[Also, small update on the baby’s health for those interested in the nitty-gritty details – the blood work came back negative for Down’s syndrome, but positive (and by “positive” I mean there is a 1-in-180 chance) for neural tube defects. The perinatologist said he got a good look at the spine during the ultrasound and saw no problems. So it’s likely a false positive, but I get to go back in nine weeks to get another ultrasound to be sure the baby is growing. I am not worried, just a bit annoyed with it all! I avoided the testing in the first place because of the high rate of false positives with prenatal testing – I didn’t want to worry for no reason. Ironic. I know modern medicine is miraculous and does a lot of wonderful things, but at this point – it’s just caused me more worrying than comfort.]