The Things They Forget to Tell You....

- The sleepless nights because it feels like you have rocks in your stomach and you can't get comfortable
- The back pain because you've gained 30lbs. and you're only 6 months along
- The difficulty getting up from a sitting position
- The rapid heartbeat
- The kicking and punching that for some reason only occurs at night (she's probably as uncomfortable as I am!)
- The peeing in the middle of the night
- The peeing when you sneeze
- The peeing when you laugh
- The peeing when you cough
- THE PEEING!
- The constipation
- The inability to ever control your body temperature
- The swelling of your feet that makes them look like life preservers
- The swelling of your fingers so that your wedding ring is NEVER coming off
- The constant crying (I literally cried over an episode of COPS the other day. Wes is beside himself with what to do with me)
- The new found sense of smell - good and bad
- The new found ability of turning every commercial into something new that you need for the baby or that you think will benefit the baby at some time in their life

All in all - it's kind of a raw deal! I went into this whole pregnancy thing thinking that it was going to be blissful and SIMPLE! Regardless... I wouldn't change it for the world. Women have been going through these same changes since the beginning of time and I am just one more to add to the list.

23 Weeks

So it has been a very busy past few weeks! My parents were here for Labor Day and we overhauled the house, Wes and I have both been working until the wee hours, and I have been watching myself grow larger and larger (a very big task!). I feel like one of those little animals you buy that says "Put me in water and watch me grow!" My t-shirts no longer cover my stomach and instead fall just below my belly button. The normal clothes I had put aside thinking I would be able to wear, I no longer fit into. It's just a slippery slope from here. I feel like I'm much bigger than what I should be although the Doctor has assured me I'm perfectly normal, just 'carrying differently'... which in my mind is a nice way of saying "Wow! You really ate whatever you wanted during your first trimester!" And it didn't help when I asked my mom if my stomach looked bigger than normal and she replied, "Yea, that's a big belly." I feel the love.

So the good news? The baby's room is done! Wes picked out a lovely Top Banana for the walls with white trim around the door and closet. It looks really nice with the cherry colored crib, dresser, and changing table. Sometimes I just go and sit in the rocking chair in the room and I can't help but get excited that in 3.5 short months there will be a little baby in there!

I think Margaret is really starting to understand what's about to happen. The other night I was laying on the couch and she was draped across my stomach. Now, I am at the point where the baby is moving constantly (and kicking and punching and I'm pretty sure she's bit me a time or two) but I'm the only one who can feel it. I keep trying to catch it by putting my hand where the movement is and she stops every time. So anyways, Me and Marge are laying on the couch and the baby starts kicking up a storm. After a minute Marge sits up and looks at my stomach like "What the HELL is going on in there?" Then, all hell breaks loose and she starts clawing at my shirt and the baby's kicking furiously and I thought to myself, it's already starting.


It's difficult to get in the mindset of working out when there's so many restrictions on what you can do. So I will admit the last few weeks I have not been doing so well however, I have been trying to swim more. I was in the pool yesterday and there were two older women in the lane next to me. After my work out was over I went into the locker room and as I came around the corner these two women were saying, "Can you believe she is still working out? Can you imagine the stress that's putting on the baby? How horrible for that unborn child!" I stopped and stared at them for a moment and asked if everything was Ok. Neither responded and they rushed out of the locker room. Maybe back in their day pools weren't invented yet? I think they were just offended that the one piece swimsuit I was wearing was not meant for pregnant people and there may have been a few pieces hanging out... Oops!

Sorry no pictures with this one! Our computer is a dinosaur and it's hard to upload them. Hopefully next time!