Half way, Baby!

In my mind I had this idea that when I finally got pregnant it's all I'd want to write about.  And it is!  But every time I get the time or energy to write a blog post, or when something significant happens along the way, all I can feel is the overwhelming urge to protect that moment; protect our little bubble of Sunny Baby induced happiness.  There is an extreme mother wolf transformation that happens when you get pregnant.  An overriding need to wrap yourself in bubble wrap and shield the little life growing within your belly from the outside world.  Maybe this feeling is even more exacerbated by the struggle to create that little life; maybe it's something all mothers and fathers experience.  All I know is that it has hit us hard and fast, and nothing seems more important now.

Having said that, we have reached a really special time in the pregnancy where some of our original fears have subsided and we're starting to feel confident that this little one is ours to keep.  We have reached WEEK 21 or HALF WAY!!  A point in time that feels like it has simultaneously taken forever to get to, and has snuck up on us all at once.  And there have been some pretty incredible milestones that have had to happen to reach this wonderful time in Sunny Baby's growth.  So I thought I'd share a few of them with you.

Sunny Baby
About a week ago we attended the 20 week morphology scan.  Something I'd been looking forward to so much that I actually called and booked the appointment at week 8.  We were both so nervous about it.  Hubby held my hand the whole way through, as we watched the screen above the sonographer's head as she rolled the wand up and over my stomach for an hour.  We were absolutely captivated!  As she worked from Baby's head down her abdomen, checking all the tiny little organs were functioning properly, she reached Baby's bottom and asked us the big question, "Do you want to know the sex?"  Well, of course we did!  

I'd had a couple of dreams about a baby boy in the weeks leading up to the scan, and for some reason that cemented the idea in my head.  Hubby on the other hand, was convinced it was a girl.  So we gripped each others hands even tighter and watched with bated breath.  And then, there SHE was!  Our beautiful little daughter, in all her 20 week perfection, wriggling and squirming up on the screen.  Our DAUGHTER!  

 

She's an active little girl now, too!  And getting very good at rolling around inside my belly until she's found the comfiest spot to sleep.  Hubby's got to experience her strong kicks and watch her back and feet create waves under my skin.  It truly is an amazing experience!

The Belly
Well, it's definitely popped out now.  It took until about week 16 to show at all, and then when it popped, it really POPPED!!  I'm counting down the days now until my bellybutton becomes an outy rather than an inny.  (Was hoping to be able to upload some belly pics, but my computer is only partly cooperating tonight, sorry.)

I've been quite lucky to not have developed any really visible stretch marks yet.  The ones I do have are more on my butt and hips, and I can deal with those.  I mean, how often do I walk around in nothing but my undies anyway?!  

Hubby's been really good with adjusting to my increasing size.  Or more specifically, the amount of space I'm taking up in our bed!  I think I now sleep with about five pillows wedged into different bodily crevices just to keep comfortable and off my back.

I no longer fit any of my pre-pregnancy pants.  I invested in a couple of pairs of maternity jeans early on for comfort sake, and they have really been the best purchase so far, especially since the we're now in the middle of winter.  Shirts haven't been an issue.  I have a pretty loose, blousey style wardrobe anyway, so I can keep wearing my old favourites.  Bras on the other hand are a pain in my...boobs!  At about 16 weeks I'd already gone up a full cup size and underwires were becoming unbearable!  So after some really great advice from a new-Mummy friend I invested in a couple of decent wirefree bras.  And now I'm not sure I'll ever go back to underwire!!  

Symptoms  
I've pretty much passed all the yucky early pregnancy symptoms.  My nausea settled around week 15, and now I only get the occasional bout and it's usually when I'm super tired.  Same story with those awful migraines.  I tend to get them more towards the end of the week when I'm worn out and have been sitting in front of my computer at work all week.  And my kidneys are now fully healed and I haven't needed any further antibiotics.  Thank goodness!

My biggest bug-bear has been lower back and tailbone pain.  This was something I'd been told to expect since I lost a bit of weight during the first trimester.  As my belly gets bigger, all the weight I'm gaining is going straight to the front of me, and my coccyx isn't quite keeping up.  As my hips continue to stretch and spread I'm hoping my tailbone won't ache so badly.  In the meantime I'm finding great relief by sitting on a heat pad when it's really bad, and taking warm baths.  I've had a couple of massages since passing 16 weeks, but they just make me feel nauseated and dehydrated.  Luckily Hubby doesn't mind rubbing the aching muscles in my hips and butt :)  

Nursery
I have so many ideas for the nursery, but at the moment that's all they are!  We are going to have to completely gut our guest bedroom/study to make the nursery a workable space for Baby and that's something that will take us more than a weekend to do.

We have been incredibly blessed to be given a lot of the major furniture items Baby will need; a gorgeous crib and mattress, and a change table.  So a very big thank you to our generous friends for thinking of us. 

And we a have begun the daunting task of touring the baby shops for all the other big ticket items, like car seat, pram, linen, etc, etc, etc. 


So far it's all coming along really well.  I definitely think that as we have seen Sunny Baby grow and progress without any major hiccups, we have become more confident in this whole pregnancy thing.  I LOVE being pregnant!  It's the most incredible, life changing, body altering experience and I am enjoying every second.  And we're already half way to her being in the world!