Pregnancy Archipelago

I've decided that weeks form the archipelago of pregnancy and that months are mainland. Months are the only thing that regular (non-pregnant) people understand, but we pregnant women mark our time by weeks and it makes perfect sense to us!

Weeks make pregos feel better because it gives us something to focus on while we're away from the mainland for 3 weeks at a time. . .

So, here's what's been up since I left the mainland of 4 months:

-My hair is getting so long! M says it's "too long" and I agree I need a summer haircut, but I'm secretly thrilled that I'm no longer shedding and that it's full and wonderful. But it's up 99% of the time, which is not so lovely and will be even less lovely as my face fills out.

-While not obsessing about my weight, I'm watching it. I started doing ab work on my exercise ball. I'll be adding weights for my triceps. And with M's new earlier work schedule, it means we're going to bed earlier, which I'm hoping translates into my getting up earlier and going walking a couple of times a week.

-I finally remembered to remind myself to remind my friend Janet with a Y to bring me her hand-me-down materity clothes. She did. As I suspected, she's tiny, even when pregnant (wait. I knew that.) I'm still gonna need to buy a few things: a skirt, a dress, a couple more dress capris, some more tops, a swimsuit. . . but at least I have a few more things I can wear thanks to her.

-Today, I've been so obsessed with my not having felt the baby move so far. My friend L said she felt it at 16.5 weeks, Janet with a Y said she felt it at 14 weeks, but it was her 3rd. I started thinking what if something has happened and they tell me when I go in next Monday? Then I'd think to myself that that line of thinking is just nuts, given the "range" of first feeling "something" is between 16-20 weeks and I'm only 17.5. Even so, I strongly considered calling up C, who just had her first a week and a half ago, and asking her when she first felt Ella in utero. I resisted.

-While I was driving to get M some food, I was contracting and releasing my abs (because I got to thinking about how my stomach is changing and wanted to make sure my abs still exist - so far, so good - but mostly I was thinking how my belly's rearranging to make room for baby and because in the last 3-4 days my lower abdomen has become surprisingly firm) when I paused the contracting and then felt this little blub blub blub just below my navel. I thought to myself "I'm pretty sure that was the baby and not just gas. . . I probably would have missed that if I'd not been messing with my abs." Yea!

-I'm still having trouble picturing myself with a newborn, but I'm getting more excited. I'm not so excited for what the summer heat + prego belly might add up to.

-Once we got back from camping, things - ahem - loosened up a bit and I've felt much better on the gastrointestinal front. Yea!

-I'm so much in the archipelago sitting off the shore of the 5 month mainland. . . but at least next week I get to see the doctor, at which visit he'll check me out, check my cervix out (to make sure it's closed and long), and give me a referral for us to find out What It Is. I'm pretty sure that'll go far to get me from 18 to 20 weeks!

~Nichole