Pregnancy Update

Feel free to skip this if you're not interested, of course, but I wanted to be able to look back and see what I was going through, so I am going to make some random observations about how pregnancy is going so far.

I am 18 weeks along-- almost half way and it really doesn't feel like it! The nausea has improved a lot, though there are still bad times here and there. I am still somewhat tired, but since I was always tired before I was pregnant, I don't think it's been too bad. What *is* surprising is how much 'pregnancy brain' has affected me. I always kind of thought that maybe pregnant people were exaggerating things a little. I figured hormones would certainly influence one's emotional volatility, but I didn't think the cognitive effects would be so dramatic. I really feel like a bimbo a lot of the time. Yesterday I misspelled the word 'they.' It just didn't look right for some reason, so I tried it the correct way, then I tried 'thay' and couldn't decide which was better. Luckily I snapped out of it. :)

I find it more difficult than usual to concentrate. Church has been especially difficult for concentration. Last Sunday I spent most of the homily thinking about baby names. :/ I feel a little guilty for that one, but it was better this week.

For the most part, I don't "feel" pregnant. I am gaining weight, and it mostly seems to be around my waist. I was overweight to begin with, so I'm only supposed to gain 15-20 pounds during the entire pregnancy. At my last visit I had only gained 3 pounds, so the NP told me to increase my calories (yay!), and by now I think I have gained a total of 7 or 8 pounds. So I am about half way there on the weight gain. My next appointment is on Frodo and Kenobi's birthday: April 1. It is a big appointment- the 20 week 'anatomy scan' (I will be at 21 weeks, I think, but whatevs). I am hoping my hubby can make it to the appointment with me. The NP said that is a good one for a SO to go to. There will be more measurements, a longer ultrasound, and who knows what else. I'm kind of excited. Last time I went they didn't do measurements because it was just a "gender scan", but the ultrasound tech did a quick informal measurement and everything was normal. Yay. :)

Last time, they wrote all over my charts "DOES NOT WANT TO KNOW GENDER" so they could all make sure they wouldn't tell me. Miraculously I still don't know the gender (though I have a good guess!), so I will also need to make sure I don't 'accidentally' find out the gender when I go back for the anatomy scan.

I do notice that physical activity exhausts me more quickly than it used to. I'm not sure how long I'll be able to keep up with my walking and my martial arts. Due to some extra duties at work, I have missed a couple of my morning walks. Yesterday I did some karate stuff on my own, just to practice, and although I didn't do much, I am very sore today. I noticed that my knees hurt a lot for the first time in a few months, so I think I'm getting to that point where I'll need to slow it down. I also have to pee frequently. I was amazed I was able to complete a 5K walk a couple weekends ago, because when I walk or jog on the treadmill at home, I usually have to take a pee break. The NP said I could keep up my usual activities with some modifications as long as I felt like I was able to do it. I think between the fatigue, need to pee, and joint soreness, I might be approaching my limit.

Hubby and I have also been looking at daycares. We have been to 3 so far, and we really liked one of the 3, but need to look at some others.

That's all for now, but thanks for reading, and have a great day!