Time is FLYING! It feels as if I blinked and am now half way through my pregnancy. And all I can say is, “Wow.”
Throughout the last four weeks, Grant and I celebrated Thanksgiving, enjoyed a quiet long weekend at home, made big progress on the nursery, and marveled at our 20-week ultrasound where we officially were told the gender of our baby.
I definitely began to experience some new pregnancy symptoms though, so wanted to share those here:
No Movement Felt Yet
Around Week 18, I began to have friends and family ask if I had felt the baby move yet. I had not — and still have not to-date. A close relative, who I am sure meant well, began asking daily. This caused my stress level to peak and I had a minor breakdown at work. All my mind could focus on was my past losses. I felt inadequate. I felt insecure. I felt deflated.
The breakdown happened on a Thursday, and my next checkup was to be Monday. My coworker — who found me weeping at my desk, bless her heart — urged me to call my OB and have the checkup that afternoon. It was at that checkup that I was told I have an anterior placenta and the extra cushioning of my baby being attached to my front rather than back would make feeling movement more difficult. The doppler found a strong, steady heartbeat, and I left the OB office with a better understanding of my current situation.
Returned Appetite and One VERY Specific Craving
I mentioned last month that I had not faced any cravings. Welp, that changed this month! And the one craving I do experience is very specific — I want chicken alfredo fettuccine from Olive Garden. Unfortunately, the closest Olive Garden is 45 minutes away from our home. The first day I felt this craving, I had seen an Olive Garden commercial on Facebook during the morning hours. My mind then fixated for the remainder of the day. By the time Grant arrived home after work, I was bouncing on the balls of my feet with my coat on. He offered a compromise to driving 45 minutes to Olive Garden by suggesting a local Italian restaurant.
I considered, but my craving was stronger. So he finally obliged and the craving was satiated…
Until the next week.
Understandably, G was not so willing to make the drive again to Olive Garden. Instead, we went to the local Italian restaurant… and my craving was anything but satisfied. (HA!) The week after, I tried an Olive Garden copycat recipe at home. This was much better than the alternative restaurant, but still missed the bullseye. I guess my craving palette needs to have the serving staff alongside the alfredo? #highmaintenance
Swollen Feet
I spent a lot of time on the couch during the first trimester due to extreme fatigue and morning sickness. This month, I spent a lot of time in the afternoons and evenings on the couch due to swollen feet. I’ve come to learn to get my errands and chores done in the mornings because by 2’o’clock in the afternoon, my feet are double their usual size and SORE. I no longer can wear my tennis shoes and am relying completely on my wide boots while running around town. When at work, I have a pair of slippers to slip into because the boots cause my feet to overheat and swell even more.
This is one symptom I surely will not miss.
Breakouts Galore…
Holy acne! I am definitely not one of the fortunate pregnant mamas to experience the pregnancy “glow”. Instead, I feel like I’m reliving my adolescent years and should consider taking stock in primer and foundation soon.
The good of the past month outweighs the bad though.
Aside from continuing to watch my tummy grow, I now can tell the difference of where our baby is located. I can’t feel movement, but I can feel a shift when there’s pressure on my diaphragm compared to pressure on my bladder. I also am feeling that urge to begin nesting. Though the nursery is far from being ready for furniture, I have been working on some DIY nursery decorations I hope to share with you soon. One in particular, a woodland-themed mobile, is becoming my quick favorite and I cannot wait for you to see it!
(That reminds me, I need to share my nursery design board soon too!)
And, last but not least, we are excited to announce Baby Slack’s gender! Grant and I hosted an intimate gender reveal party with our closest friends and family members this past Saturday, so the secret is out. Baby Slack is…
We could not be more excited to welcome our little boy, Dean Philip, into world in April.
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