Week 23 – The baby is a ninja!

Wow! This baby has really found its limbs the past few days and has been pulling some serious ninja moves. I’m not sure what he was up to yesterday but it felt like he was doing some impressive gymnastics in my belly. I was not feeling 100% after work so I had a short nap in the late afternoon, but it was hard to rest properly because the action was so intense. I just hope he is not fighting to get out!

This week has been a whole lot less exciting than last week’s holiday and my poor sleep has returned, so by Friday I was feeling pretty awful. It turns out that lack of sleep gives you headaches and a feeling like you’re catching a virus. A short nap later and I felt a lot better. I seriously wish I could nap every day in the afternoon. I am hugely jealous of those who can do so!

Weight gain: Oh geez! I just cannot stop gaining weight and it’s terrifying! I’ve gained around 1.5kg in the past 2 weeks (3.3 pounds). I keep looking at my body to work out where this weight is and I can really only see it on my mid-section and a little on the tops of my thighs. I’m worried though that it’s actually secretly hitting me everywhere and I’m just not noticing. I’m really and truly not eating like a pig so this whole scenario is very confusing. I’m now about 7.5kg (16 pounds) up from my pre-pregnancy rate and with around 15 weeks to go (baby comes 10-14 days before its due date for a scheduled c-section) my target weight gain of no more than 15kg (33 pounds) is looking highly unrealistic. Does everyone feel this way about their weight gain or am I the only one freaking out here?

Symptoms: The dizzy spell on Monday seems to have been a one-off as I haven’t had that issue since. I had some weird digestive issues for a few days, but they seem to have sorted themselves out too now which is nice. One thing I have noticed, albeit a while ago, is that I have a lot of face fuzz, i.e. little hairs on the sides of my face. They are not bad enough to consider having them removed, but I would prefer they weren’t there. They certainly weren’t there before the pregnancy, albeit I have always had a few rogue hairs thanks to my lovely PCOS. You become good friends with tweezers when you have PCOS! In any case, I figure the hairs will go after the baby is born so I am not taking any action about them now. I am blaming this on the baby being a boy and flooding me with excess testosterone.

Another weird symptom I observed early on is that I have little fluid-filled spots on the hairline of my forehead and also on the top of my chest. They are a bit like a rash, but not itchy so I’m not that bothered by them. These days my linea nigra is really starting to show and my boobs seem to be growing by the second (see above weight gain) so it’s all happening. Honestly though, I do miss my microboobs. There is so much surrounding us talking about how big boobs are sexy and fantastic, but I am not so sure they are great after all.

Eating: I’m back to my balanced eating regime this week but it’s been hard as I seem to have rediscovered my sweet tooth while on holiday. I haven’t been that mad about chocolate and sweets during the pregnancy, but I think my indulging while on holiday flicked the sugar switch within me. I’m a bit afraid of gestational diabetes though so I am conscious of not over-eating sugary things. There were some delicious-looking cookies in my office yesterday and I didn’t eat ANY of them. And yes, I would like a medal for my self-restraint please.

Sleep: My sleep has sucked this week. Clearly I should go back to London where I slept beautifully. I also think being more active in London helped me to sleep better. I know there are lessons in there about doing more exercise but someone needs to find me some more hours in the day please. Also, please can I have a job where I can take afternoon naps?!

Movement: The small dude is a ninja! He’s so active and strong!

Emotions: They are all over the place these days and I’ve definitely been feeling a bit down the past few days. I am certain the poor sleep has a lot to do with this, but also my work has been getting me down. I probably have to fly to a European destination for work in a few weeks and it’s weighing on me that I don’t know when this will be or where. I am worried that if it’s not for another month (quite possible) that I’ll almost be six months pregnant by then and it’s not so easy (or recommended) to travel the farther along in your pregnancy you are. I really don’t want to go, but I seem to be the key to the meeting – which is nice in a way – so my ego most certainly does want to go, even if my logical brain does not.

The body insecurities are also growing, proportionate to my weight gain and I’ve not really heard anything from any of my family or friends in Australia for a couple of weeks so I’m feeling less than special these days. I know it’s hard for everyone, we are all busy, but sometimes I think it’s strange that my Mum or sister don’t just send me a little message asking how I am or how the baby is going? I’m sure they are interested, but it’s a situation whereby I have to approach them, or call them in order to get any support. It’s not new so I don’t know why I’m upset, but I guess I hoped that those closest to me would take more of a proactive role in communication and being a part of my pregnancy. I mean, my sister is going to be an aunty for the first time. You’d think that would be exciting?! I think a lot of this stems from the baby shower I went to last weekend. Even though the shower was WAY over the top for my preferences, what was nice about it was how much effort the grandma-to-be had put into it and how all the friends and family were genuinely so excited for the mum-to-be.

Missing: Sleep and naps and croissants for breakfast every day!

Purchases: Hubby went on a bit of an Amazon shopping spree this week and so the following items should be coming our way soon. For the record, I am not being paid to promote Amazon (that would be nice!) so if you like these items too, then remember that many retailers also stock them!

Maxi-Cosi Pebble car seat 

Maxi-Cosi back seat protector (to keep your car’s seats clean and undamaged)

The Gro Company Gro-Egg Room Thermometer

Percy the Penguin Gro-Egg Shell

Ewan the Dream Sheep

Tommee Tippee Sangenic Tec Nappy Disposal Starter Kit (Green)

Angelcare Soft Touch Bath Support – Aqua

NUK Genius Silicone Orthodontic Soother 0-6mths (2 pack)

Tommee Tippee Digital Ear Thermometer

Looking forward to: Hitting the 24 weeks and our small dude being considered “viable”. The weather heating up in the next couple of weeks so I can ditch my tights and start going to work in dresses with bare legs!

Best moment: I had a few nice walks around our most local park this week and Spring has sure sprung with many wild flowers including wild poppies!

Exercise: It was great to go back to yoga this week! I was quite creaky and stiff so it made a big improvement in unwinding me and bringing my stress levels down a few notches. Never underestimate the impact of yoga, and also warrior poses really do work the glutes!

The bump: It’s bigger still and so I’m also giving you a front on shot so you can see how I’m losing my waist shape.