22 Weeks

How far along? 22 weeks, 1 day

How big is baby? About the size of a papaya.

Total weight gain: 11 pounds at my last appointment. (I’m glad I don’t know for sure b/c it means I wasn’t at the doctor this week…hooray!)

Maternity clothes? Yes, for the most part. I still wear some non-maternity shirts around the house, which are getting shorter by the day.

My Old Navy purchases were almost a total bust. The undershirts fit, but none of the other tops did. They were either not flattering and/or the stomach part was way too big.

Stretch marks? Not so far!

Exercise? Mike and I went for a short walk yesterday at an embarrassingly slow pace…but it’s a start!

Mike Quote: “It’s ok if we have to go slow. That means we won’t sweat and have to take a shower when we get back!”

Sleep: Sleeping better using a combination of Senor Squishy and my afghan. I still find myself flipped over on my back frequently, but the doctor said that was ok.

Movement: I read that he’s sleeping 12-14 hours a day right now, and starting to develop a wake-sleep schedule. I’m definitely seeing that happening!

He has “recess” around 4:00 each afternoon – that’s when I really feel him kicking and moving around. I also tend to feel him sometimes in the mornings and also later in the evenings.

Food cravings: Still don’t have any “must have it” cravings. I’ve been trying to focus on foods the doctors’ have said to eat – iron-rich, protein-rich and potassium-rich.

Food aversions: No changes. Same things still bother me.

Gender: It’s a BOY!!

Labor Signs: Nope.

Symptoms: It’s been a pretty good week! I have been doing pretty well and have only had a few little spells where I felt bad.

The cardiologist called back and said that he wants to put me on a daily low-dose potassium pill until I deliver. I’m not crazy about the idea because it’s technically Class C, but he said it was ok (and works with a lot of preggo patients) and I cleared it with my obstetrician. If two experienced doctors say it’s ok, then I’m not going to worry about it!

Unfortunately, my first trimester friend constipation seems to have decided to make a return visit. Oh, goody.

What people are saying: “How far along are you?” “Your belly is so cute!” “Do you have a name picked out?”

Sweet Moments: We’ve started talking to the baby more and more frequently. Mike will typically say goodbye to both me and the baby in the morning, which I think is just about the sweetest thing ever.

We also have fun parents-to-be conversations that would probably make the rest of the populace roll their eyes, usually along the lines of one of us telling the baby not to listen to the other one’s crazy notion.

Make room for baby: I haven’t bought anything new this week, but we had a pretty big shopping spree last weekend!

I have started researching childcare and also researching crib mattresses.

Miss Anything? A good night’s sleep!

Looking forward to: I am really anxious to get just a few more weeks of pregnancy under my belt because I’m hoping I will continue to feel better.

Most embarrassing moment this week: Well, let’s just say Mike got another good dose of “daddy preparation” training this week…

Wednesday night my friend came over for dinner and requested eggplant parmesan. After dinner, we were sitting in the living room (with Mike) talking. I remembered that I’m supposed to take my new potassium pill with a meal, so grabbed a pill and the red Gatorade I was drinking.

(Can you see where this is going??)

The potassium pills are really hard to swallow because they start to dissolve as soon as they hit your tongue. I finally got the thing swallowed and it went down sideways. That immediately triggered my gag reflex and I just as immediately threw up on the living room carpet. It happened so fast I didn’t even have time to react.

All three of us stood there stunned for a second – definitely one of those, “What just happened?!?” moments – before jumping into action. It was so embarrassing!

Fortunately (??), having lived with my brother for three years, I am well-versed at getting various and assorted mishaps out of carpet. There is still a light pink hue under the coffee table (only I would throw up after consuming red sauce and red Gatorade…), but it’s only noticeable if you point it out.

Best moment this week: This is really cheesy, but my new compression socks came on Thursday! They are toeless and my feet seriously felt like dancing when I first put them on. As much as I love these ugly things, they are hot in the summertime. Now I still get all the benefits but my toes get some breathing room.