Bumpdate: Week 28

My standard uniform of yoga pants and old, too short maternity shirts. Sigh.

Well, we are officially in the third trimester! Two-thirds of the way done, one-third of a pregnancy left to go. To break it down further, that's three months, or 11 weeks and six days, to be exact. As of this week, Baby is the size of a small cabbage, and measures in at 17 inches (one inch less than Sammy was the day he was born!) and 2.9 pounds. (And not a tenth of a pound more.) 

(Of course that's just what my What to Expect app reports. If you ask me, Baby more likely resembles a watermelon at this point and weighs 20 pounds. But probably is still only 17 inches.)

Always the bearer of good news, this week, my lovely WTE app tells me that I may begin experiencing painful varicose veins. And in places other than my legs. To which I say, WTF, WTE?! Gross.  

As for Baby, though she's almost at the height she'll be on her birthday, her weight will come close to tripling by delivery time. Her wrinkled skin is smoothing out as more fat is deposited under her skin surface. (And as I love fatty babies, I did my best to contribute to this last night with my consumption of a chocolate peanut butter brownie.) She's apparently got more energy, and as space is limited in my belly and she has all this new excitement, her kicks will now be even more vigorous than before. (And for the record, I am definitely feeling Baby's new sense of energy and strength.

Baby's new kicks, which will eventually do damage on something other than the inside of my uterus.

Total weight gained: Due to the sedentary lifestyle I was forced to live this weekend as we braved winter storm Nemo, I'm currently avoiding the scale. So let's just go with last week's number, okay? In fact, perhaps we stick with that number for the next three months.

Belly / Movement: I'm combining these two categories this week as it's impossible for me to talk about my gigundo belly without mentioning the partying that Baby is doing inside of it. She kicks like crazy, and mostly still on the right side of my stomach (which is still misshapen). Every now and then, I get a jab that makes me pause, but mostly, I'm still thoroughly enjoying all this movement.

With that said, my stomach is either so big, or just so low that I am growing out of all my old maternity shirts. And let me tell you, shopping for maternity clothes just isn't as exciting the second time around. Especially when you're not getting dressed up to go to work every day (nor have the budget to justify getting dressed up).

On a happier note, I've yet to discover any stretch marks. (Let's pause as I knock on wood about one hundred times.) I'm sure it's just a matter of time though.

Sleep: With the exception of the night that James and I spent in our guest room bed (does anyone else worry about trees falling on their bedroom during bad winter storms? Mind you, this is a legit concern - not just us being crazy), sleep was quite a bit better this week.

Best moment of the week: It's a tie between finding my several-weeks-missing oh-so-comfortable maternity leggings (amongst my too short maternity shirts, oddly enough) and receiving a nice compliment from a woman in my pool's locker room. As I was blow-drying my hair after a swim, she asked me a few questions about my pregnancy, and then proceeded to tell me quite a few times how proud she was of me for continuing to workout and swim. !!! Now, I feel pretty lucky to have a husband who showers me with similar compliments on a semi-regular basis, but sometimes - just sometimes, hearing it from a stranger is just a smidge more meaningful.

Food cravings / aversions: My craving for sweets came back with a vengeance this week. And while everyone else in the Northeast was stocking up on bread and milk prior to the storm, my shopping cart was filled with a few boxes of the above. (And milk, as that was the one real ingredient needed to make said pudding.) I'm embarrassed and don't know how to justify this, other than to blame it on our friend Doug, who went through a big instant pudding phase a few months ago and kept bringing it over to our house.

Workout: Eh, it was a mediocre workout week, primarily as life just got in the way. Tuesday I needed a break, and Thursday I again had my bathing suit on, all set to go to the pool, when James decided to work late. (And no, I had no desire to leave my house and go swimming at 8:30 at night, as he later suggested.) I know he felt bad though as he practically forced me out of the house on Friday morning before the snow storm hit, and I was so glad he did as I then had a fantastic swim. I'm still taking it easy when it comes to yardage, but I at least didn't feel like was flailing as badly as I was last week. I should have worked out tonight, but it was a long day. And thus, we'll start fresh tomorrow.

• Monday: Boot Camp
• Tuesday: Rest Day
• Wednesday: Biked 8.6 miles
• Thursday: (Unintentional) Rest Day
• Friday: Swam 1000 yards
• Saturday: Biked 8.75 miles
• Sunday: (Yet Another) Rest Day

Weird symptoms: Last week I mentioned potentially having Braxton Hicks contractions, and this week I'm near certain that I am indeed experiencing them. My stomach will tighten for a short period of time, stop, and then occasionally do it a few more times. Though I also find that this happens at similar times of day each day - usually around lunchtime and before dinner, both of which are times that I've usually been super active with Sammy for awhile.

To combat this tightening, I've been pretty diligent about drinking plenty of water, though this then results in umpteen more trips to the bathroom. Do you know what I miss? Not going to the bathroom every other flipping second! 

What I'm looking forward to: With the end (or rather, the beginning) a bit more in sight, I'm looking forward to a lot this week!

First, I'm really really beginning to look forward to wearing normal clothes again. I am so tired of my frumpy mid-winter wardrobe, and though I am certainly no fashion plate when not pregnant, on occasion, I'll at least wear a color other than black. I miss belts, I miss fitted pants, I miss fitted shirts, and I miss dresses and skirts. And I will most definitely be ready to burn every pair of yoga pants I own.

Enjoying all his new space!

Second, I am looking forward to making even more progress on Sammy's big boy room, and then Baby's room. This week we (James) got Sammy's big boy room painted and his new rug installed, as well as did a major cleaning out of everything we had been hoarding in that room. I've been slowly moving a few toys into that room to get Sammy used to being in there, and now, I need to actually decorate and make some decisions regarding furniture. I also got some art work ordered for Baby's room, and in an attempt to check at least one more thing off my "Need for Baby's Room" list, I ordered a new changing pad cover. Because again, God forbid that Baby have her poopy diaper changed on Sammy's boy-colored changing pad.

And third, I am actually beginning to look forward to giving birth. Not necessarily the horrible contractions nor the pushing part, but the part where I first get to hold Baby. I've said it before, and I'll say it again - there's just nothing like holding your baby for the very first time. Absolutely nothing.

It's hard to believe that just a year and a half ago, this little nugget was first thrust into my arms.