Hiccups

26 weeks today and I felt hiccups for the first time! Paul and I bought a device that comes with earphones and amplifies the sounds in your belly. It was only $20, so it's nothing even close to the doppler the doctor uses. We can't hear the heartbeat through it yet, but we can hear kicks and various rumblings. She kicked me so hard it hurt a couple times after dinner so we thought we'd give her a listen and the random kicks suddenly turned into light, steady movements. I started to get a little worried someone planted a bomb in my abdomen when I wasn't looking until it occurred to me it was hiccups. Kind of cute! After they went away she resumed kicking the crap out of me.
As for the glucose tolerance test, I still haven't had it. I fasted all night last Sunday and Monday morning only to get to the lab and be turned away because the loopy nurse at our OB's office wrote the order up wrong. The lab called to get the correct info but since it was a Jewish holiday the office was closed. I was not a happy camper because between the heartburn (I wasn't sure if Tums were ok to take while you were fasting), middle of the night starvation (ever been pregnant? You may know what I'm talking about), and all the water this veinless wonder had to drink all night to be hydrated enough for veins to MAYBE put out (translation= I had to piss every 15 minutes), I didn't get much sleep. The good news is that the mistake was sort of in my favor because originally the order was for a 3 hour test when really it was just supposed to be a one hour test. If I fail the one hour test I will have to do the longer one anyway, but let's keep our fingers crossed. Enough babbling about playing pincushion.
We took down all the furniture in the guest bedroom and are now waiting to recover from property tax time. I hope those sonsabitches are proud of themselves, taking the money from a poor, helpless baby's nursery fund. Bastards.
I leave you with that.

25 Weeks

Well it's my last week in the 2nd trimester, folks. Apart from all the sinus issues, I really didn't have too many complaints the past 2 months. Rumor has it it all goes downhill from here. We'll see. I am hoping working out will help with the aches and pains associated with pregnancy in the next 3 months, but who am I kidding here? There's probably a reason you never see really pregnant women on the elliptical, and I am already having a tough time cramming my bump in some of the resistance machines. Luckily it's almost pool time, and I may just not come out all summer. If you need me that's where I'll be. Get this woman a giant floating chair and some water pillows! I might look like a prune by birth, but at least I'll have spent my last 3 months in a cool way and not a cranky, sweaty, swelled up mass of flesh.

On with the Mavis update... she is kicking like crazy, and I can tell you our daughter is no wimp! I think when it first started happening I said she felt like an eel swimming around in my belly. Forget that. There is nothing swimming anymore. These are clearly the kicks and punches of a creature trapped in a small space. I still can't tell which way she is turned, and which kicks/punches are feet or hands. Maybe our ultrasound on May 15th will shed some light on that. Last week Paul decided to put his head on my belly and got a kick to the head. He said he could hear the movements. I guess that's one thing he can experience that I can't during pregnancy because I don't see myself becoming a contortionist anytime soon.

On Monday I go for the standard glucose tolerance test to check for gestational diabetes. Not looking forward to being a pin cushion, which is what people with tiny collapsing veins like me have become accustomed to. Not fun, and after about 16 hours of not being able to consume anything but water (and that nasty sugary syrup they make you drink), you'd better believe this pregnant lady is going to be heading over to Taco Bell on the way home. I'll try and update on Monday about how it all went.

23 Weeks

I haven't written lately because, other than a few varicose veins and slighly larger belly, not much has changed. The heat has subsided, so no swelling. Yay. The baby's movements are getting stronger, but are still sporadic. The oddness of feeling some sort of alien movement going on in my abdomen is gone and now it's purely exciting and feels more like genuine kicks and punches. Remind me I was excited about those the day I write and complain about getting kicked in the ribs.
Over the weekend we bought a crib, and I actually made a decision on paint color. I made a decision! What a feat these days. It really was ridiculous how long it took me to decide between slightly different shades of green, but we have a winner, and in 2 weeks we're going to start moving the furniture and getting ready to paint the nursery. In the meantime the closet is housing the crib bedding, a dozen or so cute outfits, and a few blankets and stuffed animals waiting to be put in place. I can't wait to get the rest of the furniture picked out and everything set up. Maybe then it will sink in that there really is a person living in my belly and the roundness is not just the product of too many tacos.