25 weeks...

25 weeks and still going fine. I need to just tattoo that to me, because it seems that EVERY person I see, asks me how I am feeling. I still don't understand that question...would someone actually say "HORRIBLE"? I find that hard to believe. Even people that sit at home and complain, I don't think they would tell someone that it they feel horrible or something, would they?

This week the only weird symptom I am having is that I am having a hard time sleeping. I am tired. Then I go to bed, fall asleep for about 4 hours and then I wake up, where I am wide awake, at about 6am. Now, we know I am NOT a morning person. So, I lay in bed and and kind of doze on and off until about 800, then I seem to fall back asleep, good sleep, until like 1030. I don't know what it is, but it reminds me of after I did my Ironman. I was super tired and would fall asleep and then wake up early and have a hard time sleeping. Maybe it is similar, because they say after an Ironman, your metabolism and hormones are all out of whack, which is the same as now...so maybe that is the issue. I have read that it happens, a lot of time because people are stressed. But as we know, I am not a very stressed person (even with all the kicking, I completely forget that I am pregnant!).

My baby has been kicking me a lot on my left side. When you look at the pictures I appear really crooked, to where it looks like the baby is sitting on the left side. I think the combo with that and the placenta in the front has made for the left ONLY kicking. Last night, was the first time I have EVER felt her kick on my right side. It is probably because she is getting a lot bigger and so I can feel it there.

Workouts this week have been going fine. Nothing exciting. I read this one girls post, that is a runner and is pregnant, she said the same exact thing that I have said: Running pregnant feels like you are running a marathon. By the time you finish a 4 mile run, it feels the same as if you had been out for a 20 mile run. My legs are more tired and it seems a lot longer! That is probably because after 10 minutes I have to go pee and generally, I have to wait until I get back so that I can go...so I am counting down the miles! The only other weird thing I have had happen running is that my right foot has gone numb a few times. My shoes are not tied to tight, as I don't tie them very tight at all...and when I stop running, it comes right back. It is really annoying!

Other symptoms this week: I have had ALMOST cramping in my calves at night when I am sleeping...I stretch and feel it about to cramp and I have to quickly pull my foot back before it happens. Thankfully, I haven't had a calf cramp yet! (knock on wood). And my tailbone hurts by the end of the day, I find I have to sit more on my butt, and not lean back or it will definitely hurt!

On a separate note, yesterday Pedro had to have two teeth pulled and a cavity filled, all on one part of his mouth. Oddly, for being such a wimp about going to get it done, he hasn't complained at all! So, I guess it feels better now that the teeth are out that were causing him so much pain. Now it is just a pain to our bank account.

Our registries are pretty much done (Target and Babies 'R Us) and we will be planning my baby shower sometime soon.

Two more weeks until the 3rd Trimester! I can't believe how quickly time has flown by!





Random facts:
Days till due date: 106 (likely to be the last post in the 100's!!)
Days pregnant: 174
Size of baby: 13.5 inches long (body/weight size of a rutabaga)
Weight of baby: 1.5lbs
Development: By weeks end, air sacs will have developed in the lungs
Odd development: Baby's nostrils have been plugged up until now, are starting to open
Days till doctors appt and 3rd trimester: 14 days

24 Weeks...

Another week has flown by! I am now 24 weeks pregnant. I would say this is 6 months (6 months x 4 weeks), but most places claim 23 weeks is beginning of 6 months (not sure how that works). This week, I have been a little more tired than most weeks. It seems being pregnant you go through weeks of feeling great and weeks or days of feeling tired. That seems to be my common pregnancy symptom, being tired. However, I am generally a tired person! LOL...but usually that is because I have worked out for some huge amount of time. Clearly, not the case now!

Workouts have been going pretty ok this week. Since I have been feeling a little more tired, I feel the same tiredness in my workouts. This was one of those weeks where you get annoyed because no matter what I do, some days doing 40 minutes on the stairmaster makes me feel like that is one of the hardest workouts ever! When really, I went from doing 1.5 hours on level 9/10 to 40 minutes on level 4. As I said, it just seems that some weeks feel a little more difficult than other weeks. Hopefully this next week is better!

Other than that, nothing too exciting going on. I think, looking at the picture this week that I might look bigger than I did last week, but if you were to ask me I would have said that I wasn't any bigger. However, I was wearing a regular tank top at the gym today, a long one (one of only 5 gym shirts that I own that fit), and I was working out and walked past the mirror and noticed that a small portion of my stomach could be seen! I can tell you nobody wants to see that !!!! Last year I was on the stairmaster next to a lady that had her shirt off doing the stairs. I know that they say pregnant women feel hot quicker, but it definitely does NOT look hot! Please, everyone keep their shirts on and long enough not to show belly. I will now just go back to one of the 4 shirts that now fits! Hopefully, these will last throughout the rest of my pregnancy as I do not want to buy any!

The only symptoms I have had have been the tiredness, nosebleeds (yes they have continued) and my stupid dry lip thing...that looks like I have been drinking Kool-aid. UGH! Can't stand it! I have had it since about week 12 and I have tried EVERYTHING to make it better.

This week we have accomplished a few things. We put together quite a few things ("We" as in Pedro). We now have our crib, glider, changing table and dresser in the room. Sounds like a lot? It is! We are going to have to figure out how to make it all work. Right now most of Pedro's clothes are still in the room and some other things, so ignore all of the extra clothes etc. lying around, but here is our current room:


We are going to paint the room and do some other things, so hopefully it will look nice!


Alright, here are this weeks pictures (I want to remind you I take these pictures right when I get up, so that I don't have a "food" baby too!):






Random Facts:
Days Pregnant: 167
Days till due date: 113
Update on the weight gained: I want to say that I posted 19lbs last week. HOWEVER, two days before the doctor I was up 19 lbs, then the day before the doctor my scale said up 15lbs...so I'm sure I am somewhere around this number. I must retain water like no other!
Milestone: At 24 weeks your baby has a 40% chance of surviving if born today
Size: Nearly 1 FOOT long! They say an ear of corn, but I imagine a foot long sub!
Weight: about 1.3 lbs
Uh Oh fact: amniotic fluid is changing this week and will INCREASE in volume, does that mean I will be getting a lot bigger??
Baby body: Cartilage is being replaced with bone

23 weeks...

According to my book I am reading, I am now 6 MONTHS pregnant. 23rd - 27th week falls under 6 months pregnant. It says that by the end of the month my baby will double her weight! Right now she has lots of loose skin, that will start filling with fat.

This last week I decided I needed a goal for my working out. As you can tell, a person needs some sort of motivation, when it seems that no matter what you do...there isn't an "obvious" benefit". Let me also say, that I work out because I ENJOY it, not because of any other reason. The health benefit is nice, but I LOVE to workout. Yes, like everyone there are days where I do not want to workout...but those are very few. Anyway, back to the goal. This last week, since I was 22 weeks pregnant, I decided to run 22 miles. Not all at once! 22 miles use to seem like a small amount. At most that was 3 workouts in a slower week. Now it seemed like a big goal! I ran every day to reach this goal:

Friday 3 miles on the treadmill (not minding the tred because the bathroom is right by!)
Saturday 4 outside
Sunday 3 treadmill
Monday 5.15 outside
Tuesday 1.5 with Stella
Tuesday 1.5 with Polar
Weds 3 treadmill
Thursday 1.5 on the treadmill

TOTAL: 22.65 miles


This will probably be the most I will run for the rest of my pregnancy, but it was fun to do this week. I also lifted 3 days and did the elliptical twice.


This week I also had my 4 week checkup. I got to the doctors office a few minutes early and they got me in the room right away. It was a different nurse (I have seen a different nurse and different doctor each visit). This nurse, like the others, went on and on about how great it was that I workout and how my blood pressure and heart rate are low. How it will be so great for labor, for me and the baby (hmm..remind me of that then!). How it will be so much easier to get back into shape and how she wishes she could tell everyone that this is what they should be doing. That is all nice to hear, because working out is harder each week! Then she said the doctor would be right in...tick tock...tick tock...15 minutes later no doctor. The nurse comes back in and says the doctor I am there to see is in delivery right now, so depending on how long the delivery takes, will depend on if I see him or someone else. I told her I would see anyone. 10 more minutes pass and the doctor arrives. He comes in and says "Have we met?" I said "no". He told me his name and was reading mine out of the thing, so I said "I'm..." and he interrupts and says "Pregnant." Alrighty then...I can tell what type of doctor he is. He is one of those guys on Patch Adams, that describes their patients by their current status "sick, pregnant, blah blah". He immediately had me lay down...took out the tape measure, measured me, said that is good (no idea what it was), quickly grabbed the doppler, tells me heart rate sounds good (I saw the machine say 154)...then asks if I have any questions. I say no. Then he tells me to schedule in 4 weeks and that after that I will be on every two weeks appointments. Then he leaves. I think my total appointment time was less than 2 minutes. I don't want him to be my doctor, but that will probably mean it will be him.

Then today I had to meet with the GM of the gym and my "boss". I was asked about 10 times if I am capable of running. I explained that I was just upstairs running and I have run everyday this week, so yes, I am able to run. Then the GM says, well at some point you will stop...when will that be? I said, I have no intention of not being able to run. Will that mean I can run up until my delivery date? Maybe? Or maybe in a week, I will feel too uncomfortable? Who knows...I didn't tell him that part, but I don't intend to stop running unless I have to, or it is really painful. He then asked me, what my doctor thinks about me running. I told him they all think it is great and as long as I don't have any problems and I am measuring correctly that they are more than happy with it. He seemed very surprised, as did my "boss". They then asked if I am able to do my job in my condition (run and do a information table at the gym once a month, and post on a website once a week). Again with the "condition" thing...it is really annoying. Anyway, I'm not sure it is appropriate to be asking this type of question to someone in the workplace...

Everything else has been going good. We registered for a few things, but will need some help with the rest of the registry items.


Here I am at 23 weeks, not looking too much bigger:





But compare to 17 weeks:

Random Facts:
Days left till due date: 119
Days pregnant:161
Weight gained: 19lbs
Baby size: 11.5 inches, 1.1 lbs (weight is similar to a large mango)
Baby moves: I feel her move mostly when I am in bed at night or in the morning. Not many movements during the day.
Baby hears: Loud noises are now familiar, dogs barking or vacuum probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb
Baby: Now has a sense of balance and can feel you move
Days till next appointment and THIRD trimester! 27 days
3D ultrasound: coming soon! (need to schedule)

22 weeks...

I am almost 6 months pregnant, time has gone by quickly! Everything has been going well. There isn't a lot to report on this week. I continue to look more and more pregnant. This week a girl at the gym, that works the front desk, told me that she had no idea I was pregnant. I asked her if she thought I was just getting fat? Weird, considering I have been pretty sure the last two weeks, or so, that I for sure look pregnant!

Workouts have been going well. One day I ran on the treadmill and I had to stop and go to the bathroom after every mile (only 3). It was HORRIBLE! However, the next day I ran 4 miles outside and I was fine for the whole run! Must have been where the baby was sitting! I told some people that the main issue with running now is that no matter what I do, or how much I run, I just get slower or it is more difficult. It is just so different than any other time in your life. Usually when you do something, it gets easier or faster. Nope, not during pregnancy. I definitely think that it takes a certain type of person to be able to continue to run, because it is quite demoralizing. But then you have to remember that it is for the greater good of someone else, so it makes it ok. I'm not a worrier, so I guess I don't worry about it.

I haven't had any real symptoms, besides the continued nosebleeds. This last week, I have had a little more tailbone pain. I also had to take out my belly button ring this week, because I need to get a pregnancy one...but also because it looks like it is tearing. Could just be because now the skin on my belly is stretched out more so it looks wider, different.

I have been feeling the baby kick more and more. The last day or so, I haven't felt as many kicks...but I generally feel her at night when I lay down, or when I wake up in the morning. Then there seems to be a long lull throughout the day. We had to do a bar review the other night and it was very loud. VERY loud....and so she kicked me for about 5 minutes straight, in response to the ridiculous noise. I'm sure she will be use to loud noise, since I coach games and it is loud in the gym and I am yelling. So, they say whatever loud noise they are exposed to now, will probably help them be able to ignore it when she is born. Let's hope, because I foresee a lot of games and loud places that she will have to spend some time in when she is born.





In the evening, I am quite a bit bigger...


Random facts:
Days till due date: 124
Days pregnant: 156
Baby size: spaghetti squash, about 11 inches
Baby's weight: 1 lb milestone!
Day's till next doctors appt: 2
Baby fact: Eye's have formed irises (although they still lack pigment)
Baby fact: Sense of touch and taste progress significantly this week
Miles run last week: 11 (3 runs)
Days worked out: 6
Scary but true: If you google 22 weeks pregnant, there are links/images/videos of babies born at 22 weeks, that have survived!

21 weeks...

We are officially past the halfway point. Actually, some time last week we were past it, time really does fly by!

Last week we went to Florida for a vacation (babymoon, as some call it!). We were really worried the hurricane was going to ruin our travel plans, but luckily the weather was nice. Actually, the first two days we were there it was record breaking heat (UGH!) then the last two days were cloudy and/or rainy...which kind of sucked because I wanted another beach day.

The things I learned while on vacation while being pregnant are that anytime you have a chance to go to the bathroom, take it! Each time we went to Dunkin' Donuts, or anywhere else for that matter, I made sure to go...the one time I didn't, about 10 minutes later I made Pedro make a stop for me to go! I think it was all the extra liquids from our Dunkin stops!

The other thing that happened were my ankles swelled. It reminded me of having really bad sprained ankles, where you cannot see the ankle bone on either side. They were huge! I think with the humidity and all of the walking around I just SWELLED UP. As you will see here with my 20 week picture. I am HUGE! No, I am not really this big, but this was a morning picture prior to eating...this is what I usually look like by the end of the day!




The last thing I learned, which I should have known before is that if you are bringing something to wear on a trip, make sure it fits. During the summer I did this with a pair of shorts and they didn't even come close to fitting. This time, it was less serious, but I brought a long tank top to sleep in, that has always been big and long. Well, not anymore. Now it barely passes my belly button. It wasn't very appropriate to wear at someone else's house! I'm sure that nobody wants to see my belly hanging out!

We took a picture at the beach, but Pedro won't allow me to post it. Not that I WANT to post it! We took a picture and when I saw it I was SHOCKED how huge I looked in the swimsuit. So, I said I was going to "suck it in" for the next picture...the people around us thought that was funny..like I could suck it in. I did, and it looked less WHALE like, then the other one. It's the food I tell you, it makes me even larger after I eat!


While we were in Florida we got to spend some time with Pedro's brother and girlfriend and we stayed at Pedro's friends house, Johnny and Chloe. We went to the beach and out to dinner with them both quite a few times. On Pedro's birthday, Sunday, we went to one of his favorite Cuban restaurants, where he devoured a huge steak, rice and beans, all before I finished my Cuban sandwich. That night, we went to Bubba Gumps at Bayside. This was one of our favorite places to go when we lived there. It is in Miami and at Bayside, where there is an outdoor shopping area on the water. Since it was his birthday I told the waiters that they needed to do something for him since he HATES when I tell waiters that it is his birthday. They came out and asked him to dance...this is his performance, one waiter said it was the best birthday dance they had ever seen (I'm assuming they meant somewhat PG of one).

Working on figuring out how to get the video to work on here....

Here is a picture of us at Bayside near the water:


Bubba Gumps:


The group of us at Bubba Gumps:


Pedro being attacked by the BEAR!


I'm just scared by the BEAR!




After that the last two days were cloudy or rainy, which wasn't that exciting, when I wanted some beach time. But it beats being at home and having to actually do something! We also got to eat Chicken Kitchen a few times...mmmm.

The last night we were there we went fishing. We use to go fishing all the time off the pier near where we lived. It was so much fun. We never caught anything (other than tiny bait fish), but it was fun anyway. This time, it started with us having to find a pier to fish at...then once we did, we discovered that to rent a pole and bait was going to be $16...really?? I could buy a cheap fishing pole for this. Then we found out that I had to pay to just WALK on the pier. $2.00. I know that isn't a lot, but why do I have to PAY to go on a pier. Whatever we did it anyway. It was a lot of fun. Pedro put the bait on and threw out his line. Then he told me to watch it while he walked around. After about a minute, I thought I saw a bite. I waited...then there was another one..hmm..could we really have a bite? I told Pedro to come back that he had a bite...he reeled it in and low and behold he had his first fish ever (during pier fishing)! I believe it was a sunfish and was about 8 inches long.



It was quite exciting. From that point on, literally, EVERY single time he threw out his line he got a bite. Sadly, we were using crappy bait that fell off every time we got one. So, instead of catching another fish, we were feeding them. A girl that was by us caught a 2 foot shark! They had seen a few sharks in the water prior to us arriving that were bigger. The others on the pier were all there trying to catch sharks.



On the baby side of things, apparently I have grown quite a bit in a week. I had one parent of a kid that I do lessons with today tell me that last week she wasn't sure if I was pregnant or not, but today I had clearly "popped". Thanks?? I guess? Then my team hadn't seen me for about 10 days and they saw me and told me I had doubled in size since last week and that I no longer looked fat!

Here is my 21 week picture (again don't mind the hair, I just rolled out of bed!)




I think I look smaller than the week 20 pictures..but I'm pretty sure my belly is crooked!?!

This week, I was able to FEEL the baby move, with my hand on the outside part of my stomach. This has happened twice now, both in the lower part of the left side. Pedro even got to feel her one of the times, because she was doing it for about 5 minutes. She seems to be a bit more active at night when I lay down in bed. I'm hoping that I get to feel more of the alien movements soon!

Random facts for the week:
Days till due date: 133
Days pregnant: 147
Baby size: Carrot, about 10.5-11 inches long and 3/4 of a pound.
Symptoms: Tired the last two weeks, more than normal
Annoying thing: Feet get tired standing...must be the extra weight!
Day's till next doctors appointment: 11