Seven month update

Well, I am now 28 weeks pregnant and officially in the third trimester.  As you can see, the belly continues to grow (go figure!) but happily, it seems like it has dropped down a bit which has greatly diminished the pressure on my ribs.  I haven't had burning rib pain for a few weeks - partly because of this shift and partly because my heartburn is under control.  I continue to take Zantec most days but I usually only need to take one per day.  My waist currently measures about 39 inches, which is about 10 inches bigger than my usual waist size.  It is quite interesting to see the difference in my belly size from the morning to the night.  The belly is much smaller (almost a full inch) in the morning than in the evening.  I'm not exactly sure why this happens but it seems like it's a well-known phenomena for pregnant folks.  

I am currently in a comfortable period with my pregnant body.  I have times where I really feel out of sorts in my pregnant self but things have been ok for the past few weeks.  I think that the belly goes through little growth spurts which causes things to shift and move around - these shifts and movements make me feel uncomfortable and awkward but after a week or so, my body seems to get used to its new position and I have less discomfort.  This has happened all throughout my pregnancy but I keep forgetting that it will get better when I'm in one of those uncomfortable phases.  

The baby's movements have changed quite a bit over the past two weeks. We have had a very active child since about 17 weeks but those movements are now different.  It's a bit hard to describe but I can tell that the baby has less space to move around and therefore, the movements are less jerky and more purposeful.  They occur less often but are more powerful. The weirdest thing is that I can now feel the baby through my stomach skin.  This is a little freaky and kinda 'Alien'ish but it is pretty cool to feel the human growing inside.  I still can't tell which part of the baby's body I am feeling because it just feels hard to the touch but it is pretty neat.  I can also feel and see (more distinctly) the baby's feet or hands when they are pushing against my stomach.  I am supposed to be able to feel the baby when s/he hiccups but it's hard to tell when that is happening. The belly makes lots of different movements so I'm sure that some of those movements are hiccups but they don't feel significantly different than some of the other movements that I have been feeling all along.  

The only real annoyance as of late is the fact that I am getting quite short of breath these days. I find it challenging to walk and talk at the same time and walking up a set of stairs does leave me breathless.  I've read the reasons for this - basically the lungs have been pushed aside and can't expand as much along with pressure on the diaphragm and increased blood volume. There are other things happening to cause this shortness of breath but I don't remember what they are.  

We have stalled in getting ready for the baby's room.  We had been busy researching cloth diapers (I have already bought 25 used diapers from a friend), cribs, etc. but lately, we haven't been looking into any of that stuff. There are still a few major things that we need and lots of minor things to buy but I'm going to look at that again in another month or so.  

I am a little freaked out that there is only 11 more weeks until the baby arrives. It seems so far away but so close, all at the same time.  I can't believe that we are about to bring a child into the world and I'm totally scared about the massive changes that the baby will bring to our lives. However, I am super excited and can't wait to meet our child.  I'm sure that the next 11 weeks will bring more apprehension and excitement - this pregnancy journey certainly is an interesting one.  

P.S.  A number of people have asked us about baby gifts and a baby shower.  I think that I have decided to have a shower before the baby is born but the date is to be determined.  I will likely create a personalized 'baby registry' list because there are a number of items that we need but they are from a variety of stores.  I'll keep everyone posted on this as time goes on.  

P.S.S. Thanks for all the nice comments on this shirt.  I totally love this it!  I borrowed it from my friend Nikki and it's one of my favorite maternity shirts.