I cant believe Baby and I are already at 17 weeks! That's almost HALF WAY! Actually, while I'm writing this, I'm ALMOST 18 weeks, and this post may not even go up until then... Whoops. It's funny since sometimes I feel like I've been pregnant forever, and I clearly haven't been. It just seems that some days are slow as molasses and some are faster than light. And recently, it's more like light.
Instead of a long intro, I think I'll just dive right in. So let's get to it. PS: Sorry about the weird photos this week. My official photographer (hubby) was away on business, and I decided just to be lame with selfies. Oh well, right? Life.
How pregnant am I? 17 weeks began February 15, 2017.
What's going on with baby? Genevieve is now the size of a turnip. How cute. She weighs 5 ounces now and is around 5 inches long from head to bottom. Her bones are developing, and her skeleton is changing from rubbery cartilage to hardened bone. Sweat glands are starting to develop, though Eve won't need them for a while. And she'll probably glow, not sweat. 😉 The lifeline is getting stronger as the umbilical cord, through which Eve is connected to the placenta and a supply of nutrients, is thickening. (Thanks BabyCenter.com!)
Weight gain: +0 this week, +5 lb total
Body & Changes: I've never experienced acne like what I have going on right now. EVER. Not even as a teen. My chin area, which I've learned is THE spot for hormonal breakouts, is just cluster after cluster of huge, painful, ugly cystic zits. Like, HUGE. They're SO painful, and honestly, I'm really hating it. I'm hating the way my face looks. I'm hating that anything I do for it does NOTHING. Just when I think these face-monsters are going away, another 5 will rear their ugly, painful heads. Awful.
Another weird thing is that my baby bump that was showing for the past 2 weeks totally disappeared. I went and looked back at my 17 week pregnancy journal from when I was pregnant with Jack, and the same exact thing happened then at this same last time! Crazy, right? I don't even look pregnant at all, until it's time for bed, when my belly is significantly more rounded. I sure feel it though!
My so-called pregnancy brain is not "so-called," and it's in FULL EFFECT, PEOPLE. I had said I needed to work on this post like 3 times in a row, and kept forgetting. Like 2 seconds after I'd say it. I was staring blankly at the screen, asking myself, "What was I going to do?" Luckily, my son - who is off school today - keeps reminding me. "Mom! You're doing WORK! You need to WRITE!" Oh yeah.... wait, what am I doing?
Exercise: None aside from the usual walks. I've been feeling SO tired and not so good this past week.
Clothes: At the start of my 15th week, I was so happy to have found and dug out the maternity clothes from my last pregnancy out from the basement. I washed them, put them away, and was thrilled to be back in those comfy-cozy maternity jeans and shirts. My growing belly was pleased. So the past couple of weeks, I was strictly in maternity clothes.
But starting last Monday, I was back in my normal clothes. The maternity pants' band was not practical any more. It was too big, and my pants were falling off. Literally falling off. Walking around the store or around the neighborhood constantly hiking up my pants... Awkward... The shirts were looking all bunchy and totally unflattering. What was going on?? WHERE DID MY BUMP GO!? I'm still waiting for it to come back full time. But as of yesterday, the bump returned a little bit. It's really weird.
I even was able to buy and wear a non-maternity dress in my normal size for my cousin's daughter's baptism this Sunday from J. Crew. It was so pretty, and comfortable.The large Italian family with all the Italian mothers kept ooh-ing and ahh-ing over the fact that I'm nearly 5 months pregnant with no bump. How was this possible?!! I don't know. I just don't know...
Food Cravings: Things with raw onion. My favorite thing right now is an everything bagel with veggie cream cheese and sliced, raw red onion. It's JUST SO GOOD. I'm also really into Fruit Roll-Ups, and arugula salad (arugula & romaine, olive oil, fresh squeezed lemon, salt, pepper and parmesan cheese). Bacon, egg & cheese sandwiches are awesome too. With ketchup, of course...
Aversions: Hamburger Helper, chicken, and breakfast things (bacon, eggs, etc.) though I really like bacon, egg & cheese sandwiches, like I said. Just not separated. I don't know... I just don't know.
Sleep: UGH. I have been sleeping like butt recently. Mostly it's just the getting up to pee a few times a night, but some other nights I just can't sleep. It's just really annoying. Especially since I wake up tired, and stay tired all day.
I didn't really get the 2nd-trimester energy last pregnancy either, so I wasn't really expecting it to come around this time either. I guess I silently wished it would, since other aspects of this pregnancy are so very different than last time. Oh well, no such luck.
Any movement? I think I had some movement earlier in the week two times. Once at night and I wasn't sure if it was gas or Eve, but I'm pretty sure it was Eve. Then I felt the flutters from within again while I was driving the next day. I haven't felt anything in a few days though. I can't wait to feel her again! If that was her at all. It totally could have been gas.
Emotions: I'm very emotional. I cry always and all the time. All. The. TIME.
Purchases: We ordered an armoire for the babies' room from IKEA, and it will arrive this Tuesday (today). I'm REALLY excited for it. Basically, Eve & Jack will share their room for a while, so figuring out how to create storage and space in a room that has no closet or storage has been interesting.
I have picked out some wall art and other decorations, since I never really got around to decorating the nursery room for Jack. I am going to do it right this time around, and I'm REALLY excited for it. I'm dedicating half the room to Genevieve and the other half to Jack.
I also will be getting the same crib for Genevieve than we got for Jack, but in white rather than dark wood, so the room will be a mix of dark wood and white painted wood. I think it'll look really nice.
What I miss: Having energy and focus. I have zero of both.
What I'm looking forward to: Feeling Genevieve move in my belly, and getting the baby room put together. I'm also looking forward to Eve's anatomy scan in 2 weeks. I love seeing my little girl, and unless, God forbid, there are any problems, that will be the last time we'll get to see her until she's born. I'm pretty fired up!
Best moment of the week: Going up to Villanova, PA this weekend for my cousins' daughter's baptism, and being honored with the role of Godmother to the beautiful little lady. I'm so excited, and we all had SUCH a good time up there. We had some awesome food at a great Italian restaurant too, so that was fantastic. The whole day was fantastic.