Pregnancy Update, 26 weeks 4 days....

Is it too early for me to be starting the countdown? I have 13 weeks and 3 days to go until my due date. And I'm really looking forward to being un-pregnant again. Here's the update on the good and the bad.

The Good:
Well, I must admit, though I definitely don't relish my time being pregnant, there are a few perks. First, people are so much nicer to you and cut you so much more slack. Both of which I need in large doses to get through this. Scott is (usually) amazing and takes the boys off my hands as much as he can so I can just get comfortable and rest (which I seem to need a lot of these days). Random people at the store will hold doors open for me, ask me if I need help loading my groceries into my car, lift large bags of dog food into my cart for me, let me cut in line to go to the bathroom, volunteer the most comfy seat in the room for my use, etc. I must admit, I love all the special treatment.

My wedding ring still fits with room to spare, which is nice considering all the weight I've gained. So I won't have to pull out my fakie until well into my third trimester. Yay for small accomplishments. :)

Assuming I'm not traveling in a car for 10-12 hour stretches (or forced to endure too many hours in heels), I'm not swollen very much. My feet and hands (and fingers and toes) have for the most part stayed their nice, normal selves. Cankles haven't been a problem yet (aside from when traveling).

Mister is super excited to have another little brother. I love our special time at the end of the night where he'll crawl in bed with me and just kiss my tummy and talk to his brother. He'll sit there with his hand on my belly for as long as I'll let him just to see if he'll be able to feel his brother move.

I love feeling the baby move inside me. Yes, he's getting bigger and crowding out more and more of my own space, but it's still so wondrous to feel a little person poking and stretching and just making his presence known. I used to think it would be really weird, like something from the movie "Alien" or something, but it's not. It's amazing. And it's always reassuring that he's still there and still growing.

The Bad:
All the discomfort of pregnancy (heartburn, I loathe you) has started MUCH earlier this time around than it did with either Mister or Pumpkin. Until my last appointment I was convinced that I was going to give birth to a giant watermelon because of how much my ribs, back and hips already hurt. And it's not something that some measly Tylenol is going to help with. And it doesn't go away. It's a constant burning ache in my ribs, and any hope of restful sleep went out the window weeks ago. Even though I've been surrounding myself with large pillows to prop everything up, I'm plagued by backaches and leg cramps all night long. That and my ever loving, faithful companion: Heartburn.

Unfortunately, my midwife just informed me that my baby is only in the 58th percentile, so while I'm happy to know that I won't be giving birth to a behemoth, I'm also surprised that I'm so uncomfortable when my baby isn't even that big. She told me that it just starts earlier and earlier the more pregnancies you have. She basically said that I'll just have to grin and bear it (well, bear it anyway) and that yes, it'll just get worse. Lovely, I think I'll stop here, thanks.

The weight.....aaaahhhhh, the weight...... Yes, it was nice to avoid being sick in the first part of my pregnancy. I was really worried about how I'd manage to care for my 2 boys while hanging my head over the porcelain throne all day long. Trying to enforce rules, break up fights or discipline them just wasn't going to happen in between heaves.... Fortunately, I didn't have to worry about that this time around.

Unfortunately, the flip side of that coin is that I all of a sudden had (and still have) a ginormous appetite. And for all of you who've been pregnant before, you know that pregnancy hunger is unlike any other hunger. I must eat and I must eat now (and prefereably something that's satisfying whatever craving I'm having at the moment). It's like my normal restraint and reasonable eating habits have been replaced by the "Little Shop of Horrors" plant in my stomach screaming "FEED MEEEEEE!!!!" at random intervals throughout the day. And he's very demanding. Soooooo, I've gained much more weight than I did up to this point with the boys. I will easily surpass my total weight gain (30 lbs with each boy) this time around..... Lovely. So in addition to feeling super uncomfortable, I feel like Shamu on top of it. It's wonderful for the self esteem, let me tell you. I daydream about going for those lovely 6 mile runs I used to go on with my friend. I think to myself, I can't wait to do that again. Then I have to heave myself out of bed or off the couch and I'm reminded yet again that it's going to be a looooong time before that day comes again.

Anyway, that's the latest from me in the pregnancy department. Hope you weren't too bored by my in-depth, no-picture post. :)