15 Weeks...Tomorrow!!!

15 Weeks! That's only 5 weeks from halfway done. I cannot believe how quickly time is flying by. Less than one month now to the wedding....Drew and I wrote our ceremony last night. I cried as I re-read it this morning...I'm so looking forward to our big day and our marriage. (<----Sappy as hell, I know.)

I discovered a new way to cause myself pain this morning - putting on tights. I don't think pregnant bodies were meant to stretch in those ways. I guess I'll be wearing mostly pants from now on. So, in my research I've been finding out all sorts of interesting facts about pregnancy and prenatal babies. Some of the more interesting things I thought I would post:

• Every three seconds a baby is born
• During pregnancy, the uterus expands to 500 times its normal size.
• During pregnancy a woman's blood volume increases up to 50%. In addition to meeting the needs of the fetus, this is a reserve against fluid loss that occurs during childbirth. (I've heard that this amount can weigh 8 1/2 pounds!!!!)
• A newborn baby's head accounts for about one-quarter of it's entire weight.
• Relaxin is secreted by the woman's hormonal structures during pregnancy. Relaxin softens ligaments in the back and pelvis in order to make birth easier. It can also relax foot bones making a pregnant woman's feet grow longer and winder.
• Unfertilized sperm can live in a woman's body for up to five days. An unfertilized egg only lives for 24 hours. It's a numbers game!
• Amniotic fluid is mostly the unborn baby's urine...which it swallows and practices breathing.
• The heaviest baby at birth weighed 24 pounds! The smallest weighed 10 ounces. (Let's hope for a healthy 7-8 lbs. for the little lima bean!)
• The blood moves along in the umbilical cord at 4 mph!
• The amniotic fluid in the uterus is completely replaced every 3 hours.
• A pregnant woman's ribcage volume will increase by 20% and each breath she takes will take in 20-30% more oxygen.

And, for those of you who are interested, below is what will happen during week 15:

• You may begin to feel some fluttering movements as baby kicks, flails, twists and turns (but don't panic if you don't yet). She can also grasp, squint, frown, grimace and maybe suck her thumb!
• Your baby's legs have grown longer than the arms and the body is now longer than the head. And you'll be happy to note that he is moving those arms and legs often!
• His skin is very thin -- so thin blood vessel are visible. It's covered by a fine, soft layer of hair called lanugo. Lanugo comes from a Latin word meaning "down." This hair is thought to help insulate your little boy.
• The three tiny bones in his middle ear have begun to harden. The auditory centers in your baby's brain haven't developed yet, so she might not really understand what you say but her hearing capacity is in the process of developing.
• Fingernails and toenails are growing.
• Eyebrows are beginning to grow and even the hair his head is sprouting. It will probably change color and texture after birth.
• All this and your little one is an amazing 3.98 inches (10.1cm) long and may weigh 2.47 ounces (70gm).

Shredder's Boss = My Boss

I have this very distinct memory of watching the old Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle cartoons with the cool looking old Shredder and Shredder’s Boss. I can’t remember the boss’ name but it was this pink, globby brainy looking thing with tentacles that controlled joysticks to move itself around. Sometimes it was in a carrier shaped like a person and sometimes it was just by itself in a glass enclosed container.

Lately, I’ve been feeling like I have Shredder’s boss living in my abdomen. Not because my baby has a really annoying voice like that guy, or because he is masterminding evil from inside my tummy, but I just feel as though I am at the whim of this little lima bean.

Take Saturday for instance. It was our day to set up our bridal registries. I woke up with a headache but I was determined to do this as it really needed to be done and I’ve been looking forward to registering for oh, say, 15 years or so. After a bagel and some orange juice we bravely headed into Bed Bath & Beyond and began manically scanning anything that caught our eye. I was actually pleased with Drew’s enthusiasm for the task…he was especially happy when he scanned in the bar code for the griddle!

Towards the end, around the time we were in Bed (we started with Beyond and did Bath in the middle), I felt my blood sugar hit the floor and began to feel really nauseous. We were almost done so I stuck it out and then we took our friend, Mari, home.

It was now 3 o’clock. I had only eaten a bowl of cereal and the bagel that day…a big mistake and I should have known better so I suggested to Drew that we get a Starbucks before we continue and register at Crate & Barrel. I wanted to just throw in the towel but Drew really wanted to stay out so, out we stayed.

Well, sometimes mind over matter works. Sometimes it doesn’t, especially when your mind is trying to overcome Shredder’s boss! Upon parking in the Cherry Creek Parking Garage I promptly got out of the car and threw up, convulsively, for about five minutes. I got it on my shoe, on my pant leg, it was terrible. I don’t know if anyone saw, nor do I care, it was miserable, and awkward. Drew was wonderful and took care of me as best he could, remarking at the end of it all, “I’m glad you puked in Cherry Creek.” *sigh*

So, there you have it. One day of not eating on my schedule and I blow chunks. Pregnancy is so strange….on the one hand it is like you have all this control. There is so much information available about what you should eat, what you should do, how you should be and in some ways it is very empowering. It feels like if you do all of this then certainly you will have a healthy, happy baby. On the other hand, pregnancy feels like you are totally out of control. Even armed with all the information I can get my hands on my body is still surprising me every day. Sometimes I’m nauseous when I shouldn’t be and not nauseous when I should be. My skin pigment is changing…I get weird pains that actually make me happy because it means the baby is growing. While I’m conscious of all this I often feel like I’m just a spectator to it all, just the body that Shredder’s boss is currently occupying. It is weird and mysterious and great all at the same time.