Category: Pregnancy

There’s not much to say this week on the pregnancy front (since all my energies have gone towards the excretion containment front).  I’m exhausted (still not sleeping), I’m having trouble breathing (I can’t tell if this is the result of Baby Girl pushing on my lungs or exacerbating the reflux), and I continue to be swelteringly hot ALL THE TIME.  I continue to have Braxton Hicks contractions when I’ve done too much or pushed it too far.  I have far too much to do for this to stop me, so I’d really appreciate it if my mind and my body could strike some sort of a deal on this point.  Basically, I’m 30 weeks pregnant in Georgia in July.  On with the pictures:

30 weeks pregnant with Liam (The last shot is a bonus for those of you who enjoy terrible pictures of me as much as my husband does — which would be very difficult.  I distinctly remember when he took it because I was so tired that I fell into bed and didn’t feel particularly inclined to move, possibly ever again — thus giving him ample time to break out a camera to commemorate the situation, since I was also too tired to care about anything besides becoming one with the bed.  The other ones are starting to get impressive…):

(The most impressive thing about this picture is all in the perspective:  I am lying on a Queen-sized bed.  It looks like a toddler bed in comparison to my body…)

Week 30 in this pregnancy with Baby Girl (This is the week where I’ve reached the point of no return.  I am now officially bigger than last time and I have photographic evidence.  The completely unfair thing is that I weigh a good 20 pounds less than I did at this point last time despite starting out 10 pounds heavier and I’m STILL BIGGER.  How is that even possible?  No wonder everyone was being so nice to me while we waited out the rain delay at the concert last night — they were afraid that one forceful thunderclap would send me into labor!):

I’m toast.

This week has been more of the same:  more exhaustion, more sleepless nights, more aches, more weight gain, and much more peeing.  This train is barreling towards the station at 1,000 mph and we still can’t get there fast enough for my taste.  On with the pictures…

Week 29 in my pregnancy with Liam (Lesson learned:  If you’re going to wear horizontal stripes while pregnant (especially on the lower half of your body) never, never, NEVER, have your picture taken while doing so.  Also — I’m totally jealous of the fact that I could wear long-sleeves at this point during my last pregnancy.):

Week 29 during my pregnancy with Baby Girl (I felt like there’d been a major increase in size between this week and last week and I think that these pictures show that quite nicely.  Also apparent:  the amount of sleep deprivation I’ve been experiencing.  By the time I finally give birth my eyes will be little more than tiny slits almost completely obscured by puffy bags and face fat.  I can’t wait to meet this little one and take my body back for myself!):

This party’s over, fellas.

Today marks the beginning of the 28th week and the 3rd trimester.  Pants are quickly becoming the enemy.  There’s not much new to report since last week except that I’ve had 2 nights of sleep that consisted of 7 & 8 continuous hours of sleep.  I feel just a bit more human when this happens.  Unfortunately this time I had to have a 2-day headache before getting the first night of this much-needed sleep, but I’m hoping that the sleep will continue and it will keep the headaches at bay.  Not being able to take Advil is truly cruel and unusual punishment.  I’ve also continued with the compulsive baking.  The good news is that I’ve found a lot of good new recipes, the bad news is that Matt’s coworkers are probably starting to resent me for sending all the calories their way…

On with the pictures!

Here are the 28-week pictures from my pregnancy with Liam (It looks like there were no tears this week, but other than that I don’t see too much difference from the previous week.  The comparison of bare belly shots really shows how differently I’m carrying this time.):

Here are the pictures from week 28 with Baby Girl (I’m beginning to get worried that the out-front nature of the belly this time is going to make it hard to cover with anything but a dress by the end…):

Cheers!

Today marks the beginning of week 27.  Today I gave up my rings.  This week has consisted of a continual beating down of any hopes I had to look/feel like a normal human being by the end of this journey.  I have varicose veins on my ribcage.  I think that says it all.  I feel certain that over the next 13 weeks we will all have the chance to gawk at the elephant that used to be Shannon, but at this point, I’m over it.  I cannot safely eat any less than I am.  If I want Baked Ruffles with my veggie sandwich at lunch, I’m through beating myself up about it.  My body is telling me that I need somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 or 8 32oz. Nalgene bottles of water each day (and I won’t be a bit surprised if that number rises as I keep going — by the end of my pregnancy with Liam I was up to 10 per day).  There’s no way I’m eliminating that amount of fluid by going the pee route, so it’s just starting to fill my cells and poise itself for being the partial cause of tremendous stretch marks and (apparently) varicose veins.  I’ve still got three months, people.  This ain’t gonna be pretty.  Let’s get this show on the road.

Here I am at 27 weeks in my pregnancy with Liam (This is the best shot of about 8, which says something.  It’s clear to me that I had been crying prior to taking the picture.  The acne was flaring up, the face was swollen, the situation was getting very uncomfortable, and it shows.  It’s pictures like this one and those to come that remind me just how much I love being a mom.  I’d have to to be voluntarily (and wholeheartedly) going on this journey again.):

Here I am at 27 weeks in this pregnancy with Baby Girl (Why must I subject you to a bare belly shot when there’s no comparison shot from last time?  Apparently I have no shame.  That’s all I’ve got.):

That’s all, folks.

Today marked the beginning of week 26.  I’m tired, I’m cranky, and I’m starting to get really big, really quickly (without any change in eating habits, which is extremely frustrating).  Also, the pregnancy pillow has made its re-reappearance.  As a result I had one full night of sleep several nights ago and as a result of that it will stay in our bed until I’m home from the hospital with a baby in my arms.  Yes, I am tired enough to decide that one good night of sleep is worth being swallowed whole by a pillow (claustrophobia notwithstanding) every night until I finally give birth.  Fingers crossed that it happens again.  Soon.

I’m still wearing my rings, but after spending this morning out in what was apparently a 100 degree heat index and sweating through every article of clothing I had on, I’m a bit dehydrated and this has translated to the return of the sausage finger.  I’m hoping that by tomorrow evening I will have been able to flush everything out of my system again, but otherwise it may be time for the back-up ring.

I continue to compulsively bake, but am very grateful that Matt has an office to which to shuttle the goods so that this time I don’t gain the equivalent of a fourth grader in poundage.  Now for the main attraction.

Week 26 in my pregnancy with Liam (All I can see when I look at this picture is that it was apparently tolerable for me to be in a sweater (albeit short-sleeved).  I’m so hot right now that I can barely breathe and there are days when I stay inside in shorts and a sports bra huddled over the air vent for hours at a time.  I can’t believe that when we started talking about trying for this baby, it never occurred to me how pregnant I’d be in the summer and just how sweltering it would be…especially since it seems like everyone who asks when I’m due makes a comment about how pregnant I’ll be in August.  Apparently the rest of the world could do this math, but it was too far beyond my capabilities.  I’m fairly certain that this is the result of auditing AP Calculus in 12th grade.  I should have known that Mr. Coty was right when he got mad at me for doing so…):

Week 26 this time around (I decided that although I’m fully aware that things are about to get a whole lot more impressive, I’d just bare it all with a bare-belly shot.  The sleep differential between this time and last time (even while working, I was getting a LOT more sleep than this time around — I routinely slept 9 hours per night without so much as a slight waking) is really starting to show in my eyes, but as of yet I still feel like I’m recognizable.  As I look at the pictures from last time, things were already starting to go off the rails at this point last time and each week I looked less and less like anything resembling Shannon.  I can tell we’re heading down the same path, but I’m hoping that I take the journey slowly enough not to reach the depths I reached last time.  I’m SO glad I never have to do this again…If only we could figure out an easy/cheap/uncomplicated way to have a third child without me ever having to be knocked up again…I’m not holding my breath: if science hasn’t figured out how to create and mass produce a seat chiller for a car (clearly a bias against those of us who are dying of heat stroke, since they long ago figured out how to put in seat warmers) then I’m guessing I’ll be entirely too old to raise any more children by the time they do figure it out.  It’s not obvious that my brain wanders for a significant portion of my waking hours, is it?):

See ya on the flipside.

Yesterday marked the beginning of week 25 in this pregnancy.  There’s not much change from last week in the way I look or feel, except that as the weather keeps getting hotter and more humid, I’m spending a lot more time standing on AC vents in my spare time.  The energy from early pregnancy is dissipating and I find myself with a seemingly insatiable desire to lie down from time to time.  I had my 24 week appointment at the OB last week and I was told that if I hadn’t heard anything by Friday I would know I was in the clear for Gestational Diabetes and Anemia (I didn’t, so apparently I am).  Aside from that, everything is going like gangbusters.  On with the pictures.

Week 25 in my pregnancy with Liam (You’ll be glad to note that I’m fully clothed in this week’s shot.  Also, this is the first picture that I feel is pretty close to comparable (in terms of stance and pose) to the pictures we’re taking this time.  I don’t feel like there’s much change here from the previous week, but that matches my current pregnancy since I don’t feel like there’s much change this time from last week’s picture, either.):

Week 25 in this pregnancy (The only difference from last week being that the level of exhaustion seems to be showing up increasingly on my face…):

Adios, muchachos.

Saturday marked the beginning of week 24.  My breathing is a bit better (in no small part due to medication) and I had one good night’s sleep on Saturday night, so I consider that a win.  My major symptom lately is that I cannot stop baking.  Now, at least I have the good sense to eat one serving and then send the rest to work with Matt, but it’s almost compulsive at this point.  Liam thinks it’s great because he loves “helping” me (he’s still young enough that I get away without ever giving him any of what I’ve made and he’s forgotten about it by the next morning if I hide it away and make no promises).  I’m sure people at Matt’s office are beginning to wonder what my problem is, exactly…Anyhoo, on with the pictures.

Week 24 in my pregnancy with Liam (This week I’ve included two shots, because it feels like neither one is really comparable to my picture from this time, but at least you can get a mental picture after looking at two shots.  Also, I couldn’t get the red-eye out of one of the shots, but that may be because I was mentally shooting daggers out of my eyes at that point, so no computer fix is going to help the situation.  Also, I apologize for the bare tummy.  Why I thought this was a good idea, I don’t know (although I make no promises that it won’t happen again, since sometimes it’s just the most impressive way to show how I’m feeling…my guess is that last time I thought I was pretty impressive at this point…I had absolutely no clue about what was to come.):

Week 24 in my pregnancy with Baby Girl (aside from the fact that this was taken at around midnight after a lot of driving therefore rendering me completely exhausted, I think that this looks pretty much identical to last week’s shot):

That’s all I’ve got.