Pregnancy Week 30

Week 30:

Well, still running and that's an accomplishment in my book.  Even better is I am still fairly comfortable running minus the having to stop and use a potty on the run.  Most of my runs are 5 miles and easy pace.  I have run 604 miles since January 1 so all the miles have been pregnancy miles.  Not sure of exactly how many were pregnancy miles in December.  

Wow, hard to believe we are pretty much in single digit weeks for the countdown to Critter.  I had the last day of school on Tuesday but am still getting up in the morning to run early to beat the heat and humidity.  Sleeping in until about 6:30 or 7 though instead of getting up at 5am on running

days.  I have had a productive 3 days of summer vacation so far with cobwebbing, wiping down the kitchen cabinets (I do this about every other month anyways since they are white), majorly scrubbing the master bath shower grout and floor and weeding the gardens.  This get stuff done around the house always lasts all summer to keep me busy so not anything new or what they like to call nesting to get ready for baby.  

apparently I am all belly

Manfriend's brother and girlfriend had their baby girl on Wednesday evening and we went to visit them on Saturday.  Thursday night I meet up with a gal from the MRTT running group and had dinner.  Others were supposed to show up but did not.  It was great getting to catch up with Gretchen because she is like my sole running sister--we run the same long run pace and something just clicks when we are out running together.  Well, we don't run the same pace right now but she is super supportive of my continuing to run and knows I will be back for some long runs with her at some point.  Too bad we both have about a 40 minute drive to meet up for runs.  

fur baby having fun with all her toys as I cleaned out

I am still feeling great and have been taking about a 30 minute to hour long nap each afternoon.  We had our second hospital child birth class.  We learned 3 different rhythmic breathing techniques and Manfriend (and the other support people in the group with the mom's to be) were told to not complain that they were tired rubbing our back during labor because they might get the death stare and it's not like we can take a break because we are tired too!  I am like a breathing rhythm pro (thanks running) and Manfriend is a pro massager--all those hours rubbing my feet and such he is well prepared.  He kept rubbing my shoulders during most of the class while the other guys just kind of sat there in class on the floor doing nothing.  Our instructor also noted that we might get really quiet and not talk to our support person as we progress in labor and for them not to take it personal as we were focused on our breathing and such.  Manfriend just smiled and was like, "babe, you do this during races where you grab your water, stare off past me and then keep doing your thing."  Everything so far can be tied back to my running and training so hopefully we can draw on my experiences from running to make this whole thing continue to go smoothly.  Eeek!  Only 60ish days until due date!

time for a run

crazy Dreams:  some strange ones this week.  It involved rowing a wooden boat around smuggling rum like a pirate.  The other one had me flying a Jetson's like hover craft around a community that looked more like a college campus and searching for people hiding under blankets in shopping carts to save them from the bad guys.  You knew they were good people because they were in shopping carts covered in blankets.  If they were just walking around you left them alone.  

Pregnancy Week 29

Week 29

Had my first doctors appointment since week 24 and I am officially up 17 pounds from pre-pregnancy but barely based on them still having to subtract clothing and shoe weight--so after that probably still approximately 15-16 pounds.  Measuring exactly where I am supposed to with their belly measurement thing and Critter has a heart rate of 148 which is very healthy/normal.  Results from my glucose test--nothing abnormal, passed with flying colors and not even borderline anemic so no iron supplements for me (which from what I gather quite a few women need iron supplements so rockstar award for me not needing that).  I am supposed to start going to the doctor every 2 weeks but they are letting me go 3 weeks before my next check-up because everything is going so well but then will start with the every 2 weeks.  We had our first childbirth/pregnancy class this week.  Our first class went well and we learned a little about what to expect when we go into labor as far as where we need to park at the hospital, what we will see when we check in, they will monitor us for about 30 minutes before determining to admit us or have us come back later and then what to expect should things progress "normally."  The nurses went over the stages of labor and that our support person over the next few weeks should pretty much just do what we ask them to since we are most likely getting uncomfortable and those pillows on the bed are going to just keep adding up.  

these little baby deer (2) and their mommy have been walking through lately

Manfriend had his first Father's Day.  Critter got him a cute little book called I Love You Daddy.  My mom got us Insider Access to Inside Out passes to view the new Disney/Pixar movie a few days before it came out in theaters.  So I went with my sister and her husband to the screening.  It was a very cute movie but a late night for me on a Tuesday (got home at 10PM).  

Still obsessed with eating some form of Raisin Bran for breakfast, glass of orange juice, Dannon Lite and Fit Raspberry yogurt for snack, PB sandwiches, Goldfish Crackers, diced peaches with no sugar added and Rice Krispy treats.  Apparently my favorite dinner is steak and tater tots.  I have had more steak so far during this pregnancy than I have ever eaten in my life--we are talking steak once a week since about week 16.  Also really enjoying watered down lemonade and some sweet kettle corn popcorn as a snack.  Once or twice a week I am having a 600LB Gorilla Chocolate Chip Cookie ice cream sandwich (but only that brand because other ones are just a bit too sweet for me still).  

Crazy Dreams:  Something involving my cuddle bug Thunder Paws and she bit my thumb and wouldn't let go of my thumb even though I was twirling in circles to get her to fly off.  We are talking she was flying in the air gripping my thumb with her teeth.  But it didn't hurt.  

Can't remember much of my other crazy dream other than I was in colonial times and traveling the Erie Canal.  Thanks school for that one since we are continuing to learn about our State history.

Pregnancy Week 28

Week 28

oh, glucose tolerance test you stink!  Not only do you involve having blood drawn which feels like a little kid pinching my arm but you contain way too much sugar.  There is more sugar in your little bottle than I eat total for most days.  Gross.  

Manfriend went with me because I was unsure how it was going to go.  Blood is drawn to see how you process the sugar 1 hour after you chug the drink.  About 15 minutes later my head started to hurt and 30 minutes later it was a full blown headache.  In addition to my head pounding I started to feel nauseous from the sugar.  The "icky" feeling started right away but was more noticible/intense every time Critter moved--and all that sugar was a lot of moving.  By the time the hour was up I was happy Manfriend was there to drive me home.  I had a small glass of milk to squash the feeling in my throat from the drink and took an 1 1/2 hour nap but my head was still pounding after that.  Now it is just wait for the results when I go to see the doctor next week--my first check up since week 24.  

crazy dreams:

My friend Dani wanted a horse to dress up in a costume for races and I kept trying to talk her out of the horse while the horse kept trying to talk her into buying him.  We met the horse that was dressed in mermaid fabric while out for a jog. 

Later that same night I had another dream where the people at a coffee place didn't acknowledge that I was there walking around looking for a place to chain up my bike. The coffee place was located where a gas station is near my parents house so I told them I was disappointed with their lack of service and rode my bike away to get called over by a football coach as I passed their field to teach his athletes how to do form drills.  So I spend the rest of the dream running back and forth across a football field doing high knees, butt kicks and such effortlessly.

Loving Lately Items

Well, it has been a while since I've done the what I am loving lately and I figured since we are heading into summer I should probably share what has been a "must have" for me lately. Of course Sparkle Skirts tops the list of loves all the time.  They are my "go to" race gear and workout gear and more recently work gear for school.

 At 28 weeks I am sporting some mudd busters by Sparkle Skirts.  I love everything they make.  I've had to resort to "slouching" the skirts and shorts.  Basically I don't utilize the waistband zipper pocket and scrunch them around my lower belly since that is most comfy for my bump.  The beauty below is a group custom that arrived Monday called Purple Paradise.  My mom and I have matching hikers and now have to decide when to coordinate these beauties with our lime green crocs.  Mine will be making a debut on Thursday when we go on our Erie Canal field trip.  This girl loves not having to carry a purse or bag--plus they are one of the most comfy things I own right now aside from my over-sized sweatpants

 Next on my list of loves (although I have given sparkle pocket tours many times over the past few weeks at school to show how amazing the skirts really are) is this Neutrogena Beach Defense sunblock.  It isn't super thick like other sunblocks and has a good smell to it that doesn't scream sun screen.  With all these field trips and outdoor events coming up at school this is in my bag and has been getting a lot of use.

 Next up, my mom got me this insulated tumbler with straw in my favorite color.  It is great for my post run smoothie because I can wiggle the straw and it has a thing attached to the bottom that helps stir up my smoothie.  Smoothies are so good but I am not that adventurous when it comes to what goes into them.  Some apple juice, vanilla yogurt, spinach and some frozen mixed berries.

 Loving getting hour long plus foot rubs and massages from my Manfriend lately.  We've been using a few different foot lotions and creams but by far this is my favorite because it is very lightly scented.  As if foot rubs weren't heavenly enough this stuff really helps to relax and konk me out.  I am pretty sure I was asleep by 7:30 pm a few nights last week because of the lavender foot creme massage.

 Lastly, found this new running magazine at the Wegman's store a few weeks ago.  It is all about a "new" type of racing that is growing called Double Running.  Basically it involves running a 10k followed by a half time (an hour-ish) and then running a 5k.  Seems pretty interesting to me and I hope that maybe we get a race like that around here sometime so I can give it a whirl.  We have a great running community and race calendar here but I am always up for something new.

That's what I am loving lately.  Anything that I might have missed?

pregnancy week 27

Week 27

now running every other day because of the ligaments but still running.  I can be pain free if I do the every other day and am just thankful that I am still running at this point.  According to our bathroom scale I am just at almost 15 pounds total weight gain (I only weigh myself once a week).  I was just zonked out this week tired.  Might also be because at about 6:30 3 nights this week (when I zonked) Manfriend started rubbing my feet on the couch and it became lights out for me quickly.  Could also be because of lawn mowing, trimming bushes (lots of pollens/allergens) and Colonial Day at school where it was warm and we were outside most of the day.  

 Wow, I look a little huge this week.  Probably because of the cardigan I have over the tank top taking away my back and butt.  

I am not looking forward to my glucose test during week 28.  I have avoided sugary stuff this entire pregnancy because things of that nature don't sound good to me (cookies, cake, brownies, candy make me feel sick after a bite or two) and also most dreading the test because it means having blood drawn (ouch).  

Pregnancy Week 25 and 26

Week 25 and 26

Ok, so deleted the week 25 photo by accident.  Uneventful week but some crazy dreams.  We were on a  cruise ship and one of the games was guess who didn't brush their teeth.  They had people come on stage and then go to a room where one person would be chosen to not brush their teeth.  When they returned the contestant had to guess who didn't brush.  Another crazy dream involved a man singing a song while riding a horse (small pony) named Horace.  Hosted a baby shower for Manfriend's brother's girlfriend.  After the shower we headed up to the cottage to relax and of course Manfriend played poker with the family.

Week26--feeling pretty good still.  It's been getting warmer out and the AC in my car and at school is broken.  I had Manfriend carry the AC unit up from the basement to put in our bedroom window so at least I am cool sleeping.  Have been getting up before school to run so I can avoid the major heat of the day.

Friday night Critter had the hiccups (at least that is what I think since they were small flitters equally spaced) and Manfriend got to feel them too.  So first hiccups on 5/29 that I know of.  Manfriend has been great about making sure I get what I need to be happy and comfortable--even if it means a giant body pillow down the center of our bed so I can sleep better.  He also tells me everyday that I am beautiful/gorgeous and look amazing. And he isn't just saying it to make me feel good about myself since I've had a few clothing frustrations, he really means it.  Makes me feel good to know that he loves me and finds my growing belly beautiful and not gross.  He gets the best smile on his face when his hand is on my belly and Critter is kicking.  He's not one to show emotion but is always asking if Critter is kicking and talks to my belly and rubs it at night--love you critter and your beautiful mommy.  Makes my beyond happy to know he is excited.  

Starting to get swollen ankles if it is hot out but nothing too bad.  Round ligament pain after some runs but it is not unbearable and goes away.  Basically it is like a dull ache along the front of my hips from the tendons stretching to support the growing belly and weight.  It is fairly common and most people start experiencing it (if at all) much earlier on.  Fortunately the round ligaments for me decided to wait until almost week 27 to show up. Only 19 days of school left and then relaxing all summer and doing small things around the house.  

Crazy to think that at week 20 it was a marathon training cycle left until Critters due date and now we have less than that left.  Yup, I just compared the pregnancy to a training cycle (and if you want to get really technical it is 2 by 18 week marathon training cycles plus a 2 week "break" between cycles for a 38 week baby).