Phat feet
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
31 weeks, 2 days pregnant
My feet look like fat, juicy hams.
Fat, juicy hams attached to calf-like ankles.
It is not a good look for me.
Yes, the ankle/feet swelling saga continues. On the plus side, my puffy little tootsies are very amusing to Darling Husband and Little Sis — they love pressing their fingers in to make semi-permanent indents.
On the downside, it has gotten to the point where my toes feel funny sometimes, because they are pressed against each other like fat cocktail weenies. Ewww.
What’s the reason behind my lower extremities turning into meat products? Well, when your feet swell during pregnancy, it’s called “edema” — and it means extra fluid is collecting in your tissue.
Why your feet? Well, gravity! Baby is putting pressure on the veins that lead to your legs, and this makes your circulation slow down and blood pool in your legs. All of this awesome blood-pooling means more fluid in your tissue — and fatter gams/ankles/feet.
The “experts” say you can ease the swelling by:
- Resting on your left side
- Putting your feet up whenever you can
- Rotating your ankles/wiggling your toes
- Not sitting or lying for extended periods of time
- Wearing comfy, not-too-tight shoes
- Wearing support stockings
- Drinking lots of water
- Exercising
- Avoiding sodium
I definitely find the second item — putting your feet up — helps a lot. As for some of the other “tips,” it will be a cold day in hell the day I buy “support stockings.”
SUV envy
Monday, April 5, 2010
31 weeks, 1 day pregnant
8:30 a.m.: Oooh, I’m so glad Mom let me borrow her SUV for a couple of days, so I don’t have to ride on the stupid bus. Yayyyyy!
8:35 a.m.: Wow, I’m so high up! God, I miss our SUV.
8:36 a.m.: Mom has weird taste in CDs. There are two TV theme song discs. Where do you even buy stuff like that?
8:37 a.m.: Who cares about the music, because I’m ridin’ high in my big fancy SUV! I missed this so much! Look at all of those puny cars down there!
8:48 a.m.: Wow, I’m almost at work already — and I left so late! Maybe we should buy a second vehicle …
8:49 a.m.: WHAT THE F–K??? I turned into the parking lot at work, and the car just turned itself off! OFF!
8:50 a.m.: Was able to turn the car back on, and finish pulling into the spot. Aughhh — did I break my mom’s SUV? CRAP!
8:51 a.m.: What is it going to cost to fix this? OH MY GOD.
8:52 a.m.: Darling Husband to the rescue. Apparently trucks and SUVs sometimes shut off if you make a sharp turn. Mom’s car is fine. *Sigh of relief*
8:53 a.m.: I think this is God’s way of confirming that we should not buy a second vehicle. Yes, I am definitely taking this as a sign.
Welcome to Week 32
Sunday, April 4, 2010 (Easter)
31 weeks pregnant — now in Week 32!
Week 32! If I could, I would do a cartwheel or something. But I definitely can’t, so how about I just sit here sipping from my ginormous ever-present water glass? And maybe eat a banana in celebration?
I forgot to follow-up on last week’s OBGYN appointment. It was pretty awful, in the sense that Dr. L’s replacement was the devil in scrubs. Seriously.
Her name was Dr. H, and she was a hippie — dressed in an ugly Christmas sweater and sneakers — and spent the whole appointment trying to talk us out of the circumcision. Nice.
She did confirm that there is one doctor in town who does it, we can be referred to him at the time of the birth, and she thinks it’s about $500. She was a total witch, though, so I am PRAYING I do not have her for the birth. I think I would strangle her with the IV.
Other than that (i.e. her), it was a good appointment. His heartbeat was nice and strong, my blood pressure and pee sample were perfect — hooray for no pre-eclampsia — and I’m measuring 31 cm (slightly ahead, but only by half a week). The nurse also said his head was down, which means he’s in the labour position. Hope he stays there!
I go back again on April 13 — only two weeks between every appointment now, eek! — and I’ll be getting bloodwork two days beforehand, to test my iron levels.
Here’s what happening with Baby Boy this week:
Baby’s size: He weighs about 3.7 pounds and measures about 17 inches long! From now on, he’ll gain about 0.5 pounds every single week.
Development: His fingernails have grown long enough that they reach the tip of his fingers. He might even be smiling in there, or sticking his tongue out and making faces. Awww.
Appearance: He’s still packing on more weight, and his face is supposedly rounder and cuter than ever before.
Weekly re-cap
(March 28 to April 3)
Symptoms: Swollen ankles, the-semi-cold, pressure on my bladder when I walk around, clumsiness.
Body changes: I think Mom put it best, when she saw me yesterday and her eyes bugged out. “You … you look bigger than you did when I saw you a week ago! … And it’s so low!”
Belly button: Still in (barely) and very small/wrinkled. Everyone’s guessing that it’s in to stay, and that’s fine by me!
Baby movement: Feeling the occasional lurch/roll, but more often it’s just kicks from hands/feet/elbows/knees (pffft, like I can tell them apart). Sometimes it feels more light and tingly, and I like to think those are his fingers or toes just brushing against me. For the zillionth time, I wish I had an at-home ultrasound machine.
What’s new? I’ve only started noticing the dropsies this week. It’s annoying! CAN’T. BEND. DOWN. TO. RETRIEVE. UGH.
Energy level: Going downhill fast.
Baby preparations: Nursery is totally done and stocked. We have the travel system and Playard, and are just waiting for the glider to arrive.
Cravings: Nothing noticeable this week. Although Darling Husband made us strawberry shortcakes last night, and they were freaking incredible. I had two. Mmmmm.
High point: Getting the last major item we needed — the Playard — and setting it up in our bedroom. I was thrilled to get it on sale for $97, and it’s so exciting to see it all set up and waiting for Baby Boy.
Low point: The low-ness of the baby has made walking really uncomfortable sometimes. It makes me want to hunch over forward and grab the underside of my belly — which basically means touching my crotch — because it’s like having a sack of potatoes shoved into the top of your underwear. Beautiful imagery, right?
I’ve got the dropsies!
Saturday, April 3, 2010
30 weeks, 6 days pregnant
Lately I am the clumsiest fool you have ever seen! I have no idea what has gotten into me! Oh right: a baby.
Clumsiness is super-common in pregnancy, especially in the last couple of months. Supposedly it is because your center of gravity has shifted, and your joints have loosened (ew!).
Since puberty, I have been a clumsy person — brushing against walls, misjudging doorways and banging into the sides, etc. But I’ve never been a huge “dropper.” Lately that is all I’m capable of — dropping stuff! Dropping everything! Picking something up and then dropping it again!
It has gotten to the point where I reach into my underwear drawer, grab a pair of (ginormous maternity) undies, and then drop them while I’m reaching into for a (ginormous maternity) bra. I reach down, pick up the underwear, straighten up again, and then drop the bra while I’m reaching for my socks.
The fact that I am dropping everything lately — hairclips, pens, food, the remote — means that I need to bend over and pick it all up. And let me tell you: pregnant women do not like bending over. We hate it, almost as much as I have started to hate salad.
I think I should invest in one of those reaching tools, and carry it around with me for picking up everything I drop. Or buy a taller dog, who can actually pick things up and hand them to me.
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