Not Me Monday: Pregnancy brain edition
Monday, January 25, 2010
21 weeks, 1 day pregnant
In the last couple of weeks …
- I did not load the washing machine, add the detergent, then walk away — with the lid open and the machine not started. I certainly would never wander back an hour later and peer at the soapy, dry clothes in confusion before realizing what had happened.
- I did not set up our new water cooler and then complain about the tepid temperature for the next week. The problem totally wasn’t that I never turned it on.
- I did not forget the password to my laptop — which hasn’t changed in the two years I’ve owned it — and try different passwords over and over for 20 minutes until I remembered it.
- I did not load the washing machine, add the detergent, turn it on, and walk away — with the lid open and the machine going.
Welcome to Week 22
Sunday, January 24, 2010
21 weeks pregnant!!!
Welcome to Week 22, Little Baby!
The weeks seem like they are flying by faster lately. According to my handy-dandy pregnancy calendar, I have about 136 days to go — and I’ve already been pregnant for 144 days.
Holy crap, downward slope!
Weekly re-cap
(Jan. 17 to Jan. 23)
Symptoms: Heartburn has stopped (providing I remember the twice-daily pill), sinus weirdness continues to wake me up, obsessive registering drama, moaning and groaning when I get up/roll over, difficulty bending down to pick things up.
Body changes: Belly is ginormous, full stop. And I fear I may have started waddling when I’m alone — although not yet confirmed.
Belly button: Still an innie. This is a new category, after I saw it on a lot of other preggo blogs. I figured this is the perfect week to introduce it, since my button is doing weird things. It’s been kind of stretched out and large for a while now, but this week I noticed it feels different on the inside. Like a tiny pea made of skin is in there. I wonder if/when I will lose it completely?
Energy level: Still high. Getting a lot done, but finding my walking speed is much slower. Especially while trudging uphill from the bus. In snowpants and boots. Yes, it’s Canada and it’s freezing, but I am the only person lame enough to wear snowpants on the really cold days.
Baby preparations: Registered at two different stores (department store, and a specialty boutique). Darling Husband won a diaper cake, full of newborn diapers — perfect for those icky meconium days before we begin with the cloth ones. Began figuring out nursery layout/organization. Second-guessed my stroller decision, and then finally accepted it.
Cravings: Fruit, especially grapes, and skim milk. At last week’s registry event, a dietitian said pregnancy is the time to really enjoy healthy foods, and that’s been sticking with me. I’ve been eating really healthy, and trying to eat meals and snacks with all of the food groups — plus, you know, chocolate-chip cookies.
High point: Feeling Little Baby’s first really strong POW kicks (a.k.a. golf balls banging around inside of me). I’ve felt them every day since Friday, and it’s awesome. I always put my hands on my belly and try to feel them from the outside, but I’m not sure if I can yet.
Low point: I was really anxious after our 20-week ultrasound, because Little Baby was not cooperating and the tech said we needed to come back since she couldn’t get all of the measurements she needed. But I found comfort in the stories of other women who’d experienced the same thing, and I’ve been feeling better since then.
Paranoid moment of the week: See “Low point.”
How many days until we know?
Saturday, January 23, 2010
20 weeks, 6 days pregnant
Darling Husband made a suprising confession yesterday. He is quite sure the baby is a girl!
I was really surprised, because despite what his friend said about the heartbeat probably indicating a girl, he has always seemed so certain that Little Baby is a boy.
Our conversation went something like this:
DARLING HUSBAND: I do think it will be a girl, though.
ME: Whaaaaaat? But you always call the baby “He” and you’re so sure about it!
DARLING HUSBAND: Well, that’s because I want a boy. But you want a girl.
ME: So?
DARLING HUSBAND: You always get what you want.
So of course, I did another quiz. God bless the internet and its random quizzes. According to its infinite wisdom, the way I answered these questions indicates it’s a girl:
- I refuse to eat the heel of a loaf of bread. But, um, I always have! It’s hard and gross.
- I am craving orange juice every day. Yes, I am, but I have always loved OJ.
And the way I answered these questions indicates it’s a boy:
- My feet are colder than they were before pregnancy. This could be because of something called WINTER.
- Darling Husband is also gaining weight. Yeah, because his insane work schedule made him give up his gym membership.
I was very skeptical when taking this quiz …
… you know, until the answer popped up …
If Little Baby is a girl, perhaps Darling Husband will have a point?
Stroller envy
Friday, January 22, 2010
20 weeks, 5 days pregnant
20 weeks, 5 days pregnant
Never thought I would be jealous over a stroller, but that’s the way the Arrowroot biscuit crumbles, I guess.
Let me start at the beginning …
While registering last weekend, Darling Husband and I mutually chose I chose the Graco Mosaic Travel System. See, isn’t it pretty?
Here was my thought process in choosing it:
- Graco must be safe and reliable — they are so many of them!
- I think friend C has a Graco travel system, and likes it
- Charcoal and light green are unisex, so it will work for Little Baby as well as all of our future kids
- I like that the carseat and stroller will match
- I like that we only have to buy one stroller
I was happy with my decision! Innocent! I hadn’t read a single review. I hadn’t Googled it. I just chose it because I liked the colours went with my motherly instincts!
And I continued to be fine with my decision, until one of my preggo Facebook friends just announced that she’s getting a fancy-pants carseat and stroller, and I had never heard of the brands before. Peg? Bob? What? Don’t you mean Graco?
I naively thought Graco was the be-all end-all of carseats and strollers, because they dominate the department store at which we’re registered.
Sure, I knew that there were insanely expensive options (like the Bugaboo Frog, Rebecca Eckler‘s former stroller) but we are far from rich, so I figured Graco was the “everyman’s stroller.”
But after all of this Peg/Bob information, I started second-guessing myself. I Googled. It turns out that a lot of parents hate travel systems — where you get the stroller and the carseat packaged together. They say they can be heavy, and bulky, and the wheels can be crap.
So I looked into the Pegs and Bobs. Mucho bucks! They are not as expensive as the Bugaboos, but still waaaay more than our $320 Graco travel system will cost. And that’s just for one piece — i.e. the carseat. You still need to purchase a stroller separately.
Plus, many of them are designed for off-roading and running, and I see myself as more of a stroll-down-the-sidewalk-and-through-the-mall kind of Mommy.
I decided that the Pegs and Bobs of the world were not for me, but I was still worried about my Graco decision. Was I making the right call?
And then, like a beacon of sunshine-y hope, I found it …
… a glowing review of the Graco Mosaic Travel System!!!
The highlights?
- Smaller and more compact than other travel systems
- Easy to navigate crowded/tight spaces
- Very light (about 20lbs) and easy to fold up
- Contoured handles mimic more expensive brands
As long as someone doesn’t leave a comment telling me the Graco Mosaic is a baby death-trap, I’m keeping it on the registry. I can’t take any more stroller stress.
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