25 Weeks Pregnant!

I'm 25 weeks pregnant!!! I can't believe how quickly it's going by now!

Baby girl is as big as a.....

That's a lot to be carrying around in my body. And it is definitely beginning to notice it now more than ever. Since I've been off work pelvic pain is way more manageable because I can pace myself and rest when I need to at home. In addition to pelvic pain I'm staring to get more shoulder pain I'm guessing from my outrageously large boobs and lower back pain to boot. I'm so happy that I am lucky enough to have a supportive caring husband who allows me to stay home and take it easy when I need to.

Another new symptom this week is swollen feet! It's not happening every day but when it does my feet look like they belong on another person. It's pretty weird. Previously being a smoker makes me no novice when it comes to circulation issues. Before quitting I would often have ice cold feet and "death hands" as we used to refer to the corpse like grip that would shock the people closest to me and then sometimes I'd have the opposite swollen hot feet. Weird and generally uncomfortable feelings that I've been happy to be rid of.

Besides my little aches and pains I've been a generally happy pregnant lady. When I'm awake that is. I've been sleeping 10-12 hours a night and still waking up exhausted. I can tell little one isn't short of energy though she's more active than ever lately kicking, punching and rolling around. I don't think her movements will ever get old I still get giddy about them every time.

This week my goal is to start reading the Bradley Method for natural childbirth. I don't know if I've mentioned it before but I do plan on going  all natural. I see a midwife instead of an OB and I plan to use the natural birthing suite that's available at St John's hospital. I want absolutely no medical intervention unless completely necessary and I am trying my hardest to prepare for this. I also plan to breastfeed and cloth diaper the baby right from birth. Most of my diet consists of really "clean" foods. I buy as much as I can organic and ingest/use chemical free products and I really want to do the same for my daughter. I by no means judge other parents/people for what they choose to do this is just something that I am personally passionate about. It also ends up being much cheaper for us. If all works out as planned we will spend between $1500 and $2000 less than families who use disposables on diapers. Plus cloth diapers are really stinking cute.

Big development with baby girl this week is eyelashes. They're all grown in and she's going to open those little eyelids soon. She's still developing her lungs and practicing inhaling and exhaling.

Still no stretch marks showing up, but we shall see. I'm getting itchier and itchier everyday. I've gained a total of 16lbs so far in this pregnancy and still going! I made it to the gym twice last week but I'm going to try to 3 times this week.

The belly is starting to feel so big!!! I've had a few people tell me I don't look that big for how far along I am but I feel ginormous. It feels like the tummy is a separate thing that's just stuck on there it's weird. The shape of my belly changes a lot too. Its been looking round on the bottom and top but kind of flat in the middle, I don't know if it's how she's laying now or what but it's definitely different...

<3

My Pregnancy Fitness Routine

During my pregnancy I try to get in a walk with the dog at least once a week. While I was working I got my cardio in there. Now that I'm done with work I'm going to be hitting the gym 3 times a week where I use the Elliptical machine for about 30 minutes keeping my heart rate between 130 & 145 bpm. And finish off with resistance machines for my arms.


Before bed most nights I try to get some exercises in, here is what I do.



First off I stretch.


Then I move on to doing standing pelvic exercises....
I stand with my feet about a foot apart and stick my booty out then contract my abdominal muscles and pull my pelvis forward. I repeat this 100 times.

Next I do about 30 regular squats.

I move to the floor and start by doing the "butterfly stretch"

I bounce my knees up and down about 50 times.

Next I do an abdominal exercise, you start of sitting with your legs straight in front of you and your arms extended out toward your toes. Keeping your back straight bend your need to begin scooting your bum forward shifting between the left and right leg you take 5 paces forward and five back. It strengthens the back and abdominal muscles.

After that I do a reverse table top pose

 I dip down and up 10 times then on the 10th time I hold myself up in this position for a 10 count. I repeat this 3 times.

Next I flip my body over and do 3 different poses in a row. The first do I do about 10 times holding each one for a 10 count. Then end with child's pose. 

I lift back up and do this exercise extending opposite legs and arms. I hold the position for a 10 count and do each side 5 times.

Next I get up to do prenatal squats.

These are supposed to help strengthen your legs and pelvic area for labor. I do 5 of these holding the squatting position for a 15 count each time.


To finish up I do 20-30 wall pushups and then end with some stretches and kegel exercises.


And that's it! Sometimes I do more or less reps depending on how my body is reacting to the positions. I am by no means telling other people to do this workout. I think it's important to consult your Dr about exercising before starting a new routine.

24 weeks pregnant

This week I'm 24 weeks pregnant! Baby girl is as big as a....

I had a "bonus" ultrasound on Wednesday. Her estimated weight was 1lb 5oz and everything looked perfect and healthy. Yay! My sister came with me because Nick had to work. I'm really excited she got to see her niece. Again the ultrasound tech pretty much sucked but we did get a look at her adorable face.

She must have been feeling pretty spunky that day. She kicked the fetal Doppler a ton which was really cute, she's definitely got a personality already! She tends not to like things in her space when the cats/dog lay on my tummy even a little bit she kicks at them.

This week she's starting to develop capillaries which make her skin look more pink and less translucent and her lungs are beginning to become more functional. In the next few weeks she'll practice breathing through her nostrils.

It seems like she's becoming more aware of the sounds around her. She always reacts to Nick's voice when she hears him she starts moving around it super cute.

I've been having way more cravings lately! This week cheese was a big craving as well as fruit and chocolate. Watermelon has been a big hit with me this summer and I've never been a big fan of it before.

Symptoms haven't been too bad this week. I've been working through the pelvic pain and I have a chiropractic appointment this upcoming week. My feet have been getting swollen and I've been really tired lately, but nothing too inconvenient.

Now that I'm not working I'm going to make an effort to make it to the gym 3 times a week. I went today and it was great getting my sweat on. As far as my nightly "workout" routine goes I've only done it a few times this week because I've just been so exhausted. But here is what I generally do.....

My Pregnancy Fitness Routine


No signs of stretch marks yet! My total pregnancy weight gain so far is 13.4 lbs. One of the hardest things about this week has been accepting the fact that I am going to gain quite a bit of weight. I haven't felt very good about myself lately. Don't get me wrong I love my belly and I'm happy to be the vessel for my daughter to grow in. But it is hard. Every day I notice things getting bigger all over. I'm staying active and eating right most of the time. I feel like I'm doing good but I'm starting to figure out the gain is inevitable. You have to gain some weight to have a healthy pregnancy. Every woman and pregnancy is different and if I am one of those pregnant women who end up with the swollen bloated everything and the big puffy round face I need to just be okay with it. It's rough for me, but I'm getting there.

<3