Pregnancy Diaries: Week 27

This week I have been experiencing the start of braxton hicks contractions. At 27 weeks these are happening a little earlier than I expected. The feeling is hard to describe if you haven't had them before but I would say they feel a bit like someone is tightening a belt around the middle of your stomach and it goes hard. To look at,  it's like the baby has curled into a ball and everything is more compact. I have found myself breathing through the braxton hicks, which does feel a bit silly considering it's not as if I'm in full labour with the pain taking it's toll. However they can be uncomfortable and the deep, controlled breathing gives me something else to focus on instead of thinking about the tightening's. These have been happening most days so I'm hoping they don't get more intense just yet. With the baby only being the size of a cauliflower, 14.5 inches long and weighing around 2 lbs, there is still some cooking left to be done in there!

In the last few days I have also noticed a feeling like the babies foot coming out! Obviously this is not the case but sometimes when I'm standing, there is the sensation of this little one lying low as if something is going to appear. I did have this in my last pregnancy so I know there is nothing wrong, it just feels really weird *pulls strange face*.

I initially thought this was the first week of my third trimester but turns out that's not until next week, oops, so as this is the LAST week of my SECOND trimester I have put together some pictures of my growing bump side by side to compare the weeks. A lot can change in 27 weeks.

Week 5 * Week 17 * Week 23

Week 25 * Week 26 * Week 27

Pregnancy Diaries: Week 26

This hasn't been my best week with no real reason other than hormones to blame I guess. I have been feeling extremely tired and rather emotional. I could cry about nothing and everything, and have found myself waking up on the wrong side of bed which has only served to make the days more frustrating. One day I even got upset because I felt so uncomfortable with baby taking up all the space, that there was no room left for dinner. FYI - I love my food!
My red and inflamed skin hasn't helped. Despite my taking anti-histamines, the itchiness has returned resulting in me spending a couple of nights lying awake scratching, applying cream then repeating the process until I could no longer keep my eyes open. It is really taking it's toll one me now as it affects every aspect of my day from showering, the clothes I wear, being in the kitchen to something as simple as my holding my children's hands. As I have said previously, I am I prone to mild eczema on occasion generally and is apparently common for it to become worse when pregnant although have never experienced the condition to this severe extent.  I swear I could open up a pharmacy with the creams I have collected during this pregnancy but to no avail.

As I get closer to my due date, there is a part of me beginning to feel sad I will never carry another baby, feeling a kick and sharing special moments between my baby and I that no one else gets to encounter. On the other hand, I can't help but think of the day when hopefully my hormones revert back to normal and I don't need to live in constant pain. The things we do for our children huh?!

Pregnancy Diaries: Catch Up Week 20 Half Way There!

The best part of getting to week 20 was having our second scan. We took the kids along with us so they could be part of the experience, which I was super excited about. However, whilst they understood that what they were seeing on the screen was the baby, I think they found it hard to make out what was what. Other than the heart and feet, it was all a bit of a blur to them but to be fair, the hospital was short staffed and it did feel like the sonographer whizzed through everything. The main thing though, is that the baby is healthy and growing as it should.

We decided not to find out the sex, unlike with our last two, as I would like to have a surprise at the end, even though my husband is to keen to know. I just feel that this is the last time we are going to do this and want to make the most of every moment. I would like to know what it feels like to be in labour and have the excitement of wondering whether we are going to be handed a boy or girl and thankfully my darling better half was happy to go along with my preference.

Having had two children already, means that I know what items we need straight away and what things can wait a couple of weeks or months after the baby arrives. So whilst I do want to go down the route of dressing or co-ordinating colours to suit the gender, I know that I don't necessarily need to have everything the baby will use in it's first six months of life, before it is born. This makes my decision for a surprise less stressful however I do understand why people feel they need to know so they can be more organised before the kaos begins.
Having said all of this, it hasn't stopped myself or everyone else trying to have guess at what we may be having. The majority say it's a boy, guess we'll find out in 20 weeks time!

Pregnancy Diaries: Catch Up Weeks 16 &17

Week 16

These last couple of weeks I have noticed the exhaustion returning. I did suffer from fatigue in the very beginning of this pregnancy and maybe the sickness then made me less aware of the tiredness but recently I've felt floored again. Everybody has been saying how they had so much energy in their second trimester, well I'm still waiting!

16wks + 7days

On the up side though my bump is slowly starting to appear. It starts off small in the morning and doubles in size by the evening. I'm used to having a strong abdomen so the strangest part for me is losing my centre of balance. My husband laughs at me struggling to go from lying down to sitting up as he reminds me I still have a long way to go and am only going to get bigger. Oh the joys :)

Week 17

I am ashamed to say that this week I have conformed to such an obvious stereotype in pregnancy, a craving for gherkins. I saw them on television one night and went to buy them the following day. Thinking a small jar would be sufficient was a mistake as they were gone in one sitting. They were followed by subsequent large jars which I have munched on in an evening to stop me from reaching for things from the naughty cupboard.

Cravings aside, I made the decision to slot in some kind of workout into daily life again. Walking has been a great way for me to feel active and listening to up tempo music helps me to keep to a pace that is fast enough to get my heart rate up whilst not being too vigorous at the same time. There are also a couple of channels on Sky TV that airs numerous workout programs that I have recorded and done when I felt like doing something different. This is a great way to workout in the privacy of the living room with variety rather than buying one of the many workout dvd's on the market which I would be likely to do once or twice before getting bored. However it is important that certain movements are adapted to suit the different stages of pregnancy so if anyone is thinking of doing this make sure you know what is safe for you before starting a workout.

xxx

Pregnancy: Catch Up Weeks 14 & 15

Week 14

I have been feeling a lot more human these last few days which is a relief, I'm only feeling dodgy in the evenings now and as a result, I can't stop eating! I am thinking about food constantly and am having something every hour or less. At my 12 week scan they took my height and weight and found I had lost half a stone so all this munching away will have me back to my usual weight in no time. I have changed my diet slightly since my appetite has increased as when I was struggling to eat I made sure to have higher calorie foods so am making a conscious effort to eat better. It's simple things like going back to brown bread, pasta and rice which I ate before my morning sickness began and eating meat again as I had more or less gone of it unless I was eating out. My diet is by no means perfect but at least now I'm consuming the good with the bad, whereas before (other than grapes) I felt I was eating mostly rubbish just to survive.

Week 15

Things are slightly expanding this week and have bought my first pair of maternity jeans from Zara. I wasn't expecting to get anything, however they had a sale on so I picked up the jeans, two longer jumpers and tops for just under £50 (I love a bargain!). The only down side to the jeans is that they don't have an adjustable waist band so I am having to wear a belt with them until my tummy fills out some more but for £12.99 I can't really complain too much. For the top half  I either went up one size or chose box cut tops which allow plenty of room for a growing belly. If you notice I have a thing for black and grey but have promised myself I will introduce colour when we get some sun.

All from Zara excluding the grey striped tee from Topshop

xxx