Pregnancy #3 Notes

36.5 weeks

So we're going to have a baby, like soon. I haven't documented this pregnancy at all. I was looking back on old emails and I used to send out a "pregnancy report" email to family and friends every time I had an appointment with Ryan. I guess that's what you do when you have a full time job with a  computer and lots of down time. I would record things like the baby's heartbeat, how long I waited in the waiting room, what moronic thing my doctor had said that day, etc. (My doctor really was a moron.) Being pregnant for the first time was such a novelty. I wanted to soak it all in and remember every detail. Being pregnant for the third time is, well, different.

The other day Zach and I were talking about our next house and discussing how many bedrooms we would need and, I kid you not, I completely forgot that we were having another baby. I guess that's pregnancy brain at its worst for you- you'd think it would at least remember that you are, in fact, pregnant!

I did a fairly poor job recording many details about my pregnancy with Brady and before I knew it he was here in all his screaming, devil baby glory and suddenly being pregnant seemed like the easy part. My, my how wrong I was. Pregnancy is hard. Your mind plays tricks on you. When the baby arrives and they put him in your arms for the first time it all seems worth it (and it is!) And then that baby grows up to be a chubby little 15 month old- he's walking and learning to talk, you have your body back and suddenly you find yourself dreaming of doing it all over again. Be warned.

One of the only entries I made in my journal during my pregnancy with Brady was when I was in the thick of my morning sickness at about 12 weeks. It was a warning my future self about how crappy those first few months can be. With that warning in mind, I went into this pregnancy thinking I knew "what to expect"- and for the most part, I was right. But does knowledge of the impending horribleness make it better? I'm not convinced that it does.

1st Trimester.
I started my first trimester feeling really good. I was running or going to the gym everyday and continued to do that even after I found out I was pregnant. Around 8 weeks or so the nausea kicked in and the time I spent running was about the only time my stomach felt right- so I ran. The nausea would get worse as the day wore on and by bedtime I felt like I was going to die. I never actually threw up but some times I wish I could have and just gotten it over with. Around 11 weeks I would be so sick at night that it would wake me up in the middle of the night and I'd be up between the hours of 2am and 5am- top that off with first trimester exhaustion and you could sum up my existence in one word- TIRED.

My skin rebelled with this pregnancy. I haven't had to deal with acne since high school but something about this pregnancy made my face go crazy. It was so not awesome. I'm just now getting out of that phase. Thank goodness. I don't think my fragile self esteem could take much more!

2nd Trimester.
My nausea continued well into my second trimester. With Brady it went away completely at 15 weeks. This time it never really went away. It lingered. To this day, I still get nauseous every now and then. It was pretty intense up until 20 weeks or so and then it eased up a little. I kept running until my 5k at 19 weeks and  then I did nothing for two months- not my best decision. I stopped running because my knee was bothering me and even though I walked a few times a week, I didn't pick up anything consistently. I gain weight like crazy when I'm pregnant and not exercising for those few weeks did not help. I think my biggest struggle this pregnancy has been getting so huge.  I was hoping to gain less this time around, but my body seems to gain the same horrible 50 pounds with every pregnancy. It's been very frustrating. I spent a lot of my second trimester low in iron. I didn't catch it until my 28 week glucose test and since then I've been on an iron supplement. It has really helped my energy level. Being low in iron caused me to be exhausted all. the. time. This definitely contributed to my lazy few weeks of no activity. TIRED seems to have turned into my constant companion this pregnancy. (and will continue after the baby comes I'm sure!) I hope we can be friends, but I just don't think it's going to work out.

3rd Trimester. "Your whole body is like a huge ball" -Ryan
Hello heartburn. I had never had heartburn before. I didn't get it with either of my previous pregnancies, but it's no joke. I've spent a couple nights awake with my throat on fire and I can tell you it is no fun. I finally broke down and bought some Tums this past week, so hopefully these last few weeks will be bearable. I'm to the point now that the majority of my wardrobe does not fit- and that includes a lot of my maternity clothes! I'm wearing shirts that I laughed at earlier in pregnancy. They resemble tents more than actual clothing but I sure am grateful for them now!

Despite all the minor discomforts of pregnancy (and I do appreciate and realize how minor my complaints are when I consider some women who have a far more difficult time with pregnancy than myself), I am really excited to welcome this third little boy into our family in the coming weeks! 

I know this post makes me sound like I'm a miserable, complaining pregnant person (which is pretty much true) but I am grateful for the opportunity I have to be pregnant- and even more grateful for the opportunity I have to be NOT pregnant again soon

- just 3 more weeks. :)

Stay tuned.