My Second Trimester

As I bid my second trimester farewell, I wanted to look back and let you all have a glimpse of what's been going on with me.

My second trimester began with high hopes that my nausea would be ending and I'd feel like a normal person again (at least that's what all the experts say usually happens).  Those hopes quickly vanished as the weeks passed by, and I settled into life of being uncomfortable all the time (no worries, this story has a happy ending).  My first several weeks in my second trimester were filled with aches, heartburn, and nausea.  When all seemed lost, almost every discomfort went away; this might have happened around or a little before Thanksgiving.  Finally!  I felt like a normal person!  Since that point, I have been overall very comfortable.  I have more heartburn than the normal functioning adult, but hey!, that's what TUMS are for!  In fact, I forget that I'm pregnant sometimes.  I'll sit down after a shopping or something and think, "Man, I feel full.  Maybe I ate too much......Oh, wait."

Lately, I've had almost an hourly reminder that I'm pregnant because Ben is constantly moving.  He kicks, punches, twists, and turns all day long.  His movement is only uncomfortable when he decides to hit my bladder when I already need to pee (not cool Ben, not cool), otherwise, I welcome the movement.  Ben's turnings are fun ways to help me get to know him better and make more of a connection with him.  There are a few times that when I put on a favorite song and sing along, he moves; this makes me think he loves it too (or hates it...we'll go with loves it for now and will be a future Warbler--Glee reference).  Garrett hasn't gotten to feel Ben kick yet.  Every time he tries, Ben plays hard to get.  I'm sure Garrett will feel or see Ben move soon enough.    

Overall, I have been able to really enjoy this time in my pregnancy, and thankfully enjoy all the traveling and seeing of family over the holidays.  Because Garrett and I were in Arkansas for three weeks, my family got to see me grow before their very eyes, and boy did I grow.  It seemed like one day I was pregnant and the next day I was PREGNANT.  Needless to say, my belly came in fast.  Besides watching me grow out of the clothes that I brought to wear, my family got to witness some of my quirky cravings and the reduction of my range of movement.  Getting off the couch, bending over, tying my shoes all are movements that take just a little more time and effort to do now.  When my family watches me attempt these types of tasks, I see the same reaction: a smile, a laugh, a shake of the head, then an offer to help.  As time goes on, I hope the offer to help will move into first place on the reaction progression scale.

I don't crave many specific things being pregnant.  I like to say that my love and desire of almost all foods has grown.  I have always enjoyed Taco Bell, and now, I love Taco Bell.  There are a couple of items that I wouldn't think much about before I was pregnant that sound good all the time now.  One of these nuggets is the Coke ICEE.  This is now a special treat for me and the family went on icee hunts while I was in town; it became a game of sorts, a scavenger hunt if you will.  My sister has always been an icee lover, but I grew out of them as I stopped drinking sodas.  However, being pregnant has caused me to reevaluate my priorities.  I must say, though, the icee is a hard item to love in the winter (especially in the middle of this Ohio winter).  I must sacrifice some amount of cold-hand discomfort to enjoy the drink that makes my heart flutter.  It's worth it people.

An excitement picture taken after finding ICEEs at a gas station on the way to Texas.

Too many icee options!  However, be warned, not all frozen beverages are at the same level of quality as the original ICEE.  I found this out the hard way.  Lesson learned.

Well, that's enough for now.  Plus, now I want an icee and it's 19 degrees and snowing outside.  Great!