It will be a while before I really begin to show. I'm fat enough to begin with, so it's not really easy to distinguish a baby bump under my normal belly.
Yet, I have started to notice a definite thickening right around the top of my underwear. It might not be very visible to others, but it feels different — firm, rather than soft, rounded, and thick. I suspect that it will be at least another month before I have a real bump, but this little change is helping me to feel pregnant.
My next appointment with the midwives is on Thursday. I really hope we get to hear the heartbeat.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Point and Pray
In Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America, David Hackett Fischer describes a peculiar method occasionally used by Puritans to name their children:
I opened the Bible and FB pointed. Result: Reconciled.
FB opened the Constitution and I pointed. Result: President.
Reconciled is actually not too bad, though it does sound a little defeatist. I like some of those old virtue names like Temperence, Thankful, Remember, etc. I maintain that Diligence and Vigilance would be good twin names.
There is evidence that parents sometimes shut their eyes, opened the good book and pointed to a word at random, with results such as Notwithstanding Griswold and Maybe Barnes.FB and I tried this method, first with a Bible, then with the US Constitution.
I opened the Bible and FB pointed. Result: Reconciled.
FB opened the Constitution and I pointed. Result: President.
Reconciled is actually not too bad, though it does sound a little defeatist. I like some of those old virtue names like Temperence, Thankful, Remember, etc. I maintain that Diligence and Vigilance would be good twin names.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Date Night
FB and I have decided that every Friday from now until Snapdragon comes will be Date Night. Whether we go out for dinner, see a movie, or just stay in and snuggle, we will protect Friday nights for hanging out together.
Last week, we had a lovely, multi-course dinner at a seafood restaurant. Tonight, we're planning on meeting at a pub and then coming home to some Netflix and Ben & Jerry's.
I am trying to savor this one-on-one time while it's relatively easy to go out.
Last week, we had a lovely, multi-course dinner at a seafood restaurant. Tonight, we're planning on meeting at a pub and then coming home to some Netflix and Ben & Jerry's.
I am trying to savor this one-on-one time while it's relatively easy to go out.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Give Me Red!
I'm feeling much better than I was earlier in the week. I only had one day of real nausea and it never got too bad. I have started to have some acid reflux, which is new, but not terrible.
Over the past week, my cravings have taken a strange turn. From 7-9 weeks, I was craving rich things: mashed potatoes, steak, chocolate, cheese, etc. Now, I only want RED things: cranberry or pomegranate juice, red Jell-O, Powerade, Starburst, strawberries, plums, etc.
I suppose that consuming large quantities of fruit, fruit juices and artificially fruit-flavored things is probably not helping the acid reflux situation, but what can you do?
Over the past week, my cravings have taken a strange turn. From 7-9 weeks, I was craving rich things: mashed potatoes, steak, chocolate, cheese, etc. Now, I only want RED things: cranberry or pomegranate juice, red Jell-O, Powerade, Starburst, strawberries, plums, etc.
I suppose that consuming large quantities of fruit, fruit juices and artificially fruit-flavored things is probably not helping the acid reflux situation, but what can you do?
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
In the Womb
FB and I just watched the National Geographic documentary In the Womb. Meh. It was not great.
Some of the footage was interesting, particularly the 3-D and 4-D scans, but the whole thing dragged on a bit. The segment on the second trimester was especially protracted.
I wish there had been more context. For the most part, the narration played over the same dozen computer-animated clips over and over again, without offering a lot of comparative information. The most interesting parts were when the camera ventured outside the womb to show an in-utero surgical procedure or . . . well, that was really the only time. There were 1,000 shots of pregnant women's abdomens — strangely, every woman in this movie wears midriff-baring shirts for the duration of her pregnancy — but those clips were generally static and context-free.
I would have liked to see more charts and graphs, more discussion of complications, and more discussion of worldwide practices and statistics. I suppose they wanted to focus on the "typical" development of a single fetus, but it was frustratingly vague and general. The narrator didn't even offer basic information like how much the baby weighed at birth, which took away from the particular birth story. If they wanted to do general development, they should have included more statistics and variations; if they wanted to showcase a particular case as typical, they should have given the specific details.
In all, it was unsatisfying. And long (90 minutes). And I found the weird blue, zappy-sounding neuron theme really unsettling.
Some of the footage was interesting, particularly the 3-D and 4-D scans, but the whole thing dragged on a bit. The segment on the second trimester was especially protracted.
I wish there had been more context. For the most part, the narration played over the same dozen computer-animated clips over and over again, without offering a lot of comparative information. The most interesting parts were when the camera ventured outside the womb to show an in-utero surgical procedure or . . . well, that was really the only time. There were 1,000 shots of pregnant women's abdomens — strangely, every woman in this movie wears midriff-baring shirts for the duration of her pregnancy — but those clips were generally static and context-free.
I would have liked to see more charts and graphs, more discussion of complications, and more discussion of worldwide practices and statistics. I suppose they wanted to focus on the "typical" development of a single fetus, but it was frustratingly vague and general. The narrator didn't even offer basic information like how much the baby weighed at birth, which took away from the particular birth story. If they wanted to do general development, they should have included more statistics and variations; if they wanted to showcase a particular case as typical, they should have given the specific details.
In all, it was unsatisfying. And long (90 minutes). And I found the weird blue, zappy-sounding neuron theme really unsettling.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Feeling Pukey
These past 24 hours have seen my first real brush with pregnancy-related stomach troubles. There has been no actual vomiting, just a general feeling of unease and tepid appetite. It's not debilitating, but it is annoying.
My sympathies go out to all the pregnant ladies out there who have been dealing with this bullshit for a month or more.
My sympathies go out to all the pregnant ladies out there who have been dealing with this bullshit for a month or more.
16 and Pregnant
Ok, let's be honest: I watch 16 and Pregnant. I have my TiVo set up to catch it so that I won't miss an episode if I go to bed at 8:00.
I find this show incredibly depressing/infuriating, and I can only hope that teenagers who watch it are getting the same message I am: your expectations for your deadbeat boyfriend are totally unreasonable. I don't think it glamorizes teen pregnancy at all.
Anyway, I happened across an article about the show that showcased a novel criticism. Jami Quesenberry, mother of eight, says of 16 and Pregnant:
I find this show incredibly depressing/infuriating, and I can only hope that teenagers who watch it are getting the same message I am: your expectations for your deadbeat boyfriend are totally unreasonable. I don't think it glamorizes teen pregnancy at all.
Anyway, I happened across an article about the show that showcased a novel criticism. Jami Quesenberry, mother of eight, says of 16 and Pregnant:
I found those shows so depressing that I am afraid they may encourage abortion . . . The one girl who responsibly decided to put her baby up for adoption, at least in the episode I watched of ‘Teen Mom,’ was still depressed with her decision after five months . . . The other mothers [on the show] had lives that seemed stifling . . . If a teen watched that show, she may decide to terminate her pregnancy rather than go through what these teens are going through.Well played, madam. Quesenberry has blocked the show in her home, presumably so that her eight children don't get the wrong idea about teenage pregnancy being all depressing and shit.
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