My Thoughts on Pregnancy: 20 weeks

Well it's official - we've made the half-way point of 20 weeks. Or at least the medical half-way point, who knows when Itty Bitty may choose to arrive. So with that I thought I would share some of my thoughts on pregnancy. Not that I'm an expert, but just some thoughts.

Speaking of experts, when you're pregnant you discover that everyone is an expert on what you should (or more often should not) be doing. From no lunch meat, to no soft cheeses, to no coffee, to more salads. You name it everyone has an opinion. It's been interesting hearing the different, and sometimes conflicting advice.

For example, my midwife has a nutritionist that I saw and they provided lots and LOTS of helpful nutrition information. A lot of it is just good common sense (eat more fresh vegetables and cut out process foods). But also work offers a prenatal program that includes a registered dietitian so I decided to take advantage of that perk as well. While they generally agree it's kind of funny to see how they differ.

My midwife's service is totally anti anything processed so her snack suggestions are always natural and preferably organic. Good in theory but not always practical and not always in line with what my body is craving. The midwife also wants me eating between 2300 and 2500 calories a day! Holy cow! But she only wants me consuming 80-90g of protein.

On the other hand, work's dietitian provided a list of suggested snacks, many of which were processed. While maybe not the best nutritionally sometimes those packaged foods are just more convenient to carry with you or keep around at work. But she only wants me eating 2100-2200 calories but she wants me eating 110g of protein!

In the end I decided to take it all with a grain of salt (which apparently you need more of when you're pregnant). I've found a comfortable balance in my diet so I don't feel hungry all the time but I also feel like I'm eating healthy and not gaining too much weight. We'll see how that works out in a few months.

Another area of advice is my choice to use a midwife and a home birth. Now this will get lots of people going. What I've found is most women, especially older women, are very supportive and wish they would have had that same option when they had their kids. Most men get a weird freaked out look on their face. I think it's just in their nature to be more protective and they feel it would be safer to have a baby in a hospital. Anyhow, it's been a lot of fun seeing people's reactions and educating them on the midwife option. We'll see if I actually influence anyone's decisions in the future.

I've also found that Clay and I bucked the trend by not finding out the gender. This has caused some people serious frustration. I'm not sure why, but apparently most folks feel "more prepared" if they know the gender of the child in advanced. I guess I'm not too worried if we have a boy who wears a pink outfit or a girl that wears blue. It will all sort itself out. I'm also enjoying leaving the due date a mystery. After all, why would it matter what date I told you since the chanced of Itty Bitty actually showing up on the assigned date are about 0!

Speaking of guys... I work with a LOT of guys and it's been a real blessing. The guys I work with have been very supportive (I think they are afraid of a hormonal outburst). But they always want to make sure I'm well fed and feeling okay.

On being well fed at work... the other day I had a hankerin' for a blueberry muffin. I could smell blueberry muffins and I couldn't get it out of my head. I've never been one to cave quickly to a craving and prefer to wait it out and see if it will pass. But by 2pm (it started at 9am) I decided this was a full-blown craving. So I was going to run to Starbucks and buy a muffin. Low and behold they were out!!! Seriously, the poor guy at the drive through must have thought I lost my mind. I returned to work defeated. So my boss sent out another co-worker and a mission and he returned with the best blueberry muffin EVER!! (See I told you I work with some great guys)

I've also been reading books and blogs and whatnot on pregnancy. I've definitely decided that everyone is different. Some women go through pregnancy like rock stars. A friend of mine said she never felt healthier or stronger than when she was pregnant! SERIOUSLY!?!? I on the other hand can't seem to pull it together. I need at least 10 hours of sleep a night (12 if I can swing it). I need naps on the weekend and I still can't shake the evening wooziness (but it has lessened). Oh well, some gals have all the luck!

Finally we have started decorating the nursery. Itty Bitty's room is currently a putrid lime green thanks to the prior owner's teenage daughter. When we looked at the house the room was covered in Justin Bieber posters and we knew the green had to go. Upon further inspection we've discovered that the daughter also had more posters on the wall than we had seen and every square inch is covered in holes (including the ceiling). So we've patched the holes and are not painting the ceiling and the walls. Pics will come later. But in the end it will be an awesome Star Wars themed nursery (might as well start 'em young)!

And last but not least pics of me at 20 weeks. It's been strange going through the physical metamorphosis of pregnancy. I think it's best compared with puberty where your body goes through a crazy number of changes in a short time and all the sudden you don't recognize yourself in the mirror.

20 weeks