I am officially in my 3rd (!!!!) trimester!

I’m starting to run out of short shorts and tight pants that fit me well for these photos, but I really don’t want to resort to normal clothes, because that won’t show the change in my body as well, which is the whole point of documenting the bump each week.

The bump update pictures are also going to move a bit. I’m not sure where but I need to change backgrounds – maybe nursery!

STATS:

Her size:  Two and a quarter pounds – keep growing little girl!

How far along: 28 WEEKS

Total weight gain: 158lb (that’s +3 for this week for a total of 21 lbs). Not sure what’s going on here and why I suddenly gained 3 pounds this week. I did concentrate on eating more protein, however my calorie intake has been the same, so hoping it’s all baby girl weight and not the Elena’s fat ass weight :)

Sleep: Iffy. The key is to go to bed earlier- then I get much better sleep.
I know my body hates me because here’s what happens in my “going to bed routine”: I go pee, then go back to the bedroom to put some belly oil on. By the time we’re done ( hubby helps moisturize me), I have to pee again, so I go and, of course, sit my oily butt down on the toilet seat  :) haha Sometimes I don’t wipe off the oil, because I find it funny when hubby goes to the bathroom in the middle of the night and slides all over the place and swears up and down. Then I finally snuggle in with my sleeping pillows and try to go to bed. The second I get into a comfortable position, I realize that  I kind of want to go pee again. I’m not sure if it’s in my head or if it’s Alexis pressing on my bladder while I’m fidgeting around trying to get comfy, but it works like a charm every time. So I go pee a third time in what must have been no longer than 20 minutes and then finally fall asleep peacefully.

Otherwise I get up 3-4 times a night to pee and drink some water AND I’ve been having the weird vivid pregnancy dreams everyone has been talking about.

So far here’s what my virtual self has been up to in my dreams:

1.) while travelling in Iran, I’ve been taken hostage by Betsy Johnson’s  (I know WTH? note: She’s a famous designer)  swat team that flew in scary looking military planes;
2.) I have been chased by a huge big foot/monster looking creature that comes out exactly at 4 pm in a beautiful mansion where I was hanging out with some of my guyfriends AND Vincent Chase from Entourage
3.) Gave birth to Alexis ( which was absolutely breathtaking) and was taking care of her (but of course always screwing up and forgetting to feed her or leaving her somewhere for hours on end), but she was still my gorgeous happy princess and I was surprised to see that she was able to smile and laugh as a 1 day old and then learned to pull up in her crib as a 3 day old :). This dream left me longing for Alexis to be here NOW!!!

Are these not the weirdest dreams ever or what?

Maternity Clothes: Yeeees. Mostly lots of loungewear. But there’re also a few brands and items I am REALLY digging right now. Finally I am starting to feel beautiful as a preggo, and finding the right maternity brands has contributed greatly to it. Check out my weekly maternity brands feature. I have many more to show you for the next 2 months.

Food cravings : We’ve discovered the MOST AMAZING chickless chicken patties ( lol). They are made out of wheat protein and normally, even though I don’t eat meat,  I am all like “Ew! wheat protein, tofu, soy protein- not me! If you want the taste of meat, eat meat), but these things are tasty as all get out. It’s Dr Praeger’s Brand, one patty has 13g of protein which is awesome, and they truly taste like chicken ( well at least to me considering I am not a fan of chicken or any meat for that matter)

Food aversions: none

Symptoms I HAVE:

Heartburn – Mild to strong depending on my diet
Braxton Hicks –  occasional

I’ve been pretty asymptomatic this week- feeling relatively good and just trying to get everything done. That everything is 13 different To-Do lists on my Wunderlist app.

Doctor’s Appointment: November 17th for the final (?) ultrasound to check placenta, baby growth, amniotic fluid and other good stuff. I’m really looking forward to it because I don’t like the idea of my belly measuring 2 weeks behind ( even though,  yeah I understand- I was a small baby myself, I am tall, i.e. lotsa room, my ab muscles are strong, fundal height isn’t a a reliable indication of growth bla bla bla- still I want to make sure she’s growing well).

Speaking of ab muscles, aren’t they supposed to soften or weaken at some point in pregnancy? When’s that point? Mine are still rock hard when I flex them.

Movement: She’s continuing her pattern of crazy movement for 2 days and barely anything another. She loves responding to daddy’s voice and is always super active when I am doing my relaxation exercises.

Belly Button: An innie with a Napoleon complex.

Gender: GIRL!

Best moment of the week: Uuuummm…wow I don’t even remember what happened this week… I guess my 1st baby dream about Alexis which made me love her a 1000 times more.

What I’m looking forward to:

Getting shit done. It feels like I’m never going to dig out from under the mound of things I have to do and research. At this point I barely even do any work ( actual work), it’s mostly like this:  cook, eat, exercise, cook, eat, answer emails, cook eat, train for birth, cook, eat, get some super important work things done, cook, eat, work on the blog, brush teeth, pass out.

What I miss:

SUSHI!

 Look forward to 2nd Trimester recap soon!