Halfway

I'm at Week 20 (!) and I have a feeling the second half is going to go more slowly. Weeks 1-5 were a breeze, considering 2 of them are pre-conception and the other 3 went by before we knew we were pregnant.

The baby weighs about 10-11 ounces and has been moving a lot. The novelty hasn't worn off; sometimes I'll just sit out on the porch and feel the baby move. To further describe this feeling, it started with the intensity of a muscle twitch. Now (a week and a half later) it feels like a newborn kitten - minus the claws - squirming around. (Newborn kitten? Yeah, I was trying to think of something delicate but pronounced. But I thought you didn't like cats or even kitten prints. Yeah, but kittens are so darn sweet and that doesn't mean I like to decorate with them.)

In general I feel good, although I've noticed getting winded more easily, even walking up the stairs. I do walk with the dog (and Mom or Steve) about 3x a week, so it's not that I have a sedentary lifestyle, and it's not that I've gained so much weight that my body can't handle it.

My skin is definitely producing more oil (read: glowing). Heartburn? Check. (Curses to you, dang progesterone!) Snoring? Check. (Thank you, estrogen, for the swollen mucous membranes.)

Excitement for the week (other than an ultrasound this afternoon): Pedicure scheduled for Friday morning. With Mom. At a spa, and not just the normal place I'd go to.

What? What did you say? Oh yeah, The Ultrasound That Actually Looks Like Something. Steve and I agree that there are good things and bad things with each outcome, but we are each kinda hoping for a mini-me. We're trying to figure out consolation prizes, like if the baby is a girl I will help Steve bottle the next batch of beer, and if it's a boy Steve will cook me a steak dinner. Maybe he should do that anyway because my expanding blood volume could use the iron. Hmmm....

Please forgive me if I do not share with you the gender of our baby after the ultrasound. If you ask me I will tell you that it was inconclusive. I know this makes me a terrible person, and I’ll just have to learn to live with myself.