Week 16 pregnancy update

Another week down. I'm now 16 weeks into my pregnancy!

I had my 16 week checkup yesterday and I was thrilled to hear that everything is right on track. I may or may not have begged for an ultrasound for no good reason. I didn't get one, and my midwife said they don't do anatomy scans (when you find out if it's a boy or girl) until at least 19.5 weeks. I'll actually get mine at 19 weeks + 1 day just because that was the only 8:00 am ultrasound available for weeks, and I need my husband to be there. The countdown is on.

Here's what's been happening in my world of gestating this week:

The belly

Looks bigger! Grow belly, grow

Especially in the dress I wore to my cousin's wedding this weekend.

I specifically wore this dress because it was the only thing I own where I look pregnant instead of chubby.

Weight gain

I gained 1.5 lbs. this week! That puts me up 6-7 lbs. total. I thought this quick weight gain was too much but my midwife said it's totally normal.

It's baffling to gain so much weight so quickly when you don't change your diet and exercise habits. But during pregnancy, it's also reassuring. It just means my body must be doing something right to grow baby.

I'm still gaining weight in my thighs. So much so that the tops of them rub together and I get major chafing whenever I workout. Oh well. I guess Body Glide is just as useful during pregnancy as marathon training

Symptoms

I totally jinxed myself last week saying the nausea was gone. A few days ago, it briefly returned. I snacked on an Odwalla bar at 4:30, by 5:30 I was so hungry I was sick to my stomach, and by 6:00 I was dry heaving in my hair stylist's bathroom. Lesson learned. I'll carry more snacks on me from now on!

And the fatigue is subsiding (knock on wood). I'm embarrassed to say how little sleep I got this weekend and how many hours I spent traveling. I was exhausted on Monday, but no more tired than I normally would be after a big weekend. I even made it through Tuesday without a nap. Go me.

I'm starting to feel a weird stretching in my stomach that can be really uncomfortable. Of course it flared up during the wedding reception and made dancing a huge problem. I already couldn't jump around like my normal, crazy self on the dance floor, but the stretching limited my movements even more. I felt so lame.

Workouts

Still going strong! The time spent walking the furball is now limited to 30 minutes a day. Every day it "feels like" over 100 degrees out, so any more than that is too much for my almost 9 year old, extremely thick-haired, black baby.

Weekly run down:

• W: 30 minutes elliptical, upper body weight machines
• Th: 3.5 mile run at 9:12 pace
• F: OFF
• S: 3.5 mile run at 9:08 pace in Maine, wedding dancing
• S: 30 minutes elliptical in hotel gym
• M: 4 mile run at 9:10 pace
• Tu: 4 mile run at 8:54 pace <---- I haven't seen a sub 9 minute/ mile average run since May!

Mileage: 15 miles.

Mood

I'm feeling optimistic! I still have my moments of paranoia, but they are getting fewer and further between. I'm hoping this dies down even more after the anatomy scan.

Random

Days until the big ultrasound: 21

Cravings: The homemade potato chip one from last week is still there. My family even sought out a place in Maine that carried house-made chips so I could indulge for lunch. Sadly, the chips sucked. Luckily, I have plans to have my favorite chips later this week.

Odd new habit: Putting ice cubes in my water. I refill my water bottle a good 20 times per day. Lately, I've been adding ice to my water which I never do. I'm not sure if this is pregnancy- or hot weather- related.

How traveling felt at 15 weeks pregnant: Fine and no different from when I flew at 8 and 9 weeks pregnant. It was super wonderful to have my husband with me this time to lug my bags around though. I'm not flying again until 22 weeks, so it will be interesting to see how this changes.

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