3rd Trimester - Bring. It. On.

That's right, folks. My 3rd trimester is underway. I am 28 weeks and 1 day pregnant. Baby boy is supposedly the size of a Chinese cabbage this week - 2.5 lbs and 16 inches long. I would be willing to bet this one is bigger. He certainly feels big! And the new skill he is learning this week is blinking. As you can tell, I just read about this week in my "What to Expect" book. I was surprised to find that I was over a month behind. 2nd baby syndrome again - with Promise I read that thing religiously. Every night. Seriously.

here's the visual aid

I am feeling good. Today. The past week has been pretty rough. I've had a lot of pain. I had a good fall. And I've been an emotional wreck. Mostly for no reason. Today though, I'm good. The heartburn gave me a few weeks off, which was nice! But it's back in full force now. I am usually okay until about 2 or 3pm and then I feel it the rest of the day. I haven't been eating dinner much lately. But I do have my trusty bowl of Cheerios before bed when I can.

Cheerios have been a major craving for me this time. The multi-grain kind. That and Taco Bell. I crave Taco Bell pretty much 24/7. Why??? I try to limit myself to twice a week - which happens to coincide with my Mt. Dew limit. And thankfully Taco Bell sells Mt. Dew so it's a win/win. No other crazy cravings. Except that this boy has a serious sweet tooth! With Promise I craved starches - potatoes, pasta, etc. Which is normal for me anyway. I'm a huge starch junkie when I'm stressed - which is why my thighs look like they do. But this time, its all about the sugar. Which I do try to limit. And sometimes I succeed. I have gained 11 pounds so far. The books says most women gain 11 in the 3rd trimester. If I stick to that, it will be 23 less than I gained the first go around. I will call that a success!

He is a MOVER! I love it! For now. I do feel him starting to against my ribs a little bit. It makes me anxious. I started going to our family chiropractor during my first pregnancy and found that I had 5 ribs repeatedly out of place due to a cute little foot back there. I'm optimistic that I am stronger and healthier this time though because I have been seeing said chiropractor ever since. I am wondering if the boy EVER sleeps because I feel him pretty much all day long and every time I wake up at night (2-3 times if I'm sleeping alone, 5-6 times if I'm not). Maybe he will work his wiggles out now and be a super sleeper when he gets here! That's not unrealistic. Is it?

I do wake up a lot at night. This has been a bit of a problem because my mental stability is directly linked to the amount of sleep I get. So, my wonderful husband has started sleeping on the couch when he plans to run in the mornings. I can't go back to sleep in the morning after his alarm goes off, so this typically buys me an extra hour. It's a big deal. Promise has been sleeping really well and has reliably slept until 7:30 for over a month now (she used to wake up and just hang out in there, but once I know she's up I can't go back to sleep). That has also been nice. My only other battle is making sure I stay up late enough - if I turn in before 10 or 10:30 I wake up in the night and lay there for a couple hours. Which is miserable.

Overall, things are good. I don't do a great job taking care of the house, cleaning, cooking, etc because I'm tired. But I manage to keep food in the house, get to church 3+ times a week, and keep my girl happy and healthy. We're definitely in the black for now and I thank God for that every day. I am both terrified and over the top excited to meet our new addition. Terrified because I will be taking care of 2 times as many kids! But obviously excited beyond explanation for a new baby to join our family.

PS - In case you were wondering. I discovered today that I am DEFINITELY too pregnant to be washing the floors on my hands and knees. Its time to replace my long lost swiffer mop thing. My kitchen floor looks amazing today - but I had to lay down for quite a while afterwards! Haha.