17 May 2012

26 weeks + 1 day

Allergies are kicking my butt! Ok, so they haven't touched my butt, but my eyes, nose and breathing have all been affected. I knew allergy season was upon us, but this year is possibly the worst I've had with symptoms for quite a few years. I just want the birch pollen to go away quickly.

I'm also blaming allergies and how excruciatingly tired they make me on why I didn't post this yesterday. By the time Mr Siili and I got home from picking up even more boxes after work, making food and watching a TV show I couldn't keep my eyes open., In fact, I was falling asleep half way through the show. There was no way I could think straight enough to post or take pictures.


Total Weight Loss/Gain: I'm up one more kilo: 10kg total (22 lbs) this journey. Thankfully I seem to be carrying it all in the right places: boobs and tummy.

Maternity Clothes: I'm starting to think I may have to buy some maternity shirts because most of what I have now just isn't fitting anymore. Unless I don't mind my tummy possibly hanging out, which I do mind!

Stretch marks: Still nothing! But my bellybutton is getting shallower each week. I also know my stomach is getting bigger because it's quite difficult to seem my lady bits on my own these days. LOL

Sleep:
Sleep is very challenging at the moment. I don't think this is due to the pregnancy itself, although I know that is making sleep a bit harder to come by, but rather allergies. I can't breathe through my nose most of the time, which means I have to be a mouth breather. And being a mouth breather is making me snore, which makes Mr Siili poke me so I'll move to a different position and stop snoring. I'm getting sick of his poking!

Movement: Oh, Paxlet loves moving! I think lately I've been feeling him stretch out a bit as I can feel pokes on the right hand side of my tummy and also down lower in my pelvic area at the same time. Talk about weird sensations.

One evening this last week Mr Siili and I were watching some TV show when Paxlet was moving about. I told Mr Siili to feel 'here' as that is where Paxlet was kicking. Paxlet waited a bit, wiggled a couple of times but not very much and then he gave one BIG kick. Mr Siili gave me a grin and exclaimed that was a big kick! I told him imagine what it's like feeling it from the inside and outside. Mr Siili knows now for sure that he has felt Paxlet move. Seeing the movement, well, that's still up for debate.

Cravings/Aversions: Still wanting to eat sweet things. But more so, I'm just plain hungry quite often.

Gender: It's a boy!!

Symptoms: I've got a whole list of them this week (although not all started just this week):
- slight shortness of breath (in addition to or in spite of allergies),
- tiredness (again, partly due to allergies),
- my fingers are a bit swollen (some rings won't be worn for much longer),
- my ankles are a tiny bit swollen (I've noticed some socks leave indent lines at their tops),
- my poo is the nastiest of color and smell, but thankfully I'm still somewhat regular (for me),
- clumsiness, I've always had troubles navigating corners, but now I'm dropping everything too,
- an achy tummy if I stand or walk too long without my support belt,
- these last few days I've occasionally gotten a very sharp and intense pain in my pubic area. It's almost as if someone is stabbing me with something very sharp, quickly and then it goes away,
and more symptoms that just aren't coming to this tired mind of mine.

What I don't have is heartburn, nausea, insomnia, spotting, pain, Braxton hicks and so many other unpleasant symptoms. For that, I am even more grateful.

What I miss: I miss sex. I miss wanting sex and having sex. I don't think Mr Siili finds my big tummy attractive, but at the same time, I really don't care to have sex, so I guess it all works out. Yet, it still makes me feel sad about it.

What I look forward to: The most immediate thing I am looking forward to is picking up my maternity package* on Friday. We got a notification in the mail yesterday that my box was ready to be picked up from our local post office, but we didn't get home until 7pm and the post office had already closed at 6pm because of Helatorstai (Ascension Day). So, I've got to wait until Friday after work to get it!!

The next thing I look forward to and also dread a little bit is packing and moving. Mr Siili and I have packed a lot of stuff, but there is still more to pack before moving day just over a week away. Ack!

Milestones: Paxlet is the size of an eggplant (still) or (the length of) an English cucumber!
We're nearing the end of 6 months and next week will be the beginning of 7 months and the 3rd trimester. WooHoo!

Medical concerns: I think I have/had a yeast infection, so I've taken the oh-so-fun medication for it this week.

This allergy season has really only just started and it's a bad one. My worst enemies are birch and alder trees, the first being worse. I am now taking 5 different pregnancy safe medications in the hopes of being able to live somewhat normally during this time.
1. I'm on my 2nd type of allergy meds, as the first one didn't work. I don't really think this one is working either or if it is working, it must mean that my allergies are even worse than I thought.
2. Eye drops, 2 times a day at most as needed.
3. Nose spray as often as I feel like I need it. It is supposed to stop pollen from attaching to the mucous membranes in my nose. It seems to work ok, sometimes, but it feels like I've accidentally snorted pool water up my nose each time I use it. (Anyone else remember that feeling?)
4. My regular asthma meds, although the dose has been upped to 3 times a day instead of 2 (and I really should remember to take them all).
5. Just yesterday I got a new prescription for another asthma med, but this one is to open up my lungs. This is taken on an as needed basis when it feels like my lungs are constricted and I can't breathe (even after siting at my desk at work for 3 hours like yesterday).
6. This last item of digestive enzymes is my own doing. I've heard that they can help with breaking down pollen. And especially right now when my digestive system isn't at its best from being pregnant, I thought this couldn't hurt to try. Really, I'm willing to try almost anything to be able to breathe and not feel like I have a flu.

Misc: We have boxes upon boxes and more boxes to get us ready for moving in just over a week. We've packed up most of our book shelves, parts of the living room, bedroom and hallway. I know we've done quite a bit, but it just feels as if we still have way too much to do before the actual moving date.

I know that I shouldn't be lifting too much stuff and over exerting myself, but we also need to get stuff done. Don't get me wrong, I'm not lifting really heavy items, but I'm also not just lazing around. Ok, I'm not lazing around all of the time. I'm not crippled, I'm just pregnant! (And that's a topic for a post in itself.) So, I'll continue to do what I can and leave what I can't for Mr Siili.

This week's bump pictures can be seen in the Paxlet Pictures tab.

*I'm planning to write more about this Finnish "phenomenon" called a maternity package soon. With pictures too!

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