A Sunday Night’s Tape Measure

Talking to other folks lately, we have heard pregnancy nightmares. “Oh, so and so was bed-bound for months. Nauseous for months on end. Barfing every day. Ankles that look like fat knees. Gassy…” And it gives us pause to reflect on the fact that Meg has had it pretty good. We have had it pretty good.

And so it continues. Week 32 begins tomorrow. That leaves us with 8 and change. And Meg is rolling right along. Somewhat literally. She is getting big(ger). It’s getting harder for her to put her shoes on in the morning. She grunts a lot, too.

But she feels, overall, great. Still in a good mood. Likes to have a laugh. And in fact, has an improved capacity for humor, making an actual funny joke perhaps 2 or 3 times a day. (Which is to say, one that doesn’t just crack her up exclusively.) What’s more, she’s chatty.

The week in numbers and stats:

• Belly Girth: 41 1/2 inches
• Still burps a lot
• Has reduced belly space for food intake (we have yet to eat after this morning’s brunch, 8 hours ago…)
• Feels need to stretch a lot
• Stomach itches
• Needs to put her feet up at the end of a work day
• Small bladder
• Heightened sense of smell (keener than norm.)

On Saturday Morning, Meg visited the Aveda Institute salon. She booked a haircut and got an enthusiastic stylist who wanted to try out all of his new tricks and gadgets. Meg was an easy sell. He started off with a haircut = 1.5 inches off. Then he wanted to experiment with his two new curling irons. He detailed every piece of Meg’s hair into curlycues, and said she looked like Kim Bassinger.

She was all ready to leave when he offered her a quick makeup session. He proceeded to cover her face in pretty stuff. Foundation. Lip stick and liner. Eye shadow. Mascara. She was done up.

Fifteen minutes later, he had given her all sorts of tips of the trade and suggested that her husband take her out for dinner.

When she came home from the salon she had, beyond the beautiful locks, a gleam in her eye. She looked special. Happy. Pampered. It was nice to see my wife feel pretty. Special pretty, not every day pretty.

So I figured – you know what, let’s do something special! So we fired up the grocery getter, and off we went to Home Depot, where we proceeded to purchase new kitchen flooring. A wife this pretty, Kim Basinger on a good day, doesn’t deserve to walk on this old kitchen floor anymore.

Measurements Week 31

Meg, relaxing at home, at the beginning of her 32nd week.

We’ve got, give or take, about 9 weeks left here. Incredible. Time has passed crazy quickly these past 7 months. Meg is holding steady. No real complaints. No real mood swings. She’s my even-keeled mama. And she made us roast chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, and brussel sprouts when we got home from Duluth today while I fell asleep on the couch with a book on my face. Now that’s living. It was a delicious and drowsy Sunday afternoon.

Week’s Data:

• Measurement around belly button: 41 inches
• Physical weird thing: She’s burpy.
• Appetite is decreasing some, probably due to Jr. taking up more space.
• Sleeping well mostly. Could use more on daily basis. Think we need to initiate the “Meg in bed by 9pm rule” as these last few weeks are going to require more of her.
• She had a small cold on Thursday/Friday/Saturday (sniffles, stuffy, tired) but it seems mostly gone by now.

Sunday Measurements for 2/17/08

We returned from FL this morning at 1am, so here are yesterday’s measurements for the week.

• Girth: 40 1/2 inches at belly button
• Mood: Generally up, still giggly
• Energy Level: Sagging at times. Definitely tired at the end of the day. Needs rest, and feet up. But she is good to go each morning.
• Appetite: Still no strange cravings, but she likes chocolate quite a lot, which is unusual. Overall appetite is down some, due to constricted belly space.
• Baby Movement: Jr. is really starting to explore his (or her, Tia!) space. All sorts of movement, and Meg claims that there is some baby response to belly touch. Jw has not confirmed this.