25 weeks - 99 days to go

Summer School is over!!!!!!!!!!!!  I only had 2 full weeks with out school activities before it started, so I haven't really felt like I've had much of a summer break yet.  I only have 3 full weeks off before school starts, and I'll be on vacation for one of those, so I have to squeeze in a lot before then!  I ended up enjoying summer school.  The kids are not the same ones we have during the year, but even in only 4 weeks, they really grew on me, and I think I grew on them.  Many of them asked about Baby TB, were excited (as excited as high schoolers get - excitement is generally not "cool") to hear that Baby TB is a boy.  They were not happy with our decision not to tell people the name (that we haven't chosen yet) until after he is born.  I told them they'd just have to come back and visit if they wanted to find out.  I hope they do anyway. 



Today, we officially hit double digits - 99 days until my due date of 11/11/11.  I can't believe we've come so far.  It seems like we still have so much left to do.  I haven't even looked at pediatricians yet, we haven't picked a car seat or stroller, so much to do - so little time.  I know we'll get it all done, it just seems daunting right now.




25 week update
Belly Measurement/Weight: Up 3 lbs at my last appt!  Finally! 

25w4d

Physical Progress: Getting rounder, and rounder. 

How I am feeling about my body: Pretty good.  I'm sore sometimes, but it amazes me how much my body can do.  It does feel some times like the skin on my belly is going to split open, but I just lather on more tummy butter, and hope for the best.   I am hotter than I feel like I've ever been.  The end of July was really hot, heat indexes above 100 multiple days.  The weather people keep comparing this to the summer of 1995 - which I have clear memories of as the summer that my family got air conditioning, and I got heat exhaustion.  When it is so hot and humid, I just can't be outside long, I am miserable. 

Energy Level: Better now that I can sleep in and take naps! 

Baby Movement: He's a wiggle worm!  Mr. TB has now felt him move several times.  Last night he was talking to Baby TB, and I felt the baby start to move in response, so I lay down so that he could really feel.  Baby TB was kicking up a storm!  Mr. TB gave me this surprised look and said "Is that him??  That's not your stomach muscles or something?"I assured him that was the baby he was feeling, and he marveled at how much stronger the kicks have gotten just in the last week. 

Small progress

23 weeks.  I can't believe it's late July already.  I'm already halfway through summer school, and my first shower (the big one) is  a month from tomorrow!  We've started registering, but we still have so much to do.  We haven't picked a stroller or car seat yet - kind of big deal items!  We did get our crib and changing table/dresser this weekend, and Mr. Teacher Bud repaired the dresser on Sunday (it was used), and set the crib up last night.  He has been steamrolling ahead the last few days.  Which is good, because I am hot, and dead tired. 

from http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4358809

The heat here has been crazy.  Weather.com says that we haven't seen such sustained hot humidity since 1995.  I remember that summer - it was my first summer away at overnight camp and I got heat exhaustion.  Thank goodness my townhouse and classroom both have air conditioning!  I am someone who is usually cold, so I do not tolerate heat well. 

23 week update!
Belly Measurement/Weight: I think I'm up a lb or 2!

Physical Progress: My boobs are getting bigger.  I have a maternity shirt that no longer fits.  I'm hoping I can put off new bras (for the 2nd time!) awhile longer.  They are expensive!

How I am feeling about my body: Alright. My hips are killing me, but I think that's pretty par for the course.  

Energy Level: Tired.  The heat and the getting up early are draining me. 

Baby Movement:More wiggles, but still nothing from the outside. 

Let's Talk About Heat

So. How many of you live where it's warm these days? Hmm. I'm guessing all of you for the sake of this post. Especially since it's the middle of July, and July's generally pretty warm.

I live someplace it's hot. (Not as hot as I've heard places like Las Vegas or Phoenix are, but it's hot here. 100+ several days already, with two more forecast this week.) We also have really high humidity, since it's the southeast. The most obnoxious comment I've heard (for SEVEN months now) is some version of this: "Wow, you're going to be REALLY uncomfortable in the summer. You know it gets really hot here, right?"

Now, before we lived in North Carolina, we lived in Atlanta. It's been close to seven years since I moved from the west coast to the southeast. I realize it gets hot here. I realize it gets muggy here. And frankly, the weather is one reason I moved here. I love that it's 60 degrees in January from time to time. I love that I can wear skirts in February most years without pantyhose. I love that our pool opens before Memorial Day every year (and that our pool stays open until at least October). I love that if it snows more than once, it's a "heavy snowfall" year. And honestly, I LOVE the heat of summer.

When we were in Chicago two weekends ago for my shower, it was hot, but it wasn't as humid as it is down here, and I just felt off. I was dehydrated all weekend, no matter how much I drank. I had a horrible time dealing with the heat, and I was grouchy about it. As soon as we stepped off the plane into the Raleigh heat and humidity on our way home, I caught myself inhaling the warm air and thinking how good it was to be home. Since then, I've tried to notice my reaction to the heat on an ongoing basis, and every day when I leave my chilly, air-conditioned office, I have the same reaction--a huge inhale of the humid air that feels so good.

Now, this doesn't mean my body's tolerating the heat as well this summer as in the past. My ankles are usually swollen by lunch. I've started keeping them propped up on a little box under my desk all day, and I've switched to walking and jogging in the pool instead of walking on land for exercise. The exercise change has been a godsend--my ankles haven't been so slim since I got pregnant! Plus it's an excuse to get to the pool most days. I love it!

But despite the discomforts that go along with being pregnant in the summer, I really wish I could turn around and give the people lamenting my discomfort a real piece of my mind about how I feel about summer. I wouldn't change a thing about this pregnancy, including the time of year that I'm at my biggest.

How are you tolerating the heat? Any tips or tricks for staying cool?

Hope you're all finding ways to enjoy the summer...even those of you who are my climate-opposites, you winter-lovers :)
-Magnolia Bud