25 weeks.....oh my, she's growing!

A pregnancy update.....

I feel like I'm sort of in the honeymoon phase of pregnancy....the good part....No more nausea, very little exhaustion, and lovely little kicks and wiggles being felt, without feeling like I just had the wind knocked out of me.

Of course, it's not been without it's issues...this week particularly brought on a couple of new symptoms. But after the first trimester...this is a cake walk. Earlier in the week, I began to experience some reflux....it was no fun....can you say, heartburn on steroids? It lasted for a couple of days, when I finally got rid of it by drinking a cup of peppermint tea. I so dislike peppermint tea though, so I was grateful to find out from my midwife that simply smelling some peppermint oil or even rubbing a bit on my belly can help alleviate the symptoms as well.

The other new symptom was something I was hoping to avoid this time....hip problems. Anytime I sit for a good length of time or even if I've been up walking around for a while...my hip starts hurting to the point where I have a very noticeable limp. I'm finding that doing yoga stretches each morning, and sometimes in the afternoon help immensely, but not always.

On the health front, I'm to the point where any greasy or spicy foods is a no-no. Thankfully with this pregnancy, and most of my past ones, I crave things like salad and sandwiches. In addition to the yoga at least once a day, I'm also working on making more time for daily walks in the afternoon. As the weather is warming up, it's not hard for me to want to be outside more, so I've enjoyed being out there when I can.

The midwife appointment this past week was uneventful as usual. I'm so blessed that pregnancy for the most part for me is a very easy going thing. I'm losing weight, which for me is okay, and quite normal. I'm down about 10 pounds from the beginning of pregnancy, and lost 1 pound just in the last month. Our little one, however, has been growing steadily and  she is currently measuring 2 weeks bigger than what she should. Abnormal for any of my babies, but she may have just had a sudden growth spurt, which I can verify from all the stretching I've been feeling in my belly.

Preparations being made for this little one....well, what can I say...she's my 5th baby, and if I've learned nothing else...simple is better. I haven't really even been on the look out for anything for her. I did make her a sweet little onesie dress though, and I've got two seperate wool covers on my knitting needles, as wool is our choice for diapering (more on that in a future post). I also found out recently that some sweet ladies from our church are throwing us a baby shower the first part of May. Other than that, we are currently making plans to fix up our kids rooms for them, as well as to make room for this little one in the girl's room, though she'll be staying with me for a while anyways. 

This baby is quite active....I love how every night when I go to bed, just as I lay down and begin to relax, she begins her nightly routine of saying hello to me. We lay there, for sometimes an hour, while I feel her little kicks and jabs, and I acknowledge them as I talk to her about how much she is loved.

Well....25 weeks down....only 15 or so more to go! What a blessing!