18 weeks

It always amazes me how something as simple as a new outfit or haircut can make such a change to how you feel about yourself! I finally got to buying my first pair of maternity jeans, meaning I am not just restricted to the two dresses and one pair of track pants I still fit into. And when I say I still fit into two dresses, one of them was starting to feel like something I see girls wearing to nightclubs- my skirt was hiking up and my boobs were about to jump out of my top and set off on a quest for world wide domination! I'm starting to feel more glowing and gorgeous and less fat and frumpy.

It's looking like a baby bump now!

I have really been feeling better the last couple of weeks. I'm still very aware of trying to get enough rest, but in between my naps and long nights, I'm a lot more awake and even occasionally productive. I've done three loads of washing AND baked cookies this morning!!

I had been wondering when I would start getting leaky breasts. That question was answered last week when Tim and I were messing around and he got a rather unpleasant surprise. So far just a bit of clear stuff every now and then that apparently doesn't taste very nice (I'll take his word for it). I found it funny, even if he didn't so much.

I haven't really had much change in the way of my bowel routine. (I use laxatives and suppositories to assist with my bowel routine). There have been a few days when nothing has happened when I've gone to the bathroom, but since a lot of pregnant women experience some constipation, and it's only the odd day here and there I'm not too worried.

Fluid retention in my feet is something I often get. It's usually worse over summer, so combine that with pregnancy and I've had some pretty impressive fat feet! Some days it's been bad enough that even having them elevated for 8 hours plus overnight doesn't give them time to go all the way down. It's strange, but being in a chair, I have no idea when my belly gets to the I-can't-see-my-feet-anymore stage! To be honest, I probably couldn't see them past my boobs anyway.

Last week I went to see my GP. He has a special interest in spinal cord injury and I think I'm the only female para or quad he has of childbearing age, so my pregnancy is of particular interest to him. I'm all for teaching people, so I'm trying to make sure he is informed of what's going on. You never know who he'll be treating in the future. So the visit was just as much for him as me. I've been seeing him for several years now, so I feel quite comfortable asking him the silly questions.

 I've woken up with headaches a couple of mornings lately. I'm not sure if this is a result of dehydration, or my body telling me I need to change my sleeping position. At this stage I'm still sleeping on my back in my pillow fort, but from what I've heard from other mums, I should almost be getting to the stage where I should be sleeping on my side. I want to put this off as long as I can,because while I fall asleep quickly on my side, I don't stay asleep for long. I find I have to roll over about every 3 hours, which leads to a very broken nights sleep. I can't roll over quietly anyway, but now with this belly in my way, it has become a bit of an operation. So the longer I can put it off, the better rested I will be. I have still been getting indegestion and heartburn, so staying off my side is going to help that too.

Over the last few weeks, I've had a lot of people contacting me who've read my blog. One of those was a para mum who was put on daily blood thinning injections (I think she said it was Clexane) from 12 weeks into her pregnancy. This was to prevent DVT. It's not something that anyone has spoken to me about, other than to say I'm at increased risk and watch out for them, but it's something I'll be asking about at my 20 week appointment with the obstetrician.

One of the things the midwife commented on at our last appointment was my belly piercing. She said that I would probably need to remove it as my belly stretched. Sure enough, a few days later it was suddenly looking infected, so that's gone!

There have been a few belly flutters that I think have been baby movements, but it's still kind of hard to know for sure. I'm starting to think about names. I'll be looking at setting a date for a baby shower soon- I love them, the getting together to prepare for the baby! I'm very much a family orientated person anyway, so any chance for a get together! And knowing my family, if I didn't organise it, someone else would anyway (like we did with my cousin last year). And by me organising the baby shower, I mean I'm setting a date and delegating!

Well I think that about covers it! I may have some exciting news to share over the next few weeks, so I will keep you posted...