How Far Along: 23 weeks! Apparently Bumbo Baby is now the size of a grapefruit, which makes sense, because he has basically taken over my whole torso. Like overnight. I feel like there is more him in charge now than me.

Best Moment of the Week: It was really super fun to interact with my niece and nephew (who most of you know are 2 of my favorite people) and talk about the baby (plus it was around a fire with s'mores in Pennsylvania- talk about best moment!). They feel we should name him Spaceboy, so that is a real contender. They both say they will play with him and hold him, though Wobby kept digging holes in the dirt with her feet and saying that's where my baby was, so let's not leave them alone for a while. I think cousins are one of God's best inventions (only second to siblings perhaps), so I am excited that some of our baby's cousins are excited to meet him.

I Would Really Like Some: billionaires frequent flyer miles and great seats! We were seated one ahead of the exit row (the worst!) in what had to have been the smallest Frontier Airlines plane in the world. I do not like you, stupid turtle plane, but my butt hates you most of all. Or really, the lady who had to keep letting me out hates you most of all. We have 6 more flights, at least, until I become a beached whale, so I am hoping for slightly more cooperation from the airplane gods until then. If not, we will just build a whole bunch of character.  

Most Interesting Prego Quirk: There really aren’t that many interesting things to say about your pregnancy (maybe none?), but people ask and ask, so you build things up to keep it interesting. For example, everyone wants to know how you feel about the sex of your baby. How do you feel about the size of your nose? Or your allergies. Sure, this detail can change a lot of things, but really, who cares?  If you are not careful, you can start to feel like these answers are not some of the dumbest, least interesting things you have ever said, because you say them so often they start to sound like they must matter. The truth is, there is an interesting, I am sure lovely person someday residing near my belly button, but beyond his excellent dance moves and excitement for drinking orange pop that one time, he (and his barely formed brain) doesn't have a lot of personality or activity to speak of yet. So you end up making things up or talking about your pregnancy woes. I may just start coming up with stories about this little parasite, and see if I can really weird people out with my claims.

Bizarro Thing No One Warned me About: You can wear tight dresses. I never thought I would ever look better in a tight dress than not, especially because I just came face to face with my first full length mirror for the whole pregnancy, but tight really does help you look like you but pregnant, instead of like you but pregnant with a circus tent. I know this is a generational thing, but I am glad to be in the generation that is not at all embarrassed of their prego curves, because like any body type, you are better off showing off what you are proud of than trying to hide what you aren't so excited about. Plus, when I see pictures of myself, it kind of freaks me out, which is fun.

And The Boy?: When I asked just now what I should put for this, he said "Ladies be exploding" then immediately looked frightened. I swear, I am mostly very nice to him and only get riled up when we talk about Common Core or bicyclists. What he meant is that I do look a whole lot more prego fast, which he is right about. We have been trying to get him to feel the baby moving, but he says he can only feel my heartbeat, so that's that.

Looking Forward to: This weekend we are going to see my friend Amanda and her very fresh spawn Alexandra (I know, I know, we offered not to come multiple times, but they want us there, so I will bring them good food and try to do dishes and so forth). I am looking forward to seeing the world's most regal baby, and for the whole experience to scare the crap out of the Boy, especially after the exploding comment. 

How Far Along: 22 Weeks! According to The Bump, Bumbo Baby is the size of a papaya, and it is getting eyelids and lips, so hopefully that is clearing up some of the face issues from the ultrasound! We could have a human baby yet!

Best Moment of the Week: I got up the nerve this week to try baby yoga (this felt like an accomplishment all on its own). I have never been a yoga person, but I always thought prego yoga was just a cute good idea. I really liked it, even though I felt a little self-conscious since clearly everyone else knew more about what they were doing than I. At the end, you just sit in the dark and meditate on your baby, how your every breath goes to your baby, etc, and I just sat there like a crazy person and cried. If it turns out I can't meditate without losing my mind, I might have to try another form of exercise laced with less public embarrassment. For now, I am really happy I did it.

Most Interesting Prego Quirk: Once you can feel your spawn move, it is weird when the baby isn't moving. Or sometimes you realize all of the sudden you haven't felt any dancing for a while, and it genuinely makes you nervous. Never fear, that sweet little parasite is a sleeping machine. It is still a weird side effect of the changes.

I Would Really Like Some: Maternity overalls. I keep thinking about buying them (The Boy is not impressed with the idea- he doesn't think a prego would be much help on a farm). I have really strong memories of my Aunt Gretchen wearing them when she was pregnant with my cousin Zach, and I just thought she was the most beautiful Prego ever. I feel like a white t-shirt, a pair of overalls, and a fresh haircut would be so cute, but alas I must be on my own, because they aren't really sold anywhere. The universe always sides with the Boy.

 

Bizarro Thing No One Warned me About: The public happy weeping ranks up there. I am emotional but not necessarily in a bad way? I definitely get sour faster than I usually would, and I find I am less willing to be cool with people's lack of support or some of the classic lines we have been hearing basically since we moved (saying "we will come visit after the baby is born" doesn't exactly give us a window since any time after November for the rest of our lives, the baby will be born- it is basically just saying "we won't come to see you this year." Also, saying any variation of "we thought about coming to see you, but then we decided to do something else" is just mean. Having these conversations over and over make me so grateful for visits like last week's with my Dad). I also have more trouble effectively swallowing anxiety and just going for things, which before this felt like a strength of mine. Being more emotional seems anything but surprising, but I like that I also feel uncontrollably happy a lot of the time. Yesterday, I was just giddy to be hanging out with The Boy. That part is a nice perk. 

And The Boy?: We are petty close to decided on first name (though I think we won't make a final decision until we meet him), so he has started coming up with middle names. He has mostly been trying to use twords (Gandlepuff, Voldevader, etc) or fighting for Gort.

Looking Forward to: Heading home for a quick weekend for my class reunion. I am excited to see some old friends and give my Nana and Poppop a hug. I am a little nervous about the flying, because it is a whole lot of flying, but I am a whole lot of woman, so I think I can handle all the travel coming up. 

How Far Along: 21 Weeks! Bumbo Baby is now the size of a pomegranate, which means it must have really filled out, since last week it was a banana. He has all 5 senses at work now (though the brain function thing seems a little fuzzy on the various mommy literature), so he can hear his dad sing and taste all the junk I ate this week. 

Best Moment of the Week: Having my dad and Amanda visit! One of the unexpected best parts (which maybe I should have expected, but still) is that when you have guests you are just on the move all the time. Even though my eating left a whole lot to be desired, I still got a solid number of steps in a day, so I feel alright about how the week went as a whole. It was nice to have family nearby and to share a week mid-way through this with them.

 

Most Interesting Prego Quirk: You can just explode into pregohood! A month ago, people still had no idea I was pregnant until I told them. Now, it's not much of a secret. I am shocked at how much my whole middle has expanded (it makes me question if I was just way curvier than I thought I was before). I can also see why people worry so much about stretch marks, because these things can seemingly get out of control overnight. I rub belly butter and rosehip oil on there at different times a day. I will let you know if it works, though I have to believe that God didn't make me both shockingly pale and not very stretchy. I have been see through my whole life, so let's hope this plastic wrap I call skin can stretch with ease.

I Would Really Like Some: More nectarines. Why are they so good here? Also, whatever the secret is to picking a name. I would like that, please.

 

Bizarro Thing No One Warned me About: Once the sweet little parasite starts moving, it doesn't take long before you can imagine it doing elaborate synchronized swimming routines all through your insides. One second he is one place, and then he is on the move. As things grow, they don't have as much room to move about, but apparently right now, he is exploring the paradise which is my gut.

And The Boy?: The scales are getting more elaborate, and he just generally seems more aware there is a person in there. He even let me sign us up for a small percentage of the various classes our hospital offers, so we will spend September and October becoming baby geniuses. Well, no. Not babies who are particularly intelligent. The other one. Geniuses on babies. Stay tuned, and I will let you know how to raise your children.

Looking Forward to: Getting to work on the nursery! We take our time, but a few odds and ends are beginning to stream in from those angel sellers on Etsy, and it makes me more excited to guss up Bumbo Baby's digs. We bought a suitcase shelf, which looks suspiciously like a trumpet case, and this only makes me like it more. 

How Far Along: 20 Weeks! Lots of things say we are halfway there, but considering the first 4 weeks you don't actually know you are prego, I don't think it counts. I will crown myself halfway in 2 weeks. The baby is now the size of a banana, which makes me think it must have really thinned out since last week. 

Best Moment of the Week: Finding out the baby is a boy was a great but oh so weird moment. I had a hunch he was a boy at the first ultrasound (and I referred to him as "Bubba" or "Bubby" in my head, which is our family's boy pet name thing, but I never really thought about it until the build up to the big appointment), and then as soon as I saw him in this ultrasound, I knew. But alas, we were still out over an hour from it being confirmed. First of all, the original ultrasound tech was new to the place, so she did most of the work, then someone else had to come in and check her labor, so the whole ultrasound lasted 2 hours. The first lady also said the baby's legs were blocking the view of whether it was a boy or girl, but then she referred to him as a "He" so by the time the second tech came in and announced the sex, we were pretty sure. 

Then, the second tech didn't just say it was a boy, she kept taking a picture of him up through the legs, put a green arrow on his penis, and made a "eh???eh???" face at us. We didn't realize at first that she wanted us to say it, so there was a long silent awkwardness as she just kept putting that green arrow on his tiny junk and making suggestive faces. It got too awkward. We have a video of it, but I am not sure it ever needs to be seen, as it is mostly just the worst. 

Some of my friends who have had babies suggested that learning this piece of information about your baby will really help you feel like you know them more. I don't have that feeling (I want to say these things because I feel like there is one acceptable emotional narrative, but it hasn't always rung that true to me). We don't have a ton of clarity about the name and it didn't change many of the plans that were already in place. Mostly, it makes me feel much more pointedly that we have no idea what the hell we are doing or who this person is going to be (though I am sure we will be fond).

Most Interesting Prego Quirk: Now that he is moving, he is really moving! Pag says Bumbo Baby is an interpretive dancer, and I think he is about as prolific as his father.  It feels like everything stays about the same and then it explodes into a whole new level of pregoness- your bigger, you feel the baby, you know more about it, all at the same time!

I Would Really Like Some: Perspective on my body. I feel like I just kind of exploded into pregnant, and I have to keep shaking off the (totally irrational) feeling that I need to be on a more hardcore diet and step up my exercising. I could definitely do better, but I know things are going to get way bigger before they get smaller, so I need to have peace about it. Plus, this is the first week that the parasite is literally feeding off what I am eating- he can taste! So I want to make sure to eat a good variety of food in case that does really make a difference. Also, I would like some Red Lobster.

 

Bizarro Thing No One Warned me About: The 20 week ultrasound is super long. I can appreciate that we want to get as much information about our spawn as possible, but wow. What no one ever told me is that the room is dark and mostly quiet (a chattier tech would have been nice), and every time they put new goo on, it is warm, so you start to feel like you want to take a nap. Then it gets cold and sticky, so you are really awake again. It becomes a loop!

And The Boy?: He seems excited that the baby is a boy, and he has a strong lean on what he wants the first name to be, so he will probably win that battle (it is nice whenever he has a strong affirmative opinion since mostly he just vetoes!). He has also been pushing going on hikes, so we did that yesterday (the long loop at Discovery Park plus a couple of getting lost-related detours).

Looking Forward to: My dad and his wife Amanda are coming this week so I am really looking forward to them seeing our house for the first time! I also think it will be nice to host, because we will be on the move a lot and hopefully will explore more of Seattle with them.