Feeling Dizzy

Yesterday as I went for lunch I started to feel a teeny bit light-headed. I ate my lunch in a park and felt okay but after that when I started walking back to work I started feeling more dizzy and weak so I went and sat somewhere for a good 15-20 minutes reading a paper until I felt I could make it back to work. At the office though I continued to feel weak and dizzy so I laid down in our conference room with the door closed and drank some water. I dozed for a little while and I was in there for a good 45 minutes until I felt well enough to return to my desk. Then I was feeling upset and lonely and wanted my partner here but he's in Spokane again until tonight (I haven't seen him since last Tuesday evening).

I called into my OB as I had felt a little dizzy in New York as well, plus I had been having a little ankle swelling. The nurse called me back and said it was most likely related to my recent travel and being out of my routine and suggested that I should drink more water and not do any aerobic exercise for a while. She said since it hadn't been a full day since I had been back that I should just see if I feel better over the next few days. My next OB appt is next Wed. but she said to come in sooner to have my blood pressure checked if I wasn't feeling better. She also said it is possible that demands on my blood volume might be increasing right now and that drinking more water would help with that.

I had to stay at work for a good while longer as I drove to work yesterday and I wanted to make sure I was okay driving home. At home I made sure to drink water and rest on the couch and then I made dinner and camped out on the couch some more. I went to bed at 9pm and by this morning my ankles swelling had gone down and I'm feeling okay.

It just made me feel so vulnerable and alone. I just want to see my partner -- and to have him understand how much things are really starting to change for me physically. He's been working too much all year long though (like 10-14 hour days) and weekends and I'm really feeling like I want him to be there for me more now.

I told him I wasn't sure if I wanted to fly to L.A. for thanksgiving after all that with my body. He has this thing though where he wants to pretend that everything is fine and normal -- but heck, I don't feel normal. I just don't know what to do about thanksgiving now though.

The kiddo is doing fine though. He's wiggling around right now.

Pregnancy Update - 21.5 Weeks

My pregnancy nose is a bit picky right now and when I got home all the little smells were getting to me. It makes me want to clean the house and do all the laundry right away.

Let's see what else, my nipples are really huge and dark now, the changes have been going on for a while but man is is really noticible now. Also I've been having more heartburn. It's a combination of my stomach not emptying very quickly and also things getting squished. I looked up where I'm supposed to be at fundal height wise in Pregnancy Week by Week this morning and I'm a few weeks ahead of where they say I should be. I'm feeling wiggles up high, almost 2 inches above my belly button (which is starting to get shallower and shallower).

I feel the baby regularly now, he's getting so strong. Sometimes it weirds me out but mostly I like the reassurance of feeling the movements, wiggles and kicks. I feel him down on the left, in the middle, on the upper right and left and behind my navel. I don't feel him in the lower right -- that's where I feel my fibroid so he hasn't got room to play over there.

Oh, and I got a really nice card from my friend Deborah, my fibroid sister. We sent each other care packages when we had our surgeries two years ago. She's got a baby girl now. Another friend of mine from the online world, Marina, sent me a box of baby goodies that was waiting for me when I got home last night. I haven't had a chance to check it out yet though.

Flying with Swollen Ankles

This week brings the lovely new symptom of puffy ankles. They aren't the worst I've had in my life, my feet don't feel numb for instance but it still makes me wonder what's up. Probably just too much sodium in my parent diet.

I flew back from New York last night on a non-stop flight. Jet Blue was awesome and they got me an aisle seat in row 2 after I told them I was pregnant ahead of time by phone. I tried to get up at least once an hour to stretch and pee so it was great to have the aisle seat. I fell asleep for about an hour or so and woke up with my ankles feeling more swollen so I did more flexing and stretching to try to get the fluid moving.

Flying wasn't that much fun really. I've got to fly at Thanksgiving and then I think that's it. Sitting up is okay for the heartburn but not fun for the ankles and bladder.

Yeah so

I went maternity shopping a bit while I've been in NY. I went to one shop that carried exclusively the Maternite brands -- Pea in the Pod, Motherhood and Mimi -- with my mother and we were both shocked at the poor quality of the material, the prices and for me, also that everything was manufactured in the poorest areas of the world such as Bangladesh. I bought one sweater on sale and left it at that. On Saturday I went into NYC and found some things at H&M, they have their own maternity line called MaMa and I bought a few tops, a sweater and a skirt.

Yesterday I went to visit my friend and her twin boys in my hometown. The boys are 2-1/2 now and they are very cute. One of them was very interested in the fact that there was baby in my belly and he patted it a couple times. I told him that the next time I came I would have a little baby with me and would he like to play with the baby and he answered seriously and slowly "Yes." He said he likes babies. It was cute.

My other and I couldn't swing getting together but mostly because I'm still so run down from fighting my cold/flu virus. I took a 2-hour nap on Saturday and Sunday because I felt so achy and tired. I hope that I pull through it in the next week or so. I am gradually feeling a little better so you should know. Dang though the achy joints.

My mother dug out a little sweater she knit for my brother when he was an infant and also a little quilt my great-aunt gave me when I was a baby. That's pretty nice to bring home with me.

I can't believe I'm past the halfway point already. This is going by pretty fast now and I'm not ready at all. Work is still up in the air, I need to clean out my studio to make way for baby, and who knows what else. I think I'm just tired and a bit stressed out. I had to reschedule my flight home until tomorrow evening and it's putting a kink in my day tomorrow that I didn't need.

Baby Wearing - Slings, Pouches and Wraps

I'm pretty keen on the idea of baby-wearing. I worry about carrying too much weight as I've had whiplash twice and my neck and back can be a little persnickety though. Still, at least with a little baby it will make sense for a while. My partner seems cool with the idea as well. I've been looking at strollers but pushing around a stroller isn't my idea of a good time. I'm thinking we'll do a lot of baby wearing in the beginning and then migrate to a stroller as needed.

WearYourBaby.com (aka MamaToto.org) - an informational site that covers the broad range of baby wearing devices and technique

TheBabyWearer -- babywearing information

Kangaroo Korner -- adjustable fleece and cotton pouches and more

HotSlings

Moby Wrap

KarmaBaby

Rockin' Baby Slings

Maya Wrap - baby slings and carriers

The Ergo Baby Carrier

ZoloWear - baby slings, pouches and carriers

Wise Woman Sling

Wallababy

Little Star Baby Slings