Week 23 Update

We made it to week 24 also known as the viability point for pregnancy, which means week 23 is behind us.  The weekly excitement in our house was Andrew discovering carpenter ants in our master bedroom window.  I know, not very pregnancy related.  But, it lead to an unexpected visit from pest control.  Hopefully we have our carpenter ant and spider problem under control now. 

At some point last week, we heard rumors that the hospital we were planning to deliver in was closing their birthing unit.  We had an appointment with our midwives yesterday, but I didn't want to wait that long to confirm the rumors.  Our doula did confirm for us that the birthing unit out at the west hospital will be closing effective August 1st, which means we will be delivering downtown.  We weren't very pleased with this news.  We wanted to deliver out west because of the proximity to our house and the smaller labor and delivery unit.  Both our midwives and doula assured us everything will be fine and we can still have the type of birth we planned on.  Meanwhile, we have moved our birthing classes to the hospital we will now be delivering at.  Classes start next month for us!   

Speaking of birth plans, we are planning to have a natural birth without pain medication or other medical interventions.  At our meeting with our doula a couple of weeks ago, she recommended a few books to read.  I ordered them over the weekend, and they came in the mail today! 

 

This week, I also had to break down and buy some maternity pants.  So far, I have been able to get by with only one pair of maternity capris and the maxi dresses I had before I was pregnant.  For the most part, I have been wearing dresses and leggings or yoga pants.  I tried to put some shorts on last weekend that were big on me before and that was a no go; way too tight on my stomach now.  I received a gift card for Motherhood Maternity for my birthday, which I used this past weekend to buy another pair of capris and a pair of shorts.  Hopefully I won't have to buy too many more clothes before October.  I would like to not end up with a completely new wardrobe.  I would much rather spend money on adorable baby clothes!  I have been able to hit a few more clearance racks this last week, but it's hard to stock up on clothing when I have no idea what size baby we will have.  If she's anything like I was, she will bypass newborn sizes and only be in three months clothing for a month.  

 Evidence of the growing bump at week 23 

For a little comparison 

week 12

 week 17

 week 21

week 23

As far as pregnancy symptoms this past week, I was able to keep the swelling in my feet and ankles under control during the heat.  I made sure to drink a ton of water and keep my feet up as much as possible.  I have also uses an ice pack a few times on my ankles.  This little girl is becoming quite active.  She has noticeable kicks now; she was kicking my book last night when I was trying to read.  It's awesome to see and feel her moving around!  I still have a strong sweet tooth; again, nothing new.  This last week I made brownies while Andrew was away for the weekend on a camping trip.  The brownies were quite delicious with ice cream!  I have also had a few microwave smores in the afternoons.  I would consider this to be one of the drawbacks to working from home; instant access to a lot of food.     

There is nothing too exciting happening this next week in the pregnancy world.  Work has me quite busy these next few days, so we will see how my feet and ankles do with heat and humidity!