A sensitive subject with many a pregnant women is touching of the belly. Some women don’t care, others do, but most people seem to think it’s okay to reach for a pregnant woman’s belly.

A co-worker actually wrote a pretty humorous column about touching/staring at the the belly. (You can read it here if you like). I will admit that I am guilty of (trying not to) stare at pregnant lady’s bumps. But not once, EVER, did I reach out to touch them. NEVER. Nor would I ask “How far along are you?” unless I knew the person and knew for a fact that they were expecting. In fact, I don’t think I ever touched someone else’s baby bump other than my BFF’s a couple years ago when she was pregnant with her daughter. And since then? No one’s. It’s awkward for me.

There’s something about going into that much of someone’s personal space bubble that really freaks me out. Once, while I was still working at Job #1, a customer looked at me, noticed my ear lobes were stretched, and proceeded to try and stick her finger through one of them. I’m not even joking. And did I know this lady? Nope – never seen her before in my life.

Needless to say, I’m not down with people I don’t know touching my ever-growing baby bump. Friends: Okay. Family: Duh. Co-Workers: Only If we’ve actually talked for more than 5 minutes about non-work related things. Strangers? Hell no. In my co-worker’s column she actually had mentioned that the best way to drive the point home to people touching the tummy is to rub theirs back. While I’ll probably never do it, it’s an interesting point. Just because you’re pregnant doesn’t make it okay to tummy rubs. Like strange dogs, you don’t go up and pet them because you don’t know how they’ll react. Will they accept it or want more, or will they bite your hand off?

The point is, you should always ask if it’s okay to touch a pregnant woman’s stomach before you reach out and molest it. Just because I like to rest my hand on it and rub it doesn’t mean you can too.

I shall now turn you to your regular pregnancy update programming:

How far along? 22 Weeks!

How big is baby? Almost 1lb, and nearly 11″ long from crown to heel, according to BabyCentre.ca.

Total weight gain/loss: I really have no idea, but probably a couple pounds or so. I’ve really contemplated buying a digital bathroom scale to keep track, but I still don’t like the idea of having a scale in my house.

Maternity Clothes? I went shopping on Saturday with my mom in search of a pair of jeans, but only if they were on sale! I scored a great pair of maternity jeans AND a pair of pants for work for $45 – a steal considering a pair of maternity jeans alone is normally $60! I really need to start investing in shirts though, since some of my current ones are starting to “tent” out at the bottom.

Stretch marks? Still none – Yay!

Sleep: I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night sweating to death, it’s horrid. I never feel warm, but I’m just dripping. I hate sleeping with no covers on my just as much as I hate sleeping naked, so who knows what I’ll do.

Movement: Lots of movement after I eat or if I’m resting/sitting upright. They say when you’re moving you’re essentially rocking the baby to sleep, so when you stop they wonder what the hell is going on and protest, lol.

Food cravings: The other night I really, really, wanted a piece of apple pie with ice cream. That thankfully passed. I really actually want some waffles in a bad way, and not just Eggos. Kyle seems to think that Eggos are an acceptable form of waffle. No. No they are not.

What I miss: Being able to get up off the couch without some kind of leverage. I’m like a turtle on its back when I sit down, and it’s only going to get SO much worse from here.

What I am looking forward to: Painting Baby I’s room! I went and bought the paint on Saturday, so during the first weekend of March my mom and I are going to get painting.

Milestones: Not much, really. We’re still waiting for our stroller to come back into stock (which better be less than 4 months from now), and we’ve yet to find a crib we like. Other than that, it’s the same ol’ same ol’! Baby I does have a good, strong heartbeat, which is always amazing to hear, and my ultrasounds all came back clear. Woo!

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What’s your stance on “touching?”

When I first met with Dr. O, he gave me a government-regulated book called “Baby’s Best Chance.” It’s put together by a group of health professionals with insights from parents on the ins and outs of pregnancy, and what happens to you and your baby as your pregnancy progresses, from conception to birth and beyond. Basically, it’s What to Expect When You’re Expecting. (Which I actually don’t own, nor do I plan to)

Anyway, there’s a lot of talk about having a birth plan: What you and your spouse want to happen when it comes time to giving birth. Natural? Some meds? Drugged right up? C-Section? There’s a lot of different options out there for women these days.

For me, I’m not going to have a set plan and play everything by ear. Why? Because it sounds like a lot of women who have had a set plan in mind usually have to go with something else come delivery time because of complications of some sort. Planning to go with an all-natural, at home birth ends up with an emergency visit to the hospital; plans for a vaginal delivery in hospital turns into a C-Section, etc., etc.

I’m not saying this because I think plans are ridiculous to make for the delivery of a child, I’m just saying I don’t want to set myself up for disappointment. I’m also not saying that every woman who has had to divert from their plan was disappointed in their birthing experience. In the end, I’m sure that they’re just happy to have their little one in their arms, safe and sound.

So what is my “plan”, exactly? Well, I’m still not 100% sure. I know I don’t want an at-home birth, that I definitely want to be at the hospital. My doctor is a baby-delivering mastermind, so I have no worries there. Then, like I said before, I want to play everything by ear. I’ll fight through the pain as best I can before begging for an epidural and I won’t resist a C-Section if there is the slightest chance of Baby I being in danger. (And I mean slightest, mostly for personal reasons I’m not willing to discuss.) I’m also not against the idea of being enduced if she’s taking her sweet time arriving. I do know that I want to keep the cord blood if it’s feasible and not too expensive. This is something I’ll discuss with Dr. O at a future appointment.

I actually admire women who go through at-home, all natural childbirths because I think they’re pretty brave for doing that with their first born. I don’t admire women who want a C-Section just because they’re worried about what childbirth may do to their vag. That’s what it’s there and designed for!

There you have it, my “plan”, or lack thereof. Maybe it’s because I’m a “go with the flow” kind of person, but I’m really not getting myself all worked up about how my child comes into the world.

Now onto your regular programming:

How far along? 21 weeks

How big is baby? About 10 ½” from crown to heel, according to BabyCentre.ca!

Total weight gain/loss: I weighed myself last night at my MIL’s, and I’ve gained about 4lbs since the last time I weighed myself (about 2 weeks ago). So, I’m actually up 4lbs from my regular pre-pregnancy weight! It seems like I’m getting bigger and bigger every day; In fact, my belly button is slowly starting to “pop” out. It looks really weird because it’s fairly deep normally, so seeing the inside is strange. Kyle thinks it’s hilarious.

Maternity Clothes? Kyle took me shopping a couple weeks ago and I bought some shirts and a pair of pants for work. They flatter my bump a lot better than my regular clothes and I can actually prove to people that I am indeed pregnant, lol.

Stretch marks? Still none, yay!

Sleep: I’ve been getting heartburn almost every night, which is horrid because I’ve never suffered from it before, and I’ve been waking up sweating to death. Other that that, it’s the usual peeing every 3 hours or so.

Movement: Lots! Baby I is a little motor monster! She really doesn’t like it when I’m at work, I think. She seems to move around the most there!

Food cravings: Whenever I see something that looks appetizing on TV I want to have it. Usually it passes though. The only thing that makes me want to hurl when I see it is uncooked chicken. Yuck.

What I miss: Last week I went to my chiropractor and she had a special pillow to support my belly as I laid on my stomach so she could adjust my achy hips. It really made me miss sleeping on my stomach.

What I am looking forward to: My hips to stop hurting. They hurt soooo bad, it’s awful. By the end of the day I can barely get up off the couch to go to bed.

Milestones: Stroller shopping! Kyle, my mom, and I went to Babies R Us to look at a stroller that was on sale for a wicked price, and it’s gorgeous AND really good! They were all out of the colour we wanted, so I have a raincheck for whenever it comes back in stock. Here’s a photo from their website:

At first I was apprehensive about buying a 3-wheeled stroller, but it rolled so smoothly and was fairly easy to collapse down and bring back up. Plus, it’s a travel system, so the car seat just plunks right into the stroller while Baby I is still little! The coolest thing? It has a built-in auxiliary cord with speakers for an iPod! Really, I wouldn’t buy this stroller just for that, but since it’s on sale for such a great deal, it’s a nice added perk. It also came in purple, but since it’s a more girly colour we went with the green. That way Kyle won’t be too embarrassed to push it around.

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What do you imagine your plan to be when you have kids?
If you have kids, what was your plan and did it work out that way? 

Technology today is amazing, there’s no doubt about that, so why not do something if you can?

Finding out what we were having was quite the issue when I first found out that Kyle and I were going to be having a baby. He wanted to know, I didn’t. I went with the “It should be a surprise because that’s the tradition” argument. But really – we’re not overly traditional people.

Other than getter married before having kids, that’s about the only traditional thing we’ve done by “the books.” We moved in together before we were married, and then there’s fornication … Yeah, not traditional whatsoever. So, after figuring that it would make my life a lot easier to find out what we’re having, I decided, why the hell not find out?

It was actually frustrating when I told some people that we decided that we were going to find out what we were going to have. A lot of people gave us flack for it, saying that we should wait because it should be a surprise. There’s going to be a lot of surprises anyway with raising a child, and knowing a few months sooner wasn’t going to hurt.

I had actually said on Facebook that the choice is ours to make, and regardless of what it is, people shouldn’t judge us. I certainly don’t judge people for wanting to keep it a surprise, so why should they be allowed to judge me?

I know in some parts of the world that it’s a huge controversy because of gender preference in some cultures. Males are generally more “desirably” than females, and so many female pregnancies are aborted or if they are born, they’re given up for adoption. I can definitely understand the ethical conflict doctors and ultrasound technicians may have when telling a couple that they are having a girl or boy.

Where I live, there’s two places (that I’m at least aware of) that do ultrasounds for pregnancy. One location will tell you if you’d like to know, and one will not regardless. I don’t know if it’s up to your doctor to decide which location you’ll go to, but I would imagine that their own personal morals and ethics have something to do with that decision.

But – without turning this into an ethical debate – because that’s not what I’m looking to do, I digress into the important stuff: Pregnancy update and pictures!

I had my first ultrasound on Thursday last week and after trying my hardest to hold all 4 cups of water in me (it didn’t happen – I peed several times before my actual scan and had the technician stop 1/2 way through so I could go again), we got to see our little baby! I’m still in serious aww over the fact that the picture on the screen was actually my little person growing inside me! So surreal!!

How far along? 20 weeks – Half way there!!

How big is baby? It’s about 10″ long from head to heel, and weighs about 10.5oz!

Total weight gain/loss: I’ve gained 2lbs since the last time I weighed myself, so not a heck of a lot still! I’m thinking I’m really going to blow up in the next few weeks. Not looking forward to that, lol. My belly has definitely been growing steadily it seems though!

Maternity Clothes? I haven’t really done any serious maternity clothes shopping. Ever since I got my Bella Band, I’ve been wearing my normal clothes for the most part! I may have to buy some new shirts to accommodate my belly though, lol.

Stretch marks? Still none – Yay!

Sleep: I’ve discovered that I’m starting to experience a little bit of heartburn when I go to bed. Thank goodness for Tums!

Movement: There has been tons of movement! It’s so amusing. The baby kept moving like crazy during the ultrasound too, so the technician had a hard time getting all the images she needed. This was not ideal because it took longer, and I had to pee, so I was whiny. I’m sure the lady was used to it, because she didn’t get frustrated when I said I needed to pee.

Food cravings: Nothing out of the ordinary! I’ve been eating a lot of ice cream though, lol.

What I miss: Sleeping comfortably. My neck and shoulder are taking a beating from me always sleeping on my side. I’ve been getting some pretty serious headaches as a result.

What I am looking forward to: Getting the colours picked out for the baby’s room and painting!! Now that we know what we’re having, picking colours is going to be SO much easier!

Milestones: Definitely my ultrasound, no doubt about it! It was so amazing, especially to have Kyle there with me.

Photo: 

Oh – and what are we having, you ask??

IT’S A GIRL!!!
(Photoshopped bow for added clarity ;)) 

We’re still mulling over the name, but I’m 90% sure of what it’s going to be :)