sleep, disrupted

one unexpected thing about being pregnant is that it disrupts your sleep! i don't know if it happens to everyone, but ever since the very beginning, i haven't been able to sleep as i normally do. prior to being pregnant i could easily sleep in. i also had no trouble falling asleep, staying asleep ( i could sleep through anything!), or getting back to sleep if i did wake up.

i seem to have lost these abilities now. i wake up early naturally. it is really weird. and once i'm up i can't fall back asleep as easily.

amy says it's probably nature's way of preparing me for the upcoming sleepless nights greg and i will be sharing with our new baby.

happy dream

i had such a good dream the other night.

i was in a room by myself and i was giving birth. i was amazed because it happened very quickly and easily. i brought the baby (who was a boy) out into another room where everyone was waiting and i felt triumphant.

it was funny because right away the baby started doing precocious things, like pulling himself up to a standing position when i laid him down on a blanket.

____________

some people believe that they can get to know their baby before it's born. in a book i was reading, one woman claimed to have heard the fetus whispering to her. apparently, the baby even suggested a name for herself. and her husband kept feeling like he was being tickled at night and assumed (as anyone would) that this was his unborn child interacting with him.

i can't say that i believe dreams are prophetic. i've also had dreams that our baby was a girl so unless i'm having twins, i can't rely on my unconscious mind for accurate information. still, it's fun to have these nice dreams. i've heard that some women experience horrible nightmares throughout pregnancy but so far, i've been lucky.

eating during pregnancy

i came across this in one of my pregnancy books:

Best avoided during pregnancy

• sweetened beverages
• candy
• white flour
• chocolate
• ice cream
• cakes and pastries
  
• cookies
• white sugar

i saw this comical list early on and had already consumed something from every category. after i got over feeling sick to my stomach in the early weeks, i was just happy to be able to eat at all.

of course, i know how important it is to eat well during pregnancy. and i try to make the effort. but i have also been surprised to find that i'm drawn to less healthful foods. it is very strange to me that it wasn't until pregnancy that i started to eat sugar cereals and macaroni & cheese (though these are the things i was born & raised on so that could have something to do with it... someone recently told me that she always wanted to eat hot dogs in pregnancy- which she hadn't really eaten since childhood).

some people have been curious to know about my pregnancy eating habits/cravings/aversions/etc. so i'll try to explain what i've been experiencing:

from the very beginning, i could not imagine eating salmon or any fish really. this is too bad because i know that my baby's brain is developing and i'd like to get some omega 3s into my diet. on the plus side, there are always mercury scares to worry about with fish so maybe this is one of those food aversions with some biological sense behind it.

carbs of all kinds have had tremendous appeal- even in the beginning of the pregnancy, when i felt sick. crackers, pasta, rice, & bread were all good. for some odd reason, i could always stomach thai food- especially noodle dishes like pad woon sen and pad kee mao. this was true even when some of my most favorite foods held no appeal.

nowadays, my pregnancy diet more closely resembles my usual eating habits. i can eat most things. hunger in pregnancy is a more intense feeling than non-pregnant hunger, like i'm really driven to eat. my main obsession lately has been great american bagels' everything bagels. they are just so good. i seriously have one most days of the week! i am trying to eat as many fruits and vegetables as i can but i also have been eating more random hard candy! bizarre.

our baby's biggest accomplishment

"This week marks the beginning of the fetal period, which lasts until birth. Your baby's body systems, such as circulatory, nervous, reproductive and digestive, are fully formed during this time. His heart is beating approximately 160-170 beats per minute. Your baby is 27 - 35 mm or 1.06 - 1.38 inches with the length being attributed to the head. He weighs between 3 - 4 grams, or 4 paper clips.

Also, your baby will become much more active then before, but unfortunately, his movements are still too small for you to notice. He will be moving his arms and legs, which can be seen on an ultrasound. Your baby's joints are fully formed, as are his tiny hands, feet, fingers and toes. At this age, he would be able to grab an object, if it were placed in his hand, as he grows more and more sensitive to touch.

Your baby's biggest accomplishment this week is the disappearance of the tail!"

(from babiesonline.com)

(almost) back to normal

it has been quite a hectic time and i haven't been able to write for a while but thankfully, the move is over! it's still a tad unnerving to be uprooted but at least the stuff is all now safe & sound in eugene.

i am feeling so much better. it's as if i'm back to my normal self- the main exception being that i am extremely tired. i'm not the most active person to begin with but the first trimester has proven to be very tiring. it feels very strange to not be able to stay awake for a movie or to feel exhausted when i've only walked to the bagel shop and back. What to Expect When You're Expecting was reassuring on this point, claiming that a pregnant body at rest is working harder than a non-pregnant body mountain climbing. i enjoy that one tremendously! and remind myself of it when i feel puzzled at my exhausted state.