Oh, hai.

Technically speaking, I’m now just three months away from my due date of Dec. 30. Wowzers! I’ll be full-term in about 2.5 months, but I could still be pregnant for 3.5 more months (mid-January!). No way to know when my baby’s birthday will be, but it’s coming up fast. It’s kind of like preparing for a surprise party. The guest of honor doesn’t know exactly when he’ll make an appearance, but neither do the hosts. So, surprise! to all involved.

Today marks the beginning of my 27th week. Just as I had some confusion the last time I transitioned from one trimester to another, I’m not completely sure if I’m at the beginning of my third trimester now, or if that won’t happen until next week.

I feel like I’ve grown quite a bit in the last few weeks. My belly has taken on a much more rounded shape, and if I’m wearing a more fitted shirt, there’s absolutely no mistaking my baby belly. Although, it magically disappears if I wear a sweatshirt or something really baggy.

A few days ago, my stomach skin was really tight and uncomfortable. I put some lotion on it and tried to stay hydrated. Maybe that helped, or maybe I grew just a little bit more. It’s not so fun to feel like you’re about to explode out of your body. Now I feel fine.

Wanna know an annoying yet unexpected pregnancy symptom? Heartburn! I’ve never really had serious heartburn before, but my goodness I’ve had some bad spouts with it lately. I’ve found that staying propped up (even if that means using 3 pillows) helps a great deal. It isn’t constant and seems to pop up when I’ve eaten certain foods. Go figure.

My belly button is pretty flat right now. Sometimes, part of it even sticks out a little. So crazy.

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Over the weekend, Shane and I went to Indiana. It was our last scheduled trip. We likely won’t be back until either 1) We’re too ridiculously homesick to stay here any longer, regardless of other circumstances or 2) Baby is old enough to be a decent passenger for a 400+ mile road trip. Yikes. I’m already pondering the logistics of such a trip. I’m not sure how this is gunna go. Driving through the night is a lousy option, because it just makes us really tired and we have to sleep a ton upon arrival. If our baby is asleep for the whole ride and we’re awake, then I imagine he might be awake when we’re trying to sleep. And we’ll have to make several stops no matter what. I’d rather stop during daylight hours when stores are open and it’s a little safer.

I think we might have to stay at a hotel at the half-way point. But then, we have to track down a legitimately safe crib in an immaculately clean hotel. Do they have those? For less than $200/night? Ugh. Maybe our pack-and-play would work.

I doubt I’d want to fly. Flying is such a pain. Plus, you can’t hardly get a direct flight from Pittsburgh to Indianapolis anymore. I think they offer like one per week, if that.

So, uh…I have no clue how we’ll do this. Maybe he’ll be really awesome for long car rides. Maybe he’ll be extremely angry with us and scream the whole time. Guess I won’t know for sure until next spring/summer. In the meantime, people will just have to visit us out here.

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I didn’t exactly have a baby shower while back home, but I did get some lovely gifts! A shower simply wouldn’t have worked out. There wasn’t time, and plus I didn’t really want the fuss of a real shower. Just something about my friends and family guessing my girth in terms of toilet paper squares (common shower game, yes?) didn’t appeal to me. Nor did playing any other games, or opening presents in front of a buncha people.

Several friends surprised me with lovely gifts anyway! I got all sorts of great stuff. They got me things that were both cute and practical. Yay! I <3 my pals.

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So, things are good. I feel good. Our preparations are making progress. October will be quite a busy month for us. We’ll start our Bradley course, I’ll have a visit or two with my midwife (glucose test is next week, oh yeah!), and we’ll try to finish all the major baby projects. I want to order a crib this week, and our car seat within the next week or two. We’ve got to finish decluttering as much as we can possibly stand. The baby’s bedroom needs a final organization, and I need to pick up some bins or baskets or something to stash baby stuff. Toward the end of the month, I want to steam clean the carpets and tackle any other final deep-cleaning projects.

In November, I hope I can start taking it a bit easier and stick to tasks I can handle while sitting. Well, except for cooking. November will be the month of cooking mass quantities of food to be consumed after Baby is born.

Finally, Shane’s parents are coming for a visit in a few weeks, and my parents and sister will visit right after them. Yay! October is one of my favorite months, and I’m excited about this one.

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From BabyCenter.com

This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with his legs extended. He’s sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing his eyes, and perhaps even sucking his fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby’s brain is very active now. While his lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if he were to be born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don’t bother him, so just relax and enjoy the tickle.

See what your baby looks like this week.

Twenty-six weeks. Whoa. The last week of my second trimester.

You know those wacky waving inflatable flailing arm tube man people? That live at used car lots?

Yeah.

I think my little boy is doing those exact same movements.

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When I get a really big, no-mistaking-this baby belly, I think it would be funny to go to some pharmacy and buy a pregnancy test. I’ll look the cashier in the eyes and say something like, “I wonder if it’ll be one line or two!” and then waddle my way out the door. Lololol.

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It’s finally autumn! Technically speaking, I’ve been pregnant for most of spring, all of summer, and will probably make it all through fall as well. The first day of winter is something like Dec. 20ish, so I might still be pregnant at that time, but who knows? Seems like a really long time when I think of it in terms of seasons.

From Babycenter.com

The network of nerves in your baby’s ears is better developed and more sensitive than before. He may now be able to hear both your voice and your partner’s as you chat with each other. He’s inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which is essential for the development of his lungs. These so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when he’s born and takes that first gulp of air. And he’s continuing to put on baby fat. He now weighs about a pound and two-thirds and measures 14 inches (an English hothouse cucumber) from head to heel. If you’re having a boy, his testicles are beginning to descend into his scrotum — a trip that will take about two to three days.

Not quite 26 weeks, but so close that it pretty much is. Here’s me and my baby!

*Doh! I had my title reversed. Silly brain. Thanks for pointing that out, Steff!

I switched from my OB to a midwife practice today! I’m happy with this decision. The practice consists of five midwives, and I’ll meet each one. One of them will be the lucky lady who catches my behbeh!

In case of any complications, they’re backed by a group of 15 high-risk specialist OBs. I am in good hands.

The midwife practice has a c-section rate of less than 10 percent. I dunno what my old OBs was, but I guarantee it’s more than that. The midwives have a 5 percent episiotomy rate, compared with a 50 percent one with my old OB. Don’t know what an episiotomy is? It’s where they cut your lady parts during the final stages of pushing your baby out. No thanks!

I switched to a midwife practice because I’m young, healthy, and I’m having a run-of-the-mill pregnancy. I’m not sick. I don’t need a doctor. I’m gearing up for a natural childbirth, and I’m much more likely to have success with that if I have midwife who is familiar with the natural birthing process.

Many OBs, believe it or not, aren’t as familiar. Some (not all, of course) like to do all sorts of things so they are in control of your labor.

If a midwife tells me that I need a c-section, I’m going to trust her. She doesn’t want me to have a c-section, so it truly would be a last-resort sort of thing. That’s one heck of a major surgery, and I’m going to do all I can to avoid that. I know that when I’m in labor, I won’t be anxious over what my health care provider might do to me.

So, yay! Even though it was a bit late in the game, I’m glad I’ve switched.

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I guess I’m still not obviously pregnant to people who don’t already know the news, or who haven’t seen me in a pre-pregnant state. Even the receptionist at the hospital was surprised I was 25 weeks along.

Just a few minutes before that encounter, the midwife measured me and told me that my belly was “textbook perfect” in size. Ya hear that, people? I’m just as big as I’m supposed to be!

For the past few weeks, I’ve told several people that I’m having a little boy around the end of the year.

They either wonder if I’m adopting, or say something like “I couldn’t even tell!” and stare at my stomach with eyes wide.

What?

I know I don’t look fat. But my waist is at least 10 inches bigger than it was just a few months ago. Do I just look like I’m a little thick around the middle? Or do people expect pregnant ladies at all stages to just have a huge beach ball of a belly? I have no idea.

The average height of an average white American woman is 5′4.6″. I’m 5′10.5″. I’m no giant, but pretty much everywhere I go, I’m the tallest lady (and oftentimes, tallest person) around.

Pregnant bellies on short ladies are bound to look different than pregnant bellies on taller ladies.

Remember when Nicole Kidman was pregnant?  Gossip magazines started nasty rumors that she wasn’t really pregnant, since she was carrying so small. Well guess what, paparazzi? She’s 5′10.5″ just like me! When you’re six inches taller than average height, your torso is also longer. There’s much more room for the baby to stretch up instead of just plain out.

So there. For all of those people out there who think I’m carrying small. I’m carrying just fine, thank you very much.

And ya know what? It’s not polite to tell a pregnant lady that she’s huge, say she has a fat belly, or “Wow, you must be having twins!” or “You’re due in a few months? Wow! You look like you’re about to pop!” Yeah, she’s about ready to pop you in the face, clown. It’s not appropriate to tell her that she’s tiny, either.

To review:

Q: When is it OK to make a comment about a woman’s size?
A. NEVER.

If you don’t know what to say about a pregnant lady’s body, say this: “You look great!” and leave it at that. Seriously. Kthxbai.

I feel like I’ve been pregnant for a long time. But, I’m just at 25 weeks — still a long way to go.

Considering it was early spring when I found out I was expecting, and now we’ve charged through summer and are heading into fall and I still might be pregnant on the first official day of winter, I truly do have a ways to go.

However, it does sort of feel like it’s picking up speed lately.

Has the reality of the situation, the fact that very soon, we’ll be directly responsible for a person’s life, hit me yet? Not a chance.

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Me: Hey Baby, whatcha up to this week?
Baby: Oh, hi. I’m just plumping up. I need to gain a few pounds of baby fat. Please eat more cookies.
Me: Of course! It won’t be easy, but I’ll do my best.

What’s happening according to BabyCenter.com

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. His weight — a pound and a half — isn’t much more than an average rutabaga, but he’s beginning to exchange his long, lean look for some baby fat. As he does, his wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and he’ll start to look more and more like a newborn. He’s also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you’d now be able to discern its color and texture.