Update 22 weeks 2 days

Wow, it has been completely crazy at work the last two weeks. I am pleased to report that the time has been flying by and I can hardly believe that I am now 22 weeks pregnant! My second trimester has been largely uneventful. I am definitely growing a lot and it would be very hard to mistake my bump for just a big dinner or a beer belly anymore. It’s definitely a baby now. I am feeling the cutest little kicks and punches frequently throughout the day. In fact, yesterday, it was nearly all day long. The little one was very active.

My only real symptoms are pretty manageable. Every night I continue to suffer from a sharp pain in my ribs which I’m really hoping gets better rather than worse over the next couple of months, but my hopes aren’t too high on that. I also have a feeling of extreme fullness to the point of causing me shortness of breath following almost every meal, but particularly at night. I had my first leg cramp over the weekend, but it hasn’t happened again since then. I also have been having a great deal of trouble sleeping the last couple of nights, but again I hope that is temporary. None of these things cause me anywhere near the discomfort that I was experiencing in my first trimester with the morning sickness, so I’m a pretty blissful pregnant girl right now.

A couple of things that make me very nervous about the next few months are the increasing difficulty with minor things like bending over, putting on shoes, getting in and out of the car, etc. I realize these things are definitely not going to get easier as the baby grows and my abdomen swells to double and triple the size it is now.

We went to see our high risk specialist as well as the pediatric cardiologist last week. The pediatric cardiologist is recommended for all IVF babies, due to an increased risk in heart defects among them, but our report came back perfect and everything she could see at this point looked 100% normal. Our high risk exam also went very well. My placenta has moved out of the way of the cervix. My cervix is long, and closed and the baby is growing right on target with where he should be. Both doctors confirmed once again that this little one does indeed have boy parts, so I feel good to shop and start really accepting that we will be having a son. The bittersweet moment came when they released me back to my OB. I have so enjoyed being a patient in that practice. The doctors seem to really take the time to answer all your questions and they don’t seem like they are just pushing everyone through and collecting their payments like they do at the OB. I suppose since the cost of each visit is over $900, their ability to give the patient more attention makes sense, but I will miss them. On the other hand, I am extremely relieved that there is no reason to continue to see them.

My glucose test is coming up in two weeks and my parents are coming to visit that same weekend so I’m looking forward to that. My husband’s company is still very much in survival mode, but we have a better outlook on things than we did a couple of weeks ago. There is still very little chance for bonus payouts this year, but his salary shouldn’t have to be reduced and his job security is still good. I can’t complain about that.

That’s all for now!