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On Monday I hit the 24 week mark of this pregnancy. I’m now 6 months pregnant. There are only 16ish weeks left until this baby girl makes her appearance. I can’t believe it, that’s crazy!
I’m feeling great right now. Really I can’t think of any annoying pregnancy symptoms I’m dealing with right now other than having to pee constantly. I have my tiny dancer to thank for most of those trips. Like her sister before her, Baby Girl 2.0 is a very active little baby. However, unlike her sister, who liked to lay sideways and kick my sides, this little one enjoys being breech and kicking my bladder repeatedly. It almost feels like a game she is playing, let’s see how many times I can make mommy have to pee today 
Today I had my 24 week pregnancy check up. I saw a different doctor at the OB practice I’m going to here in Brisbane. He was really nice too. He’ll actually likely be the one I see for the remainder of my visits as the first OB I saw has a pretty booked schedule right now. The appointment was very routine and uneventful. My blood pressure was great, the baby’s heart beat sounded great (although she did try to hide several times while he was trying to listen), and I’ve finally managed to put on a little bit of weight. At my last appointment I hadn’t gained anything in the month since my last check up and thanks to my horrible morning sickness I didn’t put on much during my first trimester. I managed to squeeze out just shy of 4 pounds this month which puts my total weight gain for this pregnancy at 8 pounds. But, since my belly is measuring well and the baby seems great the slow weight gain isn’t an issue.
I thought I’d include a belly shot for you this time around since I finally have one to speak of. It isn’t a great picture but all you want to see is the belly anyway, right!
![4-6-11 My 24 week belly [640x480]](http://www.letstalkbabies.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/4-6-11-My-24-week-belly-640x480.JPG "4-6-11 My 24 week belly [640x480]")
Next up is the big gestation diabetes screening. I’ll go for that in a couple of weeks and then I’ll have another OB follow up in a month. I’m really glad things are going smoothly with this pregnancy (knock on wood), especially since I’m so far from home.
I’ve made to the halfway point of my pregnancy. I’m now 20 weeks pregnant! Some days it feels like I’ve been pregnant forever and other days I can hardly believe I’m already this far along. When I took that pregnancy test 16 weeks ago this day felt so far away and now it is already here. Which means, of course, that 20ish weeks from now I’ll be looking back thinking I feel like I just hit the halfway point how am I already at the end.
This pregnancy has been very similar to my pregnancy with Maya. My morning sickness went away at exactly the same point, I felt Baby Girl 2.0 move the same week in my pregnancy as I did with Maya, she is also a big mover just like her sister was, and so far (knock on wood) I’m having a pretty easy breezy 2nd trimester. Let’s hope the similarities continue and I have a pretty easy and uneventful second half of this pregnancy.
The past week I’ve definitely started to feel more pregnant. I’m sure a lot of that has to do with the fact that I spent almost 2 days last week traveling around the world and have spent the rest of the week trying to recovery from jetlag. Before we headed out my belly was there but I could still hide it if I wore certain clothing. Now, it is most definitely there and there is no hiding it anymore. It seems that my belly decided to pop somewhere out over the middle of the ocean. So, the added growth out front coupled with A LOT of walking over the last few days has left me with a very achy back. I’ll have to enlist Lorne’s help with a few back rubs and foot massages
Tomorrow I’ll have my first doctor’s appointment here in Australia. I’m nervous about meeting the new doctor and the staff in his office. I really hope I like him. It would be horrible to end up not liking him. Luckily, I am here for the easiest part of my pregnancy, prenatal care wise. I’ll have 3 appointments while I’m here and the only test I’ll need is my glucose screen in a few weeks. The appointments should be pretty cut and dry.
Here’s to a happy, healthy remaining 20 weeks (give or take)!
Since I have a couple of very long flights in my future my doctor and I talked at length about air travel during pregnancy at my last appointment. We talked about the fact that for the most part air travel during pregnancy is safe and about the Do’s and Don’ts for women taking to the air during their pregnancies.
For a woman experiencing a healthy, normal pregnancy there aren’t many restrictions when it comes to air travel. A pregnant woman planning air travel at any point in her pregnancy should discuss the plans with her doctor ahead of time to be sure she is cleared for air travel. Some women experiencing complications or large order multiple pregnancies may be advised not to travel during their pregnancies. Also, remember that many airlines restrict air travel after a certain point in pregnancy so be sure to check with your airline regarding their policy before booking your flights.
My doctor’s advice to me regarding my upcoming long flights was pretty simple. Besides all the regular things to consider and prepare for he gave me the following recommendations:
Preparing for Your Flight:
- Wear comfortable, non-restrictive clothing, and wear layers that are easy to add or remove.
At the Airport:
- Check in early to give yourself plenty of time to get through security and use the restrooms (maybe several times) before boarding.
- It is his opinion, as well as the opinion of many other medical and science professionals that pregnant women should not go through the new scanners. No studies have been completed on the effect of these scanners on a pregnancy so it is his opinion that they should be avoided at this time. He recommends opting for the pat down instead to be safe.
- Be prepared to prove your due date, provide contact information for your doctor and that you are cleared for travel. Your doctor can provide you with a letter that will accomplish all of this.
On the Aircraft:
- Dehydration can be a problem for anyone while flying but is especially risky for pregnant women. Drink plenty of fluids, especially water.
- Pregnant women are at an increased risk of blood clots during air travel. When you are not required to have your seatbelt fastened make sure you get up and stretch your legs and move around a bit at least once every 2 hours during the flight.
- When you are in your seat you can help further prevent blood clots from forming in your legs you can stretch your calf muscles.
- Bring plenty of healthy snacks with you, especially if you are on a flight that does not provide in flight meal service.
Pregnant women experiencing preterm labor contractions should not travel. If you are later in your pregnancy or experiencing any unusual contractions be sure to see your doctor in the few days before your scheduled travel to be sure you are not in preterm labor. Most doctors will recommend that you not travel domestically after your 36th week or internationally after your 32nd week. Be sure to discuss your doctor’s thoughts on this before booking your flights.
Air travel during pregnancy is safe provided your follow your doctor’s orders and pay attention to your body. If you are at all unsure about whether you should travel talk to your doctor.
Yesterday I hit the 16 week mark of this pregnancy. I’m 4 months into this pregnancy. It is hard to believe I’m already 4 months pregnant, but, at the same time, it sometimes feels like I should be further along. I have been feeling SO much better the last few weeks. The morning sickness is finally gone and I have most of my energy back. I’m still quite moody (poor hubby) and I’ve been getting a lot of headaches, but all in all I feel pretty good.
I had my monthly appointment with my obstetrician this morning. It went perfectly. I got to hear that lovely sound of the baby’s heart beating away in there. I discovered that this little baby is very much like her or his sister. Every time my OB found Maya’s heartbeat with the doppler she would move. She hated the doppler wand and the wand for the ultrasound machine too (hence the need for the sonographer to spend 45 minutes trying to find out if she was a boy or a girl!). This baby is exactly the same. The OB found the heartbeat the first try with the doppler but the baby promptly moved and he had to look for it again (this happened 3 times). It made me giggle and I said “Just like Maya!!”. My blood pressure was great and I even managed to put on a whole 5 pounds. That was music to my doctor’s ears since he wasn’t all that impressed with my .5 pound of weight gain last time. It is much easier to put on weight when you aren’t constantly struggling to get any food in your mouth and then struggling to get it stay down.
The best part of the appointment was finally scheduling the “big” ultrasound. As of right now it is scheduled for February 22nd, unless of course we end up leaving for Australia before then and it needs to be pushed up a bit. I can’t wait to see this little baby moving all around on the screen, I remember it being such an amazing experience with Maya. And, of course, I can’t wait to find out if we are having a girl or a boy. Any guesses?
Monday I turned a big corner in this pregnancy when I hit the 14th week. I am now officially in my second trimester. It feels good to have finally made it to that milestone, especially since at times it really feels like this pregnancy is going by so slowly. Hopefully my body will soon recognize that I am in the “honeymoon” phase of my pregnancy and I’ll finally be rid of this pesky nausea/vomiting.
But, marking my entry into the beloved second trimester isn’t the only big pregnancy milestone I’ve hit recently. On Sunday I felt the very first tiny movements. Teeny tiny little pitter-patters that I would have missed if I hadn’t been sitting her quietly reading a book. The little distinct feeling of a very tiny little foot or hand popping me from the inside. I felt it again yesterday afternoon and early this morning. It is so nice to have a reminder of this baby that doesn’t involve nausea or hugging a toilet or gagging.
When I was pregnant with Maya I felt her first little pitter-patters around 15 weeks. I had heard you often feel the second one earlier since you know what to look for. Sure enough I’m feeling this one about a week earlier than last time. It is amazing that something that it still so tiny (just the size of a small lemon) is strong enough to send a little message, a little tap to say “hello mama”. I can’t wait for the movements to become more frequent and to be able to feel them from the outside. I know Lorne and Maya will both get a huge kick out of feeling those little baby kicks