Wednesday, August 19, 2009

22 week update: Small department, big attire

Here we are at 22 weeks and I don't have a whole lot of updates. Which, when you are pregnant, is usually a very GOOD thing.

I do have a vent, though. Maternity clothes and maternity "departments". Of course, when you are not pregnant, you never notice the maternity section of department stores. I only knew Target had one because I would see the big red and white sign flying when I was shopping in misses. But, let me tell you about maternity departments. They suck.

First, they are so limited! There isn't much of a department to speak of and most of the maternity clothes are mixed in with plus size clothing which gets very confusing. I went to Kohls today because I saw in a flier that they were having a one-day sale and, to my ultimate surprise, maternity clothes were included in the sale. It was advertised as 40-50% off so I thought I would check it out. My biggest need (no pun intended) is bottoms. My tops still pretty much fit albeit a bit snug - they definitely hug my bump.

Anyway, I looked and looked for the maternity department upon arriving at Kohls. I finally found it wedged between the womens department and the baby clothes department. And, when I say wedged, I mean there were probably a grand total of five small racks of clothes. I dug through and was able to find a pair of cropped jeans, a denim skirt and some denim shorts with the full "hidden" belly. **Side note: I bought a pair of maternity shorts and cropped pants from Ross & Target. They are the ones with the elastic band at the top - not the full belly. Well, because I seem to be carrying low, they are sooo uncomfortable. They cut into my belly and make the nastiest muffin top look under my shirts (which, remember, are bump huggers).

On to shirts. I thought I would browse through the shirts to see if there were any that caught my eye. I am realizing that my belly must still be pretty small because even the medium sized maternity shirts looked like balloons that would swallow me whole. And, I guess when you are pregnant you are supposed to look frumpy and pillowy. These shirts, even if I had a bigger belly, were soooo unflattering and downright UGLY! I found one that I tried on and actually laughed out loud! I guess the ruffly edging on the shoulders is supposed to help keep the eyes up at your face and away from your growing pod. In reality, you look like you just had a bad 80's night. Wow. Horrendous.

What else horrendous is the price of maternity clothes. You can buy those hiddeous pairs of plaid shorts that hit at the knees along with the oversized shirt with fluffy sleeves for the small price of $100 something dollars. Oh, I am not kidding! And this is at department stores. Don't get me started on the Motherhood store. Absolutely outrageous. Thanks to the sale at Kohls, I was able to buy my three denim, full belly items (along with a new pair of $10 sunglasses and a silver $8 ring for my thumb) for $70 something. At Motherhood, that price might get you a pair of jeans.

I find that jammy pants and a tank are the best options these days. My workout clothes are pretty comfortable too. I am making dinner for one of my BFFs Amy tonight and I decided to get a little fancier with my long black lounge pants and a white T. No makeup and my hair in a head band. But Amy loves me no matter how simple I look. But, since these items won't make it out in the real world, I had to find some pants that wouldn't cut me in the center of my pod and make me look even more bulgy than I already do. I know I will have to resort to looking for shirts as I progress but I am going to wait. I doubt they will get any better but, the other reason, I may need to eventually buy some larger, warmer clothes. And something for my showers as well.

We did get the shelf put up in the nursery. Here it is with some odds and ends on it. I am sure it will be rearranged a few more times with items before Cashew arrives...

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Here is a pic of it in relation to the crib
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I had an idea for what I wanted over the crib...so I talked with my Dad. He is a fantastic artist and I am his greatest fan! Our house is like a gallery of my Dad's awesome work. I am helping him with a video he wants to produce for a friend of his. I am going to do the edit work on the video for him to give to his friend in late November. Dad and my SMom asked how I would like to be repaid and I told them, no payment necessary. I love to edit.

Well...I changed my mind! Haha! I have asked Dad to paint something on canvas (or some sort of artwork no matter the medium) that would correlate with our wall color and our bedding. So I am going to send him the valance from our bedding set (which doesn't fit our window), the paint card with the color we selected for the walls and the length of the crib and he is going to create a piece of art to hang over the crib. I am so excited and feel so lucky that I will have something that special over Cashew's crib!!!! It sure means a lot to me!

Here is the size of me at 22 weeks (I am up 7 lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight):
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Here is the size of Cashew (according to one of the many reference websites out there):
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Stats on Cashew at 22 weeks:
Weight: Approx 1 lb
Length: Approx 11 inches
Latest developments: He/she can hear the sound of my voice and outside noises.
Movement: Yes, I feel movement everyday. The kicking and punching is still low in my belly - right at or below my belly button. Sometimes my stomach gets very hard and very front heavy. I think it's cashew leaning on me.
When does he/she move the most? Evenings mostly but I can feel him throughout the day.
Cravings: I had a real sweet couple of days but have cut them out for a while. At least cut back and only have sugar free snacks. I don't want to gain too much.
Stretch marks? Nope. Not yet at least.
Any weird body changes? Not really. My hair seems thicker and my nails are awesome!
Next milestone: V-Day (Viability Day)...this is technically when the baby would be able to have a better chance of living outside of the womb but with medical support. This is at 24 weeks. I obviously don't want to find this out first hand but it does mean that the baby is stronger. I still want to go full term, obviously!!
Working out? Yep! 30 minutes of good cardio followed by weights and abs. Abs are a little limited but I can tell they are helping my stomach stay tight where there is no baby.

Dear Cashew,

Happy 22 weeks! I bought a Fit Pregnancy magazine today to help me learn how to keep myself healthy which, in turn, will hopefully keep you healthy. There isn't much going on out here to update you on...and, now that you can hear things out here, you probably have caught most of the highlights. I hope you have been enjoying our workouts together! The plank sure has become more challenging since I have you resting in there at a pound! I am noticing more and more people looking at us when we are at the gym but I am assuming that I look pregnant now and not just fat. So it really isn't bothering me much anymore.

Well, I am off to get dinner prepped for your Auntie Amy Lou!

Love you bunches,
Mommy

PS...Daddy is out of town until tomorrow night but he loves you too! He talks to you everyday when he is here. He thinks it's too cool that you just might be able to hear his voice.

1 comment:

  1. I love the nursery! The colors are awesome and so is your glider! haha I'm going to love whatever it is your dad ends up painting for cashew as I feel like I am a fan of his as well...everything in your house he has done I really like! I can't believe how much your belly is growing...and I mean that in a good way- it compliments your fit body well. It's just so amazing to know that you have an 11 inch, 1 pound human in there! I hope my mouth wasn't too bad last night for little cashews ears...I didn't know he could hear in there yet! Oops! I love you guys!

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