Baby Cantelope - 20 Weeks Pregnant

Your baby has established sleep patterns akin to a newborn now. (Brianna tends to kick a lot around 11:30pm - 1:00am...YIKES! Although, this afternoon I felt her more than I ever have. Is it what I ate or the fact that she is getting bigger now? I mean a cantelop is pretty big...or so I think...) Many babies even have a favorite sleep position already. Some snooze with their chins resting on their chests, while others nap with their head flung back. Many babies at this age fall into noticeable cycles of sleep and activity, so you may know before she arrives whether you have a night owl or an early bird.

From this point forward, your baby will put most of her energy into gaining weight and, not coincidentally, so will you! (As of this morning, I have gained 8 pounds.)

By pregnancy 20 weeks time you are at the midpoint of your pregnancy, and onlookers are definitely starting to notice your bump (most people still are shocked when I tell them I am pregnant...I guess they just think I have a pocket of fat there? It's not as noticeable unless I am wearing a fitted shirt)! After pregnancy week 20 your uterus has likely reached your bellybutton. Growth typically starts to become more regular from this point in time on, so you should be noticing regular changes in your belly. In the last four weeks the baby has grown quite a bit and its weight is almost four times more. The baby is big enough for you to feel the fluttering or quickening movements on a regular basis by now. From the baby’s movements you can tell whether the baby is awake or asleep by now. As the baby keeps growing in size some women experience trouble during breathing or taking deep breaths as the lungs become restricted with the internal organs especially if you have a small body frame (I have felt this for a few weeks now...especially after I eat!). This is not a serious issue but can be very uncomfortable nevertheless. You will be relieved of this problem only in the last month of the pregnancy when the baby drops into the pelvis getting ready for the delivery and the pressure on the upper organs reduces considerably. The top of the uterus is the same as the level at the belly button and you could gain around 8 to 10 pounds at this point. After this point you can expect to gain around ½ pounds to one pound per week. You need to get a regular feedback about your weight gain from your medical practitioner to find out if there is any need of alterations.

Remember that you are halfway through your pregnancy by 20 weeks pregnant, only 20 more weeks to go! Some ladies will deliver slightly sooner than 40 weeks, while others will delivery shortly after. A typical pregnancy usually lasts anywhere from 37-42 weeks (which means I could have her anywhere from November 23rd - December 28th....but I am due December 14th which is the Monday before we are done with school for Winter Break). Where you fall in this spectrum will depend on a number of factors, including the accuracy of your due date, the health of your baby and even your genetics!

Eric and I feel very accomplished now. We picked up our crib a few weeks ago and finally put it together because the painters came this past Saturday. It took them 8 1/2 hours to texture and paint the room. Apparently the person who painted the mural also used PERMANENT marker on the wall....WHO WOULD DO THAT??? So ya, they had to use some chemical to dissolve the permanent marker, dry it, wipe it off, and do it again 4 times...and it still did not come all the way off...so they had to wing it and use a special Kiltz to cover it...not fun needless to say. I am SO GLAD though that we did not have to paint it ourselves. I can just imagine if it took professional painters 8 1/2 hours, what would it have taken us??? The crib was a nightmare to put together to say the least. Our neighbor has the same set (we did not know that until after we got it home) but in the oak finish instead of the cherry, and warned us that the directions were wrong. We knew that, however, we still followed them and then realized when we tried to put on the ending piece (the springs)...so ya, needless to say, we had to take it all apart, figure it out, and then put it back together again. It was NO FUN. I got so emotional that I cried and said to Eric, "I don't have the patience for this!" He thought it was pretty funny until he realized I was serious...and then he felt bad. Well, we finished the crib at 2:00 a.m. So now we just need a mattress and the bedding. I painted letters spelling Brianna's name to match the bedding so we are definitely set on the name and bedding from http://www.lonestarbaby.com/ now! (See the pictures above.) Once we hang the letters, I will post pictures of the new wall color (bye bye Dr. Seus...) and the built crib! This past weekend Eric and I's friend, Wynne, came to visit. It was a lot of fun because she is 5 weeks ahead of me...so we were able to compare stories and take fun pics of our bellies (she has gained 32 pounds already though...my only question is...Where is it all????...see the picture at the top. She is in the pink.)

Well, until next week...