Week 32: Getting Quite Uncomfortable!

What's that Babe up to: lots of moving around.
Symptoms: all still there. The most bothersome would be the swollen hands in the morning to the point of pain, the swollen ankles and feet that only get worse as the day goes on and sometimes don't go away, plantar faciitis, and the baby digging into my ribs on the right side, and mid and lower back pain.

Food cravings or aversions: craved grilled cheese the other night and then dreamt about it.
Weight: 186
Weight gain so far: 38 lbs
Maternity Clothes: I will miss these clothes...
Stretch Marks: fo sho. still none on my belly, just the hips, but my are they lookers!

Sleep: would be so much better if I could breathe
Best moment this week: CHRISTMAS!!!!
Miss Anything: being comfortable, breathing easily, easy sleeping

Movement: very much so. I just wish the baby would move when I try to push it out of my ribs!
Belly Button: has a mind of it's own. It does stick out just a little bit when you look with a shirt on. But it's just weird.
Wedding Rings: off. My hands are huge
Looking Forward: more Christmas!!! And GOING TO PENNSYLVANIA TO SEE MY FAMILY!!!!

Journal:

  Today my hands and fingers are more swollen than they have ever been before. They hurt. I can barely reach an octave on the piano which is not something I usually struggle with at all. They feel so sore, like I must have been wringing out washcloths all day long yesterday. All I can say is, I'm so glad I have a break from cleaning teeth for a while and I hope they go back to normal before January 2nd when I go back! I have already had to go up a glove size, because my smalls felt like extra smalls, but the mediums were a little big yet. I'm pretty sure the medium would be TIGHT today! 

My ankles and feet are swollen this morning too. Usually that's just at the end of the day and then I sleep with them raised and they are better in the morning. Usually. Not today. Of course, Christmas Eve I was on my feet a lot and they didn't swell at all. I guess that little break in the day when I raised and rested them did them good. They also seem to have a mind of their own. They are pretty gross though. My nurse-sister-in-law told me they are a class 1 and 2 of pitted edema.  Class 4 in grossness.  The compression socks only seem to help sometimes, so I haven't bothered to try to put them on every day. They are really hard to get off!!!

So last Friday I was supposed to volunteer at ten thousand villages, but I woke up very congested and swollen and achey and the thought of standing for 4 hours sounded like pure torture. So I called in sick. Talk about guilt. Who calls in sick to volunteering?!? Instead I got a massage. I was still congested and swollen but the achey was all better! It had been way too long! I go regularly due to shoulder pain/tension, but I haven't even noticed that due to the pain in my mid back and lower back. Of course, once she started doing her thing, then I felt it all everywhere. I wish I could have stayed another hour! Needless to say, I'll be going back again in 3 weeks.

Friday night we had the Craig Spotts Christmas, which was fun and goofy as usual. We like to have a good time, and typically document those goofy times on camera quite well. See tagged photos of me on Facebook for examples! Then on Saturday we went back to the in-laws for the Stuckey Christmas. By 8:00 I was very uncomfortable, tired, and swollen. I really wanted to go home and go to bed. But family is too fun to leave early on... So we stayed until 11:30 and I could have cried when I crawled into bed. I don't remember... Maybe I did!

Sunday was Christmas at church which was lovely. I had my new Christmas dress on to wear, and pulled out my black flats to wear with it, but alas, they do not fit. So I wore my crocs, which didn't really match, but at least they were black! Ha! Then we went to Grandma Stuckeys for lunch and finally back home to relax and kick our feet up. And I pretty much stayed on the couch the rest of the day.

Monday Andrew and I both worked and I was so exhausted by the end of the day but I had to stop at the grocery store on the way home. Well.... The checkout lady was SUPER slow and I got locked in line before I could escape and pick a different one. Then on the way out of the parking lot/entrance/exit the vehicle coming in stopped and flashed his lights at me to go. Well I had a stop sign and he didn't, so he was yielding his right-of-way and I really HATE when people do that. I felt like I was getting set up  for an accident and then it was going to be my fault. I say all this to tell you that I was in a very grumpy mood by then and AND JUST WANTED TO GET HOME! So I set my cruise just a little higher than I normally do and went on my way. Sure enough. You guessed it. I got pulled over. And the time that I had a ton of excuses, "I'm pregnant" "my feet are really swollen and sore and I need to get them lifted ASAP" "my unborn child is digging into my ribs because sitting up in a car is very uncomfortable for both of us" "I'm eating these pretzels on my way home because I'm so hungry and I still have to make supper when I get home." And of course, "I'm sorry I'm crying, I'm just so emotionally unstable right now because I'm PREGNANT." Well... I didn't use any of those. I don't really know why. But when he asked me if I had a reason for speeding, which, yes I obviously did... All I had the energy to say was, "I just really want to get home."  He was a man, so he couldn't read my mind that I was really saying all those other excuses as well. I don't even know if he saw I was pregnant. I had my big coat on and so I just looked fat, probably. I did struggle to reach my glove box, which is probably when he saw I had my front plate INSIDE the car. I guess he thought since it was almost Christmas he would write me a ticket for that instead of speeding. That saved me $25 and 2 points. I think I already have 2 points, so that was a nice gesture. A BETTER  gesture would have been a verbal warning and a Merry Christmas. I bawled after he went back to his car to write me the ticket and all the way home. Woe is me. I know many of you know my track record for speeding in Ohio is really awful, but I must say, I have gotten A LOT better. This was seriously probably one of 5 times that I sped (too much) and of course I can't get away with it. Not here in Ohio, my friends. 

Tuesday was Christmas Eve and the first one that I didn't spend with my family. I was sad inside all day but enjoyed it anyway. It really just felt like a Saturday as Andrew and I tried to get some things done. Laundry, dishes, cooking, cleaning.... Really fun stuff. Then that evening we went to our church's Christmas Eve service and had Andrews parents and brother and grandma over for boggle and snacks afterward. That was fun. That brings us to Christmas Day! The day I turned 32 weeks pregnant! I couldn't sleep in the morning past 6:30 so I decided to just get up and get some things going. I threw a load in the washer and the dryer, folded towels, started the breakfast casserole and got that in the oven, ran a load of dishes in the dishwasher..... All before Andrew got up. I felt old. I felt like a mom. It was fun. We finished breakfast by 9:15 and I had already gotten most things done for the day!! So we exchanged our gifts, then cleaned up breakfast, then spent the day playing with our new toys. Andrew got me an AWESOME sewing machine... That I plan on playing with more today. Then in the evening we went to Lynn and Karlenes for snacks and games. More Christmas fun!!! 

We have today at home to pack and get ready for the weekend, and play more with our toys and then we leave for the big trip to PA tomorrow. I got my seat all comfy and ready to go... We shall see how long it takes us to get there!

Merry Christmas to all!!!

"For unto you, is born this day, a SAVIOR, which is Christ The Lord."