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Eloise's Diary Entries Diary Navigation: Choose A Diary Entry -------------------- Latest Entry: 12/2/99 -------------------- 11/28/99 11/24/99 11/20/99 11/17/99 11/10/99 11/3/99 10/26/99 10/20/99 10/13/99 10/6/99 10/4/99 9/28/99 9/15/99 9/9/99 9/2/99 8/26/99 8/19/99 8/5/99 7/30/99 7/16/99 7/6/99 5/14/99 5/14/99 5/7/99 4/27/99 4/15/99 4/8/99 3/25/99 3/20/99 3/19/99 3/18/99 3/12/99 3/9/99 3/4/99 -------------------- Eloise's Introduction

August 26, 1999

(27 weeks)

13 weeks to go!!

Well, the books (mostly) say that I'm a week away from starting the third trimester. Phew! It feels like it's already begun, the symptoms of pregnancy are beginning to get a little more intense, after what has been a very pleasant second trimester with no real problems to speak of.

First, I'm swelling. My wedding ring's too tight to wear, even my shoes feel tight so I'm starting to retain fluid. I woke up in the middle of the night with painful leg cramps the other night; in fact, in the last few weeks I've woken up almost every night around 4 a.m. and I toss and turn for a hour or two, unable to get back into deep sleep. This is really, really unlike me. My head usually hits the pillow and I'm gone. Out like a light for usually 10+ hours. Nothing can rouse me - loud late night parties upstairs, bombs going off, nothing. I love my sleep, adore my sleep, need my sleep and I don't welcome this new development at all!! Oh, I'm not stupid, I know the baby is going to seriously disrupt my sleep patterns when s/he arrives, but hey, that's still three months away!!!!! Why is this happening now? I feel a little like I'm being trained, like my body has taken over and is getting me ready for what's to come. It's weird!!

And I can't walk like I used to. I used to have a one-hour route around the neighbourhood that I tried to walk every day. Now when I set out I usually get exhausted about half-way and (conveniently) have to stop for a fifteen minute break at the ice-cream shop I pass on the way (low-fat, frozen yogurt, of course!!). And I'm slow. Oh, I'm so much slower than I used to be. And even slight inclines in the road make me breathless and weak. And the books tell me I should keep walking until the very end!! How will I go in one month, two months, three months time?? I'll get stranded at the ice-creamery and they'll have to get a crane to lift me out and dump me back home, that's how!!

But I tell you, it's such glorious spring weather 'down under' -- the blossom trees are blooming, there's the smell of jasmine on the air, the magnolia trees are full of flower and we've had lots of clear, sunny 20 degree days. Yum. How could I not go out walking on days like these? I'll keep plodding along I guess, as slow as a donkey and as rotund as a beach ball.

Had a hospital appointment today. Had a mind-numbingly boring two-hour wait in the waiting room. The midwife tells me my baby is sitting low down -- it's no big deal, different women carry differently -- but I already guessed that. Sometimes it feels like my belly is a bowling-ball and I have to put one hand underneath it to help support it -- it feels heavy and low and awkward, a little like it might roll away if I don't hang onto it.

And I'm Dreading (yes, with a capital D) my next hospital appointment. Arghh! The dreaded Glucose Tolerance Test, a Hemoglobin test, and a swab test. Oh, glory, all my favourite things wrapped into one precious morning -- first I have to fast and boy, we foodie Taurean's just love that, then I have to have four blood-tests at one hour intervals (I get queasy and faint after just one), I have to have an internal swab taken (well, does any woman alive enjoy those????), and I'll be waiting around the hospital for a minimum of three hours (kill me with boredom now!!!).

So, naturally, I came home wondering if this pregnancy gig was worth all the hassle!! It was the first time I'd felt like that for a while. But golly, what will "birth" be like in comparison to these minor hospital appointments? Daresay it'll put a few piddly little blood tests and an internal swab in high perspective. Oh goody, the things I've got to look forward to!!!!!!

Oh well, I'd better sign off; you can see I'm in a bit of an ironic mood. Hubby and I are gearing up for moving this weekend -- moving rooms that is. But hell, it's a big job, lots of heavy furniture to lift and maneuver into new positions -- wardrobes, desks, dressing tables, beds... Lots of nooks and crannies that haven't seen the light of day for five years that'll need dusting and cleaning. Oh joy! A great weekend's work for a six-month-pregnant woman and her husband with a bad back!! Still, it's gotta be done. And it's our tenth anniversary (of when we first got together) this weekend, so we'll be off to our favourite Mexican restaurant for beef enchiladas and sangrias (non-alcoholic, of course). Ten years! Quite a feat, and we're still as happy as ever. That's worth a mighty celebration. So maybe I'll cheat and squeeze in one fully-loaded margarita!! (But shhh, don't tell anyone)...

All the best to everyone reading,

Cheers,

Eloise