Week 32! A few weeks ago I started going through the nesting phase of pregnancy and was super gung-ho about cleaning and organizing everything in my house…sometimes until the wee hours of the morning when I definitely should have been sleeping instead. The crazy organizer in me was subdued for the past few weeks, but the fire was rekindled this past weekend when I realized how soon baby was going to be here. We finally (mostly) finished putting together our online registry–amazon makes everything so easy!–and when I realized all of the things we don’t have yet compared to how much space our tiny apartment has to offer, I knew we had to do some serious sorting, cleaning, and downsizing to make it all work. So, like I said in my last post, this weekend we began to tackle one project at a time, starting with our closet. Today after blogging but before work I am going to sort through all of the baby clothes people have generously been giving us, and then tomorrow I am going to take all of our clothes and the unusable baby clothes to be donated. Sidenote: I cleaned out my closet probably about 10 months ago and have had 2 bags of clothing sitting and waiting to be donated…why are they still in my house? I don’t know. We live like six blocks from a goodwill and go to church every week. You would think I’d have taken care of it by now…but nope. It’s shameful, I know.
Anyway…pregnancy update: My back is killing me. It’s always in the same spot, and it’s up a lot higher than I would have expected it. I have almost no lower back pain, but the right side of my back kind of in the middle (almost bra strap level) aches like crazy. We just got one of those roller ball massage things, which helps a little, but not as much as I would like it to. I tried one of those maternity belts I mentioned a few weeks back to see if maybe that would help, but the two days I wore it my sciatic pain came back full force. I don’t know about you, but I would take an aching muscle over sciatic pain any day. So, off the belt came, and back to the store it will go. I’m sure they work wonders for some people…but this one at least did not work at all for me. This week too baby’s movements have become a bit more…forceful, might I say? Sometimes when he moves I’ll get a sharp, quick pain, and sometimes when he decides it is soccer time his movements will kind of stop me in my tracks. My OB says it’s completely normal though as he starts to drop and orient himself as he needs to. Other than that, my belly just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Brinton and I look at each other sometimes and wonder how much bigger I am really going to be able to stretch with 8 weeks left to go! I guess we will see…
Diabetes update: Since I have started testing my blood sugar my results have been fantastic. I have to email my weekly results every Sunday night to the nurse with the Sweeter Choice Program who monitors the GD patients, and each week she has said that my numbers look perfect, which is really encouraging. The nurse even told me that I am doing so well that I don’t have to do the testing as often if I prefer not to. I was having to test 4 times per day, every day, but now I only have to test 2 times per day Monday through Thursday, and the regular 4 times per day Friday through Sunday. I still need to take my fasting levels every morning, and then I just need one other after meal test sometime during the day. Over the last few weeks I have started to learn what kinds of foods (and how much of them) will make my blood sugar spike and what meals will work just fine for me, so it’s nice that I don’t have to prick my finger each and every time when I know my levels are within range. I’ve even figured out how to indulge in some of my pregnancy cravings (burgers and fries are pretty much guaranteed to make me happy), I’ve just had to change the portion size and be aware of what I’m eating. For example, Brinton and I decided to treat ourselves to Wendy’s this weekend, and this is what our tray looked like:
We laughed pretty hard, because it really looked like someone had shrunken his meal down a few sizes for me…like a daddy burger and a baby burger! Portion control isn’t ever something I’ve been mindful of before; I never really needed to be. Plus, I’m Italian…the entire culture revolves around eating, and eating, and eating…and then eating some more. I’m grateful that I’m required to be aware of it now because in the long run I think it will come in quite handy as I try to get back down to my pre-pregnancy weight postpartum, and it will help me establish a healthier lifestyle for my kids. My only struggles this week have been trying to find meals that are filling enough. I haven’t done the best job menu planning…I plan out my carbs, but then sometimes I max out on what I can have then struggle to find “free foods”–protein, cheese, veggies–to finish filling me up. I have a few more recipes I have stumbled upon which have been really good though, so I’ll be sure to post them over the next few weeks.
And there you have it folks! 32 weeks pregnant and still loving every minute of it, aches, pains, and kicks included.
Maria Simply Smiling 
Your so sweet…I can just tell.