Twenty-Seven & Twenty-Eight.

How far along? 28 weeks, 2 days. Twelve more weeks left! Though a friend and a cousin both recently had their babies five weeks early which freaks me out completely – because then I could have a baby in SEVEN WEEKS. Woah. Slow down.

How big is baby? Somewhere around two-and-a-half pounds and nearly sixteen inches long.

Total weight gain: +16 lbs. Pretty sure it's all in my stomach (and maybe a little in my upper arms, which I don't want to talk about), which I used to my advantage yesterday when trying to get Mike to go for a walk. As in, "Mike, can YOU imagine carrying sixteen extra pounds in your stomach? How can you not go on a walk with me?"

Maternity Clothes? How about maternity SHOES? I had to get a pair of sandals to wear to work since my feet are…getting bigger or swelling or something. Pretty. In maternity wear, stretchy (non-maternity) skirts and scarves are my favorite things as of late. Happily, school is nearly out, so I can dress even more casually at work soon. (i.e.: Stop wearing the same two pairs of “dress” pants.)

Stretch marks? Still none!

Sleep: I’ve started getting up for a nightly pee. … Gosh, pregnancy makes me willing to share odd things. Sorry, friends. Honestly, though, it’s not too bad and I fall back asleep fairly easily.

Movement: He's almost never NOT moving. We’re in the process of interviews at work, and it is pretty difficult to focus on asking and listening to questions when it feels like something is trying to claw its way out of your stomach. He is ridiculously active, almost to the point where I’m considering Googling, “Can a fetus move too much?”

Food cravings: Although I’m sure it’s disappointing to those who like to ask The Most Popular Question Ever for Pregnant Women (along with, “Do you know what you’re having?” “What are you naming him?” and “How are you feeling?”), I don’t have any exciting answers for what I am craving. I drink mostly water and I’m eating pretty normally, with a few more indulgences (frozen yogurt and Lucky Charms) and more attention to my protein and nutrient intake.

What I miss: Not being under hawk-eyed watch by every single person I ever see. I really do appreciate the concern that I’m not able to walk down stairs without tripping, but it makes me feel like you think I’m an idiot!

What I am looking forward to: Having time to get ready for moving and baby and going for more walks. School is out for the summer! I still work, but fewer days a week, which means more time for exploring this so-called ‘nesting’ thing that seems to be so popular with pregnant women.

Milestones: THIRD TRIMESTER. WHAT. OMG. There is a “good chance” that the baby would survive if it was born now. Crazy. I got my first cloth diapers as a gift, which brings my total baby items to: a diaper bag, three cloth diapers, a few blankets, a few outfits, a few books, an infant carrier, and a few toys. A few more onsies and diapers, a car seat, a stroller, and a place to sleep and we’re good to go for the first few months! Or…something like that.

Another example of using non-maternity clothes on a big, fat pregnant belly - most sundresses are perfect. It's great.

Oh, and THIS: My entire body is ridiculously itchy.

I feel like I haven’t gotten to many life updates around my little ol’ blog. All I have to say is: Expecting your first child is overwhelming and exciting. Expecting your first child, moving, and your husband starting a PhD program in the same summer is just plain crazy. We’re pretty much little stressballs right now, trying to figure out if we’re going to live near my work or his (an hour apart) and how often I will work and who will take care of our child and whether we should buy a second car (I cringe even writing that) and whether we’d prefer to live somewhere uber-suburban and near the babysitter (my mom) or live somewhere more walkable but farther from the babysitter (thus complicating commutes). Can you begin to understand why I feel like my head might explode with options? Oh, and we have 2.5 weeks until we plan on moving our lease ends. Um. Oops?

I also have to figure out whether I’ll be changing midwives/hospitals if we move and find a pediatrician and figure out our health insurance after the baby is born and make decisions about vaccines and circumcision and read as much about childbirth and breastfeeding as I possibly can…

*BOOM*

That was the sound of my head exploding.