21 Weeks!

We are definitely on the downhill slope now and that sounds really good! I can definitely feel myself getting very tired and losing energy a LOT faster than I used to. I also scared myself a bit on Tuesday. I was at the grocery store and started hurting really bad. I realized it was because my abdomen was as hard as a rock and it felt really tight on the upper part of my belly. It was actually taking my breathe away it was hurting so bad. I just tried to calm down and breathe and hurry up and finish shopping and get home. So throughout the store this probably happened at least 10 times or so. I got home and put the cold stuff away and laid down on my left side and had a big glass of water. I felt much much better once I did this. I was probably laying down for a good 2 hours or so and then I finally got up and started to make dinner. Well it started up again. As long as I was laying down they stayed away but once I was up and moving around a bit they start coming back. I called the DR's office and the on-call Doc called me back. He told me to stay laying down the rest of the night and to have at least 2-3 more glasses of water. I'm a water freak anyway so that wasn't a big deal. I did as told and I felt better the next day. Not fantastic but not contracting anyway. Still had some crampiness in my lower abdomen all day. Called in for a followup at the office and the nurse said to call if I start getting them again every 10 minutes or more. She said I was ok to go to work but to take it very easy and drink lots of water and keep my bladder emptied (seems like an oxy moron to me ;-) ). So I did ok most of the day. Had one contraction at 2:15 and a bad lower back ache that started about 2:45 and I decided I should probably go home and lay down. Which I did. I'm feeling quite a bit better this morning and hope that continues. The nurse did say if this continues or if I have any cervical changes at my next appointment (Aug. 12th) I would be looking at stopping work soon. That's ok with me. I get so tired there and I always feel horrible by the time I get home. I'll do whatever I need to for these babies. Speaking of those wonderful little miracles.... I can feel them moving around a lot more now. It's just wonderful. The little stinkers still haven't let their Daddy feel them but hopefully that will be soon. I'm attaching belly pics for this week although I don't think I've grown that much from last week. According to my measurements I've only grown about 1/4 - 1/2 inch. I did just read my Baby Gaga edition for this week and it said the babies are supposed to be going through quite a growth spurt this week as well as the next 5 so I guess we'll see it show up on me soon. My skin can't tell the difference though because the majority of the skin on my tummy is sore and numb and hurts to the touch almost. The nurse said it was just from stretching so fast so apparently I'm not a freak of nature. ;-)

Here's the Babies Progress for this week:

Fetal development in pregnancy week 21:
Your beautiful little miracle-gro baby will be putting on a full ounce and a half this week (and weighing up to 16.5 ounces), but that’s just the beginning! Within the next five weeks, they’ll really be packin’ it on! For now, we’re pleased to report the addition of rapid eye movement (REM) a key component to any healthy baby’s sleep schedule. While in the dermatology department: their thin soft skin is very red, rather translucent, and a bit wrinkled. Not to worry, it’s not a premature aging disease. It's just their clever little body setting them up with extra space that will smooth out once your little one starts packing on the baby-fat. That won’t be for a few more weeks, though. So for the time being, your munchkin is still a little lean mean growing machine! The beginnings of what is commonly called “brown fat” is just starting to fill in to help your baby retain some body heat, which is crucial as they’re not yet capable of regulating their own body temperature.

And the Belly Pics: