pregnancy update: 23 weeks

Hey all! 
This is my 23 week pregnancy update. I am still feeling amazing; maybe a little less energetic, but this might also be due to the fact that our family has so dang much going on right now. Between a new baby, a new house, a new city and a new president, life seems a little overwhelming. With all of that said, I am so happy to be pregnant at this momentous time in history and in our lives, and can't wait to carry on my pregnancy journey to finally meet our little baby boy or girl. Only 17 weeks left to go! Check out my stats below.




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Current Disposition: feeling SUPER thankful and a little bit overwhelmed. It's no surprise that America is going through BIG changes right now. Bringing a baby into this world requires great leadership and a strong sense of community not only on a micro (family) level, but also on a grander macro (political and environmental) level. The hate and disdain being spewed as a result of the election makes me sad. I can't help but think that we as Americans are better than the way we have been behaving. I myself am guilty of reading into the media and social media gossip, and as a result feel pain, sometimes vengeance  and sometimes shame. Yuck. This is not who we are as a country, and this is certainly not who I am as a person. The below quote comes from one of my favorite books and helps to remind me of how to behave in times of such calamity - and which feeling to choose, that of love or that of fear. I hope to be this for my babies, for my husband, for my family, for my friends and for our country.

"Every action taken by human beings is based in love or fear. Decisions affecting business, industry, politics, religion, the education of your young, the social agenda of your nations, the economic goals of your society, choices involving war, peace, attack, defense, aggression, submission; determinations to covet or give away, to save or to share, to unite or to divide—every single free choice you ever undertake arises out of one of the only two possible thoughts there are: a thought of love or a thought of fear. Fear is the energy which contracts, closes down, draws in, runs, hides, hoards, harms. Love is the energy which expands, opens up, sends out, stays, reveals, shares, heals. Fear wraps our bodies in clothing, love allows us to stand naked. Fear clings to and clutches all that we have, love gives all that we have away. Fear holds close, love holds dear. Fear grasps, love lets go. Fear rankles, love soothes. Fear attacks, love amends. Every human thought, word, or deed is based in one emotion or the other. You have no choice about this, because there is nothing else from which to choose. But you have free choice about which of these to select."

Aside from the election, which I pray turns into something beautiful, strong and wonderful for our country, we officially shared that we are moving to Nashville... Ah!!! Not only is Nashville our new "home", but we also found and put in an offer on a home! Ryan, Lincoln and I flew out to Nashville last week with my parents to go house hunting. We had an amazing broker, Keith Merrill, who showed us nearly 40 properties. At times, I felt helpless and a little lost but also knew that we were sure to find the perfect home eventually. And that, we did. She is a beauty! And will be the best new home for our growing family; a place where we can create beautiful memories. Ah. I can't wait to share more. I have taken full reign in handling the interior design of our home (I finally get to decorate an entire home AND a nursery!), and it is so much fun. I can't wait to share more on this, as well. 

Energy level: feeling a little less energized but still feeling great overall. I think with all of the commotion (election, new home, new baby, new city), I have had the energy sucked out of me. For being a pregnant mama, carting around 40 properties with a toddler in a new city, trying to find one to call your home, I'd say I'm doing a decent job keeping my energy up. It's been a little more challenging to keep a consistent workout routine. I wasn't able to find a running trail in Nashville and got a little lazy with my runs when we were there. I think I ran four days our of seven (not too bad, but not amazing). The day we returned home, I went out for my first run and couldn't wait to do so -- only to be stopped 1.5 miles in by lower back pain and major cramping in my uterus. I stopped and decided to walk home instead. Today will mark the second attempt at my run. Will let you know how it goes. I talked to the doctor about this at my 23 week appointment yesterday and he said that there is no way that exercising could force me into pre-term labor - so not to worry. He encouraged me to keep exercising but also told me that I may have to switch to a more lower-impact routine. I'm going to try out my run once more today and if the pain persists, I will switch up my routine. Update: I just finished my second run and had the uterus pain creep up again around 1.5 miles. Determined to continue and finish my run for the last 1.5 miles, I held my uterus for the remainder - ha! It actually helped to have some support down there and the cramping subsided. I may invest in one of those belly sports bra bands...

Diet: I had been eating super clean prior to our trip to Nashville keeping with my warm lemon water in the morning, Glowing Green Smoothie or Smoothie Bowl for breakfast, hard boiled eggs or hummus and chips for a snack, a salad for lunch and a light dinner with a light dessert. And then we got to Nashville - OMG the food is amazing. There are so many fun and trendy restaurants, we had to try them all! We went to Burger Up, Bar Taco, Taqueria del Sol, Proper Bagel, Butchertown Hall, and the list goes on... we didn't stumble across one bad meal. Yum. To say the least, my belly (and I'm sure my baby) were full and content the entire trip. Getting back to DC, I shaped up and cleaned up my diet, and am feeling a lot healthier and lighter on my feet.

Maternity Clothes: once again, dresses and stretchy leggings all the way. I'm pretty sure that baby and I are about to experience a big growth spurt. I remember during my last pregnancy that at 6 months I was only slightly showing but by 7 months I was BIG. Months 8 and 9 I proceeded to become huge. Now that I am approaching 6 months, I feel like this will happen once again since I am relatively small at this point. I'm loving the lose fitting dresses that you can buy at BP for super cheap. Plus PinkBlush had sent me those cute, cute dresses that I've gotten a lot of fun wear out of.

Weight Gain: at 23 weeks pregnant I weigh 138 lbs, which means I've gained 8 lbs since the start of my pregnancy. This is on par for me to gain (hopefully) 25 lbs. A 10 lbs weight gain at this point is very very normal, if not on the lighter end of weight gain. So between my 19 week appointment at 23 week appointment, I gained a solid 3 lbs! I'm pretty sure I enjoyed all of that Nashville southern food a little too much, but luckily it didn't translate to the scale. That said, I am very happy with where I'm at with my weight gain. Now that I am home and in my routine I expect to be a bit healthier with my food consumption while still eating nutrient dense food.

Doctor's Visits: I had my 23 week doctor's appointment yesterday and all is well. I was weighed, had my blood pressure taken, and heard baby's heart beat. Doctor said everything looked great. Two issues presented themselves during the appointment. The first was that I needed to get a follow up anatomy scan due to my abnormal scan I had 4 weeks ago. I am doing that today. They just want to make sure that baby outgrew the things that they saw in the scan, despite the fact that my two test results came back very very normal. The second issue he had was that I am moving to Nashville. With that, he said, sometimes come missteps with the new doctor, specifically because I am a Rh-negative (I think because I am a negative blood type) which requires a Rhogam  shot. Generally, you get this shot around 25 weeks, if needed. Because we are moving to Nashville in my 25th week and the doctor doesn't want the new physician to forget (or not know) or me to forget to get the shot, he suggests we get the shot during week 24. Not a huge deal, but again, something to consider.

All in all, I am feeling great and am looking forward to the new adventure ahead - including that of our country, and in a new city, new home and new baby!

xx,
ILA

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