It’s amazing what a difference getting rid of the morning sickness makes. Now I feel like I’m really enjoying pregnancy the way I did before. The nausea this time was definitely worse and lasted longer than either of my two previous pregnancies… I don’t think I felt “right” until almost the start of my third trimester. I so appreciate being able to eat what I want, when I want, without getting sick. Of course I do have some days where the heartburn is starting up but it’s not consistent. The rest of me seems pretty good: my back feels good, my hair is normal-ish, my skin has calmed down. I’m still sleeping normally without any extra pillows!

The only physical complaint right now is that “bruised” rib I’m starting to think is a pulled ligament or muscle. Monday evening it was extremely painful, but has since calmed down into mildly painful again. I have to be careful with what I lift with my left arm, as I’m sure anything that makes it hurt probably doesn’t help it heal. I carry Kate on my left hip all the time so it’s being problematic…. I’ve been letting her walk a lot more than usual, even though she is slow as molasses, likes to sit down randomly, and I have to say “hold hand!” every 3 feet. But it’s probably a good idea to not carry her everywhere, though I still need to lift her in and out of the SUV.

Ember is very active, moving and stretching and sometimes actually hurting me. A few times yesterday I yelped and jumped about a foot as she kicked especially hard. I could put my hands on my belly and feel her squirming all over in there, limbs swirling around beneath the surface. She’s just getting so big in there! I know it’s my third time and all, but it’s still hard to wrap my brain around how big the baby is all curled up in there. I still can’t figure out how she’s laying in there based on what I feel… this kid confuses me. I get kicks and pushes all over my belly. I would guess that she probably hasn’t flipped yet, since I haven’t noticed any big movement or change.

She’s started getting the hiccups daily now. I hope she’s not a chronic pissed-off-hiccuper like Kate was… poor Kate would get them every day and would get SO angry about it! At 21 months old she still gets the hiccups every time she laughs really hard.

I feel like I got huge this past week…. like my belly was growing at a slow rate and then poof, huge belly. It’s a basketball now. And there is absolutely no doubt when someone looks at me that I am obviously very pregnant. I guess Ember and my resulting belly had a growth spurt.