Feeling Good

I think that my health is probably something that I take for granted on a daily basis.  While I know that I should not, I just do.  I guess it is probably easy to do when you are able to easily go about your day accomplishing whatever you want or hope for without too much stress to your body.

The last four weeks were rough.  It started with Rusty's stomach flu and simply did not stop.  I remember as each weekend came thinking, "By NEXT weekend surely this will all be past," yet it simply wasn't.  It was some sort of illness after another, and the worst part was my total and complete lack of enthusiasm and energy for...well, just about everything, and this is all with simple bronchial infections and such, nothing huge like so many people deal with on a regular basis.

Yesterday, however, I was out with a friend.  I had driven downtown to meet up with her for a killer of a deal on a manicure/pedicure combo.  We had found it online, and were able to receive the wonderful pampering for just $26 total!  As I was driving downtown to meet up with her, I was bouncing to the radio, smiling, and enjoying the sunshine streaming in through my car windows.  As the light bounced off the of the buildings that make up the beautiful Vancouver skyline, I had to sort of stop and think of how blessed I am to live here.  In 20 minutes I'm downtown in a gorgeous city hanging out with a friend being pampered.  It felt great to be having some time to myself, especially when I didn't feel incredibly sick or exhausted. That very same afternoon I was back home hanging with my boys, watching the munchkin run through the piles of leaves his dad had just raked up.

Yesterday afternoon while Rusty was napping, I was cleaning the house.  Scrubbing the stove, wiping all of the counters, sweeping, scouring...you name it, I was there.  It felt good.  It was amazing to have the energy to tackle the house that we had just sort of managed to keep running while we all felt so sick.  Kev was hard at work on our basement, continuing the monumental task of transforming our family room from musty and old into fresh and new.  I have been incredibly impressed with his commitment to it and seeing it completed before the little one arrives.  Last night we finished the day off with a trip to Kev's hockey game-more on that later in a bigger post-but what it all comes down to is this...it feels good to feel good.  It feels good to not have a total and complete lack of energy, it is amazing to not wake up wondering when I can go back to bed again.  It is a blessing to not wake up every half hour throughout the night due to a hacking cough.  It just feels good.  Finally, that weekend I've been waiting for the last three weekends is here...and it feels good.

On an entirely different note...30 weeks!  I cannot BELIEVE that I am thirty weeks pregnant.  A few thoughts:

• This pregnancy has been much different than my pregnancy with Rusty.  This baby moves...a lot.  There is rarely a time of a few hours that goes by without some kind of kick, roll, or wiggle from this little one to remind me that it is there.  I love this, even the kicks that hurt, because it is a constant reminder that this baby is thriving and healthy.
• Another difference between this pregnancy and that with Rusty is that I am feeling the aches and pains a bit more.  I realized recently how very spoiled I was with Rusty.  First of all, I could basically nap or rest whenever I needed to.  I was also, at this very point, just one day away from completing "teaching" for the year.  The timing of that pregnancy was definitely easier as far as life as a teacher goes.  I am on my feet a lot more than I was with Rusty, but can't really complain because overall, my health as a pregnant woman is really quite good.  
• I have been feeling sick a lot more.  Not sick from the cough and such, but I just can barely eat anything and my stomach feels so full that I can't handle any more, so I end up eating a lot of small stuff throughout the day.  Lately I have noticed a lot of that small stuff has been sweets.  Hmmm...I need a cut back.  Last night I saw a picture of myself from the game we were at and realized...pregnancy fat face is back!  My husband laughed and said I was crazy and he had no idea what I was talking about when I tried to explain it, but it is there.  I used to have a much, let's say rounder, face when I weighed a lot more.  With Rusty's pregnancy, some of that roundness returned, and left again as soon as he was born.  Well, it seems to be returning yet again.  I should add this note, since receiving some comments, that I'm really ok with this.  I know that it will go away once the baby is born, it is just sometimes not so fun to see that reminder of the days when my weight was so much more, I was so unhealthy and very unhappy.  This one?  It doesn't have to do with that...it's just a result of pregnancy, and THAT is something I am definitely ok with!
• Time, well, time is a major difference this time around.  The weeks are flying by.  Again, a lot of it has to do with our life situation, me working full time, the time of year, the fact that we have a two year-old to keep up with, but I feel that this pregnancy is going so fast.  

Here it is, the 30 week photo from just last night!  Ignore the pale face...I guess winter is here!