Baby on the Run: Weeks 15 & 16

It’s crazy to think that in just a few weeks, I will have reached the halfway point of this pregnancy! (Halfway, of course, is a relative term. If this baby takes after me, it will arrive 20 minutes early on its due date. If it skews more Brian than Ali, we can expect to meet this little one in December, which would be…two months late. Love you, Brian!)

The past two weeks have gone really well. Overall, I feel like a mostly normal human. It’s funny that I thought I felt “so good” during the first trimester. Because while, yes, I generally felt better than the horror I expected and never threw up or experienced anything tragic, I did feel crappy most of the time, and had a few scary moments on long walks with Ellie when I would get really dizzy and have panic attacks. It didn’t seem that bad at the time, but now I’m like, yeah… I feel better.

But now, we’re moving and grooving right through this second trimester! Week 15 included a massage, my birthday, and a fun weekend trip upstate. And I spent most of Week 16 in Florida! (I called it a solo trip when I booked it, but I wasn’t alone! The baby came, too! And we had so much fun together! AND I think I felt some movement in there! Twice!)

To recap…

BABY IS THE SIZE OF A…

Week 15: navel orange. Yum!

Week 16: avocado. Though, according to my research (my eyes; looking at fruit), navel oranges are significantly larger than avocados.

HOW I’M FEELING

Week 15: Normal! No nausea, no more crazy food aversions, but I was getting headaches almost daily. I was also super thirsty all the time. On Wednesday night, I had the worst headache I’ve ever had. I think I slept for eight minutes total that night. I did my Stelara shot (I do this every eight weeks to manage my Crohn’s disease) on Tuesday. We went back and forth a lot about what to do about staying on Stelara. I’ll spare you all my thoughts and Brian’s thoughts and the midwife’s thoughts and my GI’s thoughts, but ultimately, I’m feeling great now, Crohn’s-wise, so I’m going to keep doing what works. (We talked about coming off it since, although Stelara is deemed safe for pregnancy and breastfeeding, there isn’t a ton of research out there, and there’s almost no long-term research that’s been done on the topic. We all researched. We all wavered. For someone who hates making decisions, there sure are a lot to make during these 40 weeks!)

And the pre-natal massage! It was amazing. If you’re local, I went to Hoboken Women’s Wellness, and I highly recommend it. This wasn’t some weak tickle session. This was a legitimate massage, and I loved it and can’t wait to go back.

Week 16: I went to West Palm for a few days, so I spent the week being warm and happy. It was nice to get away for a bit and read and get some work done and generally just focus on myself. I realize that probably won’t be as easy to pull off soon, so I’m taking advantage while I can!

One day, I sent Brian a poolside selfie (it was so beautiful — you’re welcome, B), and when I actually looked at it, I noticed I’m starting to get a faint linea negra! It goes all the way from my pubic bone to my boobs, which I of course Googled and everyone says that means boy! But then everyone on the message boards says “not necessarily true.” So, as usual, who knows! But it’s cool to see that starting to show up!

This was also the week I felt like I started to pop. I know I’ll say that a million more times, but stuff really doesn’t fit well anymore, and I felt pretty large some days. (It didn’t help that I didn’t try anything on before packing for Florida, and then when I got there, everything was way too tight and uncomfortable. Smart, Feller.)

The first day, I felt really uncomfortable in my too-tight bathing suit and too-tight shorts. But by day two, I was like screw it, and embraced it and started going on daily beach walks sans cover up. (Mostly because I forgot to pack a cover up…)

On two separate occasions, I was hanging by the pool and felt a little movement right where the baby allegedly lives. They say you can start to feel movement around 16 weeks, and I’m like… 82% sure that’s what it was!

WHAT I’M EATING

Week 15: Acai bowls and smoothies. Yum!

Week 16: Chocolate lava cake every single night. When it’s on the menu, I order it. YOLO.

ON THE WORKOUT FRONT

Week 15: I took it pretty easy all week. I was recovering from the New Jersey Half Marathon, but made it to Orangetheory a few times. I felt slow on the treadmills and weak on the floor, but happy to be there. I also ran three miles with Ashley on Friday, and she was very understanding when I complained about having to pee the entire time (despite having gone three times before leaving the house).

Week 16: I went for a few short runs in Florida, which were slow and steamy. I love running when I travel. BUT, Palm Beach, as lovely as your “Lake Path” is, there is a serious lack of bathrooms along the way. Thank goodness for the nice man who let me use the bathroom at his private tennis court. It was a very, very close call.

Then, on Monday morning, I went to Orangetheory and felt so good on the treadmills. I usually just feel sort of slow and easily breathless and heavy, but on Monday, I felt great. I hit 3 miles during class for the first time in forever (I used to average around 3.6 miles per class — #TBT), and got up to 10 mph on the last all-out (I usually max out at 8 mph these days). So that was fun!

WHAT I’M WEARING

Week 15: These tank tops from Athleta (they’re not maternity tanks, but I love them and they work for now — the high neckline is key), still living in Lululemon’s Align leggings, and wearing big, baggy, comfy things for the most part.

Week 16: My first maternity dress! I ordered it a few weeks ago and wore it almost every night in Florida.

WHAT I’M READING

Week 15: The Pregnant Athlete. It was good and helpful for breaking down workout modifications to make month by month. But it was also a lot to take in at once. I figure I’ll go back to it each month to check in.

Week 16: Bringing Up Bébé. I loved it. I devoured it poolside in Florida (I know, rough life) and couldn’t wait to talk to Brian about some of things I liked and disliked from the book. When I came home, he was listening to an audiobook. He was listening to Bringing Up Bébé! And now we are talking about it like our own little book club.

HOW I’M SLEEPING

Week 15: Brian was traveling most of the week, and whenever he travels, Ellie likes to sleep on top of me. But now that I have the maternity pillow, she can’t, and I think that makes her sad. She’s blocked! I have a giant moat surrounding my body and she can’t cross it! So that made me sad.

Week 16: I slept great because I always sleep great in hotel beds. I actually slept better without the maternity pillow, so I’m ditching it for now. It was nice at first, but lately I’m not feeling it, so it’s going to hang in the closet for a while. (I slept without it Sunday night, and Ellie slept right in my nook. I think she’s pleased with my decision.)

WHAT I’M WONDERING

How to decorate the baby’s room! It’s a little tough since we don’t know where we’ll be living at the time (we live in a condo building and the apartment just sold; we’ll be moving when our lease is up mid-summer), and interior decorating is so not my jam. But sometimes, when I should be getting work done and have deadlines looming, I’ll do some Googling, and that’s fun. I have two different ideas for ways to decorate. We’ll see.

Next week: the anatomy scan, a five-mile “race” (jog, for me), and then a few productive days before heading to San Diego for the LIVE SHOW! (Which, yes, sold out in less than 12 hours. But, we are working on getting some more tickets. Stand by!)

More Baby on the Run:

• Week 14
• Week 13
• Week 12
• The First Trimester
• +1 on the Run