only 17 weeks (at most) until ibuprofen

 Ace wants to "wook" at baby!

How Far Along: 23 Weeks

Size of baby: 8 inches and a whopping 1.2 pounds!   The size of a papaya.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 25 pounds.  I'm officially past my Ace pre-pregnancy weight.

Maternity Clothes: I'm taking a dear friend's advice in hopes of surviving this pregnancy feeling more "normal" than the last and am buying stretchy tank tops, leggings, and wearing gauchos, dresses, and skirts.  It's working out splendidly and I am super comfortable.  Minus the 100 degree weather.

Gender: Definitely a boy.  No explanation was needed by the ultrasound tech!

Movement: Love it...that is something that never gets old and i always miss when i'm not pregnant.  It's so weird how much more noticeable his movements are than with Ace at this stage...we've been seeing him move for more than a month, now!

Food Cravings: I don't subscribe to the "pregnancy cravings" notion...I mean, we all crave something at some point or another in a given day, right? Pregnant women may just be a bit more demanding assertive when it comes to cravings.  However, sour things have ALWAYS been my fave and are great when I'm nauseous!
 I am also loving salads and fruit and frozen yogurt...but that's mostly me and a Georgia summer thing!

What I miss: ibuprofen and diet coke.  this has been a week of sinus headaches and migraines.

Sleep: sleeping as well as i can, i guess.  dreams may or may not be as weird as they were in the beginning...maybe i'm just remembering less and getting used to the levels of craziness?!

Symptoms: Crazy dreams, mild-moderate nausea, fatigue, random bloody nose, round ligament pain (SO much worse and sooner this time around - OUCH!), and pain from the split bone in my pelvis that never healed up after Ace-it literally feels like someone's got a knife trying to cut through.  I'm feeling more pregnant emotionally than I have felt yet.  It's really weird and hard to describe.  I have an irritable uterus that resulted in a half-day hospital stay and meds with Ace, but ended up having a normal full-term pregnancy(aside from the regular, consistent contractions from 26 weeks on).  Well, this time it got revved up around 15 weeks and has become quite a nuisance.  My ob(LOVE her - she needs a post all to herself!) seems to think I'll end up on some kind of bedrest at some point.  Lovely!

Best moment this week:  The heart-to-heart I had with my ob at my appointment.

What I am looking forward to: painting!