Newest pregnancy symptom: in addition to swollen hands/feet, insomnia, constipation and ever changing pigmentation, this week we are adding interesting locations for freakishly long hair. I had heard about this. I thought it was a myth. I thought I was immune. Not so. Whilst driving to work I noticed I had a small hair on my chin- not cute but not the end of the world. As I tilted my head back to get a better look at it, I saw the big daddy. Where my head and neck meet I saw the longest, loneliest, out of place hair. It was about an inch long and just hanging out. How long had it been there? Why had I not noticed? Had anyone else noticed? I'm just walking around with a giant hair coming out of my neck!!! Holy cow. I couldn't believe it. I ripped it out and tried to take a picture of it but by the time I got my camera out it had blown away. Not amused. Not at all. The swollen hands/feet bit is also now pretty extreme. Feet must be elevated at all times. Even at work. I took my old slippers there to wear during the day.
My hands hurt- there are no rings that fit so sometimes I get interesting glances from judgmental old ladies which is kind of amusing. I had to go and buy a larger pair of slippers to wear on a daily basis. Actually I probably could have gotten away with the same size in wide but they didn't have any so I just went a size bigger.I think this past week the symptoms sort of came all at once. I now also have super itchy skin. All over. I'm moisturizing like a maniac but still so itchy. And the insomnia is worse than ever. NO sleep, itchy skin, swollen extremities, hair growing out of wherever it feels like it, and even more of my skin is changing color in weird places. So before it was like the normal stuff they tell you- darkening of the nipples/areolas which I'm NOT pleased about but whatever. I knew it would happen. I seriously underestimated the extent of it but I knew it was going to happen. I do have splotches of dark skin in places I wasn't expecting like my armpits. It now looks like I have a 5 o'clock shadow all the time even when freshly shaven. That was not in the books. I am also officially waddling. I need help getting up/down and often have to take breaks from just being to catch my breath. I can't wait for this to all be done.
So this week the big thing that happened is Hov and I went to Virginia!! We went to visit my dad's side of the family as told us he wanted to throw us a baby shower. I had to double check with my MD to make sure I could travel and she said as long as I wasn't having any contractions and had a copy of my medical records just in case I was good to go. I arrived on Thursday night, Hov joined on Friday. Thursday I got in around 7 and we went to dinner at Wegmans. Now I did not know about this glorious place. We don't have such magical locations in Tallahassee. For the locals- imagine if New Leaf, Earth Fare, Whole Foods and Trader Joe's got together in a orgy and out came a Costco-sized haven. That's what this place is. They have a little open cafe/restaurant thing where you can eat and that's where we went for dinner. I got the surf and turf (steak and crab cake) and a sweet tea and it was heavenly.
I slept for exactly zero minutes on Thursday night because I was itching so badly. I of course googled my symptoms and self-diagnosed a very rare pregnancy condition where I don't process bile properly and would need to deliver early or risk having a still born. The doctor's office didn't open until 8:30 and I was googling at 4 so that was a super fun night. The second it turned 8:30 I was on the phone with the doctor's office and they basically told me to take a Zyrtec and stop being a psycho. I also started having contractions for the first time. Not the normal Braxton-Hicks which don't hurt at all but instead feel like your uterus just tightens up. This time they were like period cramps. So then I was convinced I was going into early labor. Turns out I wasn't. Shocker.
I went for a long walk and spent most of the day in and out of naps trying to get a little rest. I also went and got a mani which was 99% because I wanted the hand massage. They really are so uncomfortable. I can't close my fists all the way without it hurting. Sausage fingers. Hov even made a comment about how they are so big which is pretty rare. He's kept his preggo comments to a severe minimum which is really good for his safety. He got in Friday night pretty late and we just went back to the house and went to sleep. Or tried to. He slept and I half slept and half used his legs as scratching posts for my feet.
Saturday was the big day. Bridget did not waste any time setting things up. It was amazing how things came together and all the little details she put into it. I left Hov to help her and went to visit my great-grandmother. She wants to try and make it until the baby is born but I don't know when it'll be that we'll make it up there. Maybe via Skype. The visit was short but sweet- she seemed happy to see us. By the time we got back to the house Bridget was hard at work as was her friend Cynthia who helps with party planning things. My grandparents were there and Hov had been helpful too.
Cynthia made a gorgeous cake with a little fondant baby on top and a fondant rubber ducky. It was actually a pound cake which was delicious. She also is talented with balloon decorations. She made a bunch of rattles out of balloons and decorated the house with them. She also had streamers and a sign that said baby shower. It was very cute, all pastel colors with rubber ducks and rattle things decorating.
My aunt Maria wasn't able to come but she made the favors which were little cute gift boxes filled with mints and decorated with a little bottle thing and a tag that said Claudia & Hovik's baby shower. I know he hates these things with a burning passion but I was really happy that he agreed to be a part of one. The favor boxes along with little rubber ducks decorated the tables. It was very simple but cute.
The "seat of honor" was a loveseat where we were to be seated while opening gifts. Above the loveseat they decorated the space with streamers and balloons and then set up the gift area next to it. Bridget used Vanessa's old swinging crib thing as the place for gifts and put some baby blankets in it for decoration. It was pretty adorable. So we sat next to that and opened gifts together at the end of the evening.
We didn't do any games which was totally fine with us but there was a table set up with burp cloths that people could decorate with messages or however they wanted to personalize it that we would then get to use with the baby.There was also a sign-in plate for people to sign and advice cards. I don't think anyone got around to the cards though.
Most importantly- the food (obvi). The spread was nice and healthy for the most part with the option to eat shenanigans. Bread rolls and two kinds of salad started the buffet, followed by a bean dip, a sampler of puff pastry appetizers (stuffed with spinach, crab, mushroom etc), rotisserie chicken which was delicious and a giant platter of this rice dish my grandmother makes which is absolutely heavenly.
I think there may have been more desserts than savory foods which is amazing to me.
So first was the cake that Cynthia made which was the pound cake, then there was a giant tres leches my aunt/uncle brought, then Bridget made a flan which was delicious even Hov had a few servings, brownies and a jello tower. If you think the jello tower is weird it's because you probably haven't been keeping up with the blog. I was recently obsessed with jello. 
Saturday was wonderful and tiring. It was great to see everyone and get to catch up and hear all the advice and wives tales. Apparently having a beer every few days increases milk production and someone predicted I was going to only have a boy and this would be my only child according to some necklace voodoo. We went to sleep fat and happy....Sunday was a short day- we went to breakfast at Panera and then headed to the airport. Our girlfriend Maddie was watching Archie for the weekend and she came to get us. Once home the shenanigans continued, we went to Tan's (best asian in town) for dinner and then to Target so we could finish up the nursery. We had calculated that with the gifts we got in VA we would be able to get all the big things and then just have to come out of pocket for the rest of the medium/small items we were missing which would obviously be a big help. What I hadn't counted on (and I should have known better) is that Hov played the whole "register for whatever you want babe" card when I was doing the original thing and once we went to Target and he saw what I had chosen he vetoed a bunch of things. First thing that went was the crib. The one I picked was apparently too flimsy for his liking and he wanted the sturdier one which was of course 50% more expensive. Then we needed to get the matching dresser/changing table combo that I hadn't planned on getting at all. By the time we went through all the things we were missing it was almost a new list. I should have known better than to have believed him! At least we are in agreement with the final list. Now we just have to go and pull the trigger, we need to buy stock in target before we go!
Today was the last day of week 34. I had a doctor's appointment and got scolded at by the midwife. Wouldn't have been so bad if I didn't take the warden with me. He's got the kitchen on lockdown now. I gained 6 lbs this month and am on carb & sugar restriction with instructions to up the cardio. Considering how OCD I was before about calories and exercise it's kind of embarrassing but I really have let myself go so it was about time. It just was with a witness this time so he sees me going to the kitchen and kicks me out. I guess it's a new day. The problem is I just want a big bowl of Cheerios...
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