24 Weeks

I've had almost a week off since the last time I worked and feel like I'm still recovering!  I stayed in a hotel for three days while I was on three night shifts in a row because of the (what seems like never ending) home remodel project.  I've been in a near coma state from Wednesday until Sunday.  I. Could. Not. Stop. Sleeping.  I was starting to worry about muscle atrophy!  My toes, feet, ankles, and calves have been very achy and nothing seems to help (except temporary relief when Jake chooses to rub them!).  I feel better today and had a 30 minute walk yesterday and a 30 minute swim today.  Much improved compared to 5 days ago.  I even plan on going to pre-natal yoga class tomorrow.

Construction was supposed to wrap up at the end of last week but they are definitely not close to done yet. I am so tired of having people around all the time and not being able to nap when I want to.  I still have to come up with a plan for this week when I start work again on Wednesday night (a neighbor might be helping me out).  I'm also so sick of using a non-working bathroom sink constantly.  For those of you who have been to our house, you know which one that is!  I just love having my toothpaste spit slowly circle the drain for 30 minutes.  Plus a see through bathroom and shower makes for limited personal hygiene time when contractors are there.  This all wouldn't be so bad if our bathroom was normal, had a door and wasn't in the living room.

Jake and I went to the 24 week appointment with the midwife today and left with a clean bill of health.  She contributes my tiredness and achy legs to my job, not to any medical problems.  I did have a weird vision thing 2 weekends ago where my eyes took a couple hours to focus in the morning.  That has since resolved and I'm no longer scared that it signifies preeclampsia.  I told her about that and it's a wait and see kind of problem since I no longer have the vision problem or any other symptoms of preeclampsia.  She also said that I'm not gaining too much weight and thinks I'll gain about 20-25 pounds total.  I just can't imagine being over 150, but I'm getting pretty close already.  Jake spilled the beans about how many sweets I bake so she suggested I cut back on that.  (But I love them!)  Also, she predicts that I'll take a 6 week leave before the due date instead of a 4 week leave because of my job.  She said that in her experience nurses and strawberry pickers and the two professions that she has no problem advocating for early maternity leave because of the demanding physical nature of these jobs.  No plans to go early at this point since I feel fine, but again, we'll see when the time comes.

Last night Jake and I went to a play at Shakespeare Santa Cruz.  However, we didn't see a Shakespeare! Due to several factors, we ended up seeing the non-Shakespeare play which was the Three Musketeers.  I love the outdoor theater, the picnicking, and the production, but the script was not the best adaptation.  Oh well, at least I got to make a bunch of yummy food to snack on!

 
I made an almost perfect potato salad (on top), a pan-roasted corn and tomato salad with coconut bacon (on the right) and a white bean, olive and artichoke salad (on the left).  We also had some sparkling wine (well, just an ounce for me), cajun almonds and some cookie bars.  Oh and by tradition we bought hot chocolate at intermission.  Yummz!  Shakespeare Santa Cruz is something I look forward to every summer.  I just wish they had a better play line-up this year, especially since it's their 30th anniversary summer.  Henry IV does just not appeal to me and the comedy they choose isn't even in the outdoor theater which is half the magic of the productions.  Hopefully next year they'll have something awesome!