There are things to be said for having babies — even when you put the wonder and beauty of the actual baby aside. Before I had Maddi, I was in terrible shape. I weighed about 10 pounds more than my ideal weight and hadn’t seen the inside of a gym in at least six months. After I had Maddi, I was in even worse shape — such bad shape, in fact, that I had no option but to go to the gym so I could fit into my prepregnancy clothes without looking like link sausage. Body-conscious tops, it seems, only work if you don’t have a tummy roll.
After several months of hitting the gym three to five times a week, I ended up weighing 12 pounds less than my prepregnancy weight and having better tummy muscles than before — something that is especially evident now. At 15 weeks pregnant with Maddi, people were unafraid to ask when I was due. At 15 weeks pregnant with The Bump (not-so-aptly named thus far!), not a single query has been made as to whether or not I’m pregnant. Even now, only those ubiquitous body-conscious tops have been put in storage — I fit in every single pair of pants I own!
Sure, there is a definite pouch in my abdomen. My tummy sticks out well past my hipbones at this point. But I could still be mistaken for someone who’s simply had a bit too much Krispy Kreme. Between my near-symptomless pregnancy and the fact that I haven’t developed the slight waddle that appeared sometime around 13 weeks with Maddi, and my nearly flat stomach, it is often difficult for me to remember I’m even pregnant.
The baby hasn’t been moving around as much as Maddi did, so there’s hope yet that we won’t be living in a house of insanity. I feel him (or her) mostly in the evening when I’m resting after dinner. It’s very odd, not feeling particularly pregnant at 15 weeks. However, I must say it is nice having a variety of pants to wear without elastic or spandex in them.
Today was my OB checkup, and I have gained two and a half pounds, which doesn’t sound like much until you consider that it’s eight and a half pounds more than I gained in the first trimester with Maddi. There are things to be said for not feeling sick all the time!
My fundal height was 18 cm, which at this point means I’m measuring at 18 weeks — a bit ahead of where I am. Dr. Goncalves had to move the Doppler around a long time before he found a heartbeat. I’m not saying the old wives’ tale is true, but if it is, then we are definitely having a boy since the heart rate was a low 132. Chris is still thinking pink, of course!
And here, without further ado, are the 15 week belly pics: