21 WEEKS PREGNANT!!!

Dear Gracyn,

Mommy can truly say she is now counting down the weeks.  21 weeks done and 19 more to go, unless you are delivered by an early scheduled c-section due to Mommy's placenta previa issues....If so, Mommy can shave a few weeks off the count down!  Either way, we pray that the pregnancy makes it to the 37 week full term status with no  complications due to the previa.

You are  now weighing about three-quarters of a pound and should be approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. Mommy feels you practicing martial arts as your initial fluttering movements have turned into full-fledged kicks and nudges.  Mommy has also discovered a pattern to your activity as she gets to know you better. You are typically active throughout the day and quiet during the night.  Mommy hopes these good awake, sleep patterns continue once you are born.   In other developments, your eyebrows and lids are present now, and your vagina has begun to form as well!

Mommy is enjoying her pregnancy now and she glows... She isn't too big to be uncomfortable, yet big enough for strangers to know that she is definitely pregnant!  The third trimester may bring with it a new crop of complaints.....so she better enjoy this phase as long as she can.  Actually when I think back to when I was pregnant with your Mommy, I remember being very uncomfortable in the 3rd trimester, but never wished my pregnancy away.  I wanted to soak up every minute of her movements in me. Pregnancy is magical and a true gift from God. Hard to believe that was almost 23 years ago.....seems like yesterday!

One thing Mommy has noticed is her first appearance of varicose veins on the bend of her knee (back of leg). She is sad about this, but  truly it is unavoidable....  As the pregnancy progresses, there's increasing pressure on the veins in her legs; higher progesterone levels, which may cause the walls of the veins to relax, can make the problem worse. Mommy is more likely to get varicose veins if other family members have them.....Guess what?....I have them and so does Great Grandma Martin!  I wouldn't be surprised if they get worse with each successive pregnancy and as Mommy ages. Hereditary genes STINK!  To help prevent or minimize the varicose veins, Mommy needs to exercise daily (lightly since she has a partial previa), prop up her feet and legs whenever possible, sleep on her left side, and wear maternity support hose!  HaHa  Now this I have to see!

Mommy may also notice so-called spider veins (a group of tiny blood vessels near the surface of your skin), particularly on her ankles, legs, or face. They may have a spider- or sunburst-like pattern with little branches radiating out from the center, they may look like the branches of a tree, or they may be a group of separate thin lines with no particular pattern. Though they may be a bit unsightly, spider veins don't cause discomfort and usually disappear after delivery.....Sadly mine did not!  :-(

On a happier note....Mommy and Daddy will have their Child Birth class on Saturday.....I wonder how Daddy will handle the birthing video, let alone the real thing!  HAHA....  Also....8 more days until Mommy and Daddy get to see you on the next ultrasound!  Prayers that the placenta has migrated off the cervix.  So far it's been 2.5 months with no blood from the previa!

Love you,
Grandma Dason