Halfway there!

Today I am officially 20 weeks pregnant, thus marking the halfway point of the pregnancy. Now that we know the baby is a boy and have hit the 20-week mark, the screws are beginning to tighten. We need to prepare Charlie Jo's "big girl" room, start collecting masculine and gender-neutral infant clothes, and PICK A NAME! I'm afraid we still haven't hit on the right one.

I am really starting to show, and luckily I'm getting past that point where it just looks like I had a big lunch, have bad posture, and need to quit eating so much ice cream. I'm filling out maternity clothes and starting to groan a lot when I stand up. I'm going to need to stop carrying CJ around so much, because her squirmy 23 or 24 pound bulk is starting to get a little difficult to manage. She also doesn't understand the concept that her baby brother is inside of me. I'm going to need to tape a drawing of a baby to my tummy and remind her to be "GENTLE!" when we're playing. Otherwise, I'm going to need to design a suit of armor to protect the little guy.

When people told me the second pregnancy could be very different from the first one, they weren't kidding! I haven't had any heartburn yet (by this time with CJ, I was gulping Tums like they were going out of style), I have had more nausea (which seems to be continuing in the form of car sickness -- nothing like yakking by the side of a mountain road in front of your parents, daughter, and husband), and I don't have the time or luxury of obsessing over every tiny ache or pain (or the baby's tiny kicks). I practically forget I'm pregnant sometimes, in sharp contrast to spending every waking thought contemplating the meaning of my pregnancy (as I did with CJ). This time I recognize the Braxton-Hicks contractions and shrug off other twinges that used to send me running to my pregnancy "bible" (What to Expect When You're Expecting) for reassurance.

We've got 20 weeks, and then ready or not, here he comes!