26 Weeks...27 Weeks...28 Weeks...

First, a few pictures to get caught up to date...

~ 27 weeks, 5 days...by my birthday magnolia tree

~ 28 weeks, 2 days...in the backyard this morning, after hanging a load of laundry on the clothesline

~ completely unprompted, David came over to be in the picture (which Josiah was taking) and gave his littlest sibling a kiss...I know this is often a posed shot in a maternity shoot, but this one really wasn't!  :)

~ then David wanted to take a picture, so Josiah handed the camera off to him and came over to be with me and give our baby a little love...I love my sweet boys!

Someday when this newest child of mine grows up and becomes a parent, he/she might just ask, "Mom, when you were pregnant with me, did you have...?"  So, to someday satisfy his/her curiosity, let me record the answers now before I forget!  :)

Heartburn? - occasionally...I do have my nightstand stocked with a bottle of Tums, but I haven't been forced to use them on a regular basis...I "never" have heartburn when I'm not pregnant, so even the slight amount I have these days is definitely a pregnancy thing; but it's not a major discomfort, just a minor inconvenience

Braxton Hicks contractions? - not very often--yet...I expected to have them a whole lot more than I've experienced so far...of course, I realize that I'm just now entering my third trimester and the number of contractions might escalate dramatically in the coming weeks, so it's too early to say that this won't be an issue during this pregnancy...but so far, they haven't been noticeable at all

Back pain? - a little...I've reached the point where I get out of bed stiff and sore, despite the great maternity pillow my sister-in-law is letting me borrow...no matter what, it takes a little while for the kinks to work out of my back, which is no fun when I need to hurriedly go to David and comfort him in the night when he awakes from a bad dream (this happened two nights ago) or when I need to bend over Tobin's crib in the morning to get him out of bed and carry him downstairs for breakfast or when I awake and need to get to the bathroom RIGHT NOW...but overall, even the back pain hasn't been significant...if I could have about 5 minutes of time when I wake up to stretch and ease the pain out, it would be nicer; but I don't seem to wake up 5 minutes before I need to actually get out of bed!  :)

Pressure on the bladder, resulting in the above-mentioned "need to get to the bathroom RIGHT NOW?" - Yes!...I am definitely reaching the stage of the baby's position affecting my bladder...I can go from "no, I don't need to make a bathroom stop" to "oh my goodness, I've got to find a bathroom!" in less than 60 seconds...fortunately, sometimes Baby shifts again, off my bladder, and then I can once again take my time in finding a bathroom...this is just one of those silly, but very real, parts of pregnancy, I guess

Here are a few more questions this baby might someday ask:

Where did you feel me move most often? - With this one, I'd have to say the right side of my belly.  That's where I remember feeling Josiah the most, especially towards the end when he stretched his little legs up and kicked my ribs mercilessly.  :)  With David, there was a spot just to the left and above of my navel; and he put his little foot there and pushed until I was quite sore.  I can't remember so much with Tobin, but this little one must have hands and feet on my right side because that is where I feel the most movement.

What did it feel like when I moved? - So far, the movement has been mostly gentle, almost like an internal massage, someone kneading my insides.  However, the most recent sensation is that of convulsions.  Several times recently, as I've been sitting somewhere (like in our church service yesterday morning), this baby has been so active that I feel like an earthquake is happening inside me.  The oddest thing is that at times, he/she will kick or punch so strongly that I will almost feel like it makes my whole body lurch; and I'll look around, expecting everyone to be looking at me strangely, wondering why I can't seem to keep my body in one place on the pew.  But no one seems to notice!  How can they not, when it seems to me that my entire being is jerking in response to the jabs of this little one?  :)

Did you think I was a boy or a girl? - To be honest, I went back and forth so many times on this question that I never did get a deep sense of what--or who--you are!  At times, something would prompt my thoughts to move more in the girl direction (like the whole apples with peanut butter idea!); but before too long, something else would happen to make my thoughts shift towards a boy.  For example, the day after I wrote about apples with peanut butter, I had an appointment with the midwife (Ann, this time); and when she checked the heartbeat, it was in the 130s, which is low = typical boy range.  After that, I was (and am, as I write this) pretty convinced that the baby is a boy...which is wonderful, except that it means that Jeff and I REALLY have to decide on a boy name.  We had decided, but I've waffled a little, primarily because the name we chose is SO different.  Of course, that's true of my name as well; and I don't mind a bit the fact that I've always needed to correct people on the spelling and pronunciation of my name, as well as giving a 3 minute speech on the history of my name to every new person I meet!  I truly love my name and wouldn't want it to be anything else.  But will our son feel that way if we give him such an unusual one?  When I think about more common names, however (even common ones that I like), I just feel like, "Ugh.  Blah.  I want our son's name to be more distinctive than that!"  Even Josiah, when we said, "Do you like ---- (the original name) or ------ (a new name we were discussing)?" answered that he liked the original name best.  So back and forth we go, but I always keep coming back to this name we had chosen.  And that, in and of itself, is very significant...which doesn't make a bit of sense until you know the name and the meaning.  ;)

I don't know what else this baby might someday ask me, but let me jot down just a few more things before I wrap this up.  At my last appointment, I got to drink the lovely orange drink and do the glucose test, which I passed with flying colors.  I also did well on the hemoglobin (I think that's what it was) test, and I stayed so distracted talking to the lady who drew my blood that I didn't even mind the process.  My blood pressure was good, although I didn't write the numbers down so I can't remember what they were exactly; and my weight had jumped up about 7 pounds or so (I think it was 167.5), but Ann assured me that it was actually a good thing because I hadn't gained much weight previously and this stage of pregnancy is often accompanied by a significant weight gain because the baby is putting on more weight, too.  I love those midwives!  ;)

One thing made me a little emotional this week.  (What?  Just one thing??)  I washed my four maternity sweaters and got them ready to put away until...well, until when?  I had to wonder, "Will I ever use them again?"  If not, I'm sure I'll be able to pass them along to some other pregnant woman which will be fun to do; but the thought of maybe never wearing them again is bittersweet.

Ah, I thought of another question this baby might ask years down the road:

Did you love me even before I was born?  Were you so happy to be pregnant with me? - Yes, my little love.  Absolutely!  The love I have for you is beyond words.  Someday, my dear one, if you are blessed with a child of your own, you too will understand how deep the love of a parent is, even for an unborn child.  There are no words...