Bare Belly

Some of you have been asking for pictures of my bare belly and in every single pregnancy book I read, they say it's a good thing to take at least one picture of the naked belly before giving birth - for future memories. While some people have no problem whatsoever to expose and show their bumps with pride and excitement, I actually feel a bit embarrassed and in all honesty, I don't really like all the bad things that happen to a pregnant woman's belly. I realise the bump may be cute the first three/four months but then I hate the stretching skin, the blue veins, the linea nigra, and worst of all the deformed belly button. So, it took some time and strong convincing before I felt comfortable enough to take a picture of my bare naked bump. Not even Rob is allowed to see my belly that much these days, this shows how much I love you. I took the picture myself using the vertical mirror in the closet; it's the best I can do, so please don't ask for more :)

I am in the middle of week 32, only 8 to go, and officially in month 8. Pregnancy is a quite long process, nine months are a long time for a woman to go through all this, don't you think? And every week brings something new. The first four months for me were all about exhaustion and nausea and vomit. Then it was mostly tiredness and adjustment to the new weight and shape of my body. The level of energy is definitely much lower than its usual self and with time I had to learn to accept my new limits. I need to rest every time I feel down, put my feet up and make sure my back is in a comfortable position. However, despite all this, I have come to realise that a woman is meant to do this, we are able to deal with all the things that pregnancy brings along the way. And in the end, it hasn't been too bad so far, I really cannot, and do not want to complain. 

Apart from the obvious gain weight, my body isn't really too different. I have a round belly which I don't usual have, of course, and much fuller legs. I am looking forward to having my waist and skinny legs back, I must say. With time though, I'll be patient. Feet, arms, hands, face, hair...everything looks the same-ish, otherwise. I haven't got stretch marks, at least not yet (fingers crossed!!) and I can still wear some of my normal clothes. I can walk and run a few errands. Of course I am rather slow and it takes me some time to get to the tube station, work or the grocery store, but I eventually get to my final destination. I can still sleep ok, both on my back and my side and I enjoy eating. Lately, I have been suffering a little bit from nausea again, but nothing drastic and definitely not as bad as the first months. 

Now I am looking forward to going to Pescara for a few days and spend some time at home with my family and friends. I have a few things planned already: my cousin's wedding, my first baby shower, my early birthday celebrations, so I really hope to be able to go. I have a doctor appointment on Monday and then a midwife appointment on Tuesday, where they will have to assess that I am fit to fly. Legally, you are not allowed to fly after week 36 but from week 28 you need a special letter from your doctor to show to the airline crew. Let's hope everything goes well. I am only a bit concerned about the insane heat wave that is affecting Italy at the moment. I have been quite lucky here in London since the temperatures have never gone higher than 28 degrees, with an average of 20-21 degrees. Currently in Pescara there are about 38 degrees. Worst scenario I will be lying in bed with the air conditioning on all time! And if people want to see me, they will have to come visit me.

Anniversary Celebrations

So we have come to the end of our two-day anniversary celebrations. 

Day 1 started with a nice homemade breakfast and ended with an evening out in Theatreland, in the West End. It's not that easy to dress up with an expanding bump, but I tried to wear something nice for the occasion anyway.

It's not proper Summer weather in London at the moment but the temperatures are just perfect for me, not too high and definitely not low either. It's nice not to wear a jacket but at the same time it's great not to be sweating all the time. 

As you can see, the bump is regularly growing. I am at the end of week 31 now, only nine weeks to go (or less!). I am getting every day slower and slower but I can't complain, things are still going pretty smooth.

At 6.30pm our car arrived and we were driven to the Royal Drury Lane Theatre to see Shrek The Musical.

Unfortunately, the musical wasn't great. I don't think I disliked it as much as Rob but I was certainly disappointed. The good things about the movies are the wittiness and the songs, both these things were taken away in the musical. I don't quite understand why but all the songs were new and specifically written for the musical. Why would you do that when the soundtrack of the movies is so good and entertaining? This is a mystery to me. Anyway, the story is still sweet and we enjoyed an evening out in bustling London. It was crazy busy on a Monday night and it took us forever to get back home, I have never seen so much traffic in London. I wonder how it is going to be in a month time for the Olympics!

Day 2 was perfect. Rob came home from work and surprised me with a colourful bunch of gerberas. Aren't they lovely? I told him he has won the *best husband of the year* prize :)
He has done so much for this anniversary and I am very grateful.

For the evening's dinner Rob picked Gaucho, here at the Tower Bridge. We love this restaurant and their meat is just delicious. I loved this choice for many reasons: it's very close to our flat, the ambiance of the restaurant is very cool and the food is to die for.
Here is a picture of me and the bump a few minutes before leaving the flat.

I really enjoyed the short walk to the restaurant and Gaucho certainly didn't disappoint. We started with non-alcoholic drinks and appetisers; it was so weird to be drinking a non-alcoholic Mojito but let me tell you, it was sooooo good! Rob opted for a *fake* Pina Colada instead.

And then the amazing meat, all the iron I needed for the day.

We ended the meal with a super yummy dessert: I had the best white chocolate and yogurt mousse I have ever had with a nice and refreshing mango and coconut sauce. I didn't even have the time to take a picture, I just ate it and loved it!

So this is it, our first wedding anniversary has come to an end. I had a great time. One year down, the rest of our lives to go...

29 Weeks

Today I am 29 weeks pregnant. I have got 11 weeks to go, unless baby O decided to come early, or late. Things have been quite smooth and apart from the usual exhaustion and the occasional backache, I can't really complain. It's very helpful that I can work from home, I could never imagine facing the tube and the London crowds every day to and from the office, and sitting at my desk for seven, eight hours straight would just kill me. At home I can wear comfortable clothes every day, I can rest my feet and legs every time I need to, I can walk on the balcony if I need some fresh air and I am in control of what I eat. For this I will never thank enough my boss and colleagues! 

I had a midwife appointment yesterday and everything seems to be going well, both mummy and baby are in good shape. My iron level was a tiny bit low last time we checked, so they decided to take another blood test to see how things are doing. In the meantime I have been trying to increase the number and type of foods rich in iron since I cannot take iron tablets, they make me sick. All the other usual checks were otherwise fine: urine, blood pressure, measurements, baby heart beat. All in order. Baby O has been moving like crazy lately, I hope she will calm down when she is out! But it's nice to feel her constantly, it's still kind of crazy to think that there is something *alive* inside my belly. 

And here is a little update on the bump:

As you can see, it keeps growing. Thankfully, it still doesn't weight too much and I can carry it fine. I haven't put on any extra weight since last time I updated you, so for now I am still seven kilos over my pre-pregnancy weight, which is quite good at this stage. Fingers crossed things won't degenerate!

I am still able to wear my normal clothes, of course not everything, but I haven't had to buy many maternity clothes for now. Leggings and dresses are the most comfortable fit at the moment and I try to do my best to rotate the few things I have that still fit me. Jeans and trousers of course must be maternity though, like the ones I am wearing here, and even those are not super comfortable.

Otherwise, I have still got a good month at work before I officially go on maternity leave, and two months and a half before my due date. I am hoping and looking forward to going to Italy in a few weeks for some relaxation at the beach, my cousin's wedding and long chats with my friends. 

For now I just keep enjoying the pregnancy as much as possible and of course am waiting for the day!

Honey, does my bump look big in this?

I have just got back from an all-day workshop and am exhausted. Let me just say that with this heat we were in a room with no windows and a very poor functioning air conditioning. Everybody was suffering but I suppose things are worse for a pregnant lady. Anyway, I toughened up and thankfully got to the end of the day in one piece

What I loved about the workshop was all the attention by bump got. At lunch and tea breaks we were all talking about babies and being pregnant. One common comment from the attendees was: "Wow, your bump is very big!" Now, as soon as I got home I decided to take a picture (Rob is not in town so I had to use Photo Booth, hence the poor quality) so that you can judge. I think this bump is literally growing day by day. I am now 27 weeks pregnant and officially in month 7; and for the curious ones, I have put on 7 kilos. What do you think? Does my bump look very big? Too big even? 

By the way, this is not a maternity dress, so I am thinking: if I can still fit into this dress, which I have bought years ago and wore it so many times in my skinny days, I am still fine, right? :) 

And for those of you who are not on Facebook and therefore haven't seen these pictures already, here are two pictures I had fun taking. I needed some fun activities after a long day in a boiling hot cage, you see!

Catching Up with the Bump: Weeks 21-24

Last time you saw a picture of me and my bump was back in week 20 when I was in Italy for a lovely Easter break and threw an Afternoon Tea with my girlfriends. I apologise for not adding new pics of the bump, you have been asking for updates on a regular basis, and I am sorry it took so long to finally publish some. Rob has been traveling for work quite a lot lately, which means I haven't had a photographer in house handy. I was getting impatient myself, though, so a couple of days ago I used the wonderful online photo booth at La Photocabine to take some shots of the growing belly. The pictures are not amazing, it would be better to see me standing to have a proper look, but they give you an idea of the current state of the bump.

So, what have I been up to? To begin with, apart from being constantly tired and sleepy, I do feel much better than the first four months. I am in the middle of month six now (3 months and a half to go!) and can't complain. Life has been a bit hectic but nice. I had friends and relatives visiting and keeping me active, I did a bit of shopping and eating out as well, which I hadn't done in a while (well, I have done plenty of online shopping, but you know what I mean!). I have also started cooking again and tasting food properly; up until a few weeks ago everything tasted like iron to me. I still don't excercise much, but that's ok, I have never really been that active in this department :) I still walk to work, however, even if I try to use the tube a little bit more these days. And speaking of the tube, people do give up their seats for me these days, which is nice and much needed! 

What else? I gained more weight, almost five kilos now! I don't have cravings and the only annoying symptom I have is a bit of heartburn now and then. No swollen feet nor hands yet; the English weather is proving to be useful here! I am sure that if I was in Pescara with all the heat and humidity I would have gigantic feet and wouldn't be able to keep my engagement and wedding rings on! Thankfully no stretch marks so far. 

I still sleep kind of ok, I try to sleep on my left side as recommended but most of the times I end up being on my back, my absolutely favourite sleeping position ever. I do have a bit of back pain but that's to be expected. 

Next week is a big week for us. We have a couple of doctor appointments, a generic one with my GP just to check that everything is going well and the baby is growing ok. I must say, she moves a lot these days, sometimes she hurts me too, but it's so sweet to feel her and see my belly move! Also, we finally have our 4D scan which we are very excited about! It will be a bit freaky to see Baby O in 4D, I think, but lovely at the same time. And I can't wait to see her moving in there one more time! So check out for updates next week as there will be some good ones (I hope!).

One final thing: thanks ever so much to all of you for all the support and kind words, you are the best!

Spring Has Sprung

We have been having amazing weather here in London, I love Spring, but this is not really what I am referring to in the title of this post. 

Week 17 has brought a little bit of a bump explosion, at least that's how it feels to me. You the judge:

And I am slowly starting to feel better and therefore more energetic. Today I got in the mail the prenatal fitness DVD that I ordered on Amazon and that my good friend Steph highly recommend. Perhaps I can give it a try this weekend together with some long strolls at the park! I will let you know how it goes...

And a bit more...

People have been asking for new pictures of the bump. I didn't realise how attractive a pregnant woman's bump can be! Anyway, I am happy to oblige. I must say, my little bump is still quite little and doesn't grow as fast as you people would like. However, you can definitely start to see something. My tummy is no longer flat, if it has ever been.

You also tell me that the shape of my bump will help you *determine* whether I am expecting a girl or a boy...so here are two very recent pictures. What do you think?

Vale 16+2 (front)

Vale 16+2 (side)

Make sure you vote, time is ticking :)

COS is the word!

After getting a bit frustrated with maternity clothes and panicking on what I will be wearing in the upcoming months, I have finally realised that I don't in fact need to look for maternity clothes, or at least I don't need to limit myself to the boring and dull maternity clothes available in shops these days.

As I am slowly starting to feel a bit better, last Saturday I ventured a shopping trip to Covent Garden with my friend Ilaria. We mostly did some window shopping but then we stumbled across COS and I decided to give it a try. With its Marni style cuts (at a much lower price!), there were quite a few things I could try on and I even ended up buying two dresses: a half-knitted half-silk navy midi dress and a knitted blue and white dress. There were many other things I could have bought but I want to wait for my bump to expand a bit more to make sure that I will indeed be able to fit in these lovely dresses.

The following items are on my wish list at the moment:

I actually tried this on and loved it. However, I tried the Medium and it was a bit too big. They didn't have a Small. But I will go back! And who knows, maybe I will need a M in a few weeks....

It looks like I may be wearing a lot of navy stuff!

And these are some of the looks I may still be able to rock, even with a bigger bump! Thank you COS!

To be continued....