The Expectant Blogger
Week 17: 'Who ate all the pies?'

Our blooming blogger talks us through the weekly ups and downs of a first-time pregnancy.

I woke up on Monday morning put on my regular work trousers to find that I could not get the hook and eye to do up this was not just a little growth. The gap was two inches wide (it was as if I had really overdone the eating at the weekend).

Even though I knew this was going to happen it felt weird, as over the past few months nothing has really changed in that department. I had planned for this situation in advance and had bought a 'Belly belt combo kit' – it is so useful as they are designed for all different trousers, it also means you can keep wearing your regular trousers for a good while longer. This was something a friend recommended to me. I bought it from www.bumpto3.com but most online stores sell them.

Maternity clothes are now firmly on my ‘to buy’ list due to the fact now none of my trousers fit and my top half is getting bigger. I'm also going on holiday, and my bikinis really do not look the same. Having tried on one of my normal ones I felt more like Jordan (before her reduction op) than my usual self. I am going to have a look in online at Bloomingmarvellous.com which a friend recommended.

The subject of food and drink is something no pregnant woman can steer away from during this time. I'm mostly ravenous - but having asid that, this week I have been feeling full after a big meal and can go without eating for hours. This is not good so I am trying not to overdo it (according to the experts it's because our digestive systems get sluggish). I am eating my five a day fruit but I do need to up my intake on vegetables. Normally I make home cooked dinners all the time (my choice as I love to cook, and I like to eat!) but for the past three to four weeks I really can't be bothered. Now my husband's noticed all the ready meals which means he's stepping up to the challenge of cooking - which is good practice for taking on the role of head chef which he'll have to do in the first few weeks of Bean's arrival.

That fluttering feeling
I sat for about 2 hours on a car journey and I got my first fluttering, it was a feeling I loved and it went on for about 1 or 2 minutes. When I referred to one of my book’s it said you might feel them, between now and 22 weeks (it is more usual for second time mothers, I am a first time mother to be just for the record). Some of the books say to check with the midwife as you might have an earlier due date. So much advice on offer, some of it confusing and contradicting I have decided to wait until my next appointment and discuss it then.

Keeping fit with Tommy
I've been trying to exercise and on Sunday when I was at home chilling, I did a pre-natal Yoga DVD, and I really enjoyed it. I haven't really done much Yoga before, but they do say it is good for you during pregnancy and it strengthens your muscles ready for labour. I actually found it quite relaxing and that I was getting something out of it. The one I am using is Pre-natal Yoga with Shivea Rea - it's good for me but I am not expert in the Yoga department so you might want to look around.

One of my pals, Tommy, is a personal trainer, and I asked him for his advice on what exercise I can do during pregnancy. He has given me a list of things I could do three times per week for about 20-30 minutes. He knows what he's talking about. The company he works for, Optimal Life Fitness are responsible for getting Geri Halliwell back into shape after childbirth. I've already asked him to book me in when the time comes!

Exercise of the week from Tommy (remember to check with your GP if you are not used to exercising).

Static Exercises
Resting on your hands and knees keep a neutral spine throughout, raise one arm out in front of you, and then return repeating 10 times, then go to the other arm. Once you have done both arms, do the same with both legs, straightening the leg out behind you, contracting your glutes muscle as you do.
You can make this harder by raising the opposite hand and leg at the same time.
The aim in this exercise is to maintain tension in your trunk and abdominal area and to keep your weight equal on all points on the floor, without moving your hips.

I am losing my marbles...
This week I have been quite forgetful. I was walking in town with my husband the other day, on a street I've been down hundreds of times when I suddenly lost my bearings and couldn't work out how to get to where we were going! R looked at me like I was a crazy person.
It's happened a few times in the the last couple of weeks. I was in a meeting at work the other day, and I was about to make a very valid point (I think), but when I came to speak it went clean out of my mind - it took about two hours for it to come back to me.

Other news
This week my pregnant friend (in the office) and I have discussed:
Her experience of breast leakage, and how the first time it happened for her it freaked her out. As for me I have noticed my gums getting thicker in texture and a little more sensitive.

I'm waiting for my blood test results to come back from the clinic - apparently it's a good thing if they are late - or so my midwife says, so I'm just going to take her word on it. I don't have any more visits to the clinic now until after my holiday. I can't wait to go back in for my twenty-week scan because I think Bean will just look so different and I am sure I will be amazed. This is the week where we may or may not find out if Bean is a boy or a girl.

As the weather is so horrid, I'm even more excited about going on holiday. It's less than a week before we go and I just can't wait to chill out and relax. This is also the last proper holiday as ‘a couple’ for a good few years. It's family holidays all the way after this. That thought doen't scare me at all I'm really looking forward to it. But that said, I'm going to make the most of this holiday and pamper myself, enjoy some good food, and enjoy some 'us' time - I want to make it as romantic as possible.

• Read more from our Expectant Blogger here
  
• Exercise during pregnancy
  
  
• Mambers' tips - maternity wear