Week 25 Official Pregnancy stuff

The structures of the spine begin to form -- joints, ligaments and rings. These will protect the all important spinal cord which serves as the information transmitter for your child's body. Blood vessels of the lungs develop. Your baby's nostrils begin to open . There is a study out of Belfast that suggests babies at this stage have the capability of scent preferences! The nerves around the mouth and lip area are showing more sensitivity now. When baby is rooting for food later on, these will be valuable! His swallowing reflexes are developing. Dexterity is improving . Your baby can make a fist and would clasp objects placed in palm. Mommy is experiencing the onset of third trimester symptoms like backache, fallen arches, Itching, headaches, stretch marks ..... the list goes on. I have found my skin and chest feels really stretched. Abdominal skin is being drawn taut so I have invested in some really nice bath products. They also recommend massaging your belly with olive oil to help alleviate the itching but I still prefer the cocoa butter. By now my heart and lungs are doing 50 per cent more work and the increased blood supply can cause hot and sweaty flushes so the bath remedies are great !

Baby measures about 13.6 inches (34.6cm) and weighs 1.46 pound (660g)

Pregnancy Symptoms & what to do ?

Heartburn
The muscle at the top of the stomach is stuck open - its those pregnancy hormones again. Instead of the acid staying in your stomach where its supposed to it all rises up and gives terrific heartburn and acid indigestion. Its worse at night when you lie down to sleep.
What to do ? - Eat small frequent meals avoiding spicy foods. Drink milk or water to soothe and calm it down. A nice warm milk drink at bedtime helps me. Alternatively living with a small supply of Calcium Carbonate tablets - Rapeze, Rennie being the best ones does help. Check the packs most even say for use with indigestion during pregnancy !

 

Swollen hands, feet and ankles. caused by extra fluid in your system.
What to do? - Well its simple rest and put your feet up ! Drink plenty of water to flush fluid through the system. Avoid tight fitting shoes and take your rings off. Well I am in flat sensible shoes anyway and have porky pig finger syndrome so no rings for me. Apparently you need to watch for face swelling and headaches as its possibly a sign of pre-eclampsia.

 

Wednesday 26th October 2005 - Brain disconnected by hormones

Apparently its common to feel off balance and clumsy from now on as my centre of gravity continues to shift. Since my brain has definitely been disconnected by my hormones I cant say I have noticed any over clumsiness apart from the fact that I occasionally forget the bump is there & misjudge the gaps I can make it through. good job baby 'genghis' has lots of padding ! Went into Worcester for a spot of shopping and lunch with mum. We had a lovely lunch at one of our favourite places - Saffron's. We both had the sweet potato soup (less the stilton because its on the not allowed by pregnant women list) with chips ! Yum. We also looked at some lovely kids toys and clothes in M&S. Later one we went through some more old photographs. This photo is one that I have in a frame in my room. Its Mum, Dad and I at a wedding. Mum wore a funky hot pants suit with zigzag pattern tights - very early 70's.

Sunday 30th October 2005 - Family time and the invasion of the 'Mongol Hordes'.

Lovely Week at home. Lunch with Mum in worcester on wednesday. Worcester city has changed quite a bit since I was a teenager. I used to work in Top Shop on the high street then Debenhams but now its all pedestrianised and new arcades and shops all over the place. Much nicer really. We had lunch at Saffron's our favourite place which was really nice. The following day (Thursday) i went back to worcester for a proper shopping trip, scout about all the shops with Liz & baby Hope. That was great fun as we visited some cool baby clothes shops and ooh'd over some gorgeous outfits. Liz is great to shop with. Girl after my own heart when it comes to shopping ! Worcester city has just been awarded a safe shopper award & you can even get maps of the shopping area which show all the facilities - like baby changing ! Once again had lazy weekend - recovering from pulling a stomach muscle so just bobbed about in pool watched TV, did some reading then arranged for car to go to manchester for new brakes etc all round. While we waited for car to be picked up Dad treated mum & I to dinner at the Malvern Hills Hotel on the British Camp. Food was excellent !

Baby is kicking me like mad ! I almost feel like he is practicing kick boxing inside my belly. Apparently this is normal. He is actually practicing all kinds of movements that will eventually be used in life on the outside - including pedaling against my belly, a sort of pre walking skill. As baby's nervous system develops, the movements will become much more coordinated and much stronger - more powerful.and occasionally, even painful. Its the invasion of the mongol hordes. Dad was right 'Genghis' is a great nickname !

Genghis Khan was actually a title it means 'Universal Leader'. The man we know of as Genghis Khan real name was ' Temüjin'. He became Khan over various clans as a teenager and had a reputation as a formidable warrior and often cruel man. In fact the Mongols did not torture, mutilate or maim unlike their European opponents. Genghis Khan was also reputed to be very tall, strong and extremely handsome. Though a ferocious and cruel fighter, Genghis Khan was a wise ruler and encouraged literacy among his peoples. He had great respect for women, he out ruled the kidnapping of women, declared all children legitimate and ruled that no women be sold into marriage. When he died at 65 his empire stretched from the the Caspian Sea to Beijing and included the old empire of Persia, China and Russia. In terms of square miles conquered, Genghis Khan had been the greatest conqueror of all time - his empire four times larger than the empire of Alexander the Great. The Mongol nation believed that he had been the greatest man of all time and a man sent from heaven. Among the Mongols he was known as the Holy Warrior. [Read info here] Not a bad nickname to have at all!

Week 26 Official Pregnancy stuff

Fetal brain scans show response to touch at 26 weeks. If you shine a light on your abdomen, your baby will turn his head, which according to researchers, means his optic nerve is working. Things like your heartbeat, digestion, and other body functions are heard by the baby as well as external noises. Now you may feel the baby jump at a sudden noise. When the door bell goes I get kicked. At this stage many of the discomforts of pregnancy, like leg cramps, continue and even get worse, others are supposed to subside, like the mood swings. Not so sure about that I can still cry at a bad weather report never mind something really sad. Do not try jumping a queue or try challenging a pregnant women unless you want to see pregnant mood swings in full force.

Baby may weigh about two pounds now (average is 1.7 pound, 760gm) and is 14 inches (35.6cm) in length