1. My new metabolism. I've been eating like a horse (a very bad horse, I might add) and am still shocked to find that my weight gain is at the low end of acceptable. On a piggish day, I'll eat a bowl of Frosted Mini Wheats for breakfast, a grilled cheese sandwich for a mid-morning snack, a sandwich, fruit, and a sugary drink like Gatorade for lunch, a chocolate milkshake for an afternoon snack (it helps quell the heartburn), pizza and Diet Coke for dinner, and either a 16 oz Jamba Juice smoothie or a small bowl of chocolate ice cream for dessert. Before pregnancy, I'd gain weight just by thinking about eating this stuff. Wouldn't it be nice if pregnancy permanently altered my metabolism?

2. The magical disappearance of my hypoglycemia. I can eat somewhat normally now without experiencing horrific blood sugar swings. For example, I can eat a milkshake or a candy bar (!) on an empty stomach without ill effects. I'm guessing the small amount of protein and the large amount of fat stabilize the blood sugar. The only thing I can't eat on an empty stomach is a pure carbohydrate like Saltine crackers. If I do, an hour later I will be dizzy, angry, and disoriented.

So there you have it. Oh, and the other thing I'm absolutely thrilled about (but am not sure if it's attributed to pregnancy or all the acupuncture treatments) is that I haven't had a single UTI since last June! Considering I used to get them 4-5 times/year, this is a huge victory. All the reference materials I've read say that pregnant women are very prone to UTIs, so I'm incredibly happy that I haven't had to deal with one in a long time.

I had my obstetrician appointment this morning. This was the first weekly appointment and the first time the OB did an internal check for dilation and effacement. No change.

Baby's still head down. Phew!

I asked her to clarify the "big baby" comment she made two weeks ago. She said, "Well, I guesstimated that the baby was 7 lbs last week." My eyes bulged as I asked her how much larger he could get in the next month. She said 1 lb. Then she said, "Of course, I'm only guessing. But I know for a fact that you're not going to have a tiny baby."

I can accept the idea of birthing a baby in the 8 lb range. After all, that's considered a normal birth weight. 9 lbs or above is what I'd call a "big" baby. I must admit, though, that I was hoping for a small baby in the 6 lb range.....

In the meantime, I'm getting a kick out of envisioning a chunky Scruff.