The Hals Family World Adventures: 22 Weeks! Road Tripping through SC and Heading Home

Week 22 -- November 7 - 13

So reality check - at 22 weeks my baby maker has stretched to size of an oblong soccer ball and contains a footlong banana who weighs about a pound. So...Baby Hals and her kingdom are starting to take up quite a bit of room. And the things that are usually in my tummy are starting to have considerably less room. The most random and consistently awkward moment of my day? When I have to tied my sneakers. ...Folding over to do so squishes my belly which compresses my lungs which makes me feel all crazy out of breath...to put on my sneakers. Hahahaha. I laugh at myself every time. So ridiculous!

I spent the first portion of my 22nd week in South Carolina visiting with family and friends. Thursday morning I drove to Furman and enjoyed a quick walk around campus to soak in the fall foliage, caught up with former Ed professors (and was honestly super relieved that my year of transition didn't seem like a crazy professional decision to them...or if they thought it was they didn't say it), and then headed to Spartanburg to pick up my mom for window shopping. More specifically baby window shopping! The day before Daniel's mom and I had gone to a store in downtown Columbia that got me day dreaming about all wood nursery furniture. This time my mom and I really just wanted to look through Babys R Us to check out some different options. I had looked at things online, but had yet to really check them out in a store. We had a lot of fun - my mom was amazed at how much some of the things have changed in the past twenty-five years. I also finally got to convince my parents of the yumminess of Outback and we had a great meal catching up.

There's a spot at Furman by lakeside housing full of trees that all turn yellow and it is one of my favorite places ever! :)

I couldn't help it! Baby Hals in the tummy visiting Furman's beautiful fall

The row of trees by the South housing fields and university center parking lot - another favorite fall stretch!

So pretty!

Fall at Furman

Highlights from the rest of the weekend included getting to see Stephanie dance at the Chapin High School football game (she's part of the dance team) - she really has that charismatic "it factor" on the field and it was fun to finally get to see her in action! Michael also asked me if I would go with him to see 12 Years a Slave with him for extra credit for his APUS history course and along with seeing a fantastic, gripping film, I really enjoyed the insightful conversations we had afterward. He's always been the biggest history fan in the family and it has been fun to get to chat with him as journeys through the AP history curriculum.

Me and Stephanie at the football game - isn't she gorgeous?

I did have a moment as I was getting ready for the football game...it was pretty chilly so we were layering up and I pulled out my leather jacket and realized not only was the first button tight (let alone the other buttons) but my belly was kinda sticking out of the jacket. What?! When did that happen? Again, couldn't help but laugh! This jacket is usually so big on me around the waist!

Daniel had told me to get a massage while he was in the Maldives, so I finally indulged on Sunday and really enjoyed it! The next day Chance and I had our big nine and a half hour haul back from Columbia, SC to Columbia, MD and had a nice, simple, non eventful drive. At 9.5 hours it was a grueling one, but it went really well. I had downloaded another book through audible and really enjoyed finishing The Book Thief and starting Sycamore Row. By the time I got home, I had successfully conquered my 1300 mile road trip, picked up dinner at a pizza/Greek place down the street and found they actually do make tasty gyros, unpacked, and squeezed in an hour or so of down time before heading to the airport at midnight to pick up Daniel! The downside to driving 9.5 hours? For several days I felt like I had been majorly beaten up and my lower back was really bothering me - I had a moment where I thought oh no! The lower back pain can't be starting up this intensely now! I have a ways to go! But luckily after a few days it went away - I think it was all from the drive.

Tuesday night I fell asleep smiling - Daniel was back and as I settled in to sleep the baby started kicking quite hard - and when I would nudge the baby back, Baby Hals responded with another kick! It went on for a good ten or fifteen minutes and I fell asleep with the biggest grin you can imagine on my face.

Wednesday I had my monthly checkup and Baby Hals was doing just great! My baby maker was measuring to size, blood pressure was great, all was good! I had a bit of a moment when I stepped on the scale - I seem to have had a growth spurt between 19-23 weeks and had gained more than a pound a week, but the doctor looked up my overall gain and said things were really just fine. I'll take it! But yikes! I'm not gonna lie, I came home and tried on my pre-pregnancy jeans and when those still fit over my hips (okay, they don't button - but hello - soccer ball in my belly) I breathed a huge sigh of relief. I've said it already, but I'll say it again - you know you're supposed to gradually gain weight and get bigger, but it's still tricky to accept as you steadily become bigger than you've ever been! (Especially if you had just spent the previous years losing 20+ pounds and keeping it off). But the bump? Doing my absolute best to embrace it! :)