22 Weeks

Total Weight Gain: I haven't weighed this week. 

Size of Baby: Sweet Baby James is the size of a spaghetti squash. 

Maternity Clothes: Yep, most of the time. Still wearing some regular shirts and flowy dresses.

Sleep: It's been better this week!

Movement: I'm feeling it everyday and it's wonderful! A couple days ago I was eating chips and salsa and it felt like the baby was doing flips! Then a few minutes later, Cam was talking to me about work stuff and baby boy was flipping again! So we know he definitely likes Mexican food and the sound of his Daddy's voice! 

Cravings/Aversions: Chips and salsa (see above!) and pickles! I am such a pregnant cliche! ;)

What I Miss: I would love a nice, cold Mexican beer. What's funny about this is I hardly ever drink beer normally. I'm not even a big drinker in general, but I guess having these babies and breastfeeding said babies has made me crave the one thing I can't have! 

Gender: Our sweet little guy...James Strutton Todd!

Mood: Pretty good. If I'm being completely honest, a tad overwhelmed. Going through the closet in the baby's room and trying to figure out where to put all our stuff is overwhelming me a bit. Yes, I'm aware that this is a very first world problem! That closet was packed from floor to ceiling though! I'm a bit of a secret emotional hoarder...I keep stuff boxed up and never even look at it, but when I do eventually go through it, I have a hard time parting with stuff. Cam is the same way...we're funny like that. Also, Claire's starting to show us a little preview of the infamous two year old behavior...she's thrown fits before, but I think we're seeing the beginning of a whole new phase of it. I know we'll get more comfortable with how to deal with it, but right now it makes me feel a little powerless. She's still the sweetest little thing ever...so much so that I feel guilty even mentioning her behavior! 

Symptoms/Medical Concerns: Feeling really tired in the afternoons, much more so than a few weeks ago. Between 1-5 pm, I feel like someone has removed all the energy from my body. I'm also having some minor nosebleeding...I remember this happening right around the same time with Claire. 

And this isn't really pregnancy related, but it's worth noting. To make a very long story short, my sister and dad recently discovered they're carriers of a genetic mutation for a disease called hemochromatosis. I got tested last week and found out yesterday that I'm also a carrier. Hemochromatosis can cause your body to absorb too much iron, which can lead to different health problems, many of them involving the liver. Since we're only carriers and not what doctors refer to as "affected", we don't have the disease itself--although it's something that has to be monitored because with age/certain exacerbating factors, carriers can sometimes have elevated iron levels. Thankfully there's an easy fix: you do phlebotomy treatments to basically draw blood to remove the iron from your body. My dad is not at a point where he has to do that yet. My sister, being a childhood cancer survivor who had many blood transfusions that would cause anyone to have elevated iron levels, does have to do phlebotomy treatments. I will have my iron levels checked at my next appointment with Dr. Orth. It's unlikely my levels will be elevated. Women are actually at an advantage here: having babies, breastfeeding, and periods cause you to naturally shed iron. 

On my end, the next step will be getting Cam tested. While unlikely, if Cam is a carrier there's a chance Claire and James could actually have hemochromatosis, not just be carriers. If he's not affected or a carrier, there's a 50% chance our kids could be carriers like me. I hate that there's a chance my babies will ever have to concern themselves with this, but they're actually at a huge advantage since we would know from such a young age that we need to be aware of this and monitor it. Doctors call this the "good news disease" because there is an easy solution. The danger is for people who go their whole lives without knowing and then develop problems because of long-term iron overload. In fact, since this is coming from my dad's side, we suspect my grandfather may have been affected, not just a carrier. This could explain how he developed the liver cancer "of unknown origin" that took his life. Makes me sad. :(

Whew, that was a lot! As they say, it's always something. From broken ankles to freaky placentas and genetic mutations...we always keep it interesting! In all seriousness, we are all generally healthy and for that we are so thankful.

Best Moment this Week: Just feeling little Jamesie move around a lot! If he's anything like his sister, he will be a mover and a shaker from the get-go! Can't wait to see his sweet and precious face in just 4 months!!! 

What I'm Looking Forward to: Going crib shopping this week!