In the past week, I've come to the realization that I have definitely entered Act 3 of this whole pregnancy thing.   Here's how I figured it out:

Clue 1:  Ever since Month 7, and therefore Trimester 3 rolled around, I've noticed a marked decrease in my energy level again.  I'm starting to crash out on the couch earlier and earlier these days, much to Dave's dismay as I now take up much more room on said couch.  And walking the stairs at work is getting slower and slower and causing ever-increasing amounts of unseemly gasping and wheezing upon arrival to my destination.

Clue 2:  I've noticed a wee bit of nausea creeping back into the mix.  It's been pretty here-one-minute-gone-the-next so far, and I'm hoping it stays that way, since it's really hard to have a nice pregnancy glow when all you want to do is yak.

Clue 3:  As noted before, I run into things with alarming frequency.  Poor Baby Horne is in for a rough ride, I fear.

Clue 4:  Usually one to roll with the punches (mostly, anyway), I've found my patience to be in shorter and shorter supply these days.  People can be darn aggravating when you're pregant, so I've discovered!

Clue 5:  Perhaps the worst sign of all...my Cankles have made their grand appearance again.  Oh, for shame.  It happened once before when I flew home to Delaware for Christmas and got really swollen, but this is above and beyond.  Last week, when I was consistently on my feet for two days in a row, I didn't even recognize my legs at the end of the day!  They looked like elephant legs, seriously. No ankles at all and even the top of my feet got puffy.  And to think I still have over two months of this left!

Clue 6:  This is definitely the happiest clue...Baby Horne is really moving these days, defnitely making him or herself known.  It's getting more fun to look down at any given moment and feel the baby rolling or seeing my belly move this way and that.  So very cool for this mommy-to-be. 

So my belly hurts.  Really pretty sore.  Why, you ask?  Well, it seems that my general lack of spatial awareness has progressed into a marked lack of belly awareness, and I keep running into things - baby first.  Yesterday I ran into the handle of a wheelchair at work.  Today I clocked my belly when I opened a door.  Just now I ran into the corner of the back of my chair.  I swear this kid is going to come out all black and blue if I keep this up!  I'm actually pretty sure I accidentally jammed baby in the head, or the butt, yesterday with the wheelchair, as it happened precisely where some round appendage was jutting out a little farther than the rest.  Sigh. 

I guess this means I must be growing, as this never seemed to happen before.  Actually more people are coming up to me these days going "Oh, look at your cute belly!" so I must definitely be getting more prominent.  And I noticed my work uniform shirt is getting obnoxiously tight and short, so starting next week I get to wear normal clothes and a lab coat instead.  This pregnancy thing has its plusses indeed.

...Chop!  Wiggle wiggle punch!  That's what the doctor heard on Monday when I went in for my latest checkup (28 weeks).  He asked if Baby H. had been moving around a lot, to which I answered in the affirmative, and I do believe Baby set out to prove me right.  It was pretty cute actually.  Every time Dr. James tried to measure the heartbeat, the baby gave the monitor a swift kick, which actually came out pretty loud in Utero Land.  Eventually Baby settled down though, revealing a heart rate of 160 bpm.  I don't know why the heart rate fascinates me so, but it does.  I continue to measure pretty textbook too, coming in at exactly 28 weeks.  I'm still holding on strong to the notion that the baby will stay content to swim around for another 12 weeks or so before making its appearance, though I know of course the baby will make its grand entrance whenever it's good and ready.  Still, 12 more weeks would allow me to get so much farther along in preparing the house!  Despite our best efforts to prepare, both Dave and I are busier than ever these days, not leaving much time for baby prep.  We are, however, fabulous at getting things ready in the 11th hour, owing to our long-standing procrastinatory natures, so I have every confidence that we shall prevail!

And now for the weekly baby produce update...

In a fitting move for St. Patrick's day, Baby H. weighs about 2.5 pounds by now, which according to my baby update makes him/her the size of a cabbage!  I figure the baby will likely come out the size of a Leprachaun or so, so that works, don't you think?

So week 27 was a rough one for me.  I started out at the dentist Monday morning- yuck- had a cavity filled and noticed that the Novocaine took an extra long time to wear off.  This of course was extra fun at work later - it's strange to assess people for a facial droop when you have one yourself!  But c'est la vie.  Then, I noticed an awful sinus pressure which progressed into either wicked allergies or a horrible cold or both.  By week's end I felt totally awful, just in time to coincide with our trip to California for Landon's birthday (I can't believe he's already 3!).   But, I souped myself up on all the cold meds allowed for Preggos (which is a very short list, I might add) and I did start to feel better toward the end of our trip.  Of course, I was also much helped out by being able to see my family and spend time with The Cutest Nephew on Earth.  I've settled into just a head cold by now which is a vast step up, and I'll take it.  The real kicker is that my doctor told me that pregnant women tend to hang on to cold much longer than normal folks.  Drat. 

In happier news, Landon was adorable in his enthusiasm about Baby Horne.  When we first pulled up, he ran out of the house and shouted "BABY!!" in sheer excitement.  He was pretty fascinated by Aunt Jenny's large belly and kept patting it.  Of course his most frequent question was: "Where's the baby come out?" (the answer to which I sagely decided to leave up to his parents!) and I purposely misunderstood him every time and answered when - on its birthday of course!  Later on, he took a long hard look at my belly and decided - smartly, might I add - that the baby would definitely be coming out of my belly button!  And what's his name for the baby?  "Night Light Friend".  Hmm, we'll have to think on that one. 

Ooh, and in real baby name news, with all the time on our long car drive we were finally able to settle on a few names which we really like.  We have two boy and two girl names picked out, middle names too, and will just have to see what Baby H. comes out looking like.  We're planning on keeping it a secret though, since we don't have a definite name yet, so feel free to guess but we won't be sharing names quite yet!