26 weeks--lovely lettuce

Along: 26w1d
Size of baby: Sweet Pea is the size of a head of lettuce. And I read that my uterus is growing to the size of a basketball. Fantastic.
Total Weight Gain/Loss: 14-15 lbs so far
Maternity Clothes: Large t-shirts feel wonderfully roomy. Half-panel pants are a thing of the past-they press on my lower belly and hurt when I sit for too long. Bring on the dresses!
Gender: It's a girl! Cara Beth Connell
Movement: I'm going to echo last week's sentiments. All. The. Time. And I love it. I hung out with Amanda this week, and she got to feel kicks! We were watching SYTYCD (yay!) and had just eaten dinner. Cara likes to wiggle most around 7:30-8:30, and so Amanda put her hand on my belly and pretty soon her hand jumped! So fun! She also likes to move first thing in the morning and right before bed (probably has to do with me lying flat), so Chance and I really enjoy watching and feeling her flutter then. When she does kicks and jabs, it's a giant reminder that a PERSON is inside of me, and it's so awesome to think that way. We're kind of able to communicate by me pressing and her kicking, and me talking to her. What a bond we're developing!
What I miss: Walking quickly and normally. I'm starting the beginnings of the pregnancy walk. It's not a "waddle" so much, but I just move slower and differently than I used to. My center of gravity is different and it's hard to be fast. :) It takes longer to get up from sitting or roll over in bed, and I just feel wider because of the growing belly. Weird transition time.
Cravings: Strawberry Yoplait Greek yogurt, milk, chicken noodle soup, 7-11 Slurpees this week
Symptoms: Feeling tired and hot, hard to move, getting up at night more. It's only in the low 90s this week, but it feels so HOT. I shudder to think what summer (and our electricity bill) will look like...
Best moment of the week: Giving my kids their TAKS scores and teaching my last Friday until October! 87% of my kiddos passed TAKS, and several of them for the first time. Sounds weird out of context, but these are proud moments. I had one boy last year who was one of my favorites, and he BARELY failed last year and was so disappointed. This year, he passed his 11th grade test, and I got to tell him his good news. I got teary in the hallway seeing his huge grin and hugs of excitement. I don't get tons of those gratifying moments in person, and this ranks up there. I'm so excited and in disbelief that the year is wrapping up. Seems like I was just announcing my pregnancy to them at 12 weeks and now I'm saying goodbye and telling people that I hope I see them on the first day of school. I may not get that far!
Looking forward to: Our 4th anniversary trip/mini babymoon this weekend. Our anniversary is May 31, and we have Memorial Day off, so we're going to Ft. Worth for the weekend. We booked a nice hotel (Omni Ft. Worth) and meal (Bob's Steak & Chop House), I get a massage at the hotel spa, and we planned a whole day to lounge in the hotel. Plus, we can watch Baylor baseball from our hotel room (Wife of the Year, right here). I'm so ready for rest and celebration!
One last thing: Sweet Poe turns 8 tomorrow, and I'm feeling guilty for leaving him at the vet on his birthday. Of course he doesn't know any different, but I'm having twinges of "mommy" guilt. Hope the ladies at the vet love on him extra special tomorrow. I told Chance tonight that I missed the little guy roaming the house and sleeping at my feet, and then I asked if it will be a million times worse to miss our baby girl when we're apart from her. The answer is undoubtedly yes. :) Still, happy birthday, Poe!