Six and a half months now and I'm still loving being pregnant. And I'm definitely starting to feel more pregnant. Until now I've felt bigger but usually I still felt like myself and my size didn't impede my normal movements. That's changing. In just the past week my belly has become much more noticeable to me (and maybe to others!). As in, it's in the way when I bend over, I have to use some extra oomph to get up off the couch or ground, and it's big enough that I'm finding myself rubbing it mindlessly all the time. I haven't had any strangers touch my belly yet but I'm thinking that it's bound to happen soon. I don't think I'll mind too much but we'll see.

26 weeks in, here's how everything's going right now:

Food. With the holidays I definitely let myself indulge in richer foods and sweets. I'm looking forward to getting back to my usual healthy eating this week. I'm still conscious of eating plenty of protein; hard-boiled eggs and Greek yogurt are my friends. Also trying to make sure I'm eating leafy green vegetables which have never been my favorite. I haven't been much hungrier than I was before pregnancy although my appetite might be picking up more. Or maybe it's just been all the delicious holiday food. I'm not sure if it's really a craving but I'm finding myself drawn to fruit desserts and fruity candies (like jelly beans) more whereas usually my opinion is that dessert without chocolate is just dumb. Still loving citrus fruit too and can knock out a bag of navel oranges in a week on my own.

Exercise. Staying active although not in a consistent schedule the way I'm used to, which is what I'd prefer. Chris and I went on a couple of short runs (2 miles) during the holidays, I went to spin class, and lifted weights twice. I'm using the 7.5 lbs free weights for arm exercises and also do lunges and crunches on an exercise ball. Over the past two weeks I've started to notice differences when I exercise. I feel like I can't push myself as hard and I've taken my spin workouts down another notch. Plus there's that belly to contend with. While exercising I focus on consistent, deep breathing, which I hope will help during labor! With my belly starting to feel bigger I'm thinking that I might try to keep up jogging for another few weeks only if it continues to feel good. Otherwise I'm going to start taking long walks, which I've been loving, and just keep up with spin and prenatal yoga and start swimming laps.

Sleep. Sleeping well most nights. Although a kicking baby, congestion, heart burn, and acid reflux have all contributed to middle-of-the-night tossing and turning.

Baby. Over the past week the baby seems to have taken his activity to a new level and there have been some days where I've felt him move almost all day. On Christmas day my mother-in-law, niece, nephew, and sister-in-law were all able to feel him move, it was so special. The baby's movements are much more than kicks and my stomach moves like it's possessed (which I guess it kind of is!). If I lay on my back we can feel exactly where he's hanging out because we can feel a hard area on my stomach. It's so weird that he's just right there.

Getting ready. Turning the calendar to 2013 feels like we're getting the signal that we're entering the home stretch of the pregnancy. I've got things that I want to get done every month from here through March. But I'm optimistic and still feel like we have plenty of time to get it all done and I'm happy with the progress that we're making. The nursery is coming along, Chris and I have been working to organize our now combined office, and we've started to receive gifts for the baby. We recently toured one day care that I loved and think it would be an absolutely wonderful place for our son. It's actually a family-run daycare and preschool owned by our neighbor four houses down! We'll tour one or more places so that we have comparisons but I feel good knowing there's a great (and pretty affordable) option for us.

My next update will mark the beginning of the third trimester, as in the LAST trimester. Whoa!