From 40% to, um, 60%?

Week 12: I tried to put my hands on my hips, but I didn't have any hips! (Actually, I guess the hips are still there, but the waist has somehow disappeared.) I have correspondingly few pairs of pants I can still get into -- starting to rely on the first pair of maternity pants (although a couple of looser-waisted regular pants stil in rotation)...

Week 13: The feeling that I'm starting to get a little higher ratio of brain to stomach -- not a huge change, but a little bit more energy (very welcome) at least -- like I'm maybe approaching 60% of my usual "presence." Still a screwed up set of drives on other fronts, however.

Weeks 13-14: We went on a vacation in North Carolina (the wrong direction to head in August, but circumstances came together...). The heat is really terrible -- completely draining, so that I'm only good for short bursts of activity per day. We spend part of our time in the Smoky Mountains, with the unenviable task of tracking down hikes that have no or very little elevation gain -- even though I'm getting a little energy back, any kind of climb completely kicks my butt. And, of course, the car is packed tight with an array of snacks, from the healthful to the otherwise.

Starting to get the full array of other pregnancy side-effects now: have to piddle before and after every small outing (and snack in-between), and flip-flop through the campground at least a couple times in the night. I've also left my regular pants behind in favor of last-minute purchases of maternity shorts and cropped pants. In fact, I've had to replace my regular underwear with a maternity sort, which have very little waistband (which otherwise cuts) and are generally stretchy and forgiving. Who even knew there were such things?!